Chapter 1478
The life of a Vampire Progenitor can only open the gate once. What a waste. Compared to having a living Progenitor lead the way, this is far more troublesome—and you only get one shot.
Leon inserted the Nightmare Key into the gate’s keyhole and gave it a gentle twist. Instantly, endless light poured forth from within.
He let Agalon and the others pass through the gate first. Then Leon transformed once more into the Skeleton King and smacked the little skull on the surface of the Reaper’s Scythe.
"Spit out Tubby’s tail."
The skull opened its mouth and howled, but no matter what, it refused to spit out Tubby’s tail.
"If you don’t spit it out, you’ll stay here forever. Forget about ever having a soul."
The skull’s jaw trembled furiously, unleashing sharp, frantic screams. Leon showed no mercy and slapped it again.
"I don’t have time to waste on you. Three seconds—either you spit it out, or you stay here forever."
The skull clamped its mouth shut—no more screaming, no more howling. Only when Leon looked ready to toss it away did it finally, reluctantly, open wide and spit out a tail for Tubby.
Smack! Leon slapped it again.
"There’s another one, isn’t there? Don’t tell me you’re out—if you are, you’ll be stuck here. I’ll just go outside and hunt for endless Soul Fire myself..."
At that, the skull finally gave in. Bit by bit—like it was constipated—it spat out Tubby’s other tail. Once it did, the light in its eyes faded, and it turned into a motionless statue.
Leon couldn’t help but laugh. The little skull on the Reaper’s Scythe actually had a temper—when it got upset, it just sank deep inside and refused to come out...
He tossed Tubby’s tail back to him. The phantom tail reattached itself to Tubby’s back, and Tubby slowly floated up again.
As Leon was about to step through the gate, Tubby looked at him with obvious reluctance.
"You coming or not?"
Tubby spoke as he took a bite of cake, smearing cream all over his face. Then, feeling it was wasteful, he wiped the cream off with his paw and licked it clean.
Leon dumped out a pile of food—besides cake, there was roasted meat from his spatial ring, originally meant for Marianne, but now all of it went to Tubby.
"Alright, our contract ends here. All this is yours—take your time eating. Once it’s gone, that’s it."
Tubby quickly flicked his tail, scooping up all the food, then kept looking at Leon with obvious reluctance.
"So, are you coming or not?"
Leon was torn between laughter and tears. The old-faced Nightmare Leotail that popped out midair just covered its face and flew away, too embarrassed to watch any longer.
"Do you miss me, or do you miss the food?"
Tubby grinned wide and, without hesitation or shame, shouted out loud.
"Of course I miss you! You’re way more interesting than this place. Like you said, we’re friends who’ve fought side by side—but you still haven’t told me what a gun is?"
Then, after a moment’s hesitation, Tubby lowered his voice.
"If you ever come back, we’ll be friends, right? You’ll bring me snacks, yeah? Promise?"
Leon shook his head, waved goodbye to Tubby, and turned to step through the gate, vanishing from sight.
As the gate closed, the grotesque, struggling visage of a Vampire Progenitor on its surface suddenly sprang to life. Seconds later, the entire gate exploded into dust with a bang, taking the alchemical array with it.
Tubby, looking mournful, started counting his haul of treats, glancing back at the shattered gate every few steps...
Meanwhile, in Giovanni’s castle, transparent rings bound Giovanni’s limbs—and another ring was locked around his neck. The five rings pulled at his body, as if trying to tear him apart.
"Dekrise, you’re provoking the wrath of King Fergus. You’ll face a punishment beyond imagination, you damned lunatic! Lord Boddy is King Fergus’s closest undead, personally raised by him—and you trapped him in the Realm of Nightmares! If you want to die, don’t drag me down with you...
Don’t think nobody knows where your Lich’s Phylactery is hidden—King Fergus will crush it to pieces..."
Giovanni hung suspended in midair, bound by those five transparent rings—whatever they were, they sealed his magic and locked away all his powers.
Outside Giovanni’s castle, the giant black python had vanished. The ground was littered with the shattered corpses of countless dark creatures. The black forest looked like a painting wiped away with a single stroke—within a dozen kilometers of the castle, the forest was gone, and only ashes remained.
All of Giovanni’s subordinates had been torn apart—every last one died a miserable death. The air was thick with the stench of blood, and the power of death was several times stronger than before.
