Chapter 155: Mana Ouma

"Boom—!"

Auroras surged, and the atmosphere roared.

Two-colored sword lights soared into the sky, then transformed into a torrential flood that granted all things an equal end, spreading across the entire surface of the River of Sighs and reducing everything they touched into nothingness.

At this moment, it was as if a deity had hurled stars filled with destruction and murderous intent from the clouds, passing through layers of shattered, turbulent currents to completely submerge the River of Sighs.

"Ahhhhh—!"

Gasping for the scorching air, the newborn ancient monster trembled, emitting a shrill and miserable scream. Yet under this sword light that instantly burned away even the air, and within that tempest that perfectly neutralized her spirit-elf magic, the monster—fusing the power of the Dungeon and the Apocalypse Virus—was effortlessly evaporated.

Every adventurer present widened their eyes, gazing at the moment that resembled falling stars. Their bodies trembled unceasingly, yet they could not utter even a fraction of a sound.

Seconds later, within this vast cavern, the barrier formed by the River of Sighs no longer existed. The fallen spirit-elf vanished completely without even emitting a final wail.

Roland felt the mass and warmth emanating from the holy sword in his hand—formed by Aiz—and gazed at it in silence.

He was neither a pure saint nor an absolute villain. Through their past interactions and the moment he had just grasped the Void she manifested, she should have already understood that much.

Yet what transmitted from Aiz's Void was only absolute trust and peace of mind. It was precisely this undefended attitude that allowed the two streams of sword light—which had just slain the River of Sighs—to harmonize and intertwine seamlessly.

However, for Aiz, who possessed native spirit-elf bloodline, his actions ought to differ from those of orthodox heroes. Although, judging by the results, he had indeed saved many people, the source of such actions was still driven by selfish desires.

As if sensing Roland's doubts, a strong emotion surged from Aiz's Void.

There were no redundant explanations, no clumsy pacifications; the young girl simply conveyed an absolute fact with a firm and unquestionable attitude.

——He was undoubtedly a hero worthy of the Spirit-Elf Sword, bearing hope.

With the demise of the River of Sighs, the horde of monsters behind Roland suddenly began to riot, as if sensing something. The monster swarms, already scattered by the expeditionary force's advance, responded to some call. Like marionettes, disregarding life and death, they shattered the expedition's encirclement, constructing a massive line of defense made of flesh and blood between Roland and the expeditionary force.

Faced with this seemingly inviting gesture, Roland did not hesitate. He walked straight into the purple space protected layer upon layer by the outer barrier—the true River of Sighs.

In this thick, impenetrable purple space, crystalline powders floated everywhere; those were the soul crystals that had perished in the previous Song of Doom.

They carried countless soul powers. After acquiring the King's Power, Roland could feel that he could freely extract various Voids from the atmosphere.

After all, this space was filled with an astonishingly large quantity of Apocalypse Virus, and all of them were prized treasures imbued with solidified soul power.

Or, to put it more accurately, the entire interior of the River of Sighs was constructed from the Apocalypse Virus itself.

Roland walked up to a set of transparent stairs that seemed to be made of purple crystal, and before long, he arrived at a bridge connecting to an aerial platform, resembling a dark mirror.

Just like the scene he had seen from Revis's memory that day, the young girl sleeping in the crystal throne formed by clustered purple-black crystals still kept her eyes closed, not awakening rapidly as she had during the previous intrusion of trespassers.

Roland examined the girl's appearance and slightly narrowed his eyes.

Compared to the two heroines in the original work, without personal contact, he could not determine her specific identity; however, her true identity would remain unchanged.

The Virus Queen.

The Apocalypse Virus—though appearing technological yet imbued with a fantastical sense—could certainly not be viewed through Earth's perspective. Although essentially a virus, it indeed possessed its own will, or rather, instinct.

The reason she exhibited human-like traits in the original work was merely because she had copied the host's memories and thought patterns. These methods served solely to better obey her instinctive will, rather than truly accepting the original person's personality.

Rather than assimilation, "overwriting followed by integration" was a more accurate description.

The first host who touched her had essentially died long ago; what remained was a new personality wearing the host's name and memories, known as the Virus Queen.

Because memories and emotions were retained, even close people would find it difficult to immediately notice the difference. Yet that quiet change—the non-human instinct of disregarding life—still signaled the fact that the original host no longer existed.

In the unobstructed, empty space, Roland instantly spotted the pale-robed man, who was missing an arm and lingering on the brink of death.

Unexpectedly, knowing full well that he no longer possessed even the qualifications, he had not taken advantage of the time to flee further away. Upon seeing Roland's arrival, he felt no panic whatsoever, merely remaining on that platform, guarding the gigantic crystal throne.

"You've finally come," he said in a low voice.

"I never thought I would be driven to this point by you."

Holding the twin swords in his hand, Roland crossed the bridge step by step, walking toward him.

Although, due to the traits of his monster-like transformation, he possessed combat power roughly equivalent to Level 4, before Roland, he was no different from an insect that could be crushed to death at any moment.

Having witnessed Roland's demolition-like attack just moments ago, it was impossible for him not to realize this.

Yet at this moment, the pale-robed man's face remained utterly composed.

"You actually didn't run away. Is it that hidden mastermind behind the Apocalypse Virus giving you this confidence?"

Roland sighed, then pointed his sword at the pale-robed man, threatening him in a very calm voice.

"Hurry up and tell me everything you know without omission, including the reason the Apocalypse Virus turns people into zombies, as well as that fellow's true identity. I can still grant you a swift death; otherwise, I will subject your soul to eternal torment."

Without a vessel to possess, a Spirit-Kind could not manifest such formidable might.

