Devil's Bible

Chapter 167 No one can deny that a flower bud is still a flower.

"I don't want to die!" The will to live roared.

Although he had deliberately sought death, at this moment, Phos realized that he absolutely did not want to die like this, or at least should not die like this.

Besides his own will to survive, Phos sensed other wills to survive.

That is the will to survive of other broken souls under the symbiotic relationship.

They are symbiotic with Phos, and their existence depends entirely on the rampage accessories.

Once the Phos dies, they will also die.

The will to survive resonated within them, and at this moment, Phos seemed to have truly found the key to unlocking the obstacle.

The key was inserted into the lock, and then mental energy resonated rapidly, searching for a way out.

However, a problem arose at the very moment when success was within reach.

The more the mental energy resonates, the more frequently information is exchanged.

Those fragmented souls did not possess much complex thinking ability, but at this moment they suddenly realized a problem from the mental energy they interacted with Phos—they were actually dead.

They are just some remaining souls, and most likely they are former enemies of Phos. The main body of the soul has left, and the remaining souls have been absorbed by the berserk accessories.

Since they are already dead, why cooperate with Phos?

This thought became an impurity; the key that instinctively unlocks the lock becomes impure at crucial moments.

And then, with a snap, it broke.

The source of power that was originally opening up to Phos was then severed.

The external reaction was that the black aura around Phos's entire body was rapidly changing, transforming from black into a kind of shiny black.

But the transition stalled the next moment.

Then a barrage of spells rained down, landing on Phos.

First, there was the pillar of light descending from the sky.

The black aura around him was quickly purified, and then lightsabers flew from a distance and pierced into Phos's body.

Phos's survival instinct drove him to flee into the distance, but the ascetic paladin, who was also affected by the spell, restrained his instincts and swung his sword once more.

The blade didn't undergo any other special changes; it was simply a pure slash.

"Ah!" Phos couldn't even utter a louder cry before he felt a piece of his body being torn off.

His own foot was cut off.

Perhaps the pain unleashed Phos's potential; his mental energy gained an extra force, propelling his body forward a distance.

Behind him, the ascetic paladin intended to continue the pursuit, but only felt pain all over his body.

Looking down slightly, he saw that countless steel balls had been squeezed out of his body.

It turned out that at the critical moment, Phos's mental power expelled the black mask's mental power and controlled the steel ball to attack him from behind, completely piercing his body.

The ascetic paladin gripped his longsword, remained silent, raised it once more, and before he could even swing it, he had already fallen to the ground.

The steel balls quickly retreated and formed a protective force field around Phos.

"Am I... going to die here?" Phos retreated, feeling the palpable presence of death.

Although he had been taking risks before, those dangers were isolated by magic and power, which gave him a sense of security that as long as he operated correctly, he could win and thus not die.

Even if one senses that the enemy might attract the Golden Seeds, death is still a matter for the future.

Now, however, he truly felt the approach of death.

From his injury and broken leg to now, his mental strength is beginning to deplete.

He found himself in a very bad state.

The beam of light purified many of the symbiotic souls within him.

Without this individual, his stats declined, and his mental strength was no longer sufficient.

“And I still have so many enemies.” Phos’s vision was even blurry. The figures of the black-masked figures increased from three to six, and then to more.

Then, it seemed that more appeared in the distance.

Phos realized that he was not the protagonist favored by fate, and he could not create miracles.

Or rather, the fact that they had already defeated the Black Mask of the Iron-type was already a miracle.

It's actually quite normal that I've been defeated by these elite ascetics working together.

He simply couldn't pull off another miracle.

Despair weighed heavily on my heart.

“I failed.” Phos said dejectedly.

“I know,” Nems’ voice rang out at that moment.

"Lord Nemus... have you come to take my soul?" Phos asked.

“No, I’m just here to witness the withering of a flower,” Nemes immediately replied.

At this moment, however, Phos understood what the flower Nemes was referring to was.

"Am I, a loser, even considered a flower?" At this moment, Phos was not even sure if he was still dodging or protecting himself from the Black Mask's attacks.

It seemed that he could no longer hear any other sounds.

“You simply failed to bloom.” Nemus’s affirmative voice resonated deep within his soul.

"But no one can deny that a flower bud is still a flower."

With just that one sentence, Phos realized that his reason was returning.

He may have failed, but he may not have lost.

At least I didn't lose to my own life.

"Thank you, Lord Nemus," Phos said, trying to open his eyes, only to find that they were damaged.

Phos could only summon his mental energy; his fragmented senses emanated from his broken body, allowing him to perceive the situation outside.

"Stop!" It seemed to be Isabella shouting.

The pain felt like being burned by flames.

He was dying.

The last vestiges of spiritual energy and the remaining symbiotic souls began their final resonance.

The small amount of spiritual energy was now fluctuating violently.

This commotion attracted everyone's attention.

"What I want to perform here is the resonance and evolution of the soul!" The pulsation of the spirit formed Phos's final cry.

What followed was evolution through the resonance of spiritual power.

The thin layer of black mist surrounding Phos's body instantly transformed into a metallic black.

The first word that came to everyone's mind upon seeing that thing was steel.

Through repeated trials, life and death, and the tempering of blood and fire, Phos, with unwavering spirit, finally united all the symbiotic species.

The broken key was inserted into the equally broken keyhole.

Then it opened successfully.

Blind, with a broken leg and covered in wounds, Phos seemed to stand at the center of everything.

Meanwhile, those in black masks and Isabella and the others who arrived had become spectators.

Witnessing the final bloom of Phos.

(End of this chapter)