The church itself was a building with a very complex internal layout, but thanks to most of the crossroads being tightly blocked by tables, chairs, and other debris, and Xia De being almost certain of Joey Barton and Iluna Bayas's direction, even without seeing their traces, he still advanced with a clear goal.
The ritual traces inside the church were even more numerous than the last time he visited, and even without a light source, they were enough to illuminate the corridor in gold.
Most people were currently resisting the undead, so Xia De did not see any other Ring術士 as he went deeper, but the sound of loud hymns echoed in his ears constantly.
The Natural Church's hymns leaned towards folk songs. In the choral parts, one could even close their eyes and envision vast grasslands under the sunlight and lush, dense forests in Summer.
Xia De didn't know what the singing at this moment meant, but from the inside, the sealing ritual was undoubtedly nearing completion.
The further in he walked, the more the corridor felt distorted. The concept of death twisted space, causing the corridor to warp to some extent in all four directions: up, down, left, and right.
As the ritual traces became denser, Xia De finally saw silver metal wires, like spider silk, crossing the corridor ahead, broken by impact, which indicated he was heading in the correct direction.
Suddenly, he heard a sound behind him. Turning around, a middle-aged man with square-rimmed glasses and a sword in his hand approached as if flying close to the ground.
He looked older than Doctor Schneider, nearing the boundary between middle and old age, and the golden spiritual light emanating from his entire body represented how much he had been enhanced by divine rituals.
Xia De recognized him; this was Mr. Lacon Matisse, the Sun Church's Thirteen Ring Sorcerer in this area.
Aside from the Natural Church's Thirteen Ring Sorcerer originally stationed in this parish, he was the strongest Ring術士 in this parish.
“No need to explain, I know they came in, let’s go.”
Although this gentleman didn't say much, he acted quickly, so the two continued forward together.
Passing through dense silver threads, pushing aside metal talismans that swayed and chimed like wind chimes above their heads, the already thin white mist inside the church became increasingly faint, but at the same time, the air grew colder and colder.
Everything from the real world around them, even the golden Miracle spiritual light itself, was slowly fading.
When they turned into the last corridor, all the candle flames on the ground turned a deep blue-black, and the walls looked as if they had endured thousands of years of baptism.
But this was at least better than the last time he came, because the carved divine rituals on the walls were still stubbornly flickering with spiritual light.
The white mist completely receded here. Every breath Xia De and Mr. Lacon Matisse took produced white mist.
Neither of them spoke, silently arriving at the end of the corridor.
It was a square entrance leading underground, and black wind was gradually blowing out from it.
An old man in a white robe lay unconscious to one side of the entrance; this should be the High-Ring Sorcerer sent by the Ring術士 organization “Apner Library” that Iluna Bayas mentioned to help.
Mr. Matisse checked and confirmed that he was only unconscious, then used the long sword in his hand to draw a circle around the old man.
Golden light traces appeared within the circle, blocking the black wind blowing from the side; this was a unique divine Miracle of the Sun Church.
“This path below leads to True Death. I need to confirm what happened. Do you want to come along?”
Having done this, Mr. Matisse asked Xia De, and Xia De naturally nodded.
However, once he entered the passage below, his “Divine Radiance” state would become externally visible.
Looking at the kerosene lamp hanging from his waist, Xia De had an idea.
He gestured for himself to go first, raising the old-fashioned metal kerosene lamp, and then carefully walked down the thirteen steps.
The howling black wind continuously blew from the front of the underground passage, and countless whispers echoed in his ears—the murmurs and unwillingness of the dead in their last moments of life.
The biting cold wind blew towards Xia De. The 【Ancient Magic Witches' Golden Necklace】 hanging on his chest lit up first, and then, the flame in the raised kerosene lamp containing the 【Original Fire】 suddenly surged, the blazing fire swirling within the lampshade, illuminating the surroundings and protecting Xia De.
The “Divine Radiance” state did not appear; the First Fire and the Magic Witches' necklace were enough to protect Xia De.
“It really works.”
“What kind of flame is this?”
Even the Thirteen Ring Sorcerer following behind Xia De was protected by the flame, but seeing that Xia De was unwilling to answer, Mr. Matisse did not press further.
Xia De walked in front, and Mr. Lacon Matisse of the Sun Church walked behind. The afterglow of the First Fire trailed backward from the surface of the lantern Xia De held high.
The primitive and ancient power was even more effective in expelling death than the divine Miracle power of the Orthodox Church.
The nun said that the 【Original Fire】 was only an angel-level relic, and what Xia De held was merely a small flame.
This made him understand even more deeply how powerful this flame, said to be from before the First Era, truly was.
Stepping forward, Xia De, because he was directly holding the oil lamp and also had the protection of the Magic Witches' necklace, although his body was stiff and his soul felt a slight heaviness, he could barely hold on.
However, Mr. Lacon Matisse could not hold on. Therefore, when the two walked out of that passage and arrived at the huge square underground space where the Death Door stood, this gentleman had already revealed his Destiny Ring behind him.
Even so, he could only stop at the end of the passage, not daring to enter the square space ahead at all.
But from this position, the Death Door could already be seen.
In the faint light of the First Fire, the ancient, massive stone door was closed, with stories related to death carved upon it, describing the most fundamental meaning of death in this world.
