The Lone SF Transmigrator in the Otherworld Forum
Chapter 48: The Overlord Guides The Way (2)

***

[External Ether Circulation System Operating]

[Rapid Self-Recovery System - Body Damage 12.32%, 2 hours 43 minutes 28 seconds until full recovery]

[Emergency Repair System - Enhancement Suit Damage 32.05%, 7 hours 15 minutes 21 seconds until full repair]

[Remaining Power 3.2%]

She couldn't muster any strength in her body.

When was the last time she felt this much pain? It seemed like she hadn't experienced it in the past few months.

She barely managed to open her eyes and tried to move her fingers.

She could move her body, but couldn't exert proper strength.

Her eyes were open, but her vision was blurry and her ears were ringing.

Extreme exhaustion. That was exactly it.

"Ugh."

Was it because she rushed too much?

While practicing the Dimensional Slash, there was some kind of change in the silver flame within her body. It was just a tiny movement, but she could feel the difference.

Focusing on that strange sensation as she trained, she felt the silver flame spread throughout her body, heating it up, and then her slash in the void cut through something solid.

From the split in the void, a suction force along with wind pulled at her entire body.

At that moment, she had to make a choice. Whether to surrender her body to this flow or give up.

She knew herself. That what just happened was mere coincidence. It wasn't a result achieved entirely by her own skill.

However, the reason she hesitated was because of a vague intuition that if she threw herself into this flow, she might discover the key to the Dimensional Slash.

She had been feeling frustrated, hitting a massive wall in her Dimensional Slash training with no progress. It couldn't be easy to cut something that didn't actually exist, after all.

While she hesitated, the gap was closing. She had to make a decision quickly.

Then she realized that she could no longer feel the silver flame within her body. Whether this was temporary or not, she didn't know, but thinking that this opportunity might not come easily again, she boldly threw herself in.

"!!"

A massive torrent engulfed her. It felt like diving into a steel wave with her bare body. She didn't resist. She simply felt and engraved into her body every aspect of the torrent's flow, texture, intensity, and speed.

The silver flame in her body had disappeared, but the strange sensation of physically feeling the dimension was clearer than ever.

Time that seemed to last forever passed, and when her Power, which had been at 98%, was about to run out, she sensed danger and swung her sword with all her might to escape.

"Haa."

But was it because she had consumed too much mental energy? Her eyes, which were barely maintaining consciousness, began to close again.

When she opened her eyes again, numerous people were watching her.

***

"A person appeared from the Sacred Flame? And during the Sacred Flame Ceremony?"

"Isn't this nothing short of a Divine Maiden descending?"

"That's right. It's not possible to deceive the eyes of so many Masters who were present, is it?"

"Shh! Be careful. Do you not know there is a lot of talk about this issue right now?"

This was the conversation between the elders of the Heavenly Demon Cult before Virdel regained consciousness.

"But judging by the appearance of the armor, isn't it a woman? Why is the Cult Leader so concerned? After all, the Divine Maiden's Order cannot interfere with our cult except for rituals."

"It's because of the legend of the First Heavenly Demon, isn't it?"

"The First Heavenly Demon? Ah..."

"You know, the legend that says the First Heavenly Demon commanded the world wearing dark red Asura armor and wielding the Heavenly Demon Sword."

"Ah yes... And then came to the One Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, left the Sacred Flame, and founded the cult."

"It was a long time ago, though."

Currently, the Cult Leader was having a heated discussion with representatives of the Senatus and the Divine Maiden's Order.

Some Elders were observing them from a distance.

"My, how the Cult Leader's status has changed."

"Well, the current Cult Leader has caused many problems, starting with the issue of legitimate succession..."

"He managed to unite everyone recently with the invasion of the Central Plains, but... then that Intangible Divine Sword or whatever appeared and it all fell apart. Tsk tsk."

In previous generations, it would have been unthinkable to see such open defiance against the Cult Leader's words.

The 32nd Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, Cheon Yugang, was not a leader who ascended through normal means. He was a figure who rose to power through all sorts of sinister schemes. There was no small amount of opposition within the cult.

Moreover, after becoming the Cult Leader, he threw away his previously shrewd demeanor and became a leader full of greed and stubbornness. It was inevitable that there would be such opposition. Even among the cult's senior members, many were frustrated with the current situation.

