Chapter 159: Forcing her out

"Skreeeee—!"

"They're so loud!" Gudako yelled and then yelped as she dodged a rusty blade from a skeleton by a hair's breadth, her heart pounding in her chest.

"Master!" Mash appeared beside her, sweeping her massive shield in a wide arc, smashing through the attacking skeletons with a powerful strike. The undead crumbled under the force, their bones clattering to the ground in a heap.

Gudako let out a sigh of relief, her heart still racing. "Thanks, Mash! That was way too close."

Mash's face hardened, her shield raised protectively. "Stay close to me, Master. I won't let anything touch you all."

Gudako nodded and turned towards Zenkichi, who was busy decimating a group of corrupted magical beasts and undead as he tried going after Envy, but was kept getting blocked. "Zenkichi! Forget about these guys, just go after Envy!"

"But what about you guys?!" Zenkichi called back, his voice filled with concern as he cut through another wave of demonic beasts and undead. His path to Envy was blocked at every turn, more enemies swarming him by the second.

Gudako's expression hardened, her resolve shining through. "We'll be fine! Mash, Brunhilde and Ereshkigal can handle this. You're the only one strong enough to deal with her directly!"

"It's more important to deal with the source of all this!" Brunhilde chimed in, slicing through a large charging undead effortlessly with Gram. "Envy's going to keep sending an army at us until we exhaust ourselves to death. Continue with the plan!"

"Zenkichi, just go! We'll catch up after we can get an opportunity!" Ereshkigal commanded, her twisted spear glowing as she unleashed a wave of golden energy, incinerating a swarm of corrupted magical beasts.

Suddenly, a bunch of skeletons and undead started surrounding her.

"Ah?! Back! Back I say! I am your true ruler, do not force me—aaaah!" The undead quickly grabbed her, and after some struggle, they raised her above their heads, and started running away. "Heeelp! I'm being kidnapped...!"

Zenkichi's eyes widened as he heard Ereshkigal's cry. "What the—?" He turned to see the goddess being hoisted by a swarm of undead, her spear flailing as they carried her away. Unexpectedly, most of the undead started retreating.

'They're taking her away? Of course! Envy wants Ereshkigal for her complete Divine Authority!' Zenkichi widened his eyes and turned to come save her....

"Ereshkigal!" Mash yelled, lunging forward with her shield. Gudako quickly buffed her physical strength with a support skill from her mystic code.

With a burst of energy, Mash charged forward like a battering ram, her shield raised high as she bulldozed through the group of undead with incredible force.

Clang! Crash!

Brunhilde chuckled at the scene and turned towards Zenkichi, "Don't worry, we'll get her back. We just have to do what we planned, although we're gonna have to do some adjustments."

Zenkichi hesitated for a brief moment, before nodding in agreement. "Alright. Be safe, and be ready to act when I force Envy out of this place."

Brunhilde grinned and kissed his cheek. "Be careful, and don't you dare use Cattish Tale just to get the advantage. Battles can be won without killing yourself. Most people could only live once and they can win their battles after all."

Zenkichi wryly smiled, "I'll try to stay alive as long as possible."

Brunhilde frowned, a bit displeased, but sighed in resignation and understanding. "Alright. But please. This time, come back to us safe and in one piece."

"....I will," Zenkichi said, smiling softly and nodding his head before using Hirenkyaku, disappearing from sight.

"Raaaaghh!!" Corrupted magical beasts and undead with wings completely filled the sky, standing in defense of their creator.

Envy looked down at Zenkichi and the group with a narrowed gaze, a mix of madness and intelligence swirling behind her purple eyes. Her lips curled into a twisted smile as she observed Zenkichi heading towards her.

"Show me all of your powers, your everything...." Her voice dripped with malice as she clenched her hands. "So I can take them all!"

A burst of malevolent purple energy erupted from her, radiating outward like a shockwave, distorting the very air around her. The underworld trembled in response, the oppressive atmosphere growing heavier with each passing second.

