Chapter 152: The Advent of the Apocalypse

Roland swung Esther silently in his hand, leaving behind only scattered ashes and falling purple crystals in his wake.

A massive stream of light burst from the blade of Roland, who walked at the very vanguard, sweeping continuously across the space. Any monster standing directly in his path was utterly torn to shreds, leaving a gigantic, yawning fissure carved into the air.

The remaining adventurers spread out along the flanks, clearing away the scattered stray monsters, and quickly opened up the main path.

"What an unreasonable display of might..."

Behind Roland, someone murmured in low amazement.

Despite having experienced the previous incident with the Apollo Familia, no one looked down upon Roland anymore. Yet, truly witnessing a spirit of nature fighting alongside a hero still left them unable to fully process the sight.

Although the expedition force lacked deep tactical coordination, everyone participating in this grand expedition—even the logistical personnel—started at Level 3. The sheer number of First-Class Adventurers at the front line exercised an overwhelming, crushing advantage over the dungeon's exploration progress.

Consequently, after less than a day of adjustment, the expeditionary force broke through the lower levels like a bamboo split by a cleaver, arriving all the way at the thirty-seventh level.

"The floor master hasn't respawned. It seems this time the anomaly isn't originating from the Dungeon itself, but from external factors."

Upon entering the boss room, Finn's expression visibly relaxed.

It wasn't that the presence of a floor master would cause any real trouble; facing an expeditionary force with such a luxurious lineup, the floor master of the thirty-seventh level was truly nothing special. Even if it were enhanced like the one Roland had encountered previously, it still posed no genuine threat.

The floor master, cleared out by Roland and Aiz less than a week ago, had not yet regenerated, which at the very least proved that the Dungeon was acting, at most, as an accomplice in this incident.

For the expeditionary force, this was the best possible news.

After all, Orario was still far from being ready to conquer the Dungeon.

"Our destination this time is at least the fifty-ninth level. We need to pick up the pace."

Roland continued forward at a leisurely and unhurried pace. The deeper they descended into the subterranean layers, the scarcer the traces of adventurers became. Everywhere were monsters infected with purple crystals, looking somewhat dim under the Dungeon's own murky ambient light.

"With such ample armament, we spend more time traveling on the road than actually clearing out monsters."

Finn remained unconcerned. Although this expeditionary force outnumbered any previous one, under the wide-open supply lines of Babel, rare First-Class equipment, elixirs, and magic swords were being hauled in cartloads. The adventurers at the vanguard could afford to burn through resources without a single reservation.

After marching for an unknown number of days, the logistics teams could no longer keep pace with the forced march of the expeditionary force. To drag them further down would merely add dead weight.

At this moment, those who could steadily keep up with Roland were the most renowned adventurers in Orario.

Many familiar faces were among them; aside from the members of the Loki Familia, representatives from the Freya Familia were also present.

Although the looks they directed at Roland were similar to Burt's, they did not act out of line and obediently complied with all of Roland's orders.

Yet during routine moments, they consistently gathered around their leader, a tower-like, muscular giant.

To Roland's slight surprise, the attitude of this former strongest man in Orario toward him was quite normal. It was no facade; for Roland, who could read the emotions of others, he could sense Ottar's consistent demeanor both inside and out.

Neither envious nor overly enthusiastic, Ottar treated everything around him with the calm detachment of someone merely executing a mission. As a tool, he was more than sufficiently exceptional.

When confronting the monsters of the fifty-eighth level, Ottar had flawlessly intercepted every single creature on the flank, proving that his title of "Odr" was no empty boast.

"These flame dragons are truly troublesome."

Tiona sighed, gazing with a trace of envy at Aiz, who had darted back and forth through a sea of fire several times yet remained immaculate.

"It must be nice. I wish I could receive guidance from a hero, too."

Ever since her return from the last expedition, Aiz's progress had become increasingly noticeable, and she had grown much easier to get along with during everyday interactions. The identity of the person who caused this change in Aiz was hardly a secret.

"At least try using a sword before saying things like that. With a battle style as wild as yours, there's no way anyone could teach you. Besides, isn't this already much better? During past expeditions, weren't we always left looking wretched and soot-stained because of these bastards attacking us from the lower levels in advance?"

Tione irritably knocked her younger sister on the head, casting a lingering, apprehensive look at the scorched earth surrounding them, where faint remnants of crimson flames still flickered.

The deeper one went into the Dungeon, the more specialized the monsters became. Despite being denizens of the fifty-eighth level, they could span across multiple tiers to launch sniper attacks with massive fireballs in advance. Moreover, they did not fire them individually; when they attacked, it was with the roaring momentum of an entire army. The shockwaves alone were enough to give anyone a hard time.

