Chapter 567: The Fallen God

Chapter 567 The Fallen God

Cullen extended the umbrella forward, and Picque immediately reached out to take it.

How many coffins do we have left at home

Young master, we always keep four empty coffins in stock, Dincom replied at once. Are you going to use them, where should they be delivered, I will go and start the hearse right now

Should be, enough, Cullen nodded, pointing his finger toward Picque. Go now and pick the one you think has the best texture.

Alright, young master, I am going right now, Picque immediately ran toward the backyard warehouse.

Dincom then said, Then I will first start the hearse and back it in to make it easier to load.

Mm, good.

Dincom grabbed the car keys, opened the door, sat inside the hearse, and after starting the engine, began backing up, bringing the rear compartment under the eaves of the funeral parlor.

Immediately after, he turned off the engine, got out of the vehicle, ran to the back, opened the rear compartment,

"No hope, not even a shred of it, completely outmatched, no chance of winning through sheer struggle, not even able to delay it for a fleeting moment?"

Purr clutched her head with her cat paws, appearing deeply conflicted and in agonizing pain.

Kevin squatted right beside her; he knew that Purr would ultimately agree to his suggestion—choosing preservation when there was clearly no victory in sight.

He believed that the former expedition team leader, Purr Allen, would possess a clear mind.

"But... but... but... the Inmmoles family motto is... family first."

Purr's eyes began to redden as she turned her head to look at Kevin: "Until the final moment, we cannot abandon family."

Tears began to fall from Purr's eyes, dripping one by one onto the bedsheets.

Witnessing this scene, Kevin's originally steadfast gaze suddenly softened.

He was cold-blooded, so cold-blooded that he could drink the blood of a flame dragon raw, yet he had always possessed an exquisitely tender side; before his moon, he could cast aside all boundaries.

Karen had once remarked to Alfred that if Raniedal were to betray him one day, he would not be surprised, but he could also rest assured that even if Raniedal betrayed him, it would never hurt Purr.

Such was the character of that evil god, so perilous yet so crystal clear.

Furthermore, there was the ancestral motto of the Inmmoles family that Purr had just spoken: family first.

Upon hearing these words, Kevin's heart skipped a beat; he had always hoped to earn more trust from Karen so that Karen would continue to break the remaining seals for him.

And this trust could also be understood as "chips," which he needed to acquire through practical actions.

For instance, in the beginning, Karen's idea was to first find that Laxis copper coin before breaking the next layer of the seal, but because of the continuous contributions he had made recently, Karen felt too embarrassed to delay further and had unsealed it for him beforehand.

Kevin lifted his dog paw and rested it upon Purr.

"Woof, woof~"

"You mean, we can take a gamble?"

Just then, Kevin suddenly froze, and Purr’s expression stiffened along with him; they both sensed it—the aura of a person had vanished, it was Dincombe's.

"He has started killing, so decisively! Why didn't he bind everyone together and deliver a speech before taking his time to choose whom to kill? Dammit, what is his hurry!"

Kevin turned his head toward the entrance of the funeral parlor: "Woof."

Purr said: "We need time, but it seems there is no time left."

……

"Mr. Karen."

As Karen was about to step into the backyard, a shout echoed from behind him.

Karen turned around and saw a man wearing a raincoat walking in from the curtain of rain; from his body emanated a dense, rancid, fishy stench of decay.

"Mr. Karen, do you no longer recognize me?"

As the man spoke, he unbuttoned his raincoat, revealing a face completely covered in pustules, looking as though it had been submerged in the York City sewers for an eternity.

Dalis laughed self-deprecatingly: "Yes, I suppose I cannot blame you for not recognizing me; even I no longer recognize myself."

Karen shifted his stance slightly.

"Mr. Karen, you once said that if possible, you would share a cup of tea and chat with me for a while. I came by before, but you weren't home. Tonight it happened to start raining again. I originally intended to seek out my final resting place in the sewers, but as I walked, I somehow found myself back here at the funeral parlor.

I wanted to see, to try my luck one more time, to see if you were home tonight. As it turns out, my luck is quite good; you are home, heh."

Karen asked: "Have tea?"

"Yes, are you free now?"

"Chat?"

"I have been looking forward to it. Perhaps that is the reason I haven't been washed down the sewers yet; I must always have something to look forward to."

Karen nodded and replied: "Alright, tea and a chat."

"Thank you, Mr. Karen. I can stand a bit further away from you, otherwise I worry the scent on my body might ruin the fragrance of the tea."

"No need, I don't mind."

Karen took the initiative to walk toward him.

"Is that so, Mr. Karen? Then I must apologize," Dalis smiled. "You truly are a good person, a kind person. I am deeply grateful to receive your tolerance in the twilight of my life."

"You are too polite."

"No, you don't know just how much I..."

Karen raised his hand, and one sand spike after another erupted from the ground, impaling Dalis's body directly.

"Mr. Karen... what are you doing..."

