Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest.

Chapter 481 [The Blasphemer's Legacy] (5k6)

——The thirteenth place is “Durant”!
Luo Xiu still didn't understand what this voice meant. The abandoned building in front of him suddenly disappeared completely, leaving only complete darkness covering him.

And in the darkness, the only thing left was the lamp, and the spirit that suddenly rose from the lamp!
The spirit body wrapped in flames quickly changed its shape, and soon, it formed the phantom of a dragon knight in dark red armor. In both hands, it tightly grasped a curved sword that spewed out dark red flames, and a terrifying scarlet light flashed under the visor!
"We are waiting for the authority..."

"——Bestowed by blood!"

It made such a low and overlapping sound, and then turned into a dark red flame, sweeping towards Luo Xiu!

——Boom! Bang, bang, bang!

Flames burst out all around!

The figure of the "dragon knight" suddenly disappeared, and in the blink of an eye turned into six phantoms of fire dragons wrapped in red flames, rushing towards Luo Xiu's position from six directions!

At the same time, they spewed out blazing, burning flames towards Luo Xiu - the scarlet flames quickly engulfed him, and in the entire deep darkness, a large area of ​​scarlet surging light was set off!

But Luo Xiu didn't react at all.

When being dragged into the darkness by the "spiritual body", Luo Xiu had already put on a shield for himself. Having a lot of resistance to "fire" damage, the damage he suffered in the sea of ​​fire was actually minimal.

Although the opponent has a high resistance to penetration, its true strength is probably only at the level of the fifth level of destiny. It cannot burn through its shield in such a short time.

This was Luo Xiu's quick judgment after being briefly attacked.

Then, the first thing Luo Xiu did was to perform a panel detection on the spirit body.
The panel did give feedback quickly.

But the result was different from what Luo Xiu had initially thought—it was not actually the spiritual body of the Supreme.

That is the god of authority!

——[Spirit of Authority, Incarnation of Hastia], this name appeared on the panel.

That is a deity in the "Ancient Spirit" realm, with a level of lv.59, one of the most powerful among the "Ancient Spirits".

But in fact, that is not the real body, but an incarnation similar to the "Mist Shadow" - the [Incarnation of Hastia] displayed in the panel has already revealed this point. The real "Spirit of Authority" Hastia's body is not here.

The true status of the original body of Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority", would only be higher than its "incarnation" - perhaps it has reached the level of "Chaos Spirit" or even "Star Spirit".

And the spirit of the fallen destiny [Authority] will appear here - the bishop "Alfonso Durant" is indeed tainted with the destiny not of [Supreme] but of [Authority], and the power he uses to "dominate" the holy light also comes from [Authority]!

In Luo Xiu's mind, he was thinking about these things like lightning -

But the sudden battle is still going on.

At this moment, the raging flames had already wrapped around Luo Xiu's body. The six fire dragon phantoms transformed by the spirit of authority were spewing out real red flames, or they were roaring and rushing down directly towards Luo Xiu's position, and suddenly exploded when they actually collided with Luo Xiu!

--boom!

——Boom boom boom boom! ! !

Intensive explosions were heard one after another, but in the thick dark red light, a ray of golden light had torn through the light mist and burst out -

The fiery spirituality of [Authority] began to dissipate and cover from the inside out, and the spirituality of [Glory] became increasingly intense and reached its peak after ten seconds!

Then in the next moment,
--boom!!!!!

An unprecedentedly fierce and shining beam of light burst out completely from the red light surge!

——“A flood of divine punishment”!
During the ten seconds of being burned by the Spirit of Authority, Luo Xiu was preparing to charge the sacred art of "Sixfold Destiny" to its ultimate level. At the moment of completing the charge, he blasted a torrent of holy light out of the red surging wall of flames!
"The flood of heaven's thunder" - the area it covers is quite large.

After Luo Xiu took out the [Dragon Breath Scepter] and completed charging all the power, the area in front of him, which was almost twice as spacious as the city gate, was covered by a torrent of holy light. The four phantom fire dragons that were originally flying on the path were also annihilated into nothingness by the torrent amid their wails!
As this horrific torrent gushed outward, the shapes of the remaining two flaming red dragons became illusory and blurred. Their outlines began to emit wisps of smoke and gradually dissipated as the smoke spread.

