Chapter 412: A Chaotic Mess
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 412: A Chaotic Mess
“What the hell… is going on?”
Muen turned his head stiffly. When he saw what was happening behind him, he nearly jumped out of his skin.
The sun had grown larger.
No, that wasn’t right. It wasn’t just getting larger.
Calling it "getting larger" was merely a visual illusion.
The reality was… the sun… was fucking… falling!
It was plummeting straight toward him!
Everything in the giant tower was being rapidly consumed by that crimson sun, yet even that couldn't slow its descent. It was as if an invisible giant hand was forcibly dragging it down. It fell without the slightest hesitation—it even looked a bit… cheerful?
“Why is it falling?”
Although he knew this sun wouldn't harm him, its former wielder, an inexplicable sense of dread welled up in Muen’s heart.
Earlier, in order to completely incinerate those million souls, Muen—unable to maintain the Crimson Flame himself—had chosen to release his Divine Blessing.
A Divine Blessing was essentially the manifestation of a portion of a deity's Authority. Logically, once that Authority was fully released and had burned the target to ash, it should have returned directly to the Withered King.
After all, Muen’s action just now was equivalent to sacrificing the Divine Blessing in exchange for the rule-level might of the Authority itself.
So why, after burning everything, is it coming for me again?
Your mother is the Withered King, not me!
Muen grit his teeth. Though he didn't know what was happening, he instinctively pulled Liya tightly into his embrace to protect her.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m… I’m fine.”
Liya finally snapped out of the lingering afterglow of her climax. She subconsciously wrapped her arms around Muen’s waist, her beautiful eyes wide with shock, clearly terrified by the scene.
“Does your body feel uncomfortable anywhere?” Muen asked worriedly.
If the Crimson Flame had truly gone berserk, he wasn't sure if he could actually protect Liya. After all, he was no longer the master of the Crimson Flame.
“No… no,” Liya shook her head gently. “It’s just a little hot.”
“Just a little hot?”
Muen was slightly taken aback. Since when was the Wilted Guy’s Crimson Flame so gentle? The temperature was only enough to make a young girl feel "a little hot"? It might not even be as hot as his own "fire poker."
Wait…
Suddenly, a bolt of realization struck him. Muen understood.
“The Crimson Flame’s target is me!”
Boom!
In the few seconds it took for his thoughts to race, the sun finally collided with Muen.
The Crimson Flame did not bring destruction. Instead, the restless flames roared toward him like a tide, actually…
Trying to burrow back into Muen’s body.
Not only that, it seemed to be seeking something. This feeling… it was like a child who had been bullied outside and instinctively ran home to find protection… No, it was like running home to grab a weapon, preparing to turn around and beat the other guy up.
But I’m not your father, and I don't have any milk for you!
Muen turned back, bewildered, and froze again.
This time, as his body was completely enveloped by the giant crimson sun, he looked through the now-transparent corona and realized exactly what was happening.
It wasn't just the sun that was falling.
There was also… a fucking… moon!
A fucking moon!
High above the sky curtain, a pitch-black hole was glaringly obvious. The bright lunar disc, carrying a holy radiance, looked as if it had been snatched out of the sky by a giant hand and hurled down, accurately smashing into the crimson sun.
Two diametrically opposed forces collided violently.
At this moment, the moon clearly held the advantage of height. Furthermore, as the medium for the Church’s pollution of this world, it was backed by the external aid of Goddess Emiel’s power. It was superior, forcibly smashing the sun—which didn't even have a physical form—downward.
To fight back, the Crimson Flame instinctively sought support. But this was Cantville, the heart of the Church’s territory, and the Withered King was likely off in some corner of the world digesting the real moon.
Unable to find its real mother, the Crimson Flame could only settle for the next best thing: its stepmother…
Well, that was the gist of it.
The problem was, this stepmother didn't have any "milk" to give!
Muen grit his teeth. He could feel the restlessness of the Crimson Flame as it re-entered his body, instantly devouring the tiny bit of mana and fighting spirit he had just managed to accumulate.
But that was a mere drop in the bucket. The Crimson Flame rampaged wildly inside him, its influence even aggravating his internal injuries and the rejection reaction of his alchemy core.
Under the tearing, agonizing pain, Muen didn't even have the luxury of enjoying the soft, fragrant girl in his arms.
“Muen…”
Liya stroked Muen’s face, her heart aching for him. She wanted to do something, but she was currently in a state of extreme weakness herself.
Just as Muen felt that if he wasn't drained dry by Liya, he’d be drained dry by the Crimson Flame, something else—something he had temporarily forgotten due to Liya sharing his burden and the souls' gratitude—seized the opportunity to rear its head again.
Beneath Muen, the black mud sea surged. After confirming that Muen currently had no protection or strength to resist, the infinite resentment swept toward him once more!
Then, the surging of the black mud sea came to a screeching halt.
Because the moment the mud sea appeared, the solar wheel enveloping Muen reacted like a starving beggar seeing a roast chicken hop out of a shop window on its own…
If the Crimson Flame had a human form or sapience, Muen felt it would definitely have glowing eyes and be drooling right now.
Without hesitation, the solar wheel ground forward. The infinite Crimson Flame pounced excitedly onto the black mud sea.
In an instant, countless sounds of shrieking, wailing, sobbing, and cursing rang in Muen’s ears. The colossal resentment formed by a million people was actually not consumed instantly by the Crimson Flame’s burning.
Because the solar wheel still had to contend with the wreckage of the former "real" moon.
The mud sea churned. Having failed to eat the "roast chicken" and instead getting a tooth chipped, the crimson flames began to be tinged with a hint of filth under the backlash of the resentment.
For a moment, three types of power…
No.
The Withered King’s Crimson Flame.
The wreckage of the Silent Moon.
The resentment of a million people.
The Goddess’s power using the moon’s wreckage as a medium.
And the mark left by the former Mother of Abundance that was triggering that resentment…
A total of five different forces were clashing with unprecedented intensity. It was a spectacular sight.
“But the problem is…”
Muen’s face contorted, the pain so great he wanted to bash his head against the ground.
“If you guys want to fight, fine, but can you not do it inside someone else’s body… You’re going to break me…”
Muen felt like his body had become a chaotic mess amidst the "passionate exchange" of these five incompatible forces—it was like adding water and concentrated sulfuric acid to boiling oil.
In his extreme weakness and agony, Muen’s consciousness began to fade.
As it drifted away, for some reason, even though that "damned white-haired loli" couldn't possibly be here, he felt a very familiar sensation of being screwed over.
...
“Disciple?”
Mela tapped her forehead with her small hand, stuck out her tongue playfully, and said, “Oh my, look at my memory. I accidentally forgot about him.”
However, the Pope didn't fall for the thousand-year-old loli’s malicious attempt at acting cute. He merely fell into deep thought, his brow furrowing deeply.
He looked at Mela and asked uncertainly, “Did you do it on purpose?”