42: Chapter 42 Promotion Ceremony: Steps of Flesh and Blood, A Symphony of Lamentation!

"Don't go in, steady your mind! It's best to max out your spirit attribute!"

Qin Qing's voice made Chu Xuan snap awake.

"This floor has become the core of the intersection of The Gloom. Every room may contain different levels of Strange Creaturess, all waiting for the Night Demon's promotion to succeed, so their chance of coming to the real world will be greater. Even with my strength and equipment, I almost died inside."

Chu Xuan nodded slightly. He had many questions, but he knew the current situation was not the time for answers, so he followed her all the way to the door of Room 1104.

"Are you sure it's here? If we find the wrong place and encounter a Strange Creatures even more terrifying than the Night Demon, neither of us might make it out."

Qin Qing looked at Chu Xuan, her expression incredibly solemn. "Think it through."

"This is the place," Chu Xuan replied decisively. He glanced at the time; with just over three minutes left, there was no room for further consideration. He could only choose to believe Future Tang Zheng's hint.

"Self-awakened talent users are truly enviable." Qin Qing glanced at Chu Xuan with a complex gaze and entered Dormitory 1104, carrying her blade.

"Keep close to me."

Chu Xuan followed closely behind.

Stepping inside, the first thing to hit his ears was a chaotic jumble of blurred sounds, sounding like chanting scriptures yet also like funeral wailing. Chu Xuan couldn't understand the meaning, but his head felt swollen, as if his spirit was being ravaged, making him extremely uncomfortable.

It was pitch black; the black mist here was even denser than in the corridor, and the small flashlight in Qin Qing's hand could only illuminate a tiny area.

Vaguely, many figures could be seen kneeling in worship ahead. Further on, there seemed to be a large glowing object, very conspicuous in the black mist.

"This space... doesn't look like a dormitory!" Chu Xuan was filled with doubt and alarm. There were no beds or desks here; the surrounding space seemed infinite, completely shrouded in darkness, and where they stepped was covered in blood-colored strange patterns.

"This is a distorted reality, the core of the intersection of The Gloom, and also the node for the Night Demon's promotion ritual. Those kneeling crowds ahead are all Clones of the Night Demon. We've finally found the right place!"

The further they went, the slower their movements became. Chu Xuan was horrified to find that it was as if he had entered a deep water area; his limbs felt bound by an invisible force, and his movement speed slowed down dozens of times.

Only when Qin Qing put away the flashlight and pulled out an oil lamp from somewhere did the black mist recede, allowing them to move freely.

"This is the Forbidden Domain cast by the Night Demon. At this level, one can manifest a Domain within a certain range that fits their own killing rules, directly satisfying the conditions for killing."

Qin Qing seemed to be deliberately explaining information about Specters to Chu Xuan.

"For example, if the Night Demon's killing rule is 'Night', then this Domain is Nightfall. Combined with this being the core of the intersection of The Gloom, the power of The Gloom is eroding us. That's why our movements are restricted. Long-term erosion by The Gloom will cause humans to gradually become strange-ified, turning into complete monsters."

"Once the Night Demon's promotion is successful, it can directly manifest a large-scale Domain. At that point, the killing rules will no longer be a restriction or weakness for the Night Demon, but a terrifying ability. It won't be like now, where it barely forces the expansion of the Domain's range through the promotion ritual and the power of The Gloom, even being unable to move freely itself and relying only on Clones to hunt..."

Qin Qing suddenly stopped speaking, and her advancing steps also came to an abrupt halt.

"What's wrong with you..." Chu Xuan turned to look, his pupils shrinking suddenly.

Qin Qing was actually bleeding from all seven orifices.

"Carry me on your back..." Qin Qing sheathed her blade and gritted her teeth. "My injuries are still too heavy, I can't suppress them anymore..."

Chu Xuan picked up Qin Qing on his back. He wanted to take the oil lamp, but was refused.

"I'll hold it myself, you keep going, time is running out..."

Chu Xuan glanced at the time; only two and a half minutes left. He couldn't help but quicken his pace, rushing toward the place where the figures were gathered ahead.

After about seven or eight breaths, Chu Xuan finally saw clearly.

Ahead was a massive lake of flesh and blood, with a group of people kneeling in an orderly fashion.

Amidst the chaotic sounds of prayer or chanting, some in the crowd ripped open their abdomens, and a large amount of flesh and blood came rolling out. Their own flesh and bones also began to melt and drip like wax, merging into the lake of flesh and blood below.

