Welcome to Hell!

Chapter 138: Ardius Fortress Siege Battle – Descendant of God

A descendant of God. The moment I heard those words from Asumi, I was immediately overcome with a desire to flee. This was because I realized that what I was facing was an entity with a completely different stature than that of a mere creature.

To begin with, what is a god? It’s an individual who has continuously honed themselves, grown to the utmost limits, and then surpassed those very limits. A being that stands beyond the confines of the biological framework, an extraordinary existence that can never be surpassed by those confined within the boundaries of standard life forms. That is what a god is.

Liberated from the chains of mortality by transcending the limitations of living beings, a god’s power continues to grow over time. Hence, the longer the time a being has spent as a god, the stronger their divine power becomes.

Incidentally, the six ancient gods who have existed since the inception of this world, brought forth by the ‘Nameless Almighty Faceless God’, are exceptions. These gods were never in the realm of living creatures; they possess powers distinct from those who grew from mortal life forms. The gods existing from the time of creation are exceptional beings, and it’s impossible to easily equate them with others.

Furthermore, it’s not always the case that the difference in divine power directly determines the outcome when gods clash. If an old god of fertility were to engage in a battle with a newly emerged god of war, undoubtedly the latter would emerge victorious. Just as a brawny individual strong in mere physical might cannot defeat a warrior who has honed their martial skills for combat. This was the knowledge I held within me regarding the gods.

Those who carried the blood of the gods were inherently endowed with a fraction of divine power from birth. If one were born as the child of a male and female deity, they would possess the equivalent power of gods from the moment of their birth. And if they were the offspring of a god and a mortal, they came into the world as creatures wielding immense power, often referred to as demigods.

Even if a being born as a demigod didn’t mature into a full-fledged god, the essence of divinity would be passed down to their offspring. Thus, it would continue to be inherited as a lineage of strength, albeit diminishing over generations.

Before us stood an individual who was a descendant of the gods, possessing their bloodline. The extent to which their divine essence had diluted was uncertain, but it was certain that they possessed a portion of divine power. It would be foolish to consider anyone with even a fraction of the power of the gods as an opponent one could easily defeat.

“Didn’t you say that the gods from your land had been cursed to extinction? Why is this guy here?”

As I drew forth my knowledge about gods and their bloodlines, a new question arose. This related to discrepancies between the history of the Khan race that Asumi had previously recounted and the information at hand.

According to her account, the gods who led the Khan race were supposed to have been wiped out by a curse from an ancient god. If they were extinct, then it would be odd for their descendants to be standing before us. Asumi had a tentative answer to that question.

“It’s true. It’s supposed to be true… But back when I was still serving with the army over there, a certain rumor was circulating.”

“A rumor?”

“There was a far-fetched rumor circulating among the troops that a lineage with diluted blood, exempt from the curse of the Divine Tree, had survived. And recently, from that lineage, there was a revival of a powerful ancestor… You know, one of those wildly unbelievable tales.”

I couldn’t help but think, What on earth? As Asumi had suggested, it was a far-fetched story.

The notion of a lineage surviving with blood diluted enough to escape the curse of the gods might have been plausible. However, the sudden resurgence of a powerful ancestor from such a lineage was just too convenient. It wasn’t hard to believe that even the Khan race, their own kin, might find this hard to accept.

Yet, here before us stood an enemy adorned in golden armor that, in the culture of the Khan people, only the gods were allowed to wear. Of course, it could be deception, but the sense of intimidation I felt couldn’t be ignored. It strongly suggested that this being was indeed a god or something akin to a formidable entity.

“The rumor was so unbelievably ridiculous that I hadn’t mentioned it even when questioned. But to think he actually exists…”

“Whether the rumor is true or not doesn’t matter. What’s important is what we’re gonna do now, boss.”

“We’re gonna find an opening and make a run for it. Prepare to flee at any moment…!?”

My decision to disregard other soldiers and escape was short-lived. The golden-armored soldier raised his hand swiftly. As his palm faced our vanguard, an intense light converged there, blinding my compound eyes.

It was dangerous, but there was no time to escape now. Intuitively sensing this, I channeled my spiritual power to my twin swords, maximizing their potential for counterattack. The blades, that had their spiritual circuits activated, were further enhanced to their utmost capacity, and I swung them upward, fueled by the heightened force of my fighting spirit.

