Netherworld Retrograde

Chapter 239: Chapter 112: Oracle

Endless slaughter and wailing turned the sky blood red.

Humans and the Insect Swarm fiercely battled amidst the ruins.

When ammunition ran out and Spiritual Energy was depleted, humans and the Insect Swarm engaged in a gory hand-to-hand combat.

They fought savagely and ferociously, intertwining, embracing, tearing and biting, driving weapons or sharp claws into each other’s hearts. And if limbs were severed, they would still open their mouths wide to viciously bite off a chunk of flesh from the other’s body.

Even in death, their corpses were not parted.

When the last warrior embraced the glory of battle and perished alongside the enemy, all that followed was silence.

At last, the great master within the Disaster Fog made its appearance. It let out a world-piercing scream from the depths of the fog.

And in the shattered and silent cities, only mountains of corpses prevailed.

Humanity had lost; the Catastrophe Fog Master would devour everything!

Li Yelai saw relatives and friends in the mountains of corpses, Li Yunyan, Cheese, Doll, Yang Chen... as well as every person he knew. He also saw human warriors and civilians whom he had once crossed paths with.

They... were all dead!

Endless pain and rage engulfed Li Yelai in despair.

He struggled to open his mouth to respond to the deceased, to call out to his friends and kin, but found himself unable to move an inch or make a sound. Silently and powerlessly, he watched as the Catastrophe Fog Master approached from the depths of the fog.

And at that moment, droplets of blood fell from the mountains of corpses, gathering into pools and finally forming a Blood River, flowing between the ruins.

Streams of the Blood River converged before Li Yelai, wrapping around him and lifting him high into the air.

Meanwhile, outside the blood-red sky, an enormous figure that could obscure the sun appeared, sitting upon a throne, clad in blood-red Battle Armor, its form seeming to merge with the sky.

It extended its arm, piercing the sky, as if in response to Li Yelai, who was drawing ever closer.

It seemed that by accepting Its power, one could annihilate the Catastrophe Fog Master. One could avenge friends and kin!

This was Its divine gift, the boon known as Ascend Demon!

Countless Ravings arose within the mountains of corpses.

”Come, accept it.”

”For two million kin! Revenge!”

”Their sacrifice will be the stairway to your pinnacle!”

”Ascend, mortal!”

”Devote yourself to our lord, embrace the glory of battle!”

”Accept this gift, decapitate it!”

”Blood Sacrifice to the Blood God, Skull Offering to the Skull!”

”Blood Sacrifice to the Blood God, Skull Offering to the Skull!”

Countless corpses chanted in unison, their voices echoing through the Void Realm, beyond the Disaster Fog!

Li Yelai, swept up by the Blood River toward the throne, found his hands instinctively reaching out, as if he was about to accept the power!

And then...

Li Yelai was violently awoken by pain.

The stab wound in his palm abruptly pulled him back from the nightmare to reality.

Looking at his bandaged hands lifted towards an unfamiliar ceiling, Li Yelai’s consciousness gradually returned.

It appeared he was in a sickbay of some large shelter.

Everything just now was a dream, or perhaps... an oracle?

Could it be that asking for power from the Heart of Slaughter had drawn Its attention?

Could it really be that efficacious? To come as soon as called upon?

No, wait, Cheese...

Li Yelai immediately got out of bed; his last memory was of the Epidemic Doctor Captain rushing over. He had no idea about Cheese’s condition, only knowing that the Epidemic Doctor Captain was quite adept at snatching souls from King Yan.

Li Yelai endured the pain in his arms and palms, took off his sick gown, and put on the thick coat hanging on the wall.

As soon as he opened the door, he saw a medical staff member standing stunned outside.

After a brief shock, the staffer called out with joy into the corridor: ”Night General, he’s awake!”

Li Yelai quickly inquired, ”How is Cheese’s injury?”

”Cheese?” The medical staffer recalled for a moment, then replied, ”She woke up two days before you, with no danger to her life.”

This information allowed Li Yelai’s heart to ease. At the time, Cheese’s neck had been bleeding profusely, and both her trachea and blood vessels had been punctured by sharp teeth, which had terrified Li Yelai.

Upon hearing that Cheese was stable, Li Yelai’s heart finally settled.

Subsequently, Li Yelai asked, ”She woke up two days before me? Then, how long have I been unconscious?”

”After you were brought back to the shelter, you’ve been unconscious for three days,” the medical staffer responded. ”The main reason was the total depletion of your Spiritual Energy and the overwhelming burden on the Soul Well, which put you into a deep sleep. Now that you’re awake, there shouldn’t be any issues. However, your elbow is fractured, and your palm is pierced. Even as a robust Spiritual Ability User, it’ll take some time for you to recover.”

Li Yelai silently nodded, looking at his thoroughly bandaged arm.

A through-and-through wound, with bone damage, and he had insisted on using it afterwards; it wouldn’t heal too quickly.

”Comrade Night General, you should rest here for a while; you’re injured, so there shouldn’t be any missions assigned to you,” the medical staff advised. ”Your friends will probably come see you soon.”

There was a certain smile on the staffer’s face.

After all, there were quite a few people who frequently came to visit Li Yelai, including two girls.

Li Yelai nodded.

Then, Li Yelai sat in the room, beginning to analyze what he had been through.

The recent nightmare appeared to be an oracle, some kind of hint or choice given by the Blood God?

Sigh... It now seemed that he really shouldn’t have asked the Blood God for help at that time.

Great, he had been targeted.

”Blood Sacrifice to the Blood God, Skull Offering to the Skull Throne...” That Blood God seemed to be one of the Chaos Five Gods. But Li Yelai had no access to more information.