Book 5: Chapter 243: The Secret Region Beneath the Maze of the Scripps Cemetery

After a short period of slaughter, Bella’s demonic beings finally took over the Scripps Cemetery’s Underground Maze. Many corpses of mutated demonic beings could be found littered all over the ground. 

After a preliminary investigation, Bella found that the Scripps Cemetery’s Underground Maze was approximately the size of ten soccer fields. However, she did not discover any human corpses. At the very least, a hundred people had entered the maze, but none of their bodies could be seen anywhere. 

The team from the Blood Skull organization that they had met at the maze’s entrance was already retreating towards the exit at Randall’s command. The S-Grade Earthworm type demonic beings had sent them running back with their tails between their legs. 

“These demonic beings are all yours…”

“Stupid lass, stop asking. Those who know too much will have to turn into…”

Kleina looked at the new demonic beings that were roaming around the maze, feeling a little overwhelmed. At this moment, she felt nothing but admiration for Elaine. Anyone who could summon such a large amount of demonic beings, let alone control them, was definitely one of the best wizards in the human world. 

Elaine continued to direct her demonic beings, disregarding the looks of admiration that Kleina was throwing her way. Currently, she was trying to figure out if there were any other pathways within the maze. After all, it did not make sense that even with the large number of people who had already entered the area, none of their remains could be found anywhere. 

Torches had already been lit and placed along the stone walls, brightening up the originally eerie atmosphere within the maze. The new demonic beings were combing through every single nook and cranny of this place. There were so many of them that they were almost overflowing out of the maze.

Every once in a while, a native demonic being that remained would be pulled out and killed. The reason why the maze had been unnaturally dark was because of those native demonic beings. Now that they were gone, the darkness did not affect them anymore. 

Those S-Grade Underground Earthworms at the entrance of the maze were terrified of the large numbers of new demonic beings. All the S-Grade Underground Earthworms could do was to engage in scuffles with the demonic beings at the entrance, not daring to step inside. Although, it was rather strange that the other native demonic beings in the maze were barely even an A-Grade. They were basically useless.

Bella held Kleina in her arms as they roamed aimlessly within the maze. She sulked as she saw that there were trails of activity left behind by four of the ex-Radiant Popes. According to the information that she had obtained from the Third Generation Radiant Pope McPherson, the other four ex-Radiant Popes consisted of two males and two females.

Bella was only interested in the First Generation Radiant Pope Goldsmith and the Fifth Generation Radiant Pope Roxanne as they were both females. According to historical records, the two ladies had been young female geniuses ten thousand years ago. She did not care about the Second Generation Radiant Pope Aesop or the Fourth Generation Radiant Pope Douglas at all. Their dark histories were far too atrocious, even for Bella’s taste. 

Bella still carried the “Sanctioned Dagger” that she had borrowed from the Holy Swordswoman Cynthia. This had been personally created by the Sixth Generation Radiant Pope Lindburg and was a weapon that was carried down throughout the generations of Holy Swordsmen. The dagger could be used to mete out punishment to the Radiant Popes who had committed acts of treason against the Church. 

There were no significant acts of treason recorded in the Radiant Church’s history from the Sixth Radiant Pope onwards, however. Therefore, this dagger had not seen the light of day for a long time. Right now, if they were to meet any of the two corrupted ex-Radiant Popes, it would then prove to be quite useful. 

“Put me down; I can walk on my own.”

Kleina felt a little embarrassed to have Bella carrying her in her arms like that. Since she had requested to walk, Bella was in no position to refuse. However, the moment Kleina’s feet touched the ground, a hole appeared beneath her and sucked her inside.

“There’s something pulling at my feet… Knight, help…”

Bella did not catch Kleina in time before she saw many black hands grab onto Kleina’s legs and dragged her down into a deeper world. When the hole was about to close, a ring of red energy completely stopped the gap from being sealed.

“Everyone, attack! It has finally revealed itself. Bella, don’t worry. I believe that the fellow might need Kleina and would not hurt her for now.”

The Puppet Master Elaine was also well-practiced in curse magic, and her red curse had prevented the hole from closing up. Swiftly after, the demonic beings that were summoned by Elaine jumped into the hole, Bella joining them as well. She stood on the back of one of the larger demonic beings and used it as a stepping stool as she landed below. 

As Bella and the others stepped foot in an open area within the underground Mixed Area of the Scripps Cemetery, they were momentarily disoriented. The area was extremely confusing, after all. It looked like they were in a wide, open, underground ocean. There was water everywhere, and in the middle of that ocean was an island. 

It was as though this was a parallel universe. When Bella descended, she had been separated from Noreya and Elaine. The sacred object that she carried with her, the Heart of the Ocean, along with a mysterious force of telepathy, allowed Bella to change her trajectory midair, and she landed directly on a piece of floating ice near the island. 

Strangely enough, there was a small lake on this special icy island. As she descended onto it, she noticed that there was someone inside. However, as Bella was moving far too quickly, she did not manage to see what the person looked like and could only vaguely tell that it might be a woman. 