“Gaaaaaaaaa!”

“It’s burning! It’s so damn hot!”

In a nutshell, what the golden-armored soldier did was convert the gathered power in his palm into a beam of light and swing his arms left and right while releasing it. I sliced through that beam of light with all my might, using my twin swords. However, the aftermath of this seemingly straightforward action resulted in significant damage.

The vanguard unit was mowed down by the beam of light, with half of them instantly reduced to ashes. Although my intervention spared the remaining half, including the special operations unit, the clash between the light beam and my slashing attack created a scorching shockwave that scattered around. Those lacking heat resistance suffered severe burns, writhing on the ground in pain.

“Damn it! It’s hot as hell, you bastard! What the hell just happened!?”

“Are you okay, boss?”

“Ugh… Yeah, I’m fine.”

The demons wouldn’t die from burns alone since we had high regenerative abilities. Indeed, the demons who hadn’t succumbed immediately were now rising, brushing off the dust and debris they had been hit with during the shockwave. The three newcomers did the same. In times like these, we couldn’t help but feel grateful that we were demons.

However, I couldn’t claim to be entirely fine. Despite putting on a brave face for my comrades, it was only natural, given that I had been exposed to the intense heat of the shockwave up close. Fortunately, my exoskeleton had heat resistance, so I didn’t turn into ashes from the fire, but the impact that transmitted beneath the exoskeleton left me dazed.

However, I wasn’t in a position to care about pain now. Swiftly suppressing the feeling of pain, I used my compound eyes to quickly assess the situation around me. The commander of the vanguard unit had been thrown off his horse but seemed to be alive. The imperial soldiers who were in charge of monitoring us had evaporated, leaving only their lower halves.

The vanguard unit consisted of individuals in various states—some writhing in pain, others in a state of panic from the overwhelming power displayed before them, and still others dazed, unable to process anything. This chaotic situation would persist until the commander regained his composure.

“We’re getting out of here. Those who are strong, push the carts from behind. Those who can use spiritual arts, get on the roof of the wagon and stay alert.” I said.

“What about you, boss?”

“I’ll stay behind. I’ll hold him off until you all escape.”

I tightened my grip on the twin blades. The vanguard unit was ineffective, and from the sensation of blocking that previous attack, I was confident that I alone could hold back the enemy. It wasn’t arrogance; I was simply the strongest among those in here.

Even if there were others, they would only be a hindrance. There was no room for protection here, so undoubtedly, everyone except me would end up dead. I was adept at evading and running, and that’s why I had the confidence to buy time before making my escape. Being the sole rear guard was the best course of action.

“If you understand, then get going already. No matter what the commander of the vanguard team says, ignore it and run. Luckily, there are only a few Imperial soldiers with the authority to give us orders directly left in the lower ranks.”

“Tch… Make sure you come back alive, boss. Don’t forget that if you die, it’s over for us.”

“I know. Hurry up and go.”

Tigar gave my shoulder a solid thump before heading towards the carriage. As he had mentioned, I was aware of how significant my presence was within the special operations unit. It had become substantial enough that I could surmise that the cohesion of the unit would weaken if I were to die.

This wasn’t solely due to the fact that I was the strongest. Over the course of four years, I continued to fight at the forefront of the special operations unit with minimal casualties. Beyond merely being relied upon by everyone, I had become a psychological pillar, making them believe that with me around, victory was achievable.

Because of this awareness, I couldn’t allow myself to die for the sake of my comrades. Moreover, I had a mission that I had carried with me since birth. I had no intention of dying before fulfilling it.

“You all, start running! Run, run!”

“The faster we can escape from here, the better the chances of the boss surviving!”

Behind me, Tigar and Zald had begun the retreat with my comrades in tow. Perhaps the commander of the vanguard team had also deemed it necessary to withdraw since he had fallen from his horse, enduring the pain of his injuries, and ordered the survivors to escape.

Soldiers and even the other demons aside from the special operations unit seemed to have been broken by that single strike. The moment the order to flee was given, they began running without hesitation. It wasn’t a structured retreat like the special forces employed; instead, it was a chaotic rout driven by fear. Everyone wanted to reach a place beyond the creature’s reach as quickly as possible, scattering in all directions.