"Kreeeeeee!!"

All the corrupted magical beasts and undead let out deafening roars in the sky, their twisted auras grew stronger; amplified by Envy's Monster Authority and Imperfect Divine Authority. The sky suddenly began to "cracked"—fracturing like fragile glass. Jagged lines of black energy splintered outward, space in the underworld began to destabilize.

"No more holding back..." Zenkichi muttered, eyes narrowing. His blond hair began to glow, burning like the heart of a star, radiating an intense light that cut through the overwhelming darkness of the underworld. His entire presence shifted, the air around him vibrating with raw divine power.

[Divine Authority: Sun{Divine} — Your physical strength and certain abilities of yours will be enhanced by 500% during daytime, when during nighttime, you can used the power of the stars as a substitute but it could only grant you 200% increased strength and certain abilities.]

[Ding! Absence of Sun detected, activating the reserved Sunpower stored within the user's body—200% increased of strength and certain abilities activated. Time limit: 15 minutes(time will be lessened when using large amounts of Sunpower).]

A golden aura surrounded him, flickering like fire, and his crimson eyes locked onto Envy, who hovered above with a twisted, maddening grin.

"That's it! That's what I want to see!" Envy shrieked in delight, her eyes wide with anticipation as she felt the surge of power radiating from Zenkichi. "I can now get two of you. Hehe, yes.... Show me everything, so I can take it all!"

The fractured sky above cracked even further, jagged lines of black energy spreading like an infectious web across the underworld.

As the space around them distorted, the Underworld seemed to scream in agony—the souls of the dead slowly getting absorbed by Envy and becoming either proteins of her army or becoming a part of it.

"NOOO! YOU MONSTER!" Ereshkigal screamed in anger, her voice echoing across the battlefield as she struggled to free herself from the swarm of undead that still surrounded her.

She could feel the Underworld itself groaning in pain, a deep connection in her soul to the realm she ruled. The jagged lines of black energy tore through her domain, twisting and corrupting it under Envy's malevolent influence.

Her twisted spear of the underworld flared with golden-red light as she unleashed another wave of energy, desperately trying to purify the corruption spreading through her territory. Yet, despite her efforts, the dark tendrils of Envy's power continued to encroach, warping the very fabric of the underworld around them.

"You dare defile my domain with this vile power!" Ereshkigal's eyes blazed with fury, her divine authority clashing against Envy's monstrous power. "I will never let you take what is mine!"

"Hehehe...What do you mean? It's already mine~" Envy grinned as she reveled in the chaos she was creating. Her eyes gleamed with a sick pleasure as the souls of the Underworld were being absorbed into her, either fueling her dark army or becoming part of it entirely.

"NO!"

The corrupted magical beasts and undead roared again, and they began flying down towards Zenkichi—like moths to a flame. The sky itself appeared to bleed, the swarm resembling an army of demons surging up from the abyss, ready to tear down anyone in their path.

"You're in the way..." Zenkichi narrowed his eyes as he took a step on air, a scorching heat spread out of his body like a shockwave, burning the corrupted magical beasts and undead that were swarming down at him to ashes. His crimson eyes locked onto the swarm of corrupted creatures descending upon him, unwavering.

He outstretched his hand, and bright orange flames converged on his palm, swirling with raw power and radiating a searing heat that cut through the oppressive darkness. The flames danced eagerly, illuminating his serious expression as he meticulously controlled the orange flames.

The flames began to take shape—a unbloom fire lotus, its petals unfurling slowly as if awakening from a deep slumber. Each petal flickered with the intensity of his divine power, glowing brighter as he channeled his energy into the form.

The air around it shimmered, distorting under the heat, and a mesmerizing dance of flames surrounded him, casting flickering shadows across the battlefield.

