Beyond the Apocalypse-Chapter 1019: Snake vs worm

The events unfolding in Valhalla showed no sign of slowing. If anything, they were accelerating toward catastrophe. Once again, the forces of the Xaos Kingdom were forced to plunge into bloodshed and war, fully aware that hesitation would only invite annihilation.

At the highest level of the Xaos Tower, all five True Depravitas stood alongside Overlord. The air itself felt heavy, saturated with solemn resolve. Each of them exchanged silent glances before turning their attention to the A.I. Chip Clone, whose projection hovered calmly before them.

"The First Layer of Hell is fundamentally different from the Third Layer we previously faced," Overlord began.

The other True Depravitas nodded in agreement. Though they knew the Third Layer of Hell as intimately as the backs of their hands, that would not help them in this mission.

"This will not be a city," Overlord continued. "It is a vast, desolate wasteland. The terrain is rocky and unstable, scattered with twisted vegetation, concealed snake pits, extensive cave systems, volcanoes, and rivers of magma. The sky is starless, filled with choking smoke and illuminated only by floating pockets of flammable gas. These ignite at random, erupting into massive fireballs. Sustained flight will be extremely dangerous."

Each Layer of Hell was its own ecosystem, governed by different rules and threats, and could be considered an independent world. It was precisely the chaotic and expansive nature of the First Layer that made it the ideal choice for their goal.

In a wasteland of such scale, information would travel far more slowly than in a structured city. That delay significantly increased their chances of success.

Overlord waved his hand, and five crystalline orbs materialized before the group. Each orb radiated a terrifying concentration of Divine Power.

"These are God Prisons," Overlord said. "Once shattered, they will generate a force field that prevents the Devil Lords from escaping. They will also seal the Infernal Monoliths, cutting off the Lords from channeling the Origin Power of their respective sectors, weakening them."

A grave light appeared in the eyes of Vlad, Freya, Jormungandr, Fafnir, and Ouroboros as they took hold of the orbs. The artifacts were astonishingly powerful—and prohibitively expensive. Once unleashed, there would be no second attempt. Failure would mean total loss.

Overlord studied their expressions and, upon seeing the solemnness, he nodded in approval.

"We must strike simultaneously," he said. "Each of you will engage your target at the same moment. The Devil Lords must be killed before anyone realizes we are present. Once your task is complete, proceed immediately to the nearest interstellar teleportation formation marked in the target package. Your A.I. Chips are powerful enough to overwrite the formation and allow a direct return to Terra’s void."

After finishing his instructions, Overlord turned his gaze toward Jormungandr.

The small yellow cat nodded calmly before addressing the others.

"My alchemy is sufficient to extract Lord-tier bloodlines without degradation and transplant them into your bodies," Jormungandr said. "However, I require as much of the Devil Lords’ physical remains as possible. If you sever an arm, retrieve it. If their blood spills across the ground, collect it. I need everything."

The severity of those requirements settled heavily upon the group.

They could not rely on overwhelming attacks that obliterated their enemies completely. Precision would be paramount—strikes aimed at the soul and mind rather than the body. While this approach was demanding, it was still preferable to the alternative they would face later: capturing Demon Lords alive to harvest their souls.

Seeing that everyone understood their roles, Overlord activated the interstellar teleportation formation. In the next instant, the group vanished from Terra.

Under normal circumstances, the departure of all Lords would leave a world dangerously exposed. Terra, however, was anything but defenseless. A vast mantle of eyes and maws unfurled through the void, ready to devour any entity foolish enough to draw near. After consuming Apophis and being nurtured by Divine Power and the energy of the void, the Nightmare Universe had grown strong enough to kill even Lords who dared to challenge it.

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A colossal active volcano dominated the First Layer of Hell.

Its peak pierced the ash-choked clouds, constantly spewing fire and molten rock into the sky. Space itself rippled violently, and in the next moment, Overlord and the five True Depravitas appeared near the volcano’s base.

Vlad reacted instantly, using his mastery over space to erase the teleportation rift before it could stabilize. The others scanned their surroundings with cold, predatory gazes, their killing intent tightly restrained but ready to erupt.

