Bologue let out a long breath, releasing the fatigue and pressure within him. Commanding the self-destruction of flesh and blood was no easy task; beyond the massive consumption of Ether, it placed an enormous burden on the spirit.

One could say that while issuing the command, Bologue had to manipulate the Ether, wielding a thousand blades against every inch of flesh, meticulously cutting it into mush with no pieces left over. This process was not gradual; it happened all at once.

Bologue’s entire demeanor had become quite listless, his eyelids heavy, drowsy, yet he still mustered enough energy to observe the gradually calming blood sea.

Under the burning firelight, Bologue saw through the darkness, where boundless blood had evenly gathered at the bottom of the deep pit, forming a tranquil Blood Lake.

Staring at such a massive Blood Lake, Bologue felt a slight unease, remembering that every time that mysterious woman appeared, it was from such blood pools she emerged.

It seemed that for her, she could freely travel among the flesh of her followers, for every fanatic of the Sect of Sanguinary Corruption was, to her, a moving altar of flesh, ready to sacrifice themselves for her descent at any time.

Compared to other Devils, her appearances in the Material Realm were excessively frequent. She was extremely active, but it was precisely because of her activity that she could organize such a powerful force within the Material Realm.

Forgetting about this troubling foe for now, Bologue continued contemplating his decomposition of material. With the support of Infinite Sharpness, his Secret Energy inclination could infinitely descend to the microscopic level, so could he... command souls?

It sounded not impossible; as long as he could penetrate another’s soul with his own Ether, it would work. According to the Scholars’ theories, to some extent, the soul is also considered a pure form of Ether.

But... but the Golden Soul is unbound, a rule that even Devils cannot break, and this contradicts Bologue’s own ideas.

It appeared that commanding souls remained a theoretical concept for the moment, and Bologue still had a long way to go to reach that stage. Thus, as a step back, like controlling this flesh monster to self-destruct, Bologue might direct his next research towards the collapse of microscopic flesh.

Not causing flesh to explode or organs to burst, but rather on a more narrow and sharp level, causing it to self-destruct in the structure of cellular organization?

Bologue tried to imagine that scene: silently, the connections between flesh sections vanished, as if shattered by millions of sharp blades on a cellular level, dissipating like smoke and dust... It sounded implausible, but Bologue could slowly experiment.

Start with the annihilation of a minute object.

Just as Bologue was lost in his thoughts, ripples suddenly appeared over the previously calm Blood Lake, as though something was being gestated within. Shortly thereafter, a huge translucent embryo surfaced, with a loud heartbeat reverberating inside.

Bologue’s expression subtly changed, and at the same time, he noticed the walls of the deep pit beginning to fleshify, turning into writhing, mucus-covered stomach walls.

The Blood and Flesh Plague was much more troublesome than Bologue had imagined. The recent self-collapse had only destroyed its form and hadn’t altered its essential change.

Essence?

All extraordinary existences are fundamentally based on Ether. Comparatively, the best method to suppress the Blood and Flesh Plague was the Prohibition and Silence of Ether. However, like the Serenity Defense Line against the Beast of the Herd, this was just suppression and could not wholly destroy it.

As Bologue pondered, with the spread of ripples, the strange creature inside the embryo began changing, absorbing surrounding flesh and madly growing by devouring its "self". From a vague creature to a distinct form, its patterns and spots became increasingly clear, seemingly emanating some sort of Magic Power.

Tearing open the thin membrane of the embryo, the twisted monster roared, stirring the entire Blood Lake into a violent surge, blood rain dancing wildly like a storm and shower.

But before Bologue could act, scorching air currents swept down from above, bright light rapidly magnifying. The next moment, hot Fire Meteors descended, accompanied by the piercing sound of fireworks shattering and scorching breath, striking the twisted monster like divine retribution.

Upon impact, dazzling sparks flew everywhere, and the air filled with the smell of burnt incense.

A familiar figure descended from the depths of the pit, the task group arriving faster than Bologue had anticipated.

"We meet again, Bologue."

A cold voice sounded. After the Fire Meteors, several figures quickly landed, and Bologue suitably commanded the surrounding rock walls, creating an annular platform for them to disembark.

Bologue focused and recognized these people: the Ninth Group of the Field Operations Department, Atheists. In their function division, they were the Anti-Devil Task Force, having handled many Extraordinary Disasters related to Devils. With cooperation from the Observation Tower, they could rapidly deploy via the Curved Path Gate. Their deployment here was within Bologue’s expectations.

"Group Leader Carnegie."

Bologue gently nodded in greeting. When he first met Carnegie, Bologue was a Condenser, a newcomer. Now, he stood on equal footing as a Negative Power User and task force leader.