"This lotus.... I was inspired by a certain novel I read a while back," Zenkichi grinned, channeling his divine energy into the fire lotus. "Have a taste of the Angry Buddha Lotus Flame!" He then lifted his hand, letting the fire lotus slowly fly toward the swarm.

As the lotus soared through the air, the vibrant orange flames illuminated the darkness, casting a surreal glow on the surrounding chaos. The fire lotus began to bloom, a tremendous amount of energy surged, emanating powerful shockwaves that burned the swarm—but that was just the start.

For a fleeting moment, it seemed as if time had stopped; the battlefield held its breath in anticipation.

Then, with a mighty detonation, the lotus exploded.

Boom*!

A cataclysmic burst of fire erupted outward, engulfing everything in its path. The shockwave rippled through the air, obliterating the corrupted magical beasts and undead in a blinding flash. The sky lit up like day, the heat searing everything as the blast tore apart the horde, leaving nothing but charred remains.

The underworld trembled under the sheer force of the explosion, the jagged lines of darkness fracturing and collapsing as the overwhelming power swept across the battlefield—spatial distortions appeared. The echoes of destruction reverberated in the air, drowning out the screams of the creatures caught in the chaos.

"Huuu...."

Letting out heavy breath, Zenkichi narrowed his eyes, trying to find Envy in the black smoke that enveloped the sky.

"ZENKICHI!!" Ereshkigal's scream of bloody murder was heard throughout the entire Underworld, piercing through the haze of destruction.

'....I'm sorry!' Zenkichi inwardly lamented, promising to himself to make it up for her later on.

He then glanced at his system screen and frowned.

[Time limit: 7 minutes]

The divine energy/Sunpower he used in that one attack almost halved his time limit of using his Divine authority. Another use of it and he wouldn't be able to use his Divinity for a while.

Suddenly, a shadowy figure emerged from the smoke, ethereal and terrifying. Envy stepped forward, her form barely scathed by the inferno, dark energy swirling around her like a protective shroud. Her twisted smile only grew wider, eyes gleaming with malicious delight.

"Did you really think you could erase me with such a trivial display?" she taunted, brushing off the remnants of the explosion as if they were mere dust. "You've only served to make me stronger!"

"Well, I didn't really expect it to work..." Zenkichi softly replied, his lips tugged into a smirk as the ceiling of the Underworld began to show large cracks, fissures spreading like spider webs. The very fabric of the realm quaked.

Envy narrowed her eyes and looked up at the falling debris of the boundary between the earth and the afterlife. "Hmm. Are you trying to gain access to the sun by creating a hole? How...simple, and utterly inefficient. That can't be your whole plan of taking me out? If it is, I severely overestimated you."

Zenkichi continued on smirking, as he sensed Gudako and the others making their way towards him. "Well, I'm not one to reveal secrets..."

Back in Eridu, Zenkichi and the others came up with a plan in order to deal with Envy.

And the first part of that plan was getting her out of the Underworld. With her abilities, the longer she stays in the Underworld would make her stronger and they would be completely powerless to stop her then.

But what if they brought her out of the Underworld? They would gain the advantage.

"You—!" Envy's eyes narrowed as Zenkichi blurred before appearing before her, his hand firmly pressing against her face.

The moment felt electric, a clash of wills encapsulated between them in a heartbeat.

.....

AN: I'm back! I'm sorry for not posting anything last week; I had a lot of personal matters to attend to that....lead to a bit of depression...but that doesn't matter now. What matters is that I'm back and with a new chapter!

Btw, for those fellow gacha players, here's what I've done: I got Acheron to E1 and S2 in HSR, in Genshin I am on a guaranteed 70 pity plus a 75/25 on the weapon banner in preparation for Mavuika, I haven't gotten Camellya yet in Wuwa, and I got that busty elf(britomart) in FGO in just 11 pulls even after losing 290sq on Morgan's banner! All the while being F2P in all these!! Hahahahahahahaha!!

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•Tyler Dann

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