The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 351: Outside the Tower (1)

[…How can a mere human reach this place!?]

Amdusias’ face contorted in astonishment as he spoke.

Without a word, Vikir swung his blade once.

Then fragments of crimson aura fell to the ground.

Amdusias’ expression changed abruptly.

[That blood…? Why is it here…?]

The force bending the laws of death could be felt emanating from Vikir’s blade.

But Vikir didn’t offer any answers to Amdusias’ questions.

He simply stated,

“All demons must die.”

Merely reaffirming his conviction, forged through three lifetimes, his past life, current life and the life he spent in the River of time.

…Crack!

Amdusias’ horn clashed against Vikir’s blade, rupturing the air around them.

Sparks flew through the countless cracks in the void, like shards of glass.

Crackle! Snap!

Amdusias sensed a different malevolence from Vikir’s blade.

Unlike their previous clashes, Vikir’s blade was faster, more precise, and now exuded an ominous energy.

[Even if his increased speed and strength are due to the stats gained in the Tower… Is this unsettling feeling still because of that blood?]

Amdusias recoiled, shouting,

[What have you coated your blade with?! Where did you get it!?]

“Shut up.”

Vikir remained unyielding in his silence.

…Crack!

Once again, eight strikes flew towards Amdusias, aiming to cleave him.

Raising his massive horn, Amdusias deflected them all.

Zing-

However, he couldn’t evade all the strikes.

As crescent-shaped blows shattered and it’s fragments scattered, it left small gashes all over Amdusias’ body.

[Huh?]

Amdusias felt his vision blur momentarily.

Strange visions began to flicker before his eyes.

A swamp of flesh and blood, a mountain of bones, mana-deprived atmosphere, colossal mushroom clouds rising beyond the distant horizon…

…And an endless, sprawling desert.

…A colossal tower standing proudly amidst the desert.

…An old man in black robes walking towards the tower, alone and desolate.

Each vision pierced Amdusias’ mind disjointedly, leaving him perplexed.

[What, what is this?]

Even the mighty Amdusias was confounded.

As the substance, capable of distorting causality, seeped into his wounds, strange apparitions continued to flicker before his eyes.

Seeing this, Vikir was certain.

“…There’s something in Figgy’s blood.”

Although uncertain of what hallucination Amdusias was experiencing, one thing was clear:

Figgy’s blood was toxic to demons, capable of disrupting even the attention of archdemons.

The mechanics behind the distortion of causality and demons being affected were unclear, but the phenomenon alone was enough evidence.

Vikir gathered his strength once again, preparing for another strike.

But…

[Oh ho! You trying again?!] Amdusias also began to prepare for a counterattack.

Tsutsutsutsu…

Nightmares within the Abysse Tower transformed into dark energy, being absorbed by Amdusias.

He sucked in the dark energy through his mouth, eyeing Vikir.

[You understand, don’t you? All the negative emotions emitted by the challengers of this tower becomes my nourishment.]

Each and every negative emotion.

Sadness, despair, anger, screams, betrayal, hatred, inferiority… All these emotions became Amdusias’ strength.

[I’ll consume your emotions too.]

“Emotions? Do I seem to possess such things?”

[As one who has set foot in the realm of the masters, it’s unlikely that you don’t possess them. I can see clearly, even into the depths of your subconscious. Pretense won’t work with me.]

Amdusias glared and raised his horns, aiming at Vikir’s chest.

[Your fear, anger, sadness, all those negative energies, will fuel my power.]

Simultaneously, Amdusias began to charge.

The Demon lord’s Charge. It laid a straight black path on the ground, directly leading to Vikir’s mental world.

***

Thud!

Amdusias struck the ground with heavy hooves.

As an expert in pulling others into mental worlds, Amdusias was skilled at entering the mental worlds of others.

Amdusias looked around.

Dry black earth, grotesque dead trees, burning ground, and thick fog rising everywhere obstructed his view.

[Hmm. For a human, you have quite a scenic inner landscape.]

Amdusias pushed through the fog and haze, walking forward for some time.

Eventually, a blurry shadow appeared beyond the misty air.

It was a quite sizable statue, weathered by the ravages of time, not in perfect shape.

Although many parts were broken, the facial features of the statue were somewhat discernible.

[Hugo and Osiris… Baskeville’s Patriarch and Young Patriarch. Hmm, considering the size of this statue, it seems they hold quite a significant presence in your mind. You must have some emotions regarding family.]

Amdusias assessed the presence or absence of emotions based on the size of the statue.

In the mental world, significant wounds and emotions were often depicted on a grand scale.

Thud!

Amdusias trampled over the sturdy trees and rocks blocking his path with his heavy hooves.

[For a mere human’s inner world, it seems rather expansive. I can see some significant figures…]

Due to the dense fog and mist, he couldn’t accurately gauge how vast this place was or where exactly he was positioned.

But ultimately, it was nothing more than the inner world of a teenager, barely twenty.