If not for the fact that the adventurers present were the elite of the elite, coupled with Roland single-handedly intercepting the vast majority of the fireballs and moving through the inferno with effortless ease, the expeditionary force would never have reached the fifty-eighth level this quickly.

Even so, this speed was entirely relative.

The time it took them to travel from the fifty-second level to the fifty-eighth level already exceeded the time they had spent journeying from the very first level to the fifty-second.

"The stock of panaceas is still reasonably adequate, and we've only consumed magic swords when encountering flame dragons."

Finn walked up beside Roland and said softly.

"Regarding the route map to the fifty-ninth level, the Guild has also thoroughly checked and patched any omissions. At this pace, we will soon reach the stairwell leading down to the fifty-ninth level. My only concern is that, up until now, we haven't seen any traces related to the mastermind behind this disaster."

"Don't rush, Finn. The mastermind utilizes monsters akin to man-eating flowers. Once they gather in swarms, the commotion they create will be no less than that of those flame dragons. Furthermore, from the way the monsters we encountered earlier spontaneously gathered and acted, we are getting closer and closer to our target..."

Casually kicking away a blocking gathering material in his path, Roland took the lead, walking through the somewhat empty cavern left behind after the monsters had been thoroughly cleared out.

"Hah..."

However, after taking only a few steps, Roland suddenly halted. He sighed, tightened his grip on Esther, and abruptly slashed down toward the ground that should have been completely empty!

The sacred sword light effortlessly pierced through the ground all the way to the lower stratum. Amidst the gravel and dust swirling toward both sides within the fissure, several severed vines oozing thick, purplish-black liquid like fresh blood welled up together, crashing onto the ground and continuously twisting and coiling like living creatures.

"Enemy!"

This kind of concealed and conscious ambush far exceeded the scope of ordinary monsters. At Finn's roar, the members of the expeditionary force raised their weapons in unison, glaring vigilantly at the ground beneath their feet.

Yet Roland alone remained unmoved, continuing to fixate on the empty space ahead.

"What a terrifying intuition..."

Seeming to realize that concealment was no longer effective, a man-eating flower parted the surrounding soil and drilled out, its crown bearing the bizarre figure of a man.

His lower body was connected to the man-eating flower beneath him just like the jewel-fetus from before, though his presence was considerably fainter. His upper body was draped in a white robe, and he wore a somewhat venomous expression.

"You're just too stupid. Integrating your body into a monster to hide is indeed a decent idea, but by merely hiding behind the scenes and manipulating a monster's body through a virus, while it's safe, you can see right through it at a single glance, can't you?"

Roland shook the holy sword in his hand, casting a look of disgust at the man before him.

"I see," the white-robed man was stunned for a moment, his brows furrowing gradually before a complacent smile spread across his face. "As expected of the hero who managed to finish off Revis. Though I deeply despise her arrogant demeanor, in terms of acceptance of the Void and combat capability, she truly far surpasses me."

"Then, as a reward for your journey all the way here, I shall acknowledge it: among the old humanity, you can be considered exceptional. However, no matter how outstanding you may be, in front of the New World—in front of this grand feast that will lead the evolution of all life on earth—you amount to nothing."

The white-robed man spoke in a patronizing tone, filled with a sense of pity: "So why won't you just obediently wait? This is clearly a sacrifice made for the world, for all of humanity! It is a supreme and peerless glory!"

The arrogant and conceited tone caused Roland to frown impatiently.

What he loathed most was this exact sort of expression. A sacrifice was a sacrifice; turning all of humanity into crystals of the Apocalypse Virus was no big deal anyway. After all, there were plenty of people bent on destroying the world, and one more wouldn't hurt.

To call the state of reducing old humanity to soul crystals an "evolution" was something Roland could barely accept, but this condescending attitude coupled with the arrogance of "this is for your own good" was utterly sickening.

Arrogance, haughtiness, condescension—these were traits Roland possessed in full measure, and he had never considered himself a good person. Yet on one specific point, he was the polar opposite of the fellow before him.

Roland loved humanity, but that didn't stop him from founding kingdoms, ruling, and enslaving all of mankind. When necessary—for instance, when he needed to transcend fate—he wouldn't mind using the evils of this world to consume all of humanity and complete himself.

However, he would never spout hypocritical nonsense about how such sacrifices were worthwhile, nor would he constantly hang the future of humanity on his lips while putting on the air of the only one who remained sober while everyone else was drunk, imagining himself to be the sole savior. That self-righteous attitude made Roland feel sick to his stomach every single time he encountered it.