"Anyway, since it's been decided to place her on the altar, let's move quickly."

"Let's do that."

And so, Virdel was placed on the Sacred Flame Altar.

***

"...How unpleasant."

She lowered her head and took in her surroundings.

In the vast underground cavern, scattered torches dimly lit the dark plaza. She was lying on an altar, and nearby, blue flames roared in a massive brazier.

At a distance, people in unfamiliar attire surrounded her, observing.

It was as if they were watching a monkey in a zoo, wasn’t it?

Her mood rapidly deteriorated. Unpleasant memories from the past began to surface. The trauma that had led her to despise humans came flooding back.

Ah...

In the past, whenever crowds looked up at her, all sorts of insults, stones, and gazes of contempt and hatred would fly at her. Even if those who threw stones and shouted at her like enemies must have known she had done them no harm.

There was no trace of reason in the madness of the crowd. They just needed someone to curse, to tear apart, to hate.

Even though she understood this, accepting it was a different matter. Indescribably horrible negative emotions were directed at her, and she couldn't help but become exhausted.

What troubled her the most was...

Not the insults, not the stones, not the gazes of others, but her own emotions.

It didn't take long for negative emotions no less intense than the madness of the crowd to build up in her devastated heart. At some point, she began to hate herself for making the choices she had in the past, and the tribespeople who had forced her to step up. In the end, she even started to resent her grandfather, the Tribal Chief, and her mother.

Horrified by herself, she buried her emotions and cut off her thoughts.

If it hadn't been for that final reunion with her mother, she might have gone mad forever.

What remained for her was a terrible misanthropy. Added to that was a great interest and curiosity about the Administrator. She wondered if this terrible hatred for humans would disappear when she finally met him. Everything else was secondary.

As she opened her eyes and looked down from the altar, numerous gazes filled with different desires were directed at her.

Throb-

Some eyes were filled with wariness, some with greed, some were full of thoughts of using her, and some held unpleasant desires.

Somehow, she could naturally understand their words.

Whoosh-

"The heavens have sent down a messenger to aid me. Now that you have regained consciousness, quickly introduce yourself."

"Covering one's face before the Sacred Flame is truly disrespectful. Shouldn't we start by removing the helmet and then begin the conversation?"

"The armor couldn't be removed earlier, I'm curious about what's inside."

"If it's a woman, there happens to be a vacant position for the Cult Leader's new wife..."

They were all speaking at once, casting interested glances at her. Some had their hands on their sword hilts, wary, while others were slowly approaching her.

Then.

Clank- Whoosh!

The underground cave shook for a moment, and the Sacred Flame in the massive brazier began to burn fiercely.

Instantly, the faces of the cult members watching her turned serious. Even the 32nd Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, Cheon Yugang, was no exception.

"Wh-Why is the Sacred Flame...!"

"What does this mean?"

"All demons shall worship and submit to the second coming of the Heavenly Demon!"

"Hoho."

"All demons shall worship and submit to the second coming of the Heavenly Demon!"

"Uh, uh?"

The surroundings suddenly became noisy. Shock spread across the faces of all cult members in the underground cavern. Some were already banging their heads on the ground, chanting "All demons shall worship and submit to the second coming of the Heavenly Demon!", while others had even drawn their swords.

With the fiercely burning Sacred Flame at her back, her mouth slowly opened.

"From now on, answer all the questions I'm about to ask."

Her piercing gaze swept over those below the altar.

How exactly had she dealt with the Empire?

There wasn’t much to it.

It's not like she went around killing and destroying everything. The Administrator didn't seem to like that approach either.

However, if there was one point where she felt she was in tune with the Administrator, it was this:

Kill everything that's bothersome.

Having declared herself a Devil, she had no reservations.

There was just one exception:

Leave alone the utterly ordinary humans who live modestly without greed.

But humans who indulge in greed, commit crimes, or harm others?

Eliminate them all.

Of course, even with just that, the Empire had disintegrated.

Yes, perhaps she had deliberately sought reasons to kill humans.

"What are your sins?"

At her words, displeased emotions clouded the faces of the cult members.

***

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