Kudududuk!
Bahamut cleaved Viper's body vertically in two.
"Did I get him?"
Zeke had used the clone skill he gained by absorbing the scythe of the Endlessly Devouring One, combined with Belial's authority "deception," to create another version of himself to handle the abominations Viper had summoned.
Belial's authority of deception didn't just fool the target—it had real effects on reality.
If the deception was based on the attribute of heat, the victim would actually feel the heat and suffer genuine burns, which blurred the line between reality and illusion. It was a terrifying power.
While that materialized clone dealt with the monsters, Zeke had used his spiritualization skill to circle behind Viper.
With the curse-lifting treatment skill, the Chamber of Metal Power, and the full power technique "Will of Shattering" all infused into a one-hit kill strike, it wouldn't have been surprising if Viper had been utterly destroyed.
At that moment, steam erupted from Viper's bisected body.
Tssshhhh—
The steam soon coalesced, revealing Viper's original form once more.
Viper turned his neck and glared at Zeke while gripping his scythe.
"Insolent human scum..."
Zeke didn't give Viper any opening and charged straight at him.
Woooong!
Zeke sheathed Bahamut and drew his hammer again, swinging it with immense power to smash into Viper's body.
Kwang!
As the hammer struck, Viper's form exploded outward like a burst.
Zeke unleashed his authority of freezing toward the scattering remnants of Viper's body.
Jjeojeojeok!
Absolute sub-zero temperatures froze every dispersed piece of Viper's body solid.
Zeke picked up the massive scythe that had fallen to the ground, staying vigilant of his surroundings.
Woooong!
The scythe vibrated, rejecting Zeke's touch.
"Rebel all you want. It won't help."
Ignoring it, Zeke tried to absorb the scythe through his shadow.
But then, something flew at him from behind.
Kwang!
A massive impact hit the backplate of Zeke's Hercion armor.
Turning around, Zeke was shocked to see Viper restored to his original state, looking down at him.
Viper's face was no longer playful—it was twisted with rage as he glared at Zeke.
scythe Zeke had been holding had melted away like sludge and reappeared in Viper's hand.
"Damn you! That weapon of yours! What the hell is it? Why does it keep destroying my clones...?"
Viper suddenly realized he'd let something slip.
Zeke, as if he'd expected it, looked at Viper and said,
"I suspected as much, and I was right. You're not the high-rank demonkind Viper. You're the Endlessly Devouring One himself, controlling the clone." Hearing that, Arataso cried out in alarm.
[That guy's a constellation? What nonsense is this? He's just Viper, his vassal...] Zeke shook his head.
"That's what everyone thinks. But I told you—the Endlessly Devouring One can split and proliferate his soul."
Zeke pointed at Viper.
"The so-called high-rank demonkind Viper is just a clone body created by the Endlessly
Devouring One splitting and proliferating his own soul." Arataso shook his head in disbelief at Zeke's words.
[No way! Why would he go to the trouble of using his own soul for a clone when he could just take a vassal?]
Zeke looked at Viper and replied,
"The Endlessly Devouring One only has greed. He doesn't have any abilities worth granting to a vassal, so that's why."
[What?]
Arataso couldn't believe Zeke's words.
Endlessly Devouring One he knew was indeed greedy, as Zeke said. But he was also a constellation with power equal to that greed.
Sensing Arataso's confusion, Zeke pointed his hammer at Viper and said,
"He can only split and proliferate souls to create counterfeit currency. So when he needs something, he proliferates souls on the spot, uses them to pay the price, and acquires it. He packages those acquisitions as his own abilities and instills fear in demonkind through his mad clones. All with vicious pranks and lies." Having heard Zeke out, Viper spun his scythe.
The playful demeanor from before was gone; he now looked ready to tear Zeke apart on the spot.
He opened his mouth toward Zeke.
"You insignificant worm, spouting nonsense."
Zeke tapped the hammer against his palm and said,
"Let's see if it's nonsense. It looks like you've invested the most in this Viper clone. I'll test how many more of these you can make."
The Endlessly Devouring One, controlling the clone Viper, was using proliferated souls to deceive karma and manipulate clone bodies with his own power.
If all those paid souls were destroyed, he'd face karma's sanctions again.
Whoooosh!
Viper swung his scythe wildly before slamming its blade into the ground. Tssstss—
As the blade embedded in the earth, a sinister energy seeped into it.
Kudududuk!
ground split open, and from within emerged knights in red armor, skeleton knights
in black armor, and massive beast warrior forms.
Seeing the vassals of the demon realm crawling out from underground, Arataso was stunned.
[My god! That's the Blood Knights of Blood Keep, the Knights of the Abyss from
Abaddon... and even beast warriors who serve only the Lord of the Lowest Place?]
Arataso couldn't help but be shocked at the sight of these renowned vassals emerging from the earth.
The dozens of vassals that crawled out radiated killing intent toward Zeke.
Viper, with his scythe still planted in the ground, glared at Zeke.
Zeke looked at Viper and said,
"They're strong vassals, so you must not own them outright—you traded for borrowing rights. That scythe must be the token of the deal."
The Endlessly Devouring One, manipulating the clone Viper, ground his teeth at Zeke's words.
This human knew too well the principles and inner workings of demonic trades. Every word felt like it was peeling back his innermost thoughts.
He shouted at the vassals he'd borrowed,
"Tear that bastard apart right now!" Kreeee!
First, a beast warrior resembling a three-headed werewolf charged at Zeke.
This beast warrior, who served the Lord of the Lowest Place like Griesmodal—the tamer of the 999 magical beasts whose souls Zeke had partially absorbed—was as ferocious as he was powerful.
But before Zeke's hammer, the beast warrior's ferocity meant nothing.