Not far in front of Luo Xiu, the figure of the incarnation of the "Spirit of Authority" Hastia has reappeared.

However, the armor covering its entire body had been largely damaged, and a scarlet light even dimmer than before was floating under the visor, and a vague, hideous voice was emitting:

"I am Durant's...ghost..."

"Our authority is granted by blood..."

Hastia, the Spirit of Authority, declared so, and her hands had already grasped the curved sword that was gushing with scarlet flames, as if she was about to make the next move -

It wanted to release something. But Luo Xiu did not give it more opportunities. Before it could assume a new posture, he had already pointed the tip of the Dragon Breath Scepter at it!
——Bah!

It was at the position of Hastia, the Spirit of Authority. A golden ring appeared on its head. The ring was covered with golden thorns, and after half a second, it swung around and hooped down!

The movement of the Spirit of Authority suddenly stopped - at the moment when the golden ring entered its illusory body. Most of its spirituality suddenly dissipated, and the scarlet under the mask also lost its luster. At the same time, it could no longer move at all!
——"Divine punishment from heaven"!
After Luo Xiu successfully cast this holy art on Hastia's incarnation, the next second, Hastia was enveloped from top to bottom and also from bottom to top by a beam of bright golden light!

--boom! !
There was a loud sound like a shock in the air, and an unprecedentedly bright light, almost as dazzling as the sun, burst out from the huge beam of light, and the surrounding air rose significantly in an instant!

--boom! ! !

The next second, when the scorching light emitted by the beam of light reached its peak, cracks began to spread on its surface, and it shattered in an instant!

--boom!!!!!

The imprisoned spirit was "dissociated" from the dazzling huge column of light. The original trauma caused by the last "divine punishment" dealt a fatal blow to the incarnation of "the Spirit of Authority" Hastia.

"Uh……"

Luo Xiu heard the last low, painful sigh. At the moment when the light column of divine punishment was finally shattered, the dark red phantom of the incarnation of Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority", also turned into a dark red mist and dissipated into the air.

Using only two newly-mastered sacred arts of the "Sixfold Destiny" and solving the problem of the incarnation of the god [Authoritativeness] in the "Ancient Spirit", some new things appeared on Luo Xiu's panel. Before he could carefully browse what he had obtained, the pitch-black scene around him quickly dissipated, and the colors of Durant's old house returned to his vision.

He finally saw again the dusty room, the broken murals, and the crooked tables and chairs.

After confirming that he had temporarily returned to his original position, Luo Xiu's gaze fell on the panel.

[Trigger hidden tasks]

[Hidden Mission: Legacy of the Defiler (Difficulty of Doom)]

[Recommended level: lv.60+, Sixth Fate and above]

[Task type: serial task]

[Mission Description: You stepped into the old house of the Durant family and encountered a long-hidden blasphemous secret.

Alfonso Durant, who was once the "Bishop of Divine Glory", had the incarnation of the god "Authority" appear in his old residence. You know this is not accidental, and only the blood of "Durant" can awaken it——

After defeating the incarnation of Hastia, the Spirit of Authority, you have realized that there may be something else hidden in this abandoned house.

You can leave here, nothing will happen - but you will find nothing. What was originally secret is still secret, maybe you should go a step further, use Durant's blood to open the secret door and harvest the remnants and legacy of the long-time blasphemer. 】

[Mission Guide: Use the blood of "Durant" to open the secret door.]

[Prayer chanted: "I am xx Durant. Our authority is granted by blood." Or: "I am the blood of xx Durant. Our authority is granted by blood." ]

[Main mission objective: Use the blood of "Durant" to open the hidden door and learn the secrets hidden here.]

