Chapter 1448: 1446: Book of Dead Spirit

Chapter 1448: Chapter 1446: Book of Dead Spirit

“This is the bottom layer of Yaddith.

The Black Forest we lived in has been temporarily transferred here due to some special reasons.

The forest’s size and the number of progeny have significantly diminished… ‘Mother’ resides in the deepest part of it.”

“Sally, the Black Goat’s power behind you should be quite formidable, right? I’ve seen common Black Goat progeny in the forests surrounding London—they possess physical strength and traits far surpassing those of the same rank.

Did something happen?”

“During the ‘World Cataclysm’ that erupted in ancient times, ‘Mother’ was jointly suppressed by several upper beings. One of them specifically targeted her fertility traits, leaving her gravely wounded.

Moreover, the border region managed by Mother suffered massive destruction.

Ultimately, over half of the Black Forest territory, along with an essence taken from Mother’s body, was sacrificed to seal the breach.

For a thousand years after the disaster, Mother has been languishing in a dire ‘semi-exiled state’ and has struggled to intervene in matters of reality.

The ‘transfer of Yaddith’ stems from arrangements made in the Void, where Pope’s mentor extended a helping hand.

He ordered the Giant Devouring Worms inhabiting Yaddith to vacate the spacious inner layers and provide refuge for the displaced population.”

After listening, Han Dong fell deep into thought.

“I see… But is it really okay for me to meet her? After all, the ‘World Cataclysm’ was primarily caused by humanity. Won’t my identity trigger unpleasant memories for her?”

“No, it won’t. Though Mother doesn’t have the best temperament, your identity, Nicholas, is different. There won’t be any issues.

When we first stepped onto Yaddith, ‘Mother’ already became aware of everything about you. Since she hasn’t displayed any hostility, it means she doesn’t mind your identity.

Hurry… Even at full speed, it will take a whole day just to reach Mother.”

“That long?”

“Yes, Yaddith’s scale is approximately thirteen times that of Earth.

Essentially, it’s an independent celestial body occupied by Giant Devouring Worms. Over generations, as these worms die, their corpses fuse into Yaddith itself, continually enlarging the planet.

About 80% of the upper layer consists of cave structures formed from the corpses of Giant Devouring Worms.

The bottom layer where we currently are is a blend of the cavities of a Mythical Worm and natural caves. Later, ‘Mother’ transformed it into a temporary base for our race, relocating the remnants of the Black Forest here.”

Mid-explanation, Sally switched into “Travel Mode.”

Her lower body evolved fully into a goat’s structure (similar to a centaur), now sporting a goat-like torso and four sturdy goat’s hooves, while her upper body remained unchanged. This form allowed for high-speed movement and marathon-level endurance.

A faint blush surfaced beneath her veil as she asked an intimate question.

“Hmm~ Nicholas, you must have expended quite a bit of energy during the London games, right? How about resting on my back for a while…”

However.

Just as Sally posed the offer, the air began to carry an alien scent of blood.

When she bashfully looked upward, Han Dong was already riding on a Bloodhound’s back. The blood had even manifested a saddle and reins for him (the reins, made of vascular constructs, connected Han Dong to the Count’s body for seamless control).

“Ah? No need for that… My stamina has already mostly recovered. Let’s move forward.”

“Oh~”

They tread through the soft, tunnel-like paths teeming with the aura of fertility.

Roots resembling a mix of tree structures and blood vessels spread across the corridors,

forming monstrous trees composed of ‘black-skinned women’ tightly clustered together.

These living trees could morph based on the type of male available, developing corresponding female traits with the aim of extracting nourishment from the counterpart.

The deeper they ventured, the more expansive the space became.

Even villages occasionally emerged, inhabited by creatures wearing goat masks, which at times morphed into terrifying Black Goat progeny.

When Sally passed by, the villagers knelt down submissively.

Yet, when they spotted the male figure beside her, their bloated bodies began to exude copious fluids from their internal cavities.

Additionally, as Han Dong lingered in the area for extended periods, it seemed that the Black Forest itself grew increasingly ‘excited.’

Due to various restrictions associated with the forest’s limited territory,

the Black Goat progeny living here were subjected to controls akin to ‘family planning.’ They could no longer reproduce with wanton abandon, and Yaddith strictly regulated the arrival of male entities.

This explained why the arrival of a single male like Han Dong would evoke such resonance within the forest.

“Nicholas, don’t mind them…”

“I understand.

By the way, Sally, tell me more about the Book of Dead Spirit. During the award ceremony, everyone seemed to give me strange looks when they found out I’d be rewarded with the book in the future.

Compared to Pope and Eugenes, many other demons simply looked at me with envy or greed. Is there something unusual about this book?”

“Ah~ I almost forgot.

Ahem, ahem… Let me start by explaining the origins of this book.”

“The Book of Dead Spirit,” unlike other Grimoires, is viewed by us demons as both the supreme grimoire and an immense threat.

Its origins are debated: some say it is as ancient as the universe itself, a companion to the cosmos from its inception, recording the darkest and most chaotic knowledge.

Another theory posits that the book was forged by the Demon Ancestor, none other than Green’s ‘Father,’ a being revered as the core of primal chaos. To stabilize himself, this supreme entity sealed his dark, chaotic, and insane aspects within the book, creating the Book of Dead Spirit.

Aware of its dangers,

the Old Kings of ancient times divided the book according to the structure of a human body and scattered its pieces in different corners of the world as part of “rule-based fragmentation.”

However.

Even while sealed in remote corners of the world, the Book of Dead Spirit began to leak steadily over time.

At some unknown point, tales of the book began circulating among demons. It was even proclaimed as “the greatest grimoire,” with various seductive rumors rooted deeply in demons’ minds.

For example, the knowledge contained in the book could directly alter the essence of an individual, enabling even the lowest demon to transform into one resembling an Old King’s bloodline.

Or, the book’s contents could help demons effortlessly achieve Ancestor Return and godhood, and even claims that fusion with its pages could lead to instant kingship spread like wildfire.

This sparked a frenzied book-search across the cosmos. Demons formed small teams to locate the scattered remnants of the Book of Dead Spirit.

It was during this period that a world-altering event, the [Dead Spirit Incident], occurred.

While searching for the book, demon minds were infiltrated and eroded by its influence. The closer they got to the resting sites of the pages, the stronger the infiltration became.

Despite not possessing the power to enter the Forbidden Lands containing the book, many demons had already received its ‘blessings’ in their dreams, unknowingly granted forbidden secret methods.

When a Book Seeker perished in traps set within the forbidden zones, the taboo powers rooted in their minds would instantly activate, transforming them into exceedingly dangerous dead spirits determined to seize the pages at all costs.

This caused massive casualties among demons while also resulting in the recovery of several pages of the book—among which was the eye part you trained for, Nicholas.

Even during the peak of the Dead Spirit Incident, several Old Kings fell prey to its allure.

Although the Dead Spirit Incident was eventually suppressed by Upper Old Kings working in unison, the lingering effects permeating the world remain difficult to erase.

To prevent similar events from recurring, the Old Kings fragmented the Book of Dead Spirit further into ‘remnant pages’ and sealed them away with land deeds. Some of the most dangerous pages were hurled into temporal rifts and entirely forgotten.

Still, I find it odd.

Why would something so dangerous be given to you as a reward?

However… considering your unique identity, Nicholas, perhaps you truly might be able to gradually master this terrifying grimoire.”