Incarnation

The echoing sound of the cracking sky succeeded in instilling fear into all living creatures across Farnodt, even reaching the fringes of neighboring kingdoms.

The cracking sound of terror tore the courage of anyone who heard it, especially those unaware of its origin. For them, the sound seemed to emerge from the heavens, tolling a warning of the impending apocalypse.

Humans, demons, and mindless monsters alike found themselves cowering in fear as the sound of the cracks resounded.

Such was the scene in Marina as well. The demons and soldiers of Marina halted their clashing weapons, silencing their quivering lips and dispelling their mutually assaulting spells.

The spilling of blood came to a halt, for an overwhelming sense of terror had been forcibly implanted in their hearts. This included Kirana and Azazel, who were rendered powerless to lift a finger.

Both of them were suspended in their respective positions, as if floating in stasis. Sensing a gripping hold from an unseen, horrifying presence that had clenched their hearts.

'What is this?'

The question reverberated in their minds. But it wasn't just them; everyone, all had the same question in their minds. Of course, this included those in Lumiere.

"What is happening?"

The answer only became apparent to those who had survived the tremendous shockwave in Lumiere.

They gazed at the rift in the sky, where an enigmatic figure extended a fragment of its finger down to the earth.

Creating a creature standing around four meters tall, robustly built, four-armed, with large horns curling from its head, emanating a grand aura as if one capable of controlling all things in the world.

Among the surviving humans in Lumiere, none were acquainted with this eerie being.

In contrast, the demons, upon the creature's descent, immediately prostrated themselves in terror. They dared not raise their heads to gaze upon the formidable figure that descended amidst the ruins of the palace over there.

For this creature was the deity they had always revered: the Demon God.

On the other side, Cien himself realized that the massive demon that had just arrived was the Demon God.

Not the complete Demon God, perhaps only a small incarnation of the actual entity. Nevertheless, he still sensed a terrifying presence from this incarnate being.

He needed to flee.

That was the only thought in Cien's mind right now. However, his two legs refused to cooperate. Cien then glanced at Lilinette behind him, concerned for his niece.

"!"

Truly astonishing. When Cien looked at the girl, he saw Lilinette driving an arrow into her own thigh.

"Lily! Are you alright?!"

Cien panicked, fearing that his niece might be influenced by the presence of the incarnated Demon God, causing her thoughts to spiral out of control.

Yet, his assumptions were far from the truth. Far from being affected or driven to madness, Lilinette, in fact, was thinking logically in this critical moment.

The girl wounded herself in order to break free from the oppressing aura of the newly emerged demon figure, attempting to escape.

Once she felt her leg could move, Lilinette tossed the arrow toward her uncle and promptly dashed away from Cien, who remained seated on the ground.

"Uncle. Run."

Lilinette uttered, her silhouette distancing itself from Cien, leaving the Shop Owner stunned and lost for words. When he realized...

"Huh? What the fu*k! How dare she leave her Uncle?!"

Cien exclaimed, then feeling the tension in the atmosphere lessen.

Like Lilinette, Cien retrieved the arrow discarded by his niece, then wounded his thigh, breaking free from the influence of the incarnation of the Demon God.

Cien then stood up, retrieved his weapon, and carried his coffin. He ran after Lilinette.

Meanwhile, atop the palace ruins, the Demon God surveyed the surroundings, observing the trembling humans who survived and the prostrating demons who worshiped before him.

"What is happening? Who dares to disrupt the ritual procession?"

The Demon God inquired, his voice piercing through and gripping the hearts of the listeners.

The nearest prostrating demon stammered as he answered the deity's question, explaining that a mysterious cloaked human, carrying a box, had destroyed the Soul Station artifact.

"So, where is this human now?"

This time the demon couldn't respond. He shook his head, his body trembling, feeling pressure gradually bearing down on him.

Eventually, the demon could no longer kneel; he was forced to lie prostrate, overcome by the increasing weight of the force.

"Yo-Yo-Your Maj—!!"

Splat!

The demon attempted to beg for forgiveness. However, before he could succeed, the pressure upon his body caused him to burst. Crushed by an unseen weight, he shattered and sprayed blood and flesh all around.

"Incompetent imbecile. Is this my lineage now? Truly disappointing."

The muttering of the Demon God, who began to move slowly, coincided with the explosive demise of the demons prostrated before him.

The humans who witnessed this could only watch, immobilized. Fortunately, the Demon God wasn't interested in them at the moment.

Presently, He was infuriated with the individual who had thwarted His return to Kastia.

He was fed up after being trapped on that distant planet. He wanted to return and finish His mission from thousands of years ago. Therefore, He intended to kill the cloaked human who carried a box.

"[Eye of the Sky]."

