Ch. 79 - Sacrifice (7)

Meanwhile, in the western city of Essence, where the headquarters of the Supreme God Cult was located. The crystal skeleton bloomed with a brilliant red light, illuminating the sky. Every single person fell to their knees, trembling with prayers.

The priests were bathed in an oppressive red light, bliss showering upon their bodies. The priestess smiled and murmured to herself, "My child, soon, you will be with me once again."

The priestess had a chilling past.

She used to be a slave without a name, and her entire existence was to serve the nobles and become a tool for their frustration.

And in this frustration vented upon her, she bore a child. She didn't know who the father was, but she loved the child as any mother would.

She felt that the child was a gift from God, filling her dull, mundane life with colour.

She worked extra hard every day in exchange for more food, hiding her child in obscure places around the mansion. She was afraid that if her child was found, her child would be killed.

She tore at her face, scarring her once beautiful face in order to reduce the amount of attention on her.

Regardless, it was the happiest time of her life. No matter how much pain or insults she had to endure; no matter if she had nothing to eat, or nothing to clothe herself with -- as long as she could see her child sleeping soundly with a smile on her face, she felt that everything was worth it.

She decided to flee to the West when her child was older. Perhaps she would flee to the North where it was sparsely populated, so that she could raise her child with no worries; perhaps she would move to the bustling South, so that her child could live comfortably.

She would cradle her daughter under the stars every night, waiting for her to grow up.

One day, she ended her day's work as usual, and happily returned to the thatched hut where she hid her child. She carefully closed the door and teased, "My sweet angel, mother is back from work. Guess what I brought you today?"

Usually, her child would laugh in glee upon seeing her mother. Her daughter's laugh would melt away every single worry plaguing her.

But today, there was no laughter.

The bread fell to the floor as she frantically darted to the box where she would hide her daughter. She clawed at the planks, not caring that her hands were now bloodied and bruised.

She was gone.

"My child! Who stole my baby girl?!" she roared in despair, bursting out from the hut and asking anyone she saw.

"You have a child?"

"I didn't see a child, no."

She begged everyone to tell her the whereabouts of the child, and finally, a woman answered her, "I saw a group of people carrying a baby to the back of the mountains, oh, but I don't think you should..."

"No! No!" she couldn't imagine what would happen to her baby, and rushed towards the back of the mountains.

Humanity's evil knows no bounds, and she fell to her knees upon seeing the tiny body curled up on the ground, littered with bruises and open wounds.

Her murderers laughed wildly and insulted the woman with vicious, poisonous words. They violated her, but she felt nothing. Her heart was dead with the baby.

The murderers soon left her, and mother and daughter laid on the ground with one another.

In the humid environment of the west, the child's corpse was already rotting, but she refused to let go of the baby. She felt her life slip away, and she was glad that she could join her child. Just then, the corpse moved, and she watched as her child transformed into a crystal skeleton, "Don't you want your baby back?"

All hope was lost as she hugged the crystal skeleton, refusing to let go, "Please, I will do anything."

The crystal skeleton phased away from her grip, and a violent, red light erupted in the night sky. Every noble died mysteriously that night, as eerie red light was absorbed into the crystal skeleton. The crystal skeleton touched her face, and her scarred face was restored to its original beauty.

"Kill and sacrifice. Your baby will be yours once again."

...

Nobody dared to interrupt the prayers of the priestess.

The other priests waited patiently for her orders.

After a while, her gentle voice sounded, "Order all followers to gather around the altars to prove their loyalty. The Supreme God will descend upon us soon enough."

The priests immediately knew her intentions, but none of them dared to disobey.

"It is time."

"With your life, prove your loyalty to the Supreme God!" the priests announced.

The followers of the cult fell in a daze, confused at the words of the priests. Strange pains erupted in them, and gradually, one after another follower exploded in place.

In less than an hour, only the priests and a lake of blood remained.

The priests' bodies were penetrated with chains and the chains converged onto the altar the priestess was on. Strange energy poured into the altar, imbuing power into the large structure. The priestess smiled, "The King's city is left."

...

Meanwhile, Adam's team continued to bombard Brown's shield with destructive magic, but the shield formed by countless human flesh was unexpectedly tough. Brown's muscles shattered as he started to grow, his bones no longer supporting him, and his face contorting into a mass of flesh.

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