Kwang!
A single hammer strike infused with the Chamber of Metal Power buried the beast warrior deep into the ground.
Krrrarar—
The other beast warriors bared their fangs and charged threateningly at Zeke.
Zeke met them head-on, hammer raised.
Kwang!
With every swing, the beast warriors' bones shattered, their sharp fangs cracking and scattering.
Zeke unleashed his demon-hunting art without mercy, smashing their skulls in one blow.
If Tyr, the war god, had seen Zeke's movements now, she would have nodded in satisfaction.
Whoooosh!
When Zeke's hammer finally stopped, the ground was piled high with the mangled corpses of the beast warriors.
Zeke caught his breath briefly, then used his shadow to absorb the beast warriors' bodies.
Restored to full strength, Zeke tapped the blood-smeared hammer and said to Viper behind him,
"I don't know how much you paid to borrow them, but it looks like you didn't get your money's worth."
Viper gnashed his teeth at Zeke's taunt and yelled,
"What are you waiting for? Kill him already!"
The playful tone from earlier was long gone.
Now, the Blood Knights and Knights of the Abyss arrayed behind him charged at Zeke.
Whoooosh!
The Blood Knights spread a red mist around them, expanding their domain, while the Knights of the Abyss similarly scattered black smoke.
Tssstssst—
The red mist and black smoke began to envelop Zeke.
Zeke recalled struggling against this red mist when he faced Garin, the royal vampire, in the inverted tower.
Gripping the Green Sword, Zeke quietly asked Arataso,
"I've dealt with Blood Knights before, but what's a Knight of the Abyss?" In response to Zeke's question, Arataso explained.
[Among the six strongest fallen constellations, one is the "Lord of the Abyss." These are the dark knights who guard his domain, Abaddon. The darkness they emit recreates the abyss itself as a barrier. It devours any attack.]
From what he'd heard, the Knights of the Abyss's darkness seemed even more troublesome.
"The darkness of the abyss, huh."
Zeke peered into the impenetrable blackness, trying to sense presences.
But the darkness blanketing the area disrupted his senses, letting him feel nothing.
Then, something clicked in Zeke's mind.
"Raven, come out and earn your keep."
As Zeke looked over his shoulder, Raven had already crossed the dimensional boundary and appeared.
Kurururu—
Well-fed and rested, Raven had grown noticeably since hatching from his egg.
Raven turned his head this way and that, eyeing the darkness of the abyss, then spread his wings and took flight.
With a long cry, he unleashed his phoenix cry.
Eeeeeeeng—
The phoenix cry, inaudible to human ears, rippled through the darkness of the abyss.
And moments later, astonishingly, the darkness began to lift around Raven.
"Huh?"
Zeke, who had summoned Raven on a hunch, was surprised to see the abyssal barrier truly shattered by the phoenix cry.
Tssstssst—
As the abyssal barrier broke, the area was filled with the red mist spread by the Blood Knights.
Zeke grinned and drew Roland.
"This much, I can handle."
He raised Roland toward the sky and unleashed his sacred radiance technique.
Pajijijizik!
Powerful bolts of light struck the red mist and the approaching Blood Knights.
Kwang kwang!
The Blood Knights hit by the sacred radiance lost their power and collapsed.
Then the remaining Blood Knights and Knights of the Abyss closed in on Zeke.
As Zeke prepared to face them again, Raven circled the sky before landing on Zeke's helmet, ceasing his phoenix cry.
Zeke pulled jerky from his inventory and tossed it to Raven.
Raven caught it deftly and tore into it.
"Good work, Raven. Go rest inside for now."
Raven munched on the jerky as he vanished into the dimensional rift.
Zeke connected a chain to the hammer's handle, eyeing the approaching demon realm knights.
"Let's see how tough your bodies really are." Whooosh whooosh whooosh!
As Zeke spun the hammer by its chain, a menacing sound cut through the air.
At some point, he hurled the hammer at the demon realm knights.
Whoooosh!
The hammer, laden with immense power, flew at high speed.
Kwang kwang kwang!
One of the leading Blood Knights was pierced through the torso by the hammer and fell.
Zeke yanked the chain, redirecting the flying hammer.
The hammer arced in a wide circle, the chain wrapping around the vassals. Seeing this, Zeke channeled his sacred radiance into the chain.
Pajijijizik!
Heavenly thunder activated, sending dozens of light bolts crashing into the ensnared vassals.
The chain acted as a barrier, reflecting the heavenly thunder's strikes and doubling the damage to the vassals.
Kieeeek!
Thanks to this, Viper's summoned vassals vanished without a chance to fight back.
Viper's expression hardened further as he watched.
Zeke looked at him and said,
"You look upset—must be penalties for damaging borrowed vassals. At this rate, I might bankrupt you by the end of the day."
Viper ground his teeth at Zeke, who knew demonic trades inside out.
Viper drew a dagger from his bosom.
It was a sacred relic infused with the power of a different constellation, not the Endlessly Devouring One.
Arataso sensed the power and shouted at Zeke.
[I sense the power of the "Judge of Unending Strife" from that dagger!]
The Judge of Unending Strife was a powerful demon, ruler of the Tuma tribe and lord of the balrogs.
Viper stabbed the dagger into his own heart.
Tssstss—
As the dagger pierced his heart, Viper's form began to change dramatically.
His clown mask remained, but horns sprouted from his head, his arms and legs elongated, and wings erupted from his back.
It was as if a clown and a balrog had merged.
Seeing Viper's sudden transformation, Zeke realized something had shifted to a new state.
The powers of the fallen constellation Judge of Unending Strife and the Endlessly Devouring One had combined, awakening Viper's avatar body.