The water in the lake was freezing. If not for the Heart of the Ocean, Bella would have become a human popsicle. Although her body was fine, the equipment that she had been wearing had been turned to dust after being frozen by the sub-zero temperatures of the lake’s water.

“The water’s toxic… Fortunately, I’m not wearing anything too expensive. Wasn’t there someone else earlier? Where have you gone? Come out now. Stop hiding!”

As Bella came up for air, the girl she had seen earlier was nowhere to be found. Of course, there was no way that she would believe that the girl had disappeared into thin air. A subtle fragrance still lingered in the air, which might have been left behind by that girl.

Bella’s sense of smell was so advanced that she was able to differentiate between multiple maiden’s scents. Before long, she found a little bubble in a random corner of the lake. It was as though someone was under the surface trying to hide from Bella. 

The ice lake was actually not deep at all and was only about half a meter in depth. Additionally, the lake was not too large either, about the size of a small swimming pool. Bella was in quite a bit of pain as she collapsed. Although she was a Demon King, falling and crashing from such a height would definitely cause some internal injuries. 

Bella got out of the lake as quickly as she could and hid behind some rocks that were closest to where the bubbles had appeared. Before she was able to ascertain that girl’s status, she did not dare to take a closer look. If it turned out to be a female corpse, it would be an absolutely terrifying sight to behold. The best way to make heads and tails of the situation was to spy on her. Bella held her breath and waited quietly for the other girl to resurface. 

Bella’s efforts were not for naught. Once no disturbance could be felt inside the lake, a beautiful young blue-black haired maiden resurfaced. Her alert beige eyes were darting around, checking her surroundings. 

The girl’s chest was extremely voluminous. Even though she had her arms crossed in front of her, it could not hide her enticing figure. The water in the ice lake refracted in a way that one must be in close proximity to see what was inside. In this case, Bella was exceptionally near to the girl and was fortunate enough to catch an eyeful of her gorgeous figure. 

Bella found many black magical patterns all over the maiden’s snow-white skin. It was as though curses were littered across her body. This sort of unintentionally blurred image infuriated Bella. It was almost like a veil had been pulled over it, and she could not get a clear view of the maiden’s body. 

That maiden’s face was mostly covered in the magical patterns, preventing anyone from seeing her actual appearance. Bella could not take it any longer. She charged out from behind the rocks, jumped into the ice lake, and threw herself onto the maiden in the lake. When the other girl turned, it was already too late. Bella had her locked tightly in her arms. 

“Let me go, you female demon… The Radiant will never submit… Wait, don’t touch me; I’m covered in curses… Aren’t you afraid of dying… Hold on…”

“Your Holiness, I don’t think that it would be a good idea for any of your followers to see you in this state. Why don’t you be a doll and tell me your story?”

The Fifth Generation Radiant Pope Roxanne looked at the smirking Bella, trying to resist her advances. However, a Priest’s strength was not a match for a Demon King at all. Furthermore, she had been submerged in this lake for nearly ten thousand years and was rather weak. 

With one hand, Bella managed to pin Roxanne’s arms tightly behind her back. She then pressed her body up against her and stared dominantly into the beautiful Fifth Generation Pope’s eyes. The maiden priest who had slaughtered countless evil demons finally opened her mouth to speak after many internal struggles. 

Around ten thousand years ago, after the mysterious disappearance of the Third Generation Radiant Pope McPherson, the Fourth Generation Radiant Pope Douglas began his sixty-year rule of the Vatican. 

The period of sixty years that Douglas ruled were the dark ages of the Radiant Church’s History, and there was no record of anything that had happened during that time. When the Sixth Generation Radiant Pope Lindburg came into power, he ordered for that part of the Church’s history to be falsified. The public had the impression that the Fifth Generation Radiant Pope Roxanne had ruled for most of those sixty years, and Douglas had passed away due to illness within ten years of his reign.

After that battle, Roxanne had gotten entangled into Douglas’s curses, and they could not be broken either. On top of that, the black marks all over her body were the side effects of those curses. At the moment, she was partially demonized. Since she could harness the curses’ power slightly, she could tell that Bella was a female demon.

“Look at you, aren’t you almost disfigured? Your Holiness, staying in the ice-cold waters of the lake might have been able to slow the decay due to the curses, but it’s not a long term solution… Come with me!”

“No, you demon. I’m not leaving with you! Wait, I don’t want to leave this place…”

“Even if you refuse, I am taking you away. At this rate, you’ll never be able to escape the inevitable fate of being corrupted. Trust me, just this once…”

Casually, Bella picked up Pope Roxanne in her arms with plans to take her away. The current Roxanne was not technically human anymore. For the past ten thousand years, the energy from the curses had already integrated deeply into her body.

Most of Roxanne’s body had been demonized by now. To Bella, this meant that Roxanne was one of hers now. The only problem was that the black curses were too hideous looking. Bella decided that she would have to think of a solution to cleanse her of that black energy.

“What are you holding on for? Your God is not around anymore. Really, wear this…”

Bella’s storage ring had not been damaged by the ice-cold lake. She took out another Sacred Object, the “Crystal Heart” and gave it to Roxanne. Under the gentle blue light, the curses on Roxanne’s body were suppressed as the Crystal Heart’s power was comparable to the entirety of the ice lake. 