[Secondary mission objective: Truly kill the "Spirit of Authority" Hastia]

[Basic Completion Rewards: Basic Experience +1200000, Free Attribute Points +60, 'Legendary' Quality Specialty "Blood Oath of God's Shackles (Limited)" *1]

[Additional completion rewards: Basic experience +2600000, free attribute points +130, 'God's Birth' quality specialty "God-given authority (limited)" *1]

【…】

"..."

hiss……

After carefully browsing the hidden tasks belonging to the "serial tasks" that appeared on the panel, Luo Xiu's eyes sparkled with a bright light!
This is the second "annihilation" difficulty mission he has triggered since [Grand and Sacred Expedition]!
As for the mission [Grand and Sacred Expedition], Luo Xiu was still waiting for Albert and his team to expand the expedition's results before settling the mission. Coming to the Durant family's old residence would trigger a new hidden mission, a serial mission of "robbery and destruction" difficulty, which Luo Xiu had not thought of in advance.
Moreover, in this new "annihilation" difficulty serial quest [Legacy of the Blasphemer], if you actually kill the "Spirit of Authority" Hastia's true body, you will also be able to obtain a limited expertise of "God's Birth" quality!

If it can be completed, it will be the first "God's Birth" feat that Luo Xiu has obtained.

——This trip is really worth it!

In Luo Xiu's heart, this is what he was thinking about at this moment.

However, he was also thinking about other things at the same time - for example, through the panel, he could confirm that there was indeed a divine body that was at least a "chaos spirit" and most likely a "star spirit", and the incarnation of the authoritarian spirit just now kept muttering "blood gives", and it seemed to call itself "Durant's ghost" several times in whispers... "Authoritarian Spirit" Hastia, the god of [authority], was indeed inextricably linked to the Durant family. And this connection was probably connected by blood - just like when he first entered this abandoned house, Hastia's incarnation jumped out.

The villagers said that Durant's old house was often haunted, which probably refers to this. And the reason why no one has discovered these hidden things here for decades is because the key to triggering the incarnation of Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority", lies in Durant's bloodline. This is also mentioned in [The Legacy of the Blasphemer].

"..."

And when Luo Xiu thought of this.

He closed the panel at the same time, his eyes fell on the lamp where the incarnation of the "Spirit of Authority" had appeared before, and then on the mottled walls of this dusty room.

He knew what he should do next - following the quest instructions of [Legacy of the Blasphemer], Luo Xiu took out a dagger engraved with the "Suncast Inscription" from his waist.

That was originally the tool Luo Xiu was going to use for the ritual. But now, Luo Xiu held the dagger handle with his right hand and the dagger blade with his left hand. He then removed the spiritual protection on his palm and gently pulled the dagger downward with his right hand.

Hiss!

The sound of flesh being cut came out dully from the palm of Luo Xiu's left hand.

Blood slid down as the dagger was gradually pulled out of the palm, dripping drop by drop onto the dusty ground.

The blood drop emitted a burning sound as it fell, and Luo Xiu whispered a blessing at the same time:
"——I'm Ross Durant."

"——Our authority is granted by blood."

"..."

……

——Buzz!!!

When seven drops of blood dripped onto the ground along the dagger, the rich spirituality contained in it completely turned into mist and rose up. The air was shrouded in a faint crimson, and Luo Xiu's consciousness also fell into a trance at a certain moment.

A not-so-intense buzzing sound came from his ears, and the scene before his eyes began to distort and change. The originally dull colors became bright and vivid in Luo Xiu's eyes.
The most significant change was that the fragmented murals actually "floated" up by themselves. They flew in front of Luo Xiu and formed a complete picture.

It was a picture of a "Bishop of Divine Glory" wearing a golden robe, and a "Descendant of the Dragon" imprisoned by golden shackles in front of him!

It was Alfonso Durant who imprisoned the dragon of authority!
This is the image shown in the picture!

The armor worn by the dragonborn was very similar to that of the "Spirit of Authority" Hastia who had just fought with it - the only difference was that the authoritative dragonborn in the picture looked much more majestic. However, under the bright sun-like divine light of Bishop Alfonso, the authoritative dragonborn looked dim.

Perhaps that is Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority" herself?
Luo Xiu thought divergently, wondering what the legendary bishop Alfonso Durant had done.

This was somewhat different from the information Luo Xiu had originally known - he had always believed that Alfonso used [Authority] to dominate [Glory], because according to the destiny characteristics of [Supreme], he could indeed do something similar.

But I didn't expect it to be the other way around - using [Glory] to control [Authority] is actually a more serious matter for the [Supreme] people!

Perhaps this is why the Supreme was determined to take Bishop Alfonso away? And the real truth may not even be known to Bishop Fabian or the entire Holy See...