The black wind blowing from the crack in the door was still eerie and silent, as if everything in this world ended here.
But unlike last time, this time, a huge holy emblem phantom was suspended before that door.
It was two overlapping leaves, one withered yellow and one green.
The holy emblem was becoming clearer at a visible speed, and the black wind was gradually weakened as a result.
“Didn’t see them, Joey Barton and Iluna Bayas. Did they enter this door?”
Xia De was somewhat disbelieving of this outcome, but Lacon Matisse immediately shook his head, making a difficult sound:
“The ritual is nearly four-fifths complete. Although not entirely finished, this door at the foot of the mountain absolutely cannot be opened from the inside or outside.”
“But Joey Barton is the Chosen One of death. He can touch death itself.”
Xia De said, looking at the door, where there were also signs of battle and some footprints:
“They might have really gone in.”
Xia De repeated, and the Sun Church's Thirteen Ring Sorcerer was silent for a moment:
“This is the best outcome.”
“What?”
Xia De looked at him in disbelief, and Mr. Matisse immediately explained:
“The ritual has progressed to this point; all that’s left is to drive the undead that have infiltrated reality back into the Gap before the three passages are overrun by the undead army outside, and the Holy Tree Mark will be complete.
Although I don’t know by what means Joey Barton opened the Death Door from the outside, I can at least guarantee that even the Chosen One of death, at this stage of the ritual, cannot open the door from the inside.
This much is certain; the Holy Tree Mark ritual is not being used for the first time, and Joey Barton is by no means the first Ring術士 to break into the Death Door.
Allowing him to enter here just now was not only our oversight but also because we knew that once he went in, he couldn’t come out.”
“Then what about your Chosen One?”
“Iluna Bayas following her into death was indeed an unexpected surprise, but Bei Ya Si's Destiny will not end here; this is a divine oracle.”
“Please elaborate.”
“Although the five great ones cannot descend at will, bringing her out is not an issue, so there’s no need to worry about her.”
Mr. Matisse looked towards the Death Door, then was forced to close his eyes and look away:
“Unless Joey Barton can perform a ritual behind the door to become a Chosen One, he can already be considered dead.
Let’s go. We are still needed outside. The Prophets of the Prophet Association have already made a divination that at the end, a collective undead entity composed of thousands of spirits will appear in the Gap. That will be the most difficult battle.
Driving it into the Gap will complete the Holy Tree Mark. I think the battle will need to continue until midnight. This will be a very difficult battle.”
“No.”
Xia De shook his head slightly:
“I want to go in too.”
He pointed to the ancient stone door:
“Yes, stepping into death.”
“You—”
Mr. Matisse looked at the masked stranger in the firelight:
“I need to remind you that door has been sealed. Even if you are a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer, you cannot get in.”
“I have other ways.”
The middle-aged man was silent for a moment:
“Opening the door from the outside is easier than opening it from the inside. Even if you can get in like Joey Barton, you, like him, absolutely cannot get out before the Holy Tree Mark becomes ineffective.”
“I’ll figure something out myself. Stepping into the Death Door is equivalent to suicide, and now, Joey Barton and Iluna Bayas have both committed suicide. I need to make sure that the one who comes out first is not Joey Barton.”
Mr. Matisse hesitated for a moment, frowning slightly:
“You really know... You’re not a Demon Hunter, are you? Although you seem strong, you’ve never used any Miracle or spell other than swordsmanship and sunlight power, and you haven’t even manifested your Destiny Ring. You’re not a Middle-Ring Arcanist at all.”
“Yes, I am not a Middle-Ring Arcanist.”
Xia De was a Ring術士.
“Are you a Summoner?”
“Why do you think so?”
“It seems it’s true... The outcome of the Middelburg incident is truly the best we could have imagined. Not only can Joey Barton be almost certainly considered dead, but we even had close contact with you and had Iluna Bayas determine your alignment.”
Xia De shook his head:
“They still need you outside, and my path is ahead. Sir, it was a pleasure to cooperate with the Church this time. I hope you remain safe in the upcoming battle.”
Mr. Matisse nodded, as if relieved:
“Why are you so persistent in pursuing Joey Barton and the other Chosen One?”
“Do you think I would answer?”
Xia De asked, and the latter was silent for a moment, pulling out a scroll of parchment from his pocket:
“The learning method for the Sun Church's unique Miracle, 【Heaton Seal】. Although this is very precious, it might not be much for a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer like you. Consider this your reward for helping us guard the church. We welcome future cooperation.”
Xia De smiled:
“Then I’ll accept it.”
Under Mr. Matisse’s gaze, he walked straight to the 【Death Door】.
This time, he did not leave his relics and casting materials behind, because his previous experience made him realize that the afterglow on him was enough to protect his personal belongings.
Without trying to push the door, which was most likely unopenable now, Xia De held 【Night Watchman】 in his right hand, and as the Magic Witches' necklace on his chest suddenly flashed, he turned sideways and swung his sword forward with all his might—
“Death Door!”
The long sword slashed at the air in the black wind, sparks flying in the air.
A pitch-black crack appeared with the faint sound of shattering glass, and the crack rapidly expanded to a size large enough for Xia De to pass through.