Roxanne was stunned upon hearing that God was not around anymore. It was as though she had been awakened from a dream that she had been having for ten thousand years. Tears trickled down her face. Every reigning Radiant Pope knew the secret that the God World had already perished. However, they refused to talk about it. Roxanne had held on to that pipe dream for a full ten thousand years.

Bella was reluctant to make a girl cry for any reason. However, Roxanne was uncooperative and continued to struggle as hard as she could. This made things difficult for Bella. Taking advantage of Roxanne’s inattention, she sneakily used divine chains to bind her hands and legs for now.

“The Church’s golden seal chains… Where did you get it from? Wait, I am a Pope, you can’t do this…”

Bella was about to continue teasing Pope Roxanne in a bid to obtain more information when a gigantic demonic being rose up from the lake. It was covered in frosty scales, and its blue eyes were staring greedily at Bella and Roxanne. 

Bella felt extremely uncomfortable as the earth dragon-like demonic being continued to stare at them. The look in the ice demonic being’s eyes was too evil. It almost felt like it was a hunter sizing up its prey. 

“Ice Demonic Beast Joyce, how did you get out…”

“You two look pretty good. I shall add you to my collection…”

The Ice Demonic Beast Joyce opened its mouth and began to spray ice-cold blasts in Bella and Roxanne’s direction. Everything that the ice blasts touched froze. At this point, Bella did not dare to face this attack head-on. They were not wearing any clothes, and there was a chance that they would end up freezing to death. She held on to Roxanne as tightly as she could and sprinted towards the beach. The Ice Island was the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s territory, so they were at a disadvantage. 

“Aren’t you fast? You demon, you’re really something. But…”

A few darts approached from a distance and were aimed towards the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s eyes. Instinctively, it closed its eyes for a moment on reflex. When it opened them again, the girls were nowhere to be found. The Assassin Noreya and Puppet Master Elaine had arrived on the scene as reinforcements. After getting separated from Bella while they were in the air, they were worried about her and broke away from the demonic beast army, rushing here to find Bella on their own.

Currently, Bella and Roxanne were hiding behind a large stone located further away. Covering Roxanne’s mouth, Bella was having a discussion with Elaine and Noreya in hushed tones. Their clothes had mysteriously disappeared as well. Upon asking, Bella found out that the air in the atmosphere on this island was too cold. Since they were not wearing any god armor, their standard gear dissolved upon contact with the wind.

“Bella, keep your eyes to yourself. Everyone’s the same here, there’s nothing much to look at. That demonic being is the manifestation of the curses on that pretty sister in your arms. The most straightforward way is to…”

“No way, Roxanne cannot die. Sealing her back into the ice lake is not a long term solution either. This time, we just have to kill the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce, and then the problem would be solved.”

“I’m alright with that, Bella. Even though I don’t have any of my gear, as an assassin, I can still kill with my bare hands. However, this Pope has already seen our true appearance. What if…”

“It’s fine, she’s mine already. There’s no way she can betray us in the future. I have an idea…”

Roxanne was intent on denying Bella’s ridiculous speech. Even if she were to die, she would never submit to the dark side. However, thinking about it, the two stunning maidens standing next to Bella might be similar to her. In that case, her explanations would be fruitless. The Ice Demonic Beast Joyce was at least an SS-Grade demonic beast. They might as well leave them to destroy each other. 

The Ice Demonic Beast Joyce used Roxanne’s scent and tracked them down to where Bella and the others had been hiding. It opened its mouth and sent another blast of cold air towards them. 

A few puppet strings had already entwined themselves around the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s legs. While it was distracted, its four legs were pulled down onto the ice. Taking advantage of the situation, Bella leaped onto the beast’s back, pulled up a pole made of ice, and stabbed it into its back.

“Damn… You woman, I shall turn you into an ice sculpture…:”

The Ice Demonic Beast Joyce turned its head around to face its back, revealing its vulnerable neck. The Assassin Noreya took the chance and stabbed a dagger fashioned out of ice into the beast’s throat. This fatal blow caused the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce to lose its strongest attack, the ability to send out ice blasts. Now, its throat was destroyed.

Then, countless puppet strings shot into the wounds, targeting the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s internal organs. Bella did not sit idle either. She brandished the ice pole and stabbed it into Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s right eye. It was time for the demonic being to pay for leering at their bodies earlier on. 

Despite the fact that the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce was bleeding profusely, Bella did not let its other eye go unharmed. When she caught Noreya’s dagger, she blinded the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce’s left eye as well. After some struggle, the ten-meter long Ice Demonic Beast Joyce fell dead on the ice. Along with its demise, the ice island began to show signs of collapse.

As the Fifth Generation Radiant Pope Roxanne witnessed what was happening in front of her, she could barely believe her eyes. The SS-Grade Ice Demonic Beast Joyce was slaughtered by three “naked ladies” so simply and directly. Bella and the others did not even bring any equipment, had fashioned temporary weapons out of anything they could get their hands on around them, and managed to kill the Ice Demonic Beast Joyce. Have the demonic powers increased so much already? 

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