A Tale of Forgotten Gods

Chapter 81: Self-proclaimed demon lord

Kiyori and Mo Fei stood again, but soon she sensed the presence of a shard coming out of the cave. ”I found it.”

Both of them avoided the geyser and entered the narrow path, leading out of the cave. Returning to the next pathway, they stood at the edge of a village.

Mo Fei’s stomach groaned in hunger, while Kiyori was also empty.

As both entered the village, they found villagers bound in the fight ropes and a few people who wore heavy armor of a kingdom, circled them. Women were standing in a circle near a man, fanning him in the middle of the village.

The man wore a long green kimono with stripes. He had black hair tied on his head like a samurai.

Thock!

He smashed the cup of wine and let out a soft whimper of pleasure. The woman beside him quietly put more wine while others massaged his arms. His eyes were closed until now, then he slowly opened them; they were reptile-like. He shouted at a guard standing near the second circle of women. ”Bring me one.”

The guard pulled one woman and threw her toward the man, and he grabbed her hair and pulled her down on her knees.

His hand moved to her forehead, and slowly a mist emerged, turning the woman skinnier and melting down her body into an acidic liquid. ”Such a delicious taste.

Kiyori pulled out her arrow and launched it toward the man. He reacted quickly, his hand closed around the arrow, but the weapon didn’t stop without cost. His hand exploded and evaporated into smoke without giving him time to process.

Her glare hardened at the man who just killed a human in front of her. ”You are a demon, aren’t you?”

The man stared down at his hand. It twitched slightly before regenerating again. ”Sacred arrow...” He glanced at other guards and said, ”I want her; get that woman.”

Mo Fei stepped forward, pulling his Glaive out. ”Who do you think you are?”

”I rule this place; if you don’t want to die, give me your woman.” The man squinted his eyes at Mo Fei.

”What? Listen here, I don’t know what the hell you rule, but if you don’t move from here, things won’t go smoothly.” He gripped his Glaive tightly.

The guards heard Kiyori’s words and gulped slightly, moving a step backward from the man. ”He is a demon.”

”I knew something was wrong with this guy.” Another whispered.

The man, however, briefly looked at them, and his face twitched; the skin of his face slowly fell, revealing his true face. He had a giant, grotesque bombardier beetle head with a split, insectoid jaw and steam hissing from its neck.

Two massive, compound eyes glinted with a yellow light. Where his mouth should be, jagged, needle-like mandibles clicked together, dripping a yellow fluid that hissed and ate through his fine green kimono. Heavy, smoking vents opened up on the sides of his neck, releasing the pungent, chemical stench of boiling acid.

The women surrounding him ran screaming in fear.

The demon looked at Mo Fei and whispered in a deep, cracked voice like a dried throat. ”You cannot win it; I have devoured the Shikon shard.”

Mo Fei stared at its grotesque face. ”You ate... that thing...”

The demon lunged forward, its sharp claws aimed toward his head. Mo Fei moved his Glaive swiftly, the claws hitting the blade but couldn’t push him back.

Kiyori moved toward the villagers; the guards who were afraid still rushed in front of her. She pulled out an arrow. ”Move.”

The guards pointed their spears and blades toward her. ”What can a weak priestess even do?”

The arrow left the bow, piercing through the air before disappearing in the air instantly. The very next moment, various arrows appeared in the air, aimed directly toward them, but they didn’t pierce them, only passed by a few centimeters. ”Move, or the next arrow will take your heads.” Her glare remained fixated on the guards, who gulped inwardly and slowly backed away.

Kiyori stepped in, her hands closing around the ropes tied to the villagers. With some effort, she snapped the robes and freed the first group. She scanned them before taking a brief glance at Mo Fei, stopping the demon, and then she looked at the villagers and said, ”Free others.”

All of them nodded and rushed in. The guards watched helplessly without moving.

Mo Fei spun his Glaive, pushing himself forward while dodging the back-to-back attacks. Then, the demon spat a mouthful of liquid; he quickly sidestepped, and it fell right into a stone. Within a few seconds, the stone melted.

