The Demon’s Menu

Horizontal Slash?!

He was startled at first, then his face filled with astonishment and anger.

You deceive a deity!

How could such a sword strike be merely a Horizontal Slash!

But he couldn’t utter more words, for the form he had ’descended’ in was already thoroughly shattered and no longer sufficient to sustain his existence.

However, before returning, he glared at Avent.

I will come back!

Wait for me!

His gaze carried such a message.

It was that he really would do so.

Avent, wearing a mask, calmly met the other’s gaze.

Snap!

Amid the sound of shattering porcelain, the papal retainer’s body was completely pulverized, scattering not blood but rather powder-like crystals all over the place.

The sanctified white disappeared outright.

Droplets of crimson once more settled into the skeletons on the ground.

Only a slight twisted aura began to rise slowly.

Avent ’looked’ at this twisted aura, once again took a slow breath, as slow as before.

Then...

The long sword was drawn from its sheath!

Clang!

A flash of sword light.

The long sword returned to its sheath.

That little twist of aura instantly dissipated.

He had threatened him.

How could he let his adversary leave easily.

"Mortal!"

"You dare to slay a deity!"

"Do you have any idea what you’ve done?"

Within the dissipating aura, a voice boomed like thunder, echoing in Avent’s mind, while simultaneously, a towering figure began to manifest in Avent’s mental space.

He looked down upon Avent.

"You had a chance to live."

"But now?"

"You truly are on a path to your own death!"

With that, the giant reached out his hand and grabbed for Avent.

That palm covered the sky in Avent’s sight, a destructive aura pressing down on him.

"Do you really think you can slay a god?"

"We have long become beings beyond your understanding."

"In our eyes... you are less than ants."

Boom!

With such pronouncement, the giant’s hand fiercely pressed down.

The earth shook, one might even say heaven and earth were crumbling.

Avent was gone.

The giant could confirm this.

Therefore, he was all the more disdainful.

"Although I lost a little, obtaining such a powerful body is quite good. It’s much stronger than the previous ’vessel.’ Next, it will be time to collect more sacrifices..."

The giant muttered to himself.

But his voice abruptly stopped.

For a sharp presence was concentrating before him.

In the next moment, Avent appeared.

Avent, without the owl mask, looked as though he had an epiphany.

"This is your power?"

"Interesting."

He said so, raising his right hand, his middle and index fingers straight, his ring and pinky fingers tucked inward, his thumb pressed against the first joint of his ring finger before he thrust it straight out.

It didn’t seem special.

The giant felt no threat.

Then, the giant shattered once again.

Just as the previous Horizontal Slash.

This time it was—

"Straight thrust?"

He faltered as he asked.

"No."

Avent shook his head, curiosity appeared on his face, waiting for Avent’s response, but Avent spoke unhurriedly, "This is: Swordfinger. Straight Thrust."

The giant’s eyes widened in anger as he looked at Avent.

He felt insulted.

He instinctively wanted to roar in fury.

But then...

Snap!

He shattered.

Unlike the previous shattering, this time everything he had entered this place with had shattered.

"’Deity’?"

"How are you different from those who let greed blind them?"

"Even more so..."

"Pathetic."

With those words, Avent’s consciousness returned to his body.

There was no joy or excitement behind his mask.

Seemingly, slaying a deity was commonplace for him.

In fact, it was indeed.

He believed his sword could slay mortals, and he believed his sword could slay deities.

Because, in Avent’s eyes, that deity really was not much different from a mortal.

Apart from being stronger, there was no difference.

Moreover, internally even more twisted.

In his inner space, he could clearly feel it, and to confirm this, he even took a hit from his opponent.

Such a strike was enough for Avent to understand what sort of being he was opposing.

Greed to the point of distortion.

No reason, seemingly lucid but actually... a madman.

Completely driven by instinct.

Such beings were indeed terrifying.

Especially when they were in a group.

Involuntarily, Avent lifted his head and looked up at the sky.

There, there were many more of such creatures.

Should he exterminate these creatures once and for all?

If not, being watched by these creatures always felt uncomfortable.

He himself was fine.

But what if they set their sights on Esther? What if Esther and Ms. Jennifer got married and had eleven or twelve children, and they were also targeted? What if they shamelessly disrupted Sizhuo’s peace?

Unacceptable!

I cannot afford such a loss!

I’m not afraid of revenge, but my loved ones cannot manage!

They are too fragile!

So...

I must completely eradicate them!

Otherwise, I won’t be able to sleep or eat in peace!

Thinking this, the face behind Avent’s mask turned serious, his gaze turning sharper, a surge of Sword Intent rising to the sky.

The Sword Intent didn’t dissipate but kept consolidating!

Under the moonlight, this Sword Intent was like a real sword, piercing straight into the sky.

Ah, ah ah!

Screams reverberated beyond the sky.

To ordinary ears, however, this sounded like thunderous rolls.

Several indescribable shadows rapidly vanished beyond the sky.

Avent furrowed his brow. Continue reading stories on empire

His sword strike was effective, but it hadn’t achieved the expected result because… someone had obstructed it.

