Lord of Prayer - Chapter 391 - 253: World-Burning Evil Fire, and the Familiar Aspiration of the Blue Clouds

That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die.

When “Death” itself dies in the long march of time, eternal silence becomes the final destination for all things.

There is no life, nor is there death.

Only the End is eternal.

In that instant, billowing Darkness erupted from the depths of Zhou Chen’s Soul. Cold, pale white flames ignited in his pupils. His hair grew wildly, transforming into crystalline strands of pale white fire that danced madly in the wind. A strange substance, not quite steel, not quite rock, surfaced on his body, forming an outer armor of scorched black and searing red molten rock.

The molten armor was sharp and angular, yet light and sturdy, covering his entire body. It was covered in ancient, wicked fire patterns, through which flowed a conspicuous, scalding, searing-white magma. Large drops of it fell, the terrifying heat burning holes into the ground.

Zhou Chen strode forward slowly. He slightly raised his fire-filled eyes, which disregarded all, and cold, pale white flames spontaneously ignited beneath Satan’s feet.

This was not the Soul-Burning Flame, nor was it the Molten Fire.

It was—the World-Burning Evil Fire, imbued with the ’End’ Attribute!

Satan countered with its Fury Fire, but to its utter horror, the Fury Fire was extinguishing at an incredible rate. The Power of ’Fury’ it commanded was also plummeting, decaying and collapsing from its very source.

Immediately after, its Sensing of its power source went inexplicably blank. More than half of the ’death,’ ’destruction,’ ’disaster,’ and ’chaos’ generated by Akita Town had vanished in an instant!

’No… it’s not that they vanished…’

’That missing Power was all forcefully stolen!’

Satan knew it couldn’t let this continue. With a flap of the dragon wings on its back, a white shockwave swept out. Its face twisted with savagery as it charged forward at a Rapid Speed.

Zhou Chen raised a hand, and the vast World-Burning Evil Fire erupted violently, instantly igniting half the street.

He was now nine to ten times stronger than his normal state. By combining the authority granted by the Hammer of Forging with the Abyssal Curse Technique recorded in the Book of the Dead, he created brand-new Extraordinary Skills with just a few modifications.

—Skill Derivation: Evil Fire Demon Dragon.

With a single thought, a visually stunning Demon Dragon of fire coalesced from the tsunami of World-Burning Evil Fire. Tangible, searing-white magma splattered from its body. Its savage draconic maw clamped down on Satan’s body, carrying it away in a rush of flight.

Satan braced against the Evil Fire Demon Dragon’s impact, its feet digging deep into the ground and carving two trenches into the road. Half its body was caught tight in the Demon Dragon’s jaws. The terrifying heat was rapidly carbonizing its body, yet the scorched flesh was instantly regenerated by a supply of sinful power. A fierce tug-of-war between immolation and healing erupted on its body.

Suddenly, the ground beneath Satan’s feet vanished, and it was suspended in the air.

Carried in the Evil Fire Demon Dragon’s maw, it was lifted into the sky amidst chaotic, howling air currents. As their altitude climbed higher and higher, the Evil Fire Demon Dragon finally detonated hundreds of meters in the air. A dazzling burst of flame spread ferociously, illuminating the night like a magnificent firework.

Satan was blown to pieces, half its body turned to ash. The four pairs of dragon wings on its back were all broken, and it plummeted from the sky like a meteorite.

By now, Zhou Chen had already intercepted a portion of Satan’s power source. His aura surged several times over, and a furiously burning, pale white halo of fire coalesced behind his head, constantly dripping a viscous white fluid of fire like asphalt.

He exuded a sense of sacred solemnity, yet radiated a devilishly bizarre fluctuation. He was a walking blasphemy against the Darkness, an emissary spreading destruction, decay, and silence across the mortal world.

A searing light flared in his evil-fire eyes. Hundreds of meters away, the ground cracked open, and pillars of incredibly hot fire erupted from beneath, forming a pool of pale white flames in just a few seconds.

—Skill Derivation: Flood Dragon Tail.

FWOOSH!

Like a whale breaching the water’s surface, a Flood Dragon Tail composed of flame, magma, metal, and rock rose from the pool of fire. It kicked up a waterfall of surging magma, scattering a blinding rain of fire in all directions. The massive, tens-of-meters-long flaming dragon tail then slammed down fiercely toward the falling Satan.

BOOM—

With an earth-shattering bang, Satan was swatted into the ground by the Flood Dragon Tail like a large fly. Buildings collapsed, and the ground suddenly sank, leaving behind a clear impression of the dragon’s tail.

“You…”

Behind him, Jack Reeves stood stunned, in disbelief.

“Don’t be afraid.”

Zhou Chen said, “This is my Second Stage.”

“…I see.”

Jack stared blankly at the searing figure that stung his eyes. Even though his eyes turned red and tears streamed down his face, he didn’t look away.

’I failed.’

’But thank God, someone has finally come to end all this.’

’This is wonderful…’

Jack wearily closed his eyes, but then Zhou Chen’s voice reached him:

“You didn’t fail.”

“What?” Jack opened his eyes in confusion and looked toward him.

Zhou Chen gazed at the dust and smoke rising in the distance and said slowly, “The fundamental reason Akita Town is stuck in a Reboot loop is your powerful determination to save it. As long as you give up on saving Akita Town, this loop can be broken. You’ll be freed and can regain your liberty.

Over decades, you’ve felt Anger, pain, confusion, and numbness… but you never once gave up on that resolve.

The years have ravaged your body, and countless cycles have worn down your will, but your Soul has never yielded.

You did not fail.

Absolutely not.”

After fusing with that Ruby, Zhou Chen could sense the Power it contained.

A Power he was all too familiar with.

—The Power of Wishes.

It was unbelievable, but it was true. What existed inside the Ruby was the genuine Power of Wishes. Although it was nearly depleted from maintaining Akita Town’s Reboot, the remaining wish value was still enough to Reboot the town several more times.