624
Chapter 624
CRACK!
What pierced through Harvey Draker's chest was a thick tentacle with sharp hook-like claws.
CRACK!
The sharp claws completely shattered Harvey Draker's ribcage and burst out from within his chest.
Harvey Draker looked down at the horrific tentacle protruding from his chest while blood dripped from his mouth.
"What is this...?"
Harvey Draker raised his head to look at Baron.
Then Baron spoke in a solemn voice.
"The glorious day will come. A new humanity will usher in a new era!"
ROAR!
The grotesque gate let out a long howl in response to Baron's cry.
Soon, an ominous energy flowed from the gate.
A sinister energy mixed with the power of the Outer beings and twisted causality began to spread throughout the cavity.
Soon, the mages bound by soul chains absorbed that energy, and red pupils flashed in the black eye holes of their masks.
THUD!
They began chanting spells again in ominous voices.
Then surprisingly, this time the soul chains began to transform.
HISS! HISS! HISS!
The soul chains that were wrapped around the mages' bodies turned black, and soon changed shape to become horrific tentacles instead.
WHOOSH!
Moreover, the magic circle that Nabu had arranged was consumed by the dark energy flowing from the grotesque gate and transformed into a swamp that summoned tentacles.
The situation was reversed as the chains that were meant to wrap around Baron also transformed into tentacles.
He shouted toward the mages.
"Awaken! The purest Draker blood will be the key to opening a new era!"
The tentacles that burst from the ground moved toward Harvey Draker who was coughing up blood.
The writhing tentacles wrapped around Harvey Draker's arms and legs.
Then they began to expand while enveloping the tentacle protruding from his chest.
RUMBLE!
Soon the tentacle that burst from Harvey Draker's body swelled up.
"ARGH!"
Harvey Draker who screamed in agony tried somehow to pull out the tentacle protruding from his body.
But before long, he realized it was impossible.
'The dragon's heart.'
Surprisingly, that tentacle was connected to the dragon's heart that Arthur Draker had implanted in his body.
If he pulled out the tentacle, the dragon's heart would also be pulled out, and if that happened, it would be impossible for Harvey Draker to maintain his form in the current world like he was now.
Harvey Draker gritted his teeth as he looked at the hideous tentacle growing from his heart.
'Was all of this Arthur Draker's plan?.'
From the very beginning, giving him the dragon's heart was part of the plan to create this situation.
Just as Harvey Draker figured out Arthur Draker's intentions and became furious, Zeke, who had defeated all the monsters Baron had summoned, flew toward Harvey Draker with his sword raised.
Zeke immediately launched a sword strike toward Harvey Draker whose heart had sprouted tentacles.
CLASH!
The crescent sword strikes flew toward Harvey Draker.
But at that moment, the tentacle that had grown from his split chest moved quickly and shattered Zeke's sword strikes with its sharp hook claws.
"KUHEK!"
When the tentacle growing from his heart moved, Harvey Draker coughed up blood and let out an agonized groan.
Soon the swollen tentacles began to completely envelop Harvey Draker's body.
The tentacles squirmed and wrapped around Harvey Draker's limbs, soon creating a grotesque armor.
Soon the gathered tentacles created a new form, with Harvey Draker's head positioned in the center of the chest and above it emerged the head of a new monster created by the tentacles.
GROWL!
Zeke looked at Harvey Draker whose body had been taken over by the tentacles growing from his heart.
'What a horrific sight.'
It was like seeing a grotesque angel corrupted by the power of the Outer beings.
The grotesque angel that had completely enveloped Harvey Draker's body turned its head.
Where it turned its head, Baron was standing in front of the gate that had transformed into an altar, and around him, mages were chanting spells while surrounding him.
Soon the grotesque angel began moving toward the gate in response to their spells.
RUMBLE!
The corrupt dark power flowing from the gate flowed into the grotesque angel.
Zeke gritted his teeth at the ominous power he felt from them.
Manna and Ivan, who were watching this from below, also tried to create barriers to counter those bizarre spells.
But black blood continued to flow from their noses and mouths.
Even for High Table members, they couldn't hold out long here as just hearing the spells caused damage to their souls.
Seeing this, Zeke equipped Theia's armor then gripped Ascalon and generated a Strong wave resonance.
SCREECH!
The resonance wave amplified by orihalcon power created a wave that somewhat blocked the unholy spells of the grotesque mages.
Only then did Manna and Ivan spread their barriers with more relaxed expressions.
'We need to find the Book of the Dead and get out of here as quickly as possible.'
Zeke waited for a signal from Nabu and Nigel who were searching for the Book of the Dead.
The plan was to escape immediately through Hercules who was waiting outside once they found the Book of the Dead, then completely seal off the space itself.
Zeke kept stalling for time since Baron and Harvey Draker would be eternally sealed here with no way to escape once the unique space itself was closed.
However, it was taking longer than expected to find where the real Book of the Dead was located.
The Authority Manrian linked to the absolute compass clearly indicated that the Book of the Dead was here.
Thanks to that, Zeke and his companions who arrived here before Baron kept searching for where the Book of the Dead was, but they still hadn't discovered the book until now.
Then something crossed Zeke's mind.
'Could we be thinking about this wrong?'
Both he and Baron assumed it would exist in the form of a book because of the name ‘Book of the Dead.’
But Zeke, as the owner of the Kabbalah System, knew that the medium for recording knowledge didn't necessarily have to be a book.
As soon as that thought occurred, Zeke spoke to the system.
'System, check if there's a secure archive here.'