Amidst this chaos, the golden-armored soldier stood silently above, observing the ground where the retreat was taking place. Just like before, he extended his palm toward the ground. I knew what he intended to do. And so, it was my duty, as the rearguard, to prevent that.

“I won’t let you!”

I activated the spiritual circuits of my twin swords once again and leaped into the air. Despite enhancing my body with fighting spirit, I couldn’t reach the floating position of the golden-armored soldier with a single jump. However, I was well aware of this fact. While leaping, I swiftly employed spiritual arts to create a platform of sand in mid-air. Landing on it, I immediately jumped upwards once more.

Having closed in without losing speed, I noticed that power was converging in his palm to the point where it seemed like a beam of light was about to be unleashed; yet that beam of light wasn’t within the striking range of my sword. However, allowing that beam to be fired was not an option. Fortunately, I had a way to interfere with it.

“Hmph!”

“!”

I leaped from the sand platform, executing a backward somersault in the air while extending my tail to its maximum length. Encased in an exoskeleton tougher than steel, my tail flexed like a whip, striking the arm of the golden-armored soldier from below and sending it upward.

Simultaneously, the beam was fired, piercing through the clouds and creating a white ring in the sky. To effortlessly wield such a potent form of spiritual art was undoubtedly a testament to the fact that this guy was indeed a descendant of God.

Challenging such a formidable being backed by that lineage was I, who was a synthetic beast made of an insect raised as a battle beast and a thug. It’s quite humbling how vast the difference in our birth circumstances is, but I’ll do my best to resist as much as possible.

“Shhh!”

After completing the backward somersault, I created a new platform in the air and swiftly advanced, swinging my twin blades to trap the opponent’s neck. It was the best strike I could muster, a combination of the strengthened twin blades through spiritual circuits and the full force of my enhanced physical strength through fighting spirit.

However, it appeared that being a descendant of God meant one was truly beyond the norm. The opponent inserted his arm between my twin blades and his neck, effortlessly blocking my attack. Though I managed to leave a mark on the armor of his arms, I couldn’t even get my blades to reach the arm protected within.

He seemed to have concentrated spiritual power in the armor’s arms, similar to what he had used for the beam of light, enhancing his durability. These twin blades that Hatakeyama had forged could cut through a metal fortress as if it were paper… what a monster.

Yet I wasn’t one to give up just because my attack had been thwarted. Creating platforms surrounding the enemy, I launched a three-dimensional assault from all directions, using them to attack from above, below, left, and right in rapid succession.

Passing by with a grazing cut to the torso, leaping from the platform I had aimed for, I swung upwards, then descended from an overhead platform, aiming to strike. At opportune moments, I attempted to drive my poisonous stinger into the gaps of the opponent’s armor.

None of my attacks managed to reach beyond the reinforced armor; they merely left surface scratches. It seemed like he wore something beneath the golden armor, as even my poisonous stinger, skillfully aimed at gaps, couldn’t penetrate the skin. I couldn’t inflict any damage whatsoever.

At this rate, it was impossible to kill this creature. However, that didn’t concern me. My objective was to prevent him from progressing any further, not to defeat him single-handedly.

“…Troublesome.”

“What?! Gaaah!”

For a while, the golden-armored soldier remained hunched over, seemingly submissive. But in a low voice, he muttered, simultaneously releasing an immense surge of spiritual power from his entire body. The resulting torrent of spiritual power, taking the form of a golden wave, effortlessly swept me away alongside the sand platforms I had created.

Now, what this guy did was merely release his spiritual energy. There was no elaborate manipulation to enhance his power as part of a spiritual art; this was just a straightforward display of pure spiritual force. However, that alone was enough to reset the situation. The sand platforms, though strengthened enough to withstand a strong step, were easily scattered by his power.

“Heh, hehehe. Confronted with overwhelming power like this, all that’s left is to laugh.”

After I was thrown off by the wave, I crashed into the ground upon impact. Recognizing the gaping disparity in our strengths, I rose to my feet, brushing off the dirt clinging to my exoskeleton. While the surge of spiritual power had momentum, it lacked the force to shatter my exoskeleton. Since I had managed to mitigate the impact of the fall, I remained unscathed.

My body was still functional, able to move as usual. If that was the case, then I could still fight. I could still impede his progress. Swinging my tail vigorously, I dispersed the surrounding cloud of dust and fixed all my compound eyes on the opponent.