Dalis tried to break free, only to find he could not manage it at all. Even before the sand spikes appeared, his body had been pinned down completely; the young man before him possessed an absolutely terrifying level of control!

"You delivered yourself to my doorstep. I originally thought that accidents could birth beauty, but your appearance only fills me with disgust."

"Mr. Karen... I know I am guilty... but..."

Karen slowly clenched his open palm, seemingly devoid of any interest to speak further.

The sand spikes began to shred violently, but with a sharp pop, Dalis exploded entirely, pus and putrid water splashing everywhere.

Karen's hands began to tremble; as he looked at the soiled surroundings, a surge of fury welled up within him.

"So filthy... so filthy!"

Karen turned, intending to continue toward the backyard, but halfway there, he came to a halt. Looking at the surrounding environment once more, he truly could not endure it. Spreading his hands, yellow sand rapidly expanded outward with him as the epicenter, utilizing the sand to cleanse the stains.

After a moment, the previously scattered sand began to dissipate, leaving the surrounding walls and floor immaculately clean; the filth and pollution formed by Dalis's explosion were thoroughly eradicated.

"Phew..."

Karen let out a long breath, finally feeling at ease. If he had left the filth he had personally created untouched, it would have been an excruciating torment for him.

Then, he turned around and continued deeper inside.

Entering the courtyard, Karen first looked to the left; a person lay inside that room.

Then, he looked to the right; inside those two rooms over there lay three people, including a pair who were quite similar.

Karen closed his eyes, appearing to adjust a certain state within himself, and then he turned to walk toward the right side.

Yet after only a few steps, he halted, turning back to face the opposite direction. Alternating light and shadow had appeared in that room; these shifts did not exist in reality, but were mental ripples formed by the changing of an illusionary scene.

Karen changed his mind and walked toward the room where Alfred was located.

Pushing the door open and standing at the threshold, he saw a man lying on the bed inside. The man's hands flailed before him from time to time; his eyes were closed, evidently still unconscious, and these movements resembled a sort of "sleepwalking" state.

The truth was that Alfred had not yet "sobered up" and remained in a state of insensibility.

"Such a rapid alternation of illusionary scenes, rather interesting."

Karen tilted his head. Above the spot where Alfred slept, an accumulation of sand appeared, and this sand was gradually shaping into the maw of a ferocious beast. Most striking within the maw were two highly prominent and curved long tusks—the visage of the phantom beast Compaccini.

At this moment, the giant maw gathered from sand was pressing downward; a single bite would be enough to completely crush Alfred's body.

However, at the same time, Karen released a fraction of his own spiritual consciousness, wishing to catch a glimpse of these illusionary images.

Then, he froze, and the giant maw of the phantom beast above paused along with him.

Because within the illusion, he saw many scenes familiar to him: the holy land that once belonged to the Desert Church, yellow sand flowing everywhere, and a man with elephant tusks.

"What on earth is going up here?"

Karen felt thoroughly perplexed.

Just then, Peake’s voice bellowed from outside: "Young Master, I’ve picked out a black coffin for you. Would you care to come over and see if it meets your satisfaction?"

Though mildly annoyed by Peake’s untimely interruption, Karen figured that completing his other, lesser works first before returning to savor this masterpiece might not be a bad choice after all.

With a sharp snap of Karen's fingers, bands of conjured sand materialized around the slumbering Alfred, shackling a man who had no intention of resisting anyway tightly to the bed.

Turning on his heel, Karen stepped out of Alfred's room and pulled the door shut behind him.

Yet, upon stepping outside, Peake was nowhere to be seen at the warehouse entrance where he ought to have been standing.

Hmm?

Was an isolation array deployed inside the warehouse?

Karen’s expression darkened instantly. Had he been found out?

The thought kindled a flare of rage within him.

Though that sudden, pus-covered wretch had disrupted his rhythm, Karen himself had still been deeply immersed in the experience.

If his identity were exposed this early in the game, the gratification he so rightly deserved would be utterly ruined.

Suppressing the churning revulsion in his chest, Karen pressed onward into the depths.

The warehouse was plunged into a pitch-black void; even standing right at the threshold, nothing could be discerned within.

It truly was an isolation array.

Karen raised his hand, preparing to break through the barrier by sheer force, when suddenly the array deactivated, giving way to clusters of crimson flames drifting in a bizarre, unnatural pattern.

Right at the center, perched upon the edge of an open coffin, sat a beautiful woman clad in a black dress and a deep hood, cradling a black cat in her arms as her fingers gently smoothed its fur, while a golden retriever sat at her feet, leaning contentedly against her leg.

A divine aura radiated from the golden retriever, enveloping it in a highly peculiar luminescence that lent an air of profound mystery to the woman’s silhouette.

"Meow~"

The black cat uttered a profoundly lazy cry, and the woman, still smiling as she stroked her pet, spoke softly:

"You have disturbed my rest."

Then,

The woman shifted her gaze toward Karen, her eyes utterly devoid of emotion, bearing only an absolute, piercing chill:

"You little follower of the fallen god."