At Zeke's words, the system began checking for the existence of a security archive.
After a moment, a message appeared.
[Searched for secure archive.]
[Access is forbidden due to highest level security.]
[Authentication key required for access.]
As Zeke thought, the Book of the Dead did not exist in book form.
'It exists as karma data. Right in this space itself.'
Terakan Draker's security archive was also stored in the Academy's space in the form of karma data.
The Book of the Dead existed here on a similar principle.
'An authentication key.'
After contemplating, Zeke made a decision while watching Baron who kept infusing ominous power into the grotesque angel.
"Innocent. Come forth."
Guardian Innocent, made from part of the Great Sage's soul and his homunculus, was summoned.
HISS! HISS! HISS!
Guardian Innocent who emerged from Zeke's shadow bowed his head toward him.
"Innocent, access the secure archive and release the security."
He was a guardian made from the Great Sage's soul, so he was essentially the authentication key itself for accessing the security archive.
At Zeke's command, Innocent raised his staff.
A faint light flickered at the tip of the staff.
WHOOSH!
Along with a subtle vibration, that light shot up toward the cavity ceiling.
Messages appeared before Zeke's eyes again.
[Accessed secured system with authentication key engraved in Guardian Innocent's soul.]
[Security release possible. Release security?]
Zeke took a breath as he looked at the message window that appeared, then selected release.
[Released security for corresponding security archive.]
[Part of the Great Sage's sealed unique space 'Infinite Archive' is revealing itself.]
RUMBLE!
Along with the message that security was released, vibrations occurred throughout the entire cavity.
Something began rising from the cavity floor.
CRASH!
Surprisingly, bookshelves were literally rising from the floor and surrounding walls.
RUMBLE!
Hundreds and thousands of bookshelves rose from all directions, quickly filling the massive cavity.
Then something flew quickly toward Zeke.
"Zeke!"
Nabu and Nigel riding a flying carpet were approaching while avoiding the tower-like rising bookshelves.
He shouted toward Zeke.
"We were looking for the Book of the Dead but what is all this!"
Then Zeke said to Nabu.
"The Book of the Dead doesn't exist separately as a book."
At his words, Nabu's eyes widened in surprise.
"Not in book form? Then how... Ah! Could it be?"
Nabu was also a sage who could handle karma so he immediately understood Zeke's words.
Zeke said to Nabu.
"I released the Great Sage's archive seal. There should be... a medium that sealed the Demon King's power in the form of karma data inside here."
Nabu had an exasperated expression at Zeke's words.
"Mountains beyond mountains. Just where are we supposed to find such a thing..."
SCREECH!
Before Nabu could finish speaking, an eerie sound echoed in all directions.
That sound came from none other than where Baron and the grotesque mages were.
The gate had reacted to their spells and opened its mouth wide.
Baron shouted in front of it.
"The key that will open a new era! Demon King, respond to the god's call!"
RUMBLE!
The dark power flowing from the gate began to envelop the risen bookshelves.
Then the bookshelves showed movement as if they were alive, like puzzles being put together.
CLICK! CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!
Soon the bookshelves took the shape of a spiral, creating a massive hole in the center.
Zeke felt chills run down his spine as he sensed the power flowing from that hole.
'That is...'
The power that had been in the voice tempting King Solomon.
Traces of that irresistible power could be felt inside that hole.
At that moment, the chanting of the grotesque mages grew louder.
Baron shouted toward the hole.
"Sealed power of the Demon King! I have prepared a new vessel! Come forth and dwell here!"
The grotesque angelic form floating above the gate, with Harvey Draker existing inside it, was the sacrifice and vessel that Arthur had prepared.
A clone of the ancestor with the purest Draker blood and possessing a dragon's heart.
And a fallen being born with the fate of a savior but with a soul and body corrupted by the most evil power.
Harvey Draker was the most suitable vessel to become the Demon King's host.
Arthur Draker rescued Harvey Draker, implanted the dragon's heart in him, and planted a seed with ominous power inside it for this very moment.
Zeke now realized that Arthur Draker's goal was to inject the Demon King's power into Harvey Draker, not himself.
'He clearly intends to inject the Demon King's power into Harvey then absorb it using the Evil God's authority.'
Arthur Draker had developed Ramon Jiemens's plan that was devoured by the Evil God in an even more wicked and vile way.
'Must prevent the Demon King's power from dwelling in Harvey Draker's body at all costs.'
Zeke gave an order to Guardian Innocent beside him.
"Innocent! Activate the archive's secure system to stop them!"
Innocent raised his staff at Zeke's command.
WHOOSH!
Vibrations echoed from the staff.
Then the books in the archive began glowing in response to Innocent's staff.
[The Great Sage's unique space 'Infinite Archive' is responding to Innocent's power.]
Just as Innocent tried to draw out the Infinite Archive's power.
The grotesque mages' chanting grew even louder.
Then another message appeared.
[Ominous energy fills the space.]
[Cannot open unique space 'Infinite Archive' due to corrupted energy.]
[Innocent's soul is not sufficient to handle the 'Infinite Archive'.]
The Demon King's power pooled in the space and the unholy power of Baron's grotesque mages seemed to be blocking the unique space's functions.
'The Demon King's power... just what leaked out is this much.'
Zeke could freshly feel that the Demon King's power sealed in the archive was unimaginably terrible.
But then..
Baron's voice echoed throughout the archive.
"Demon King! Cast off the shackles of your seal and descend into the prepared vessel's body!"
ROAR!
A massive howl spread through the entire space from the hole at the end of the spiral bookshelves.