Phew~
Realizing that his earlier assumption about making contact with a dangerous entity using the Corpse Sacrifice skill was wrong, Val felt an odd sense of relief, which was equal in magnitude to the shock he felt as he realized that the Devil God that ruled the Shrine of Evil referred to in the system notifications was none other than himself.
What a shocking news!
When the notification sounded, he felt a strange sensation, and a connection was formed between him and an entity he realized was the Shrine of Evil!
Furthermore, he found that he had gained spells that could interact with this connection. They had mysteriously appeared in his mind when the connection was formed between him and the shrine.
One was called Exille. It could be used to exit the shrine. The other was called Levare.
He could use it to enter the Shrine of Evil.
He decided to do just that, as he wanted to create four valuable undead from the Luminous Scalebeasts he had just killed but that wasn’t possible unless he entered the shrine and assumed the role of the Devil God.
“Levare!” he exclaimed, the world around him beginning to warp.
The next moment, Val found himself in the Shrine of Evil.
It was a place submerged in utter darkness. If it were not for his Nocturnal Vision Trait, he would be as blind as a bat in this place.
In this place, skeletons were scattered everywhere, as if it was a graveyard rather than a shrine.
At the center of the shrine was a throne made entirely of bones, and at the corners of the room were multiple doors, leading to God knows where.
Lastly, beside the throne, there was a statue of a monster with a hulking form and massive wings, its visage frozen in a menacing growl.
Val recognized it as a gargoyle.
The moment Val appeared in the shrine, the gargoyle statue came to life. An aura of immense evil emanated from it, so wicked that the tens of thousands of skeletons littering the shrine began to tremble uncontrollably. It was an odd scene. The living statue seemed to carry such an evil aura that it could cause even the deceased to turn in their graves out of terror!
‘What an annoying sensation.’
Val’s entire body throbbed as the gargoyle stared at him. It was merely a curious look, but to Val, it felt as if his very soul was being scrutinized. His instincts were screaming at him to immediately distance himself from the statue, but he suppressed these calls and held his ground.
He was here to become the Devil God! How could he show weakness?
“Amazing!” The Gargoyle exclaimed in awe.
To the gargoyle’s surprise, Val didn’t flee in terror or lose his mind to fear. Typically, the presence of such a menacing entity would send people into an unstoppable panic. However, Val stood his ground, which was more than enough to impress the ancient guardian.
“Who are you?” Val asked, his voice steady.
The gargoyle tilted its head, before it spoke, its voice sending vibrations through the shrine,
“I am known as Gruul, the guardian of the Shrine of Evil. I have been placed here to guide the one who is chosen. And since you are here, I assume that you have been selected to become the Devil God, am I right?”
Val nodded, “You’re correct. But what do I need to do to assume the post of the Devil God?”
Gruul grinned, “I will guide you on this path. But first, you must pass my test.”
Hearing its words, Val furrowed his brows, “What test?”
“The test is to ensure the Shrine of Evil falls into worthy hands,” Gruul explained, “I have been the guardian of the shrine since time immemorial, warding off those unworthy and ensuring the power of the shrine doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. I will not let my endless vigil be in vain.”
“Can you get straight to the point?” Val asked, hoping to skip Gruul’s monologue.
Gruul’s stony gaze held Val’s as he continued, “Our test is a simple one: a face-off. If you can defeat me, I will submit to you and reveal the secrets of the Shrine of Evil and teach you how to assume your role as the Devil God. However, if you fail, you must leave and only return once you have trained yourself enough to face me again. To make this a fair fight, I will lower my power to match yours. So are you up for this challenge?”
“Yeah, I am,” Val replied.
The moment Val finished speaking, a ripple ran through Gruul’s stone form, and its enormous body began to shrink as it adjusted its power to match Val’s.
In a matter of moments, it stood at the same height as Val, its previously imposing figure now a mere shadow of its former self. 𝑜𝑣𝓛xt.𝗇𝓔t
However, the menacing aura that surrounded Gruul didn’t diminish. Instead, it seemed to condense, becoming a visible aura of darkness swirling around him, and its once rocky eyes now glowed a deep red, staring into Val’s with an intensity that could make weaker beings wilt, but failed to get a reaction out of him.
“Well then, here I come,” Gruul said.
“Bring it on,” Val said.
Gruul bend its knees, its feet pressing against the floor of the shrine with such force that the ground cracked, spider cobweb-like fissures spreading out in all directions. Then, it exploded off the floor of the shrine like a coiled spring, launching itself straight towards Val. The force behind its movement was so much that shockwaves rippled through the area.
It moved so fast that it seemed to disappear in thin air, making it impossible for Val to track its movements.
However, Val’s sixth sense and his battle-hardened instincts acted as his guides. Summoning his cursed sword from the pocket dimension of his cursed artifact with a thought, he brought it up defensively just in time to intercept the descending stone claw of Gruul.