They had chosen their arrival point carefully.

The toxins spewed by the volcano were potent enough to kill Legendary beings within minutes. As a result, the region was largely abandoned, allowing them to land undetected. Explosions echoed overhead as volatile gas pockets ignited in the sky, lending the moment a grim, oppressive atmosphere.

Without a word, they nodded to one another and separated, each heading toward their assigned target.

Using their Depravita Auras in conjunction with their A.I. Chips, they concealed their presence with extraordinary precision. Even Hell itself seemed unaware of their intrusion.

Seven days passed.

Then, a message echoed through the shared A.I. network.

"I am in position."

It was Ouroboros.

It came as no surprise that the werewolf was the first to arrive. He had devoted himself to speed, reforging his body again and again until motion itself bent around him.

Half a day later, Fafnir’s draconic voice resonated through the link.

"I have reached the target."

Four and a half hours later came Freya’s voice.

"I am ready."

Twelve hours after that, Jormungandr spoke.

"I am in place."

Two days passed before Overlord’s calm voice finally echoed.

"I am in position."

Then came silence.

Three full days stretched on, heavy with anticipation.

At last, Vlad’s voice manifested across the network.

"I have arrived."

The reason Vlad was the last to arrive had nothing to do with a lack of speed. In truth, his raw movement rivaled that of Ouroboros. His cultivation had pushed his physical limits to an absurd degree, and when combined with his talent for spatial traversal, he could cross vast distances faster than any of the others.

No—Vlad arrived last because his destination lay far deeper than the rest.

He had been forced to move toward the very core of the First Layer of Hell.

The enemy Vlad had chosen for himself was no ordinary Devil Lord. It was the highest ruler of the First Layer, the most powerful entity to reign over that realm—an existence said to stand at the absolute peak of the Lord Tier, perhaps even brushing against the threshold of the Paragon Rank.

It was a dangerous choice.

Yet Vlad did not hesitate.

If he succeeded in securing the bloodline of such a Devil Lord, there would be no need to hunt another. He could devote himself entirely to evolving and refining that bloodline, enhancing its potential until it became an inseparable part of him. It would be a foundation capable of supporting his growth for a very long time. The danger was immense—but the reward was worth it.

With their senses sharpened and their resolve unwavering, Overlord and the True Depravitas made their move.

At the exact same second, five massive golden force fields of Divine Power manifested across the First Layer of Hell. Their appearance was instantaneous and overwhelming—but just as quickly, their radiance faded, vanishing from external perception before anyone could detect them.

To the outside world, nothing had changed.

Inside the God Prisons, however, reality itself had been sealed.

One of those force fields enclosed a vast, blazing desert. The sand within was so hot that merely standing upon it would incinerate the flesh of ordinary Devils. Heat distorted the air, and waves of flame rolled endlessly across the dunes.

Then the desert began to tremble.

The shaking spread for countless kilometers, the ground splitting as if the world itself were recoiling in fear. From beneath a sea of fire, something colossal rose.

A gargantuan, serpentine demon emerged, its immense body coiling through smoke and ash beyond any sense of scale. Its flesh appeared woven from molten sinew, studded with blazing, eye-like orbs that pulsed with heat and dreadful awareness. At its front yawned a cavernous maw, lined with jagged, bone-colored fangs that spoke of endless hunger and absolute dominion.

Flames and embers swirled around the creature as though the inferno itself bowed before it.

This being radiated the Laws of Life and Blood at an extreme level, so dense they seemed to warp the environment around it.

Its name was Devil Lord Virelion.

Virelion’s many eyes narrowed as he gazed toward the sky, his vast consciousness probing the unseen barrier that now enclosed him. His connection to the Infernal Monolith—his access to Origin Power—had been severed without warning. The sudden isolation sent a ripple of unease through his ancient mind.

Before he could analyze further—

Lightning exploded.

The sky tore open as a massive serpent of lightning and overwhelming might descended from above, carrying the wrath of a god. Space screamed under its weight as the thunderous strike fell toward Virelion with annihilating force.