This lake of flesh and blood was actually formed by the gathering of human flesh and blood!

Not only that, there were countless tributaries spreading out from this lake of flesh and blood, converging not far ahead to form an altar piled high with flesh and blood.

The altar was about one meter high and five meters wide. Faces were writhing and interweaving within the flesh, constantly groaning in pain, their mouths emitting overlapping murmurs.

Chu Xuan's hairs stood on end.

These faces, though he wasn't very familiar with them, he had seen most of them.

Seen them in this dormitory building!

Especially a few faces, which were clearly Wang Hua, Huang Guangming, and Han Meimei... those who had been eaten by monsters all appeared on this flesh and blood altar.

And above that altar, suspended in the air, stood a massive phantom of a three-dimensional pattern, over ten meters high, composed of countless blood-colored ring-like structures twisted and interwoven with each other.

This three-dimensional pattern was clearly a crimson blood color, yet the light it emitted was thick and pure white, completely illuminating every corner of this area.

Sacred, grand, pure, and warm.

Bathed in this holy radiance, Chu Xuan even felt an urge to worship.

Reaching here, the chaotic sounds became clearer. The kneeling crowd completely ignored Chu Xuan's arrival, still shouting and roaring fanatically.

Chu Xuan clearly couldn't understand, yet as he drew closer, he was surprised to find that he could actually grasp the meaning of the words.

Only then did he realize it wasn't chanting, let alone a funeral wail.

It was singing and prayer.

"O Great Lord! Thou art the King of the Endless Soul Abyss, Thou art the Dominator of All Spirits Return to One! Thou art the end to which all existence must hasten!"

The kneeling crowd and the twisted faces on the Flesh Altar sang together. The fanaticism in their voices rushed into Chu Xuan's mind, making him unconsciously repeat the low murmur.

"With flesh as the ladder, and wails as the movement! I offer unto Thee these ignorant Souls, these pathetic prisoners!"

Accompanying these words, the faces on the Flesh Altar twisted and writhed, and the wails became increasingly shrill.

And the kneeling crowd all raised their hands high, then prostrated themselves, constantly shouting:

"We beseech Thee to tear apart their unique Souls, to boil their memories into a thick soup, to compose their screams into hymns, and to tear their thoughts into threads to be woven into Thy great spiritual consciousness."

"We beseech Thee to taste their sweet and delicious flesh, let their blood become the pigment that outlines Thee, let their flesh and bone become the soil that nourishes Thee, and let their skins become a corner of Thy infinite robes."

The further Chu Xuan went, the more he felt his mind in chaos, finding it hard to control his thoughts. His legs felt like they were filled with lead, involuntarily slowing down.

He saw those people, after three prostrations, all look up and straighten their bodies, their eyes looking at the altar with fervor.

Another group of people began to rip open their own abdomens with their hands, revealing stark white bones and bright red viscera as crimson liquid gushed out.

A large amount of flesh and blood also rolled out from inside their bellies, along with some already chewed-up skull fragments.

Immediately following, the flesh and bones of these people's entire bodies melted and flowed like wax, merging into the lake of flesh and blood below, just as seen before, repeating continuously.

"Thy most devout lambs hereby offer a feast!"

The lake of flesh and blood flowed faster, surging toward the Flesh Altar along tiny tributaries.

"We beseech Thee to forgive us our debt of [Mind Reading], to forgive us our debt of [Berserk], and lead us not into temptation. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are Thine, the only True God!"

"We beseech Thy mercy upon such humble existences as us, grant us the path of Clones! We beseech Thee to bestow upon us the [True Authority] of manifesting Clones, using the spirituality of all living beings as our food, so that we may stain this world with Thy color for Thee!"

"Let the rest of my life be for Thy glory alone!"

Chu Xuan's eyes were bloodshot; he felt his own spirit under immense pressure, almost unable to stand, and at the same time, he heard a muffled groan from Qin Qing by his ear.

Meanwhile, more and more people melted into flesh and blood, merging into the altar, making the strange ring-like structure suspended above the altar more solid and vividly three-dimensional.

Even more tumors grew out, one after another, densely packed.

"May Thy True Name spread through the heavens, may Thy kingdom descend upon all worlds, may Thy will override all Laws, on earth as it is in the Abyss."

"May Thy Incarnations be endless, until... All Spirits Return to One!"

"May it be so!"

"May it be so..."