Firefly Journey

Upon hearing that the Papacy's army was approaching, High Priest Matthew, who had been stationed in the Abyss for more than ten years, came to greet them with Archbishop Erwin.

The Vatican's sun flag fluttered in the wind as Lin Yuanran dismounted from the carriage and rode alongside Conrad and Texas.

The cavalrymen were arranged in two rows, with dragonhawk riders and griffin riders circling overhead to protect the three.

After Matthew, Erwin, and Lin Yuanran met, the former took the initiative to stand between Conrad and Texas, while Erwin, being more polite, stepped back behind the others.

Matthew briefly reported the situation in the abyss to Lin Yuanran.

He truly lived up to his reputation as someone who had been stationed in the abyss for many years and knew it inside and out. In just a few words, he explained what Lin Yuanran was unaware of. Even though Lin Yuanran had done his homework before coming, he had to admire him.

"May I go see that stone statue?"

“This…” Matthew hesitated. “The stone statue stands in the abyss. Usually, the observers I send out ride on alien beasts to investigate outside the abyss. Going deep inside might be difficult.”

Lin Yuanran smiled and said, "It's alright. With the three seniors here, I have nothing to worry about."

The three old men exchanged knowing glances, all somewhat resigned. His Holiness the Pope was truly unconventional. Well, since he was interested, they might as well accompany him!

“The stone statue isn’t far, only about thirty miles inside the abyss,” Matthew said. “Although the demons are intelligent, they are essentially no different from wild beasts. They are a dog-eat-dog world, with the strong feeding on the flesh and blood of the weak. They are all fierce and violent, so we have to be extra careful.”

"Thank you for the reminder, priest," Lin Yuanran said.

As expected of the most powerful race ten thousand years ago, their internal laws are so "back to basics"—isn't this just a wise version of the law of the jungle?

It is hard to imagine that an intelligent race could retain such primitive bestiality, a fragmentation that is nonetheless undeniably real.

"Let's go."

After saying that, Lin Yuanran soared into the air and, using the spatial divine decree, strode forward.

The three old friends quickly followed.

Honestly, aside from the Dreadlord who is about to be resurrected, these four are more than capable of roaming freely in the Abyss. If any unruly monsters dare to mess with them, they'd better pray for good luck.

In the blink of an eye, the three elders and the young boy stepped into the abyss.

The environment is gloomy, but the climate is comfortable, neither cold nor hot. If it were adorned with red flowers and green grass, it might be no different from spring.

Not far away, the monsters that were hunting each other were cautiously observing the approaching humans. Their eyes held both confusion and greed, but none of them made a move; they remained on the sidelines.

Humans are not uncommon to the monsters living outside the abyss. They are like tireless shepherds, guarding the sheepfold and sometimes even entering the sheepfold to drive the flock away from the fence.

Lin Yuanran had no doubt that if his group let their guard down or showed any fear, the demons would pounce on them like hungry dogs.

The thirty-mile journey will be completed in no time.

“That’s the statue of the dreadlord Aheclotes,” Matthew said.

Lin Yuanran, Conrad, and Texas looked up and saw that the magnificent stone statue was truly spectacular. Humans standing in front of it were like mayflies seeing the blue sky.

At this point, most of his grayish-brown stone skin had fallen off, leaving only his head still locked; below his neck, all that remained was thick, dark skin.

"Aren't those monsters afraid we're here to 'behead' them by letting us come over?" Conrad asked, puzzled.

Matthew explained, "Ahecrothes turned into a stone statue voluntarily, and he could be revived at any time. He was just showing his stance to the ancestral gods."

"He didn't actually want to wake up. The peeling off of the stone statue's skin wasn't his will at all, but rather the work of some great lords in the abyss."

Oh? There's more to it than meets the eye?!

Lin Yuanran and the other two listened quietly.

Matthew raised an eyebrow slightly: "From the moment we entered, we've been under the watchful eyes of those great lords. They don't care about Aheclotes' life or death; what they care about is whether they can raise the banner of the Dreadlord."

Lin Yuanran instantly understood: "Interesting, is this an attempt to intimidate others by borrowing their power?"

“That’s right,” Matthew said. “It also implies a forced resignation.”

Lin Yuanran was familiar with this situation: donning the yellow robe, the Chenqiao Mutiny.

Suddenly, the abyss erupted, and the whole story became clear in an instant.

The great lords, who had accumulated strength over ten thousand years, felt that they had grown powerful and were now in charge. Since the ancestral god had fallen, they could finally step out and challenge him.

Ten thousand years ago, the leader of the Abyss was the Demon King. Now, these worthless nobody has reached the level of the Demon King, but they can no longer suppress their ambitions. What should they do?

Easy, just use someone else's name to intimidate you.

Several powerful lords conspired to use Ahecrotheus's name to stir things up, and once he recovered, seeing that the deed was done, they would have no choice but to go with the flow.

Following the direction Matthew raised his eyebrows, Lin Yuanran indeed saw a few suspicious-looking things, but he didn't care. If you like to spy, then spy. You won't be able to cause trouble for long.

"How long do you think it will take for Ahecrotes to wake up?" Lin Yuanran asked.

“It’s hard to say,” Matthew said. “When I gave you my first report, it was only cracked to the size of a bowl. In such a short time, it has fully recovered. That speed is immeasurable.”

Lin Yuanran nodded. Since it was the deliberate act of those great lords, the sooner the better.

"Yes, I understand now, let's go back."

The three high priests agreed and were about to return when the stone skin on Aheclotes' head shattered.

"Wait!" Lin Yuanran hurriedly called out, and the four of them retreated to a distance of 100 meters to observe the changes in the stone statue.

The stone skin on the statue's face peeled away piece by piece, exposing the true face of the Demon King of Dread to the air.

These are monsters with two horns on their heads.

A glint of light suddenly flashed in the eyeball that had remained untouched for millennia.

"Who...was it that awakened me?"

No one answered.

Whoohoo!

His enormous wings flapped instantly.

"Humanity?"

Aheclotes spotted Lin Yuanran and his companions at first glance, but the four of them remained calm and unhurried. He was just a demon king, a mere demigod, so why should they retreat?

Hecclotes leaped into the air and stood before the four, looking down at them:

Who are you?

Lin Yuanran stood tall and said calmly, "The thirty-eighth Pope of the Holy See, Ario Morris."

Then, three aged voices rang out.

"Conrad, a priest of the Court of Judgment of the Holy See of Light."

"Priest of the Inquisition of the Holy See, Texas."

"Priest of Conquest of the Holy See, Matthew."

Hearing the four people introduce themselves, Ahecrotes was not surprised. This was the Abyss. Anyone who could enter unharmed must be no ordinary person.

He scoffed, "Do you know that even Julius back in the day had to look up to me?"