Next Life – Chapter 124

Marius’s arrival on the Farmia Continent was on his second transfer.

“This is it,” Marius muttered.

“Indeed,” Sophia agreed.

Marius and Sophia nodded in unison.

The surroundings were pitch black. Horizontal rain lashed down on them, and a ferocious wind howled past them into the distance. Above, black clouds swallowed the sky, and lightning danced wildly. The ground was flooded with black water, and there was no trace of any life. The two had to use levitation magic to avoid the raging torrent. The scene was so gruesome that it seemed futile to even try a “Detection” for survivors.

“I’m returning. Good luck,” Sophia said.

“Thanks.”

Sophia returned by teleportation magic, while Marius decided to search for the revived Tindalos. He could already sense the malevolent aura, so an encounter was imminent. Marius was not a saint and had no delusions of grandeur; seeing the state of the Farmia Continent, he didn’t think, “I should have come sooner.” He simply intended to pray for the repose of the unrelated victims and perhaps seek revenge, aside from the fool who resurrected the Evil God. To minimize consumption, he proceeded using only levitation magic until the force intensified, and he spotted a large, black, dog-like mist.

“Tindalos,” Marius thought, and then spoke the name aloud.

The Evil God, whose name was called, turned. Without a hint of emotion, he said, “Another piece of trash has come to die?”

“No, I’ve come to defeat you,” Marius replied.

Tindalos let out a laugh at Marius’s response, a dark, wicked, and horrific laugh. “How dare a petty, lower life form attempt to defeat me, a god? You’re five hundred billion years too early, trash.”

Marius didn’t reply and unleashed the Forbidden Spell “Agni.” He had no time for pleasantries. With no survivors and a god as his opponent, he went all out from the start. The area before him was engulfed in blazing white fire. The white inferno, intent on incinerating the torrential rain and gale-force winds, vanished in seconds. Tindalos remained standing as if nothing had happened. The rain and wind, which should have been gone, returned to normal almost immediately.

“Did you do something to me just now, trash?” Tindalos taunted with derision and contempt. Marius didn’t take the bait. He hadn’t expected to defeat a god so easily. His first priority, he decided, was to find a breakthrough.

“`…Return to nothing.` [Annihilation]”

The strongest black tempest, which annihilated everything it touched, blew out. It swallowed the rain, wind, lightning, and even Tindalos, before disappearing as it pierced the black clouds covering the sky.

“Do you really think such a pathetic attack would work on a god? As expected of trash,” Tindalos scoffed. Tindalos was unharmed, and more contemptuous words flew his way. Marius initially intended to ignore it, but quickly changed his mind.

“All talk, huh? You insignificant god.” He retorted. It was the first time since Sophia that an attack had no effect. While Sophia’s intangibility was clear, the reason Tindalos took no damage was unknown. He realized he needed to figure that out.

(I can’t afford to dawdle.) Marius felt a slight sense of urgency. If he took too long, the Taliant Continent could suffer the same fate as the Farmia Continent.

“Hmph. As expected of trash, you can’t comprehend divine power,” Tindalos mocked, not falling for the provocation. “A mere trash like you cannot defeat a god. Let me teach you that.”

The pressure emanating from the Evil God increased. It wasn’t a pure power like Auraniess, but a monstrous entity of solidified malice. Black, tentacle-like mists extended from Tindalos, branching into twelve and touching the water. The mists then took on the forms of a mantis, stag beetle, frog, rhinoceros beetle, snake, bird, and tiger.

“My servants, the Twelve Apostles of Destruction, ravage the land.” At the god’s command, the twelve异形s soared into the sky and scattered across various regions.

“Aren’t you going to fight me?” Marius’s voice wavered slightly. Tindalos noticed and taunted him further. “A piece of trash like you is no match for me alone. I’d much rather enjoy destroying what you’re trying to protect.” The sound of pure malice in Tindalos’s laughter struck Marius’s ears. The Evil God had seen through Marius’s emotions. “My Twelve Apostles all possess power comparable to a Demon Lord. Do you think this world will remain safe without you?”

As the god laughed triumphantly, Marius thought, (It’ll be a piece of cake with Auraniess!), but only inwardly.

“Oh? So you have some sort of plan.” Tindalos spoke as if he could read Marius’s mind, then slowly approached. “Very well, until the result is decided, I shall beat you down. `Babel`!”

Black lightning filled the entire area, swirling like a vortex and attacking Marius. Marius dodged it with “Warp,” but then…

“`Megid`!”