As Luo Xiu thought about this, his eyes were fixed on the screen in front of him that was emitting a strange light.

Suddenly, the picture in front of him burst into an extremely dazzling light, and all the colors swirled like a whirlpool, and in the center of the picture - there appeared a "door".

That is the door that contains the secret mentioned in the quest [Legacy of the Blasphemer]!
Then it really needs "Durant's blood" to open it... Luo Xiu thought.

He stared at the door of the vortex in front of him and felt the vague guidance extending from the inside of the door to the outside. He gathered his mind, cast several protective sacred arts on himself, and after changing his appearance once, he took a step forward and walked into the door.

……

As I walked into the vortex-like door.

The scene of the abandoned house of Durant's family shattered and dissipated in the corner of Luo Xiu's eyes like sand.

He felt as if he had come to another space, as if he had been teleported to the royal court of the "Holy Abyss" - it was definitely not in Cassiwo Village, nor even in Songyuan Territory, the Nolan Empire, or the Fanor Continent, but a place that seemed to be outside the world.

Luo Xiu now felt like he was drowning. The concentration of spiritual energy around him was soaring exponentially. Luo Xiu felt a little dizzy, but he could still bear it.

He inexplicably had a feeling as if he was traveling through a wormhole in the science fiction movies he often watched in his previous life.

When he felt the spirituality around him stabilize again, and at the same time felt the ground under his feet again, he felt as if he had come to a cave.

In other words, it was the kind of damp and cold feeling that made him feel as if he had come to a cave. There was no light around him, and Luo Xiu could only rely on touch and smell to identify where he was at the moment.

At the same time as the bone-chilling cold touch came a very strong smell of blood that almost hit me in the face.

This is more like coming to a cave where wild beasts are lurking... Luo Xiu thought to himself, and he reopened his spiritual vision. He raised his right hand, poured spirituality into his right palm, and a ball of holy fire emitting golden light ignited from his palm.

The light illuminated the surroundings, allowing Luo Xiu to finally see clearly where he was now -

…I really am in the “cave”.

The milky rock above was dripping with water. In front of me was a deep cave that continued to extend inward, and the rock walls on both sides were polished very smooth, so smooth that they could be used as mirrors.

When he could see the surroundings clearly, Luo Xiu turned around and looked behind him.

He saw that the whirlpool-like door was still there. He could still go back from there, Luo Xiu confirmed this first.

Then he turned around again and his eyes fell on the rock walls on both sides.

On the mirror-like rock wall, something was written in very ancient characters. Although Luo Xiu could not understand them, fortunately his panel could still distinguish them.

It records these:

【All those who come here are descendants of Durant. 】

[The "Spirit of Authority" Hastia is imprisoned here. 】

These are the first and most eye-catching sentences.

Afterwards, it was written in striking characters:

[I have entered authority, and through it I have become holy - but I can no longer ascend. The path of "authority" has collapsed and is blocked, and the path of "glory" has lost its godhood. I will seek a new path.]

【…】

[Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority", has cursed me! ]

[He has cursed me with blood poison, and made a blood oath with it - to prey on my descendants, in order to break free from the divine chains! ]

[My descendants——When you see this seal, leave! ]

[My glory has been shattered, and I have already given myself to the revelation of heaven. I leave this warning, please stay awake and do not fall into the catastrophe! ]

【——Alfonso Durant. 】

This is the writing left by Bishop Alfonso himself.

Below these characters, there was the name of Alfonso Durant. There was something else written below that, but it was scraped off.

But Luo Xiu also knew that the true body of Hastia, the "Spirit of Authority", was indeed in a deeper place.

And the extremely strong smell of blood also came from deeper inside, so Luo Xiu took a step forward and walked lightly and quietly towards the deeper part.

As the smell of blood became stronger,

After passing through a narrow tunnel and coming to a bright and open place,
Luo Xiu's pupils suddenly contracted——

He saw an obsidian table, on which was placed a cracked, thirty-six-faceted dark red crystal.

The terrifying spirituality emanating from those cracks made one's back shiver, but what shocked Luo Xiu was not that, but the thing under the table -

There were corpses piled up like a mountain.

They were all bodies with silvery white outlines, like mercury.

They all follow the "revelation"

——They are all corpses of the Apostles of Balance!
……

(End of this chapter)