Giovanni’s castle looked as if it had been sliced in half—the entire upper portion was gone, and the room with the gate was now exposed to the sky.
A lich in black robes, with a face like a desiccated corpse, hovered silently before the skeletal gate.
"Giovanni, you stupid, filthy dark creature—the only reason you’re still alive is because I need you alive. Even if I cut out your tongue, you’ll still survive."
A sinister, chilling voice drifted out, like the wind of death in the night—cold and suffused with a terrible, evil aura.
Giovanni’s face turned even paler. His cursing mouth fell silent for a moment, but in the next instant, his eyes reddened and he began cursing again.
[Irrelevant passage skipped.]
"Dekrise, you filthy lich..."
But before he could finish, Giovanni’s eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open. It was as if someone had grabbed his tongue with pliers and started pulling—it slowly stretched out from his mouth.
His tongue was stretched longer and longer, like a taut rope about to snap.
Seconds later, with a muffled snap, Giovanni’s tongue tore free, spraying blood everywhere. His agonized scream echoed through the dead silence.
Blood kept gushing from Giovanni’s mouth, and his screams sounded bizarre, as if he were choking on phlegm.
Even as the Vampire Progenitor with the greatest regenerative powers, Giovanni’s tongue was torn out—yet the bleeding wouldn’t stop. Blood poured from his mouth like a stream.
In Dekrise’s eyes, two pinpricks of ghostly blue light flickered. That sinister, deathly voice rang out again.
"Much better—now it’s quiet. Giovanni, you’d better keep it that way. Even if I tear off your limbs, you’ll still survive. I only need you alive...
As for Fergus, I just don’t want to mess with him. Don’t try to threaten me with Fergus—he didn’t give you any orders. Every command came from me."
You filthy, foolish vampires are only useful when you enter the Realm of Nightmares. Wretched, lowly fools—don’t you know the meaning of humility?
No one can leave the Realm of Nightmares. I should have wiped out you filthy fools sooner, but it doesn’t matter—whoever comes out of there will die right here..."
Dekrise’s sinister, evil voice echoed, and a flicker of terror appeared in Giovanni’s eyes.
Damn it—were all my brothers tricked by this bastard? Wasn’t it King Fergus’s order? Then that Lord Boddy—could it be King Fergus wants to deal with Dekrise the Blood Lich?
Oh god, Dekrise’s Lich’s Phylactery is in the Realm of Nightmares...
Right, that must be it—that’s why he cares so much about the Realm of Nightmares. He tricked my brothers into going in, so they can never come out; they all perished inside. That damned Blood Lich...
King Fergus must have figured it out too—that’s why he sent Lord Boddy here, alone, into the Realm of Nightmares. It must be for Dekrise’s Lich’s Phylactery...
Giovanni was terrified, but now he didn’t dare struggle. The battle between the Undead King and the Blood Lich was far beyond him—one wrong move and he’d be dead for good.
Giovanni's mind was filled with terror. His body was under control, his powers sealed, and now, even if he wanted to flee, there was no way out...
Suddenly, the agonized skulls on the skeletal gate began to move, their creaking noises echoing as the gate slowly opened. A blinding radiance shone from within.
The Blood Lich still hovered motionless, quietly observing the gate as it opened.
When the gate was halfway open, it suddenly exploded with a thunderous boom. The entire castle was instantly engulfed by a wave of annihilation, silent and absolute, reducing it to ashes. The blinding light erupted outward, and a terrifying aura of destruction swept across three or four kilometers.
After the blinding light faded, endless darkness emerged, as if the void had devoured everything—nothing remained.
Dekrise's needle-sized eyes glanced at the shrinking darkness, then he slowly turned to leave.
Giovanni stared at the ruined castle. The terror in his eyes finally gave way to utter despair.
It’s over, completely over. The Skeleton King personally cultivated by His Majesty Fergus has truly perished here. If His Majesty Fergus finds out, I’m doomed for sure.
In such a short time, more than half of the thirteen Vampire Progenitors have fallen. How many years has Dekrise been plotting all of this?
He definitely didn’t start planning this yesterday. Once all the Vampire Progenitors have fallen, no one can enter or leave the Realm of Nightmares. He’s hidden his Phylactery in the Realm of Nightmares, and now no one can destroy it or his soul—not even His Majesty Fergus can kill Dekrise now…
It’s all over…