The Matchstick Man, his entire body ablaze, floated several kilometers away from Spiral Mountain,
still reeling from the powerful impact of the gunshot, pushed back dozens of meters.
"The Boss has grown much stronger... Even without Arthur, he can still wield the familyâs original power.
This Spiral Mountain ahead is quite bizarre,
the [Demon]âs actions are truly bewildering, to hide itself deep within the mountain using such a complete seal.
Either because its true form is very weak, only skilled in long-distance puppet control,
or because thereâs some secret manipulation to avoid discovery by others."
The Matchstick Man, John, is considered to possess both temper and rationality within the family, yet no matter what, he couldnât imagine,
that among the "Loyalty Above All" Demons, within their own kind living in a separate world, there would exist an extremely dangerous âuncontrolled factorâ that needed to be sealed separately.
"John, hurry over here."
"On my way."
The Matchstick Man drew a fiery line in the air, landing at the shattered "Sealed Entrance."
A series of eerie and mournful sounds were creeping out from the cracked cave,
upon hearing such disturbing noises,
one might even feel a discomfort akin to someone poking their ear with fingers.
"How uncomfortable!"
The Matchstick Man expanded his domain of intense heat, the high temperatures severely distorting the surrounding space, trying to block the disruptive noise.
At the same time, he extended his right arm into the entrance,
thumb and middle finger touching,
snap! A flick of the finger.
A light as bright as the constant star, surged into the dark passage ahead, attempting to incinerate everything inside.
However,
this stellar-level flame didnât last long, quickly extinguished in the passage without a trace of fire remaining.
As if consumed by the passage,
the eerie noise persisted, showing no signs of diminishing, causing the Matchstick Man to step back a pace... his back lightly touching the Bossâs chest.
The Bossâs voice came at the same time:
"It seems this âPuppet Masterâ here isnât easy to deal with,
since itâs aware of our arrival but hasnât fled, it means he has prepared... This sole passage must be set with all sorts of traps.
John, you need to maintain constant contact with me as we delve deeper.
The static noise will be blocked by my domain."
"Family Domain - Day Off"
A special domain of tranquility spread around them, unique to the brothersâ family domain, not conflicting with their respective trait domains.
The Matchstick Man John felt as if he returned to the family mansion, the air filled with a comforting atmosphere, classical music played by gramophones banished the eerie noise entirely.
Simultaneously,
a handgun rested on the Matchstick Manâs shoulder,
employing the same shooting mode that was used to find Spiral Mountainâs hidden entrance, pulling the trigger... a "Tracking Bullet" that can autonomously seek was fired from the gun, searching for the deepest point this cave passage could reach.
However,
one minute, two minutes~ until a full eight minutes passed.
Finally, a response came when the bulletâs energy was nearly exhausted.
The Boss Tomâs eyes widened, never encountering such a prolonged tracking situation,
"So deep? Moreover, this passage has a peculiar âspatial anomalyâ structure, a slight oversight would lead you in large loops, even trapping you forever.
Only at specific times, specific spaces, and with the unique path choice, can one reach the [center] of this Spiral Mountain.
Such intricate space design does not pale in comparison to the B.B.C structure, it seems this Puppet Master holds a high status among the Demons.
Perhaps their true form is not so weak, we are likely to face quite an impressive upper-rank confrontation.
Letâs go, John."
"Understood, Boss."
The Matchstick Man led the way, holding a finger upright, releasing light a hundred times brighter than a torch, illuminating the exceedingly dark cavern.
The Bossâs arm rested on his shoulder throughout, transmitting sound, guiding them, and ensuring he could retrieve the third brother into his body during dangerous moments.
Oddly enough, they didnât encounter any traps along the way, nor did hidden puppets launch ambushes.
The only discomfort was the eerie noise pervading the cave passages that intensified as they delved deeper, even beginning to infiltrate the Bossâs family domain.
It felt as though several grotesque, twisted, vertically-mouthed guests had come home, screaming madly by their ears.
Additionally,
the structure of the passage changed as they ventured deeper,
from initial rock layers to a manmade stone-paved passage.
The walls were mixed with unfamiliar starlight fragments and had strange, twisted patterns seemingly like language-type seals,
capable of greatly suppressing the emission of âsoundâ.
Soon, a pitch-black chasm appeared at the end of the floor.
After checking for danger with a match toss and bullet fire, the brothers jumped in together... sliding down a filtered slide.
They landed steadily in a pitch-black, intricate passage exuding an ancient aura, "the final passage"
The light released by the Matchstick Manâs fingertip, as bright as a hundredfold torch, surprisingly couldnât disperse here.
Born connected to firelight, he felt extremely uncomfortable in such darkness.
"Starlight"
The Matchstick Man directly used his root power,
raising his index finger,
a small ball resembling a star hung at his fingertip... the miniature star-level light it emitted could only illuminate a range of less than two meters.
Barely able to see the passage ahead.
This was an ancient passage filled with a sense of age, decay, and desolation,
it seemed no one had trodden it for hundreds of eons,
the seal patterns inscribed on the walls could devour sources of light, sound, and other transmission mediums, even attempting telepathic communication was fragmentary.
"Boss... something is off! Who would seal themselves like this just to hide?"
However,
the Bossâs face bore an expression of excitement for an impending powerful enemy,
"Thatâs exactly what we need! Winning the highest territory war of S-01 without suspense would be too boring.
John, from now on, be ready to utilize the familyâs depth, reaching upper-rank levels yourself... Whoeverâs inside is no simple being.
Too bad Arthur couldnât join us."
The Matchstick Man, with a miniature star suspended at his fingertip, continued to lead the way,
the ancient passage wasnât long, approximately a hundred meters,
a liquid-like flowing "Fog Gate" blocked their path, the dense fog originating from Mr. Fogâs sealing technique, with only three such fog gates in the entire S-01 area, requiring vast time and effort.
An obelisk stood on the left side of the Fog Gate.
It bore an adaptable script that altered to recognizable universal characters based on the identity of the entrant.
-He who enters this gate shall abandon the fundamental concepts of time, life, and death-
Facing the warning, the Boss Tom expressed no hesitation,
the handgun already cocked,
stepping past the third brother, striding into the Fog Gate.
The interior revealed a square secret room with an area of merely one hundred square meters.
Four iron chains forged from hardened tentacles, extended from the roomâs four corners to its center,
anchoring a chair infused with starlight and sprouting tiny void bubbles,
the one sealed and bound was the âPuppet Masterâ the brothers sought.
Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger~ Bang!
A deadly-embedded armor-piercing bullet spewed from the muzzle,
clang!
A loud metallic crash reverberated through the secret room,
the bullet, its head flattened from impact, landed precisely back into the Boss Tomâs hand.
The mysterious entity confined at the center, its head tilted backward around 70°
The âIron Maidenâ metallic coffin shrouding his head bore a half-inch-deep dent from the bullet impact, wisps of white smoke slowly wafted from the groove.
A bizarre voice seeped out from within the mask:
"Hey~ Is this all youâve got? Canât even hit hard, still calling yourself an âout of controlâ?"