Avent turned to look at the nearby woods.

An elderly man, hunched over, with graying hair, wearing a white robe, appeared. The man’s steps were very slow, much slower than his youthful appearance would suggest.

Cough, cough.

After taking only a few steps, the man could no longer suppress it and began coughing, bringing forth specks of crimson on his chest.

Then, with a thud, the man fell to the ground.

Even in such a state, he still looked devoutly towards the sky.

"One must not be irreverent to ’Deity’."

"All that we possess is bestowed upon us by ’Deity’."

"We should be grateful."

As he spoke, the man knelt towards the night sky with great reverence.

"Hoson!"

Avent’s voice grew cold.

Hoson, the High Priest of the ’Sanctuary’.

The evaluation of this High Priest by various forces was quite high.

Because most people acknowledged the fact that he had preserved the ’Sanctuary,’ allowing it to continue to exist.

Even, from some perspectives, without Hoson, the ’Sanctuary’ of the new century would not exist.

And Avent had an even more unique understanding of the Hoson before him.

He wouldn’t believe that Hoson was someone who could truly have faith.

Even if he did…

It wouldn’t be in a deity.

And this posture?

It was nothing more than a facade all along.

He had taken a sword strike from him.

His body was already on the verge of shattering.

As for why he would do such a thing?

Avent looked again at the now tranquil night sky, and the sneer on his lips grew even sharper.

"Your appearance, it truly nauseates me," Avent said indifferently.

"Just this makes you nauseous?"

"You haven’t seen the truly nauseating appearance yet."

"Avent, do you want to see it?" Hoson asked with a laugh in response.

"No."

Avent shook his head resolutely.

"You see, you always reject me like this."

"It was that way before."

"It is so now."

"Just… I hope you won’t regret it in the future."

The current High Priest of the ’Sanctuary’ sat on the ground, looking at Avent with a smile on his aged face, as relaxed as if chatting with a friend, his tone light but with an eager edge.

"The future?"

"Are you sure you can see my future?"

"Are you sure that you will still be your true self?"

Avent said with a touch of irony.

"Of course!"

"I’m absolutely positive!"

"Otherwise, why do you think I agreed to Lawrence’s proposal?"

"He wants to take revenge on Edmund."

"And what does that have to do with me?"

"To annihilate Ang City filled with ’heretics’?"

"Hahaha!"

"Stop joking!"

"Ang City is one of the better cities I have seen, and it was the city I once most aspired to live in, ’heretics’?"

"Absurd."

Hoson, the current High Priest, said, uttering words that could overturn the ’Sanctuary.’

His laughter was full of mockery, tinged with scorn.

After about ten seconds, Hoson laughed till he was gasping for air, and only then did the laughter stop.

He touched the soil by his feet, his face carrying a hint of reminiscence.

"He chose to live in seclusion here."

"This soil attracted him."

"Yet in my hands, this soil seems so ordinary."

"Why do you think that is?" Hoson asked Avent.

Avent watched him, and after a few seconds, he revealed a look of contempt.

"You’ll never understand."

"When you sent part of yourself there, you could never understand."

"You just become one of them."

"And then, you become twisted."

Avent declared coldly and firmly.

"There?"

"What’s so bad about it?"

Hoson pointed towards the night sky, then raised his palm a bit higher, making it clear that he was referring to a higher place.

The current High Priest continued to speak.

"I was once devout, believing that a deity is omnipotent, omniscient."

"Until…"

"He appeared!"

"With one punch, he ’ended’ the old age."

"With one punch, he ushered in a new age."

"As the mushroom cloud rose to the heavens, I knew what I had to do."

"He became my goal!"

"But, my Talent was too poor, so poor that I couldn’t even see his silhouette, so… I chose the way that suited me."

"How could I, that me, possibly make such a minor mistake?"

"I’ve been prepared for a long time."

The current High Priest said, standing up.

He leisurely dusted the dirt off his body, then clapped his hands.

Clap, clap.

Amid the crisp sound, a set of walnut furniture appeared.

It consisted of three pieces: a table, a high-backed chair, and an ornately styled office chair.

Hoson sat down in the high-backed chair with practiced ease, picked up the quill pen on the table, and began writing something on what appeared to be parchment.

"Are you sure?"

A distorted, twisted voice came from the office chair.

Hoson laughed.

"Of course."

"Why else would I have rebuilt the ’Sanctuary’?"

"Isn’t it for the sake of a transaction like this?"

"Sacrificing everything I’ve created for the ’Sanctuary,’ which does not include any aspect of ’meto ensure that the ’me’ in that place remains myself!"

Hoson articulated clearly.

"Transaction complete!"

The twisted, distorted voice fell silent.

The entire set of furniture disappeared.

Exhausted, Hoson promptly fell to the ground once again.

He looked up at Avent.

Then, in a lowered voice,

He said in a volume only they could hear—

"How about we make a deal?"

"Uh, as the young people say nowadays, do you need an…"

"Agent?"

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