What significance could it hold, no matter how vast or desolate it seemed?

[Hmph.]

Amdusias snorted, pushing forward.

Before long, a steep incline appeared ahead of Amdusias.

Though it looked like a mountainous terrain, the fog made it impossible to determine its exact height.

[…Still, even if it’s just the insignificant inner world of a human, it’s so vast.]

But climbing higher might provide a better view of the surroundings.

Amdusias began to ascend the slope of the mountain that appeared before him.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Amdusias’ hooves echoed on the ground.

Although landslides occurred, and dry, broken earth swept down, Amdusias effortlessly plowed through them with his immense physique.

Continuing his ascent, Amdusias climbed somewhere within Vikir’s mind.

[…This might be the tallest mountain in his inner world.]

Amdusias suddenly felt streams of sweat trickling down his forehead.

Every leaf on the trees burned, the earth dried up, insects died, and beasts became skeletons, portraying a desolate landscape.

Surprisingly, the mountain was tall, enough to momentarily tire even the mighty Amdusias.

[A mountain in the mental world typically symbolizes the accumulation of emotions like responsibility, burden, or guilt… Just how many emotions does this human have stored within?]

Amdusias muttered in bewilderment.

Despite possessing remarkable strength, isn’t he just a teenager?

How many years has he lived, how much has he experienced, to harbor such emotions within?

Amdusias felt perplexed as he continued climbing the mountain of emotions.

Hidden by the fog, the peak wasn’t visible, but he could sense that he was nearing the summit.

Amdusias persisted in his climb.

…How much time had passed?

And finally, Amdusias stepped onto the summit of the mountain.

A sharp, spear-like end of the mountain. Yet, there was nothing but emptiness.

Amdusias raised his head to gaze down below, but even there, obscured by fog, nothing was visible.

Just an empty peak.

Amdusias pondered, seemingly perplexed by the height he had climbed.

[How could a mere human accumulate so many negative emotions? Even the most seasoned warriors would not have amassed this much…]

Amdusias decided to acknowledge Vikir. Being able to build such a towering mountain of emotions within one’s mind was not something typical of a human.

[But still, he’s just a human. It’s impossible to challenge my might.]

Amdusias snorted, scanning the area below the mountain.

He sought out Vikir’s soul, hidden somewhere, to exterminate him.

Then, suddenly—

A rumble shook the entire mountain.

A storm blowing from somewhere began to sweep away the fog and mist around the summit.

And in that moment, Amdusias saw it.

“…!”

An endless expanse of land spread below the mountain.

The distant horizon extended so far that even Amdusias couldn’t fathom its end.

But what left Amdusias breathless wasn’t just the vastness of the land.

It was the scene of carnage.

A sea of blood and flesh. Mountains made of bones. Rivers, lakes, and oceans of blood.

Demons and humans intertwined in death, forming hills, ridges, valleys, and ravines. Molten lava and sulfur erupted incessantly.

Countless demons swarmed, tearing apart corpses, while cries of despair and agony echoed endlessly.

Witnessing this colossal chaos, this whirlwind of hatred, Amdusias trembled.

[Why… why would such a thing exist within a human’s psyche!?]

Even for Amdusias, who stands among the ranks of demon lords, it was a horrific battlefield unlike any he had experienced.

An Otherworldly Realm. The horror and desolation here exceeded all bounds.

It was more savage and terrifying than hell itself, spreading out within the mind of this youngster, who had barely lived.

[Human beings never witness such scenes in their lives! Why does this, even clearer and more vivid than anything, exist within the mind of this… this young lad!?]

It was unbelievable, even more so that it manifested so clearly and vividly.

And then—

Another rumble!

“…?”

Amdusias raised his head in surprise.

And what he saw next was even more astonishing.

Rumbling continued…

The mountain.

Beside the mountain Amdusias had just ascended, there were much larger and taller mountains, at least four more!

And the one Amdusias had climbed was just the smallest among them.

Shock. Amdusias stood frozen, unable to utter a word.

As mentioned earlier, the mountains in the realm of the mind represent burdens such as guilt, responsibility, sense of duty, and so on.

But how could a human, a teenager at that, possess five of these mountains? And in such a horrifying and terrifying world!

Amdusias stuttered as he tried to speak.

[B-bu-but…]

But he couldn’t finish his sentence.

Thud!

Just when the five mountains seemed to tremble violently, they suddenly surged upwards.

???

Amdusias was lifted up without any idea of what was happening.

And soon, he realized a terrifying truth.

Rumble…

Approaching him now was a massive mountain range, with five peaks, each bearing a spiral pattern carved into its end.

Amdusias gazed in astonishment as the five colossal peaks gathered fog, flames, and fire towards one place.

[…Fingers?]

Indeed.

Underneath the five towering peaks lay a colossal figure, the origin and essence of the realm of the mind.

The era of destruction.

A fragment of the horrifying universe, embraced within the chest of the returner.

It was Vikir’s soul rising to power.