The church itself was a building with a very complex internal terrain, but thanks to the fact that most of the forks in the road were blocked by tables, chairs, benches, or other debris, and Shad was almost certain where Joey Barton and Iluna were going, even though he didn't see any trace of them, he still moved forward with a clear goal.
There were more ritual traces inside the church than the last time he came. Even without light, the corridor was illuminated by the golden light. Most people were fighting against the undead, so Shade didn't see any other ring sorcerers as he went deeper, but the sound of loud hymns echoed in his ears all the time.
The hymns of the Nature Church tend to be folk songs, and in the chorus, one can even close one's eyes and see the vast grasslands in the sunlight and the lush forests in summer.
Xia De didn't know what the singing at this moment meant, but judging from the inside, the sealing ceremony was undoubtedly about to be completed.
The further he walked in, the more the corridor seemed to be crooked. The concept of death distorted the space, causing the corridor to be distorted to a certain extent in all four directions. As the traces of the ritual became denser, Shade finally saw the silver metal wire that crossed the corridor in front of him, which was like spider silk and broke due to the impact, which meant that he was not going in the wrong direction.
Suddenly, I heard a voice behind me. I turned around and saw a middle-aged man wearing square glasses and holding a sword, walking towards me as if flying close to the ground. He looked older than Dr. Schneider, close to the boundary between middle-aged and old age. The golden aura emanating from his body showed how much he had been enhanced by divine rituals.
Shade recognized him. This was Mr. Lacon Mathis, the local twelve-ring warlock of the Church of the Sun. Apart from the thirteen-ring warlocks of the Church of Nature originally stationed in this parish, he was the strongest ring warlock in this parish.
"No need to explain, I know they are coming in, let's go."
Although the gentleman didn't talk much, he acted quickly, so the two continued to move forward together. Passing through the dense silver wires, and brushing aside the metal charms that were shaking above their heads and making the sound of wind chimes, the already thin white mist in the church became thinner and thinner, but at the same time the air became colder and colder. All the objects around them that came from the real world, even the golden miracle aura itself, were slowly fading.
When they turned into the last corridor, the candlelight on the ground turned into a deep blue-black color, and the walls seemed to have been baptized for thousands of years. But this was at least better than the last time they came, because the marks of the divine ritual on the wall were still flickering tenaciously.
The white mist completely disappeared here, and every breath of Mr. Chad and Mr. Lacon-Matisse could exhale white mist. No one spoke, and they came to the end of the corridor in silence.
It was a square entrance connected to the underground, and a black wind was gradually blowing out from the entrance.
An old man in a white robe was unconscious at the side of the entrance. He should be the high-level sorcerer sent by the sorcerer organization "Apna Library" mentioned by Iluna to help. Mr. Mathis checked and confirmed that he was just unconscious, then he used the long sword in his hand to draw a circle around the old man.
Golden light marks appeared in the circular markings, blocking the black wind blowing from the side. This was a unique divine art of the Church of the Sun.
"This road below leads to the most authentic death. I'm going to find out what happened. Do you want to come with me?"
After doing this, Mr. Mathis asked Shade, and Shade nodded. However, once he entered the passage below, his "divine afterglow" state would be revealed...
Looking at the kerosene lamp hanging around his waist, Xia De had an idea. He gestured to himself to walk ahead, held up the old-fashioned metal kerosene lamp, and then walked down the thirteen steps carefully.
The whistling black wind kept blowing from the front of the underground passage, and countless whispers rang in my ears. They were the murmurs and unwillingness of the dead at the end of their lives.
The cold wind blew towards Shade, and the golden necklace of the ancient witch hanging on his chest lit up first. Then, the flame in the kerosene lamp held high with the flame of the primordial fire suddenly surged. The blazing flame surged in the lampshade, illuminating the surroundings and protecting Shade.
The "Afterglow of Divinity" state did not appear, and the First Fire and the Witch's necklace were enough to protect Shade.
“It really works.”
"What kind of flame is this?"
Even the twelve-ring warlock following behind Shad was protected by the flames, but seeing that Shad was unwilling to answer, Mr. Mathis did not ask any further questions.
Shad walked in front, and Mr. Lacon Mathis of the Church of the Sun walked behind. The afterglow of the First Fire dragged from the surface of the lantern held high by Shad to the back. The primitive and ancient power was even more effective in expelling death than the divine power of the Orthodox Church.
The nun said that the Primordial Fire was only an angel-level relic, and what Shade held in his hand was even just a small flame. This made him understand more deeply how powerful this flame, which was said to have come from before the First Epoch, was.
Shade moved forward step by step. Because he was holding the oil lamp and was protected by the witch necklace, although his body was stiff and his soul felt a little heavy, he could still hold on.
But Mr. Lacon-Matisse could not hold on, so when the two walked out of the passage and came to the huge square underground space where the Gate of Death stood, this gentleman had already revealed the life ring behind him.
Even so, he could only stop at the end of the passage and did not dare to enter the square space in front.
But from this position, the Door of Death could already be seen. In the dim light of the First Fire, the huge ancient stone door was closed, with stories related to death carved on it, describing the most fundamental meaning of death in this world.