A conflagration of pure darkness was unleashed. Marius deployed triple barriers of “Dimension Shield,” “Barricade,” and “Reflection,” but they were effortlessly shattered, and he was engulfed. Seeing this, Tindalos roared, “Tricky! `Babel`!” Black lightning struck from above and from his mouth, aimed at a position diagonally to the upper right of the Evil God. Marius managed to avoid the attack there.

“Do you think your tricks will work on a god like me, you piece of trash?” he spat, causing Marius to break out in a cold sweat.

While Marius was struggling against the Evil God’s power, the black异形s arrived on the Taliant Continent. They were the Twelve Apostles of Destruction sent by Tindalos. Upon reaching the sinking continent, they split up and prepared to launch a simultaneous attack on various locations. Two of them were confronted by two women.

“Are these Evil God’s kin?” Iris asked, sounding somewhat amused.

“Most likely. Though, in a broad sense, we are also his kin,” Sophia replied calmly. Iris observed the frog and mantis异形s. The mantis moved first, closing the distance in an instant and attempting to slash Sophia with its scythes. It appeared to tear her body apart, but there was no substance to it. Puzzled, the mantis noticed Sophia’s body had turned to mist. In the next moment, her kick struck the mantis’s face, sending it flying backward. After several somersaults, the mantis managed to arrest its fall by spreading its wings. Iris exclaimed in admiration, “Wow. To not fall after taking Sophia’s full-power kick… Are these guys stronger than any common Demon Lord?”

“They are worthy servants of an Evil God, I suppose,” Sophia assessed calmly. The frog roared as if to say, “Don’t underestimate me,” and extended its tongue, wrapping it around Iris’s body. It squeezed tightly, but Iris laughed nonchalantly.

“That’s quite a bit of strength. Maybe I should get serious too, for once.” Hearing this, Sophia distanced herself from Iris. Having confirmed her partner’s retreat, Iris returned to her true form. Her body was as massive as an island, her eyes shone with a topaz-like brilliance, and ten tentacle-like legs thicker than logs sprouted from her. Iris was a Kraken Gigas, a species said to be the king of Krakens, legendary for devouring sailors who mistook its massive form for an island, ship and all. This was likely why Auraniess called her the Queen of the Sea. Her ten thick legs wrapped around the mantis and frog. She then dragged them into the sea, squeezing them.

“Maelstrom!” She generated several massive whirlpools and slammed them against the mantis and frog she held. This ultimate technique, the origin of the human spell “Maelstrom,” shattered the bodies of the mantis and frog, causing them to vanish. The giant whirlpools eventually subsided, returning to their usual state.

“My turn was practically unnecessary,” Sophia remarked dryly to Iris. Iris returned to her human form and grinned at her companion. “Hmph, it’s fine once in a while. I haven’t truly let loose in ages.”

“That’s true,” Sophia agreed. Despite only defeating two of the Twelve Apostles, they conversed at ease.

“Did any strange individuals come by here?” Auraniess, their master, asked. As the two turned, Auraniess’s hands were covered in blood.

“They did, but I took care of them,” Iris replied. Auraniess’s face fell.

“Figures. They were weak, weren’t they?” He said, pulling out something that looked like horns and claws and showing them to the two. “Look. For beings calling themselves Apostles of Destruction, they were like this after I just gave them a little nudge.” They didn’t say “just a nudge.” The strength of the two was such that Iris alone could defeat them. It was easy to imagine Auraniess found the encounter boring.

“Alright, Marius seems to be having trouble, so I guess I’ll go too,” he said, preparing to fly. Both women stopped him simultaneously.

“The battle has only just begun,” Sophia stated.

“Nn…” Chastised by Sophia, Auraniess pouted. “But isn’t it unfair that only he can fight a god? I want to fight too!” Sophia calmly threatened the struggling Auraniess.

“But if you don’t do as Marius says, he won’t let you fight again.”

“Gnnn… Marius, you cheat!” Auraniess stamped his foot in frustration. However, since he was floating in the air, no sound was made.

“Please wait until Marius is in danger.”

“I see! If Marius is in danger, I can go help him openly!” Auraniess laughed, thinking it a brilliant idea. No one present rebuked him. Sophia had spoken for another reason.

“So, has that demon-destroying black staff been completed yet?”

Auraniess’s laughter subsided, and he shook his head. “No, not yet. They seem to have relocated due to the flooding.” Sophia and Iris exchanged glances.

“Then, perhaps we should lend them a hand too.”

“Nn?” Auraniess asked curiously. Sophia explained, “Better safe than sorry. They’ve been sealed away for so long, perhaps they are beings that cannot be easily defeated?” Auraniess nodded in agreement with Sophia’s reasoning. “That’s true.” The three women, having defeated the Apostles of Destruction, returned to the Tuban Autonomous Region, which was beginning to flood.