A massive eyeball suddenly materialized in the sky above Lumiere, surveying the land below. It searched for a figure described by His demon followers earlier.

As it turned out, the figure wasn't too far from His location. Through the eye in the sky, the Demon God could see that there were two individuals running away from the palace.

A girl and a cloaked man carrying a box.

Seeing them move freely infuriated the Demon God. His [God's Aura] should have compelled everyone to bow before Him. Yet here, He witnessed two humans running, unlike the others who could only sit frozen.

"So, you're the culprit!"

The echoing sound of the Demon God's voice resonated throughout Lumiere.

The sound caused Cien's hair to stand on end. Sensing a foreboding omen, he looked back and accidentally locked eyes with the gaze of the eye in the sky.

"We've been spotted!"

Cien then came to a halt, feeling a disturbance in the air coming from the direction of the palace. Was the incarnation attacking? No.

'It's a magical attack!'

Cien swiftly grabbed Woodbelisk and transformed it into a large pillar before him, creating a shield.

Since Cien lacked a shield or protective spell, he had to rely on the strongest material in Kastia, his weapon, to defend himself.

Wuuuuung! BAM!

A sudden black beam collided with Woodbelisk. The impact between the two unleashed a shockwave that sent debris flying from nearby ruins.

The same fate befell Lilinette, who was still running behind Cien. The girl was thrown and rolled on the ground.

Meanwhile, Cien, sheltered behind his staff, felt no impact at all. He only experienced a slight tremor.

Cien then returned Woodbelisk to its original size and witnessed a figure swiftly flying toward him.

There was no need to question the identity of this figure. It could only be the incarnation of the Demon God.

'Seriously, do I have to fight this absurd creature?'

Cien pondered, feeling like he had no other choice.

However, in his current state—wounded and slightly affected by the aura of the Demon God—he wasn't confident he could evade every attack that came his way.

But, Cien also had a feeling that the Demon God before him was merely an incarnation, not the true form. He should still be able to hold his ground against it. He should.

As the Demon God arrived, it launched a spear of darkness towards Cien.

Cien wanted to dodge, but when he glanced back, he saw Lilinette still lying on the ground.

Clicking his tongue, Cien accepted the attack with Woodbelisk, shattering the dark spear. However, the impact left his hand numb.

The Demon God attacked again with several dark spears. This time, Cien once again transformed Woodbelisk into a protective pillar.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Impact after impact occurred, yet the pillar staff remained steadfast as usual. This momentarily caught the Demon God off guard.

On the other hand, Cien had readied his bow and arrows. Shooting from behind the pillar, he aimed his arrows at the Demon God.

However, unfortunately, all the magical arrows that would typically have a significant effect on opponents were nothing more than child's play for the Demon God.

The Demon God easily caught the magical arrows. Then, instead of letting their magical effects activate, it destroyed them. The tips of the magical arrows turned to sand in an instant as a laser beam shot from the demon's eyes.

'Ugh... What the hell? You're not a superhero! Why do you have laser eyes? Damn it!'

Cien retreated back behind the pillar. The Demon God flew closer. Cien stopped, then saw that Lilinette had regained consciousness.

Quickly returning Woodbelisk to its original form, he lifted Lilinette in his arms and sprinted away.

"Where are you going?" Ask the Demon God.

"Run!"

The Demon God grew furious, immediately deploying various skills like [God's Aura], [Might of the King], [Demon Lord Aura], [Petrification Eyes], and even [Gravity].

Yet, none of these skills had any effect. His enemy continued to run away from him.

'What's wrong with this human?!'

The Demon God pondered, conjuring a massive sword of darkness that filled the Lumiere sky. He brought the sword down, aiming to kill Cien who was still focused on fleeing.

As the surroundings suddenly darkened, Cien looked back, seeing the colossal sword about to strike.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! [Giganta]!"

BAM!

Cien managed to create a massive pillar five meters tall that halted the swing of the enormous sword.

"! Grrr, what kind of weapon is that?!"

The Demon God grew even angrier. Now, he conjured a magic that seemed to absorb the atmosphere around it.

Seeing this, Cien was reminded of a black hole. If that was unleashed, Cien felt that even Woodbelisk wouldn't be able to stop it.

Panic set in as Cien swiftly shrunk his staff and began to run again, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the impending black hole. He felt that this time, he would die if he got hit by the attack.

His mind raced, but no solution appeared. Thankfully, the incantation for the black hole seemed to take some time. This allowed Cien to increase the distance. But would this be enough?

Cien wasn't sure. With no other option, he activated the wings on his cloak. Even though with this, it's impossible for him to go to Marina for now, his and Lilinette's lives must be prioritized.

"[Black Hole]."

The Demon God muttered, releasing a black hole the size of a basketball from his hand.