Aside from the Virus Queen and the Apocalypse Crystals, Roland could find no second living entity here that met the requirements. The pale-robed man was at best a clown; if the Spirit-Kind capable of causing such an incident had possessed him, he wouldn't look like this.

The Virus Queen had possessed the fallen spirit-elf, thus using the other party as a base material to begin completing the resurrection ritual.

Then, whom had the second Spirit-Kind possessed?

Although he had previously considered the possibility of some unlucky fallen spirit-elf being possessed by two Spirit-Kinds at once, upon truly acquiring Adam's authority, Roland dismissed the idea.

The Apocalypse Virus was indeed slightly abnormal, but it remained pure. Twisted entities like Spirit-Kinds would only become more terrifying when combined—falling at least into Frankenstein's tier, let alone a Chimera—so how could they still obey instinct and conduct such a ritualistic resurrection ceremony?

Because Roland's tone was too matter-of-fact, even the sense of arrogance within it was diluted considerably, replaced by the mistaken illusion that he wasn't threatening, but merely reasoning.

Yet facing such excessive conditions, the pale-robed man did not fly into a rage as he had before.

"There's no need for that," he said.

As he spoke, a somewhat comical, distorted curve appeared at the corner of his mouth, resembling a monkey scratching its cheeks and ears.

Hearing such uncompliant words, Roland frowned and raised the sword wreathed in swirling wind.

Aiz's Void strength was off the charts, exceeding the realm of common sense. Given the Void power she contained, even if she were a Level 6 adventurer, the best-case scenario would be resembling a patient in the final stages of infection.

And after mingling with the spirit-elf bloodline dormant within her body, the strength of this Void had been elevated once again.

To put it without exaggeration, wielding this holy sword, even an ordinary person could defeat or even kill Orario's current first-class adventurers. If one were slightly stronger oneself, challenging ancient monsters was not impossible.

Then, Roland flickered the Void in his hand, and a turquoise sword light formed a wave of light that rapidly spread to everything around him.

Even the turbid crystals, whose hardness surpassed steel, were neatly cut in half. Yet when this grass-cutting sword light touched the range of the crystal throne, it was halted by a crystal shield layered like crystals.

"What a terrifying holy sword... The mixture of spirit-elf power and Void can actually produce such a wondrous effect."

Saying this, the pale-robed man shook his head regretfully.

"To gain the favor of two spirit-elves, and also possess the King's Power—I have no doubt that even the Black Dragon standing at the pinnacle of the world would only die with bitter regret facing you, and even this Dungeon that caused the world's destruction would be conquered by you."

"If it were anywhere else, at any other time, I could only flee in panic and seek another opportunity."

"But unfortunately, although my ideals are not as firm as Revis's, they are by no means to be underestimated."

The pale-robed man looked at Roland, revealing a smile resembling victory.

"Fortunately, I didn't run away. Wonderful, simply wonderful! To tell the truth, my heart was indeed filled with despair before... But the wind of victory ultimately chooses those who are qualified!"

The pale-robed man paused, and finally, as if he could no longer restrain himself, he broke into a crazy smile.

"Though you might think me a bit long-winded, I truly rejoice that I didn't run away."

"Otherwise, how else would I witness your defeat!"

As if verifying his words, the surrounding space began to shake frantically, as if the place they were in was not a cavern, but a roaring, turbulent ocean.

The crystals flying in the sky decreased at a speed visible to the naked eye, gathering around the crystal throne.

"This is her home turf! Aided by the power of the Dungeon and the River of Sighs, she even transcends the gods!"

The pale-robed man danced with arrogant glee as he shouted, "Using the spirit-elf's body as material, combined with the monster power of the Dungeon, this place acts like a womb, vastly enhancing her power! Coupled with the revival of the River of Sighs, she has long since resurrected, only waiting to awaken!"

He looked at Roland, laughing hideously and maniacally.

"She already represents the end of this world!"

Roland sighed. Viruses aside, in terms of infectivity and lethality, they were indeed peerless. In a realm where he was the absolute sovereign, such a disaster would never be this terrifying; yet in the Lower World, gathered with gods and possessing loose factions, the Apocalypse Virus was practically in its element.

"Bang—!"

Accompanied by the tremor and the collapse of the surrounding crystals, the crystal throne also gradually began to shatter.

Amidst the deafening roars produced by the falling crystal fragments around them, the young girl inside the crystal slowly opened her eyes.

Those were pupils resembling Roland's—clear yet carrying a chill, bright red like crystal.

Yet within them, not a shred of human emotion remained; there was only the indifference characteristic of high-and-mighty deities.

However, unlike last time, the Virus Queen did not stop there, instead gently reaching out a hand.

With her movement, the throne shattered instantly, turning into powder that gathered back onto her body to adorn her.

Compared to her previous doll-like appearance, her attire at this moment had changed drastically as well.

Upon her head rested a crown formed of petal-shaped, purple-black crystals, and the evening-gown-like long dress on her body was likewise covered in crystals.

With her long pink hair cascading down, she gazed indifferently at everything around her. Matched with her otherworldly, stunning beauty, in Roland's eyes, her charm at this moment was truly breathtaking.

Moreover, seeing this state, Roland finally learned the name belonging to the Virus Queen.

It was a pronunciation of the Demon King in Japanese, a surname reminiscent of the Antichrist. It held the meaning of life and divine grace in the Bible, carried the explanation of the Source of Life, and encompassed a name representing the dual sides of creation and judgment.

She was the Queen of the Apocalypse Virus, Eve, the deity of the new world.

Her name was—

Roland softly murmured the girl's name.

——Inori Yuzuriha.