The black wind blowing out from the crack in the door was still strange and soundless, as if everything in the world ended here.
But unlike last time, this time, a huge shadow of the holy emblem was floating in front of the door. It was two overlapping leaves, one yellow and one green. The holy emblem was becoming clearer at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the black wind was gradually weakened.
"Didn't you see them...Joey Barton and Iluna Beas, after they entered this door?"
Xia De couldn't believe this result, but Lacon Mathis immediately shook his head and spoke with difficulty:
"The ritual is nearly four-fifths complete, although not completely finished. However, this door at the foot of the mountain is absolutely impossible to be opened from the inside or the outside."
"But Joey Barton is Death's chosen one, he can touch Death itself."
Xia De said, looking towards the door. There were traces of fighting and some footprints in front of the door:
"Maybe they did go in."
Shade repeated, and the twelve-ring sorcerer of the Church of the Sun was silent for a moment:
“This is the best possible outcome.”
"What?"
Shade looked at him in disbelief, and Mr. Mathis immediately explained:
"The ritual has been carried out till now. All that is left is to drive the undead that have infiltrated reality back to the narrow space before the three passages are conquered by the undead army outside. Then the Mark of the Sacred Tree can be completed. Although I don't know how Joey Barton opened the Death Gate from the outside, I can at least guarantee that even the Chosen One of Death will not be able to open the door from the inside at this stage of the ritual... ... It is certain that the Mark of the Sacred Tree ritual is not the first time it has been used, and Joey Barton is definitely not the first ring warlock to break into the Death Gate.
Letting him in here just now was not only an oversight on our part, but also because we knew that once he got in, he wouldn’t be able to get out.”
"So what about your chosen ones?"
"It was indeed an unexpected accident that Iluna Beias followed her into death, but Beias's fate will not end here. This is the oracle."
"Please speak more carefully."
"Although the five great ones cannot descend to the heavens at will, it is no problem for them to bring her out, so there is no need to worry about her."
Mr. Mattis looked toward Death's Door, then was forced to close his eyes and look away:
"Unless Joey Barton can perform the ceremony behind the door and become the chosen one, he can be considered dead.
Let's go, we are still needed outside. The predictors of the Prophet Association have predicted that at the end of the narrow gap, a gathering of tens of thousands of dead souls will appear. That will be the most difficult battle. If we drive them into the narrow gap, the Trace of the Sacred Tree will be completed. I think the battle will have to last until midnight, and it will be a very difficult battle. "
"No."
Xia De shook his head slightly:
"I want to go in, too."
He pointed to the ancient stone gate:
"Yes, into death."
"you... ... "
Mr. Mathis looked at the masked stranger in the firelight:
"I need to remind you that the door has been blocked. Even if you are the thirteenth ring, you can't get in."
"I have another idea."
The middle-aged man was silent for a moment:
"It's easier to open the door from the outside than from the inside. Even if you can get in like Joey Barton, you will never be able to get out before the Mark of the Sacred Tree loses its effect, just like him."
"I'll find a way myself. Entering the Death Gate is equivalent to suicide, and now, Joey Barton and Iluna Beias have both committed suicide... I want to make sure that the first person to come out is not Joey Barton."
Mr. Matisse hesitated and frowned slightly:
"You really know... You are not actually a witcher, right? Although you look very strong, you have never used any magic or spells other than swordsmanship and sunlight power. Even your life ring has not appeared. You are not a middle-ring sorcerer at all."
"Yes, I am not a middle-ring warlock."
Shade is a low-level warlock.
"Are you a Godcaller?"
"Why do you think so?"
"It seems that it is true... The ending of the Midhill Castle incident is really the best we could have imagined. Not only is Joey Barton almost dead, but we even got close to you and had Iluna Beas determine your camp."
Shade shook his head:
"You are still needed out there, and my path lies ahead. Sir, I am glad to be able to cooperate with the church this time, and I hope you will be safe in the upcoming battles."
Mr. Mathis nodded, as if relieved:
"Why are you so persistent in tracking down Joey Patton and the other chosen ones?"
"Do you think I'll answer that?"
Shade asked. The latter was silent for a moment and took out a roll of parchment from his pocket:
"The method of learning the unique magic of the Sun Church, the Hiton Seal. Although it is very precious, it may not be much for a thirteenth-ring like you. This is the reward for helping us defend the church. We welcome our cooperation again."
Shade smiled:
"Then I'll take it."
Under the gaze of Mr. Mathis, he walked all the way to the gate of death. This time, he did not leave behind his relics and spellcasting materials, because the last experience made him understand that the afterglow on his body was enough to protect the items close to him.
Without trying to push the door that was most likely impossible to open, Shade held the Night Watcher in his right hand, and as the witch necklace on his chest suddenly flashed, he turned sideways and swung his sword forward with all his strength.
"Death's Door!"
The long sword slashed at the air in the black wind, sparks splashed in the air. A dark crack appeared with a slight sound of shattering glass, and the crack quickly expanded to a size large enough for Shade to pass through.