”That’s disgusting!” Mo Fei quickly jumped back, pushing his one palm on the ground and kicking its chin, then rushed forward with another spin. He slashed down both of its hands and kicked it again on the side of its neck, crashing it down on a house.

The demon slowly stood up, its hands regenerating with a twitch. ”You’re making me sick.” With that, it appeared right next to him. Mo Fei’s Glaive came in defense, but then it launched its hand with a massive crushing speed. The Glaive’s grip almost loosened. Using that distraction, the demon stabbed its claws into his stomach.

”Gasp! Argh.” Mo Fei closed his eyes with a grunt.

Once again, it spat, creating a large bubble of acid and launching it toward him. Just in that moment, Kiyori shot an arrow that reached inside the bubble, creating a barrier instantly. ”Don’t try to break the barrier; that liquid will burn you.” Kiyori shouted at him before turning toward the demon.

It turned toward Kiyori, then looked at the guards. ”What happened to you? Catch her, or else I’ll devour you all by myself.”

The guards surged in fear, but as they got closer to her, she lifted her bow, and with a flick of her bow, all of them were launched backward.

The demon stomped his feet, shaking the ground once before lunging forward. Before it could get closer even slightly, her hands moved swiftly, pulling an arrow out and striking its abdomen where she sensed the presence of the shard.

The hit quickly burst out of its stomach, and the demon stumbled backward. ”Damn you, how are you just a woman?”

Her expression remained cold; the wind shifted into a slow flow. Suddenly, she felt another presence, many shards in one hand. She turned toward the tree line and noticed a figure who disappeared again, as if he were there just to watch.

Slowly, the barrier around Mo Fei weakened further, the wound in his stomach aching as the madness began to catch a glimpse. His consciousness began to fade, yet he tried to keep his mind sane. ”My head...” He squinted his eyes, looking at his Glaive. His head had begun to ache uncontrollably.

The Apprentice’s Eyes opened without his command, his face twisting into the face of a wicked clown. His face changed into thousands of different faces without any control. ”How long will it take for you to eat this corruption?”

”Great Master, the wounds are inviting corruption even more, your mind is not serene.”

”I know, tch.” He murmured. The acid dropped inside the barrier, burning his arm with a mist emerging. His head throbbed as if being hammered. ”I can’t lose myself again.” He gritted his teeth, forcing his mind to forget the pain.

Slowly, his mind lost consciousness; the mad instincts within kicked in. His hand gripped the Glaive tightly.

Kiyori glanced back at the villagers and braced herself. The demon threw the acid toward her, but she quickly pushed herself back and launched another arrow aimed at the black shard again.

Just then, her gaze found Mo Fei. The same corruption had taken control over him. Her expression slightly faltered as she saw the faces warping across his skin: a clown, an old man, a stranger, and many more.

She quickly turned toward the villagers and shouted. ”Run away and hide somewhere.”

Hearing that urgent tone, the villagers quickly rushed behind the walls. The guards remained rooted in one place, watching things unfold.

The barrier around Mo Fei broke, the acid leaking inside, dripping on Mo Fei’s body. He put his one hand on the ground and slowly pushed himself up, the burn meant nothing as a soft smoke emitted from his stomach’s wound, healing it slowly.

The demon looked over its shoulder. Its eyes slightly widened, showing a hint of surprise in its gaze. ”Eheheh, you really think standing like that would let you survive against me.” It let out a cracked chuckle before changing its focus to Mo Fei. ”I’m Kurogane, Lord Kurogane, my poison can melt even the strongest bl—”

It couldn’t finish its words before Mo Fei was upon it. Within a blink, he was standing in front of it. His expression darkened, his eyes glowing faintly with a grey blur.

The demon’s expression faltered as it saw the movement. He wasn’t moving the same; there was no killing intent before, but now... there was an ancient hunger, a menacingly high murderous intent.