Observing the disgust on Roland's face, the white-robed man wore a smile that was even more grating. He gently clapped his hands, and massive vines stretched across the walls, continuously sprouting forth until they quickly transformed everything around them into green walls of flesh.

Next, within this cavernous hollow resembling a grotto, countless flower buds of varying sizes emerged eerily, drooping downward. Accompanied by sickening, sticky sounds, the flowers hanging against the flesh walls quietly began to bloom.

Colorful blossoms bloomed in neat rows, then detached and slipped down like newborn infants, crashing onto the ground and crawling in a writhing motion from all directions toward the expeditionary force.

In the blink of an eye, the surroundings instantly turned into a breeding ground for man-eating flowers!

Yet amid this thoroughly unsettling scenery, the gazes of most people were still drawn to the tall, purple crystal pillar slowly rising from behind the white-robed man.

Unlike the purplish-black hue possessed by ordinary virus crystals, its entire body radiated a crystal-clear, misty, and hazy luminescence.

"Then, everything should come to an end here, Hero of the Sword. Seeing as you too have been favored by a spirit of nature, if you are willing to offer up that spirit, I can reserve a seat for you in the New World."

Following the appearance of the purple crystal pillar, the white-robed man's face displayed an expression of explosive confidence. Even though the swarms of man-eating flowers could only be said to barely entangle the expeditionary force and were rapidly being eradicated one by one by individuals led by Finn and Ottar, he paid it no mind.

Nevertheless, the information revealed in his words still caused the expeditionary force to pause in surprise.

"Also favored by a spirit of nature?"

Subconsciously, they cast their gazes toward Roland, who held the holy sword.

"Well? Are you tempted?"

The white-robed man looked at Roland, secretly guarding against any sudden move from the other party. After all, this was an almighty powerhouse capable of killing Revis; caution was entirely warranted.

Even so, he retained absolute confidence in his ultimate trump card. He was, after all, the sole servant beside that Queen, and the pioneer of evolution brought to this sorrowful old world.

And once all life in the old world was reduced to evolution, he would become the god of the New World!

Facing the white-robed man's recruitment, Roland merely sneered.

"The words of children spoken without taboo are occasionally amusing to hear. But how dare you cast your desires upon what is mine, you mongrel!"

The very next second, as Roland's words fell, crimson flames enveloped the entire blade of Esther. A deep, abyssal sword light wound through the air, transforming halfway into a scarlet waterfall rushing forth from his hand. It resembled a roaming divine dragon; unleashing a furious roar, it opened its maw and directly swallowed the upper body of the man-eating flower, along with the white-robed man perched atop its head, in a single gulp!

"Aah—!"

Caught off guard, the man-eating flower took the full brunt of the blow. The searing pain of soul-burning caused the lower body of the flower to split open, forming a massive maw that let out a piercing, shrill roar.

His direction of development differed from Revis's. Utilizing his beast-tamer skills and the characteristics of the Apocalypse Virus, he could hide in a safe area and accomplish whatever he desired by manipulating monsters.

He had always believed that compared to personal combat, this was the approach of a wise man. Yet, because this was a connection that provided perfect feedback for both vision and movement, it naturally possessed inherent flaws.

Once the monster suffered severe injuries and he failed to detach in time, this agony would be returned to him in exact measure.

This was a man-eating flower comparable to Level 7! How could it be incapable of even escaping? Were the adventurers of Orario all monsters?!

"Fortunately, only the primary perspective was broken."

Roland's strike had merely erased over half of his body; with a man-eating flower's tenacity, he wasn't going to die immediately. He still had a chance to unleash his ultimate weapon.

"Damn it, you forced my hand! Die, vile old life, and welcome the descent of the apocalypse!"

Before his connection with the man-eating flower was completely obliterated by the scorching sword light, and before the purgatorial agony descended upon his soul, the white-robed man activated the purple crystal behind him and let out a roar of fury.

"—I shall broadcast this wave of despair to the entire world!"

Following that, the crystal flared with brilliant light, directly linking to the fifty-ninth level. An intangible ripple abruptly materialized, sweeping across everything in the vicinity, spreading directly upward, and surging straight toward the surface.

"Ah!"

Finn, who had just slain a man-eating flower, let out an instinctive cry of pain. He reached up to touch his neck, then raised his head, staring in disbelief at the purple crystal pillar.

On its smooth surface, the sudden appearance of a purple crystal blossoming upon his neck was clearly reflected.