Abyss Descension: I Perform Rituals to Evolve In The Apocalyps-Chapter 36: Den

"What else should I know?" Kev questioned.

"Besides beast and magic cores, the entire corpse of a intermediate class unusual beast is a treasure trove. Every part of its body has some use in alchemy, runesmithing, and mystical rituals," Natasha answered without hesitation. "Rituals that bestow roles and duties upon abyss dewellers are appropriately called mystical rituals."

Hearing her words, a spark of interest ignited in Kev's eyes, one that was hard to ignore.

Words flowed out of his mouth next, revealing how he felt after realizing that, just like back on Earth, professions also existed in the Abyss.

"Alchemy. Runesmithing. Those are the professions Abyss dwellers chase after, huh? Sounds pretty interesting."

His eyes glowed with the mesmerizing brightness of twin stars stirring awake in the midnight sky, revealing his hunger for the professions that existed only in the Abyss, but that hunger did not go unnoticed. It was perceived by the beautiful young woman with red hair and eyes, who had been secretly observing him from afar by deceiving him into keeping a monitoring relic with long distance communication function by his side.

'He's developed an interest in things that has led a wide majority of the Dwellers native to the Abyss to fall into despair. This isn't good. I let my tongue slip. I shouldn't have brought up those things, not this early. I need to set things right,' thought Natasha, as she decided to nip Kev's budding desire in the bud, quickly issuing a clear warning.

"If you're thinking of taking up one of those professions, I'd advise against it."

Blood red words appeared in the book before him, their eerie glow demanding his immediate attention. He read them attentively before his brows drew together in confusion.

"Why?" He asked.

"Because without the required talent, proper guidance, and a ridiculous amount of resources, you won't even get close to the threshold of entry into these professions," she said bluntly. "You'd waste time, energy, and probably your life trying. You're better off focusing on what truly matters. Survive and grow stronger. Once you're strong enough, you can just kill a unusual beast or two and trade their parts for potions and artifacts that catch your eye."

Kev remained silent, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

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He understood where she was coming from, but he wasn't the kind of man to back down from doing what he desired just because it seemed incredibly hard or futile.

Furthermore, a person's life could change in an instant. It could be for the better or it could be for the worse. Kev had experienced such drastic changes more than once, so he knew better than to believe he'd always remain a pauper with no resources and no one to guide him in his quest to learning a profession.

'Who knows what the future holds? If the opportunity ever comes, I'd seize it without hesitation,' he vowed internally.

Stuffing the two halves of the same corpse into his magic pouch, Kev had only just resumed his search for an exit when Natasha relayed her thoughts through the monitoring relic she had planted by his side, arousing his curiosity.

"I advise you to visit its den. You might find something interesting."

He had a hunch about what she was referring to, but like they say you could never be too sure. So he decided to get an answer out of her.

"Can you be more direct?"

"Just like how we humans—"

Kev abruptly cut her off, his tone sharper now.

"Are you a human?"

This was the second time he had implied she wasn't the sentient book she claimed to be, but a human disguising herself as one, lying for a reason he had yet to uncover.

Natasha gulped, visibly panicking.

She had slipped up, and Kev had caught her lacking. Now he was pressing for answers, capitalizing on her mistake like a ruthless interrogator.

"No." She denied the charge vehemently.

In response, he simply smiled and asked another question, one he believed would settle the matter once and for all.

"Are you lying?"

"No. It was just a slip of the tongue," she stammered.

Kev's eyes narrowed.

"That confirms it. You are human."

Books didn't have tongues. Only humans did.

Led along by Kev, Natasha had completely blown her cover.

"Why did you approach me? What are your intentions?"

Kev asked the very question she dreaded.

Panic surged within her to such an intense level she wanted to dig a hole and vanish.

And vanish she did.

Poof.

The book dissapeared into thin air, it shot out of the magical mirror in Natasha's room before falling into her hand.

Gripping the book, Natasha looked toward her aunt with a troubled expression.

"He found out I was lying to him."

"Well, I did tell you this was a bad idea. You suck at lying. You're too innocent for your own good." Lydia sighed. "Anyway, it's not as bad as you think. So stop panicking and reply to his summon."

The book in Natasha's hand was vibrating like a cellphone, a clear sign he was trying to establish contact with her through her monitoring relic .

"I—" Natasha hesitated. Confrontation wasn't her strong suit.

"There's no time to waste," Lydia warned. "If you let this chance to come clean slip by, you might not get another one."

Biting her lip, Natasha reluctantly put the book in the mirror with trembling hands, answering his summon.

_____

As soon as the book vanished, Kev had tried to use the link they shared to summon it back, but it didn't respond to his summon.

Did it change anything?

Nope. It didn't.

Its refusal didn't stop him from sending out a summon again and again.

Suddenly, his summon was answered.

The book appeared before him once more.

Its pages were completely blank, not a single word written on them. It hovered silently before his eyes, as if Natasha was waiting for him to speak and accuse her of terrible things.

Kev caught the cue and broke the silence.

"You know I'm not angry at you."

"Liar."

Natasha couldn't believe him.

Who wouldn't be angry after being lied to?

A soft, pleasant, and feminine voice rang out. Kev realized he was talking to a girl.

"Young Lady, I mean it," Kev said. "You fooled me, but did it hurt me? Nope. You've only ever been helpful. Instead of anger, I only feel grateful toward you," Kev said.

How much of that was genuine, and how much was clever coaxing to get her to talk? Only Kev knew.

"Really?" she asked cautiously.

"Really," he replied without hesitation. "Now, can you tell me who you are and what your intentions are? I just want to understand the person who promised to be my guide and help me navigate the Abyss a little better. You are still my guide, right?"

"Of course I am."

Natasha felt that maybe... revealing the truth wouldn't be a bad idea.Perhaps it wouldn't affect their partnership at all.

From the side, Lydia urged her to speak.

With two people placating her, Natasha bit the bullet and said,

"I'm Natasha Ashfeld, from the Heavenly Moon Empire. The greatest sovereign body in the Abyss, untouched by time, undefeated by war, and unmatched in wisdom."

She then revealed her real intention, explaining why she had approached him in the guise of a sentient book.

The explanation was long, but it cleared up all of Kev's suspicions.

"If I've understood everything clearly, you're raising a corpse spider because you believe it'll become a competent battle companion one day and help you survive in this harsh world.

But since corpses are scarce in the Heavenly Moon Empire because they are burned to prevent them from transforming into monsters under the influence of the Black Sun, you turned to other regions of the Abyss in search of someone capable, someone who could ensure a steady supply of corpses.

The first person you contacted was a veteran... and he scammed you hard.

So, you decided to only get involved with new arrivals.

The next person you approached grew wary of you rather quickly. She had trust issues and couldn't believe a stranger would help her understand her new reality in exchange for a few stinking corpses. She stopped listening to you once she gained some power, thinking you were up to no good. And that decision led to her death.

Although her death wasn't your fault, you felt guilty. You promised to do better the next time. So, not wanting your next potential business partner to grow suspicious of your identity, you chose to approach them under the guise of a guide. Something you've only read about in books."

"Correct!" Natasha exclaimed.

Kev smirked.

"You're bad at lying. Even worse at doing business. But you're not half bad at cooking up a scheme."

Is he mocking me or

praising me?

Natasha couldn't tell whether she should feel flattered... or offended.

"I have some questions for you. I hope you'll be as honest as possible," Kev said.

"Shoot," Natasha replied.

"From your words, I've discerned that guides are real. What exactly are they?"

"Guides are beings of immense wisdom who help powerful Abyss dwellers in their quests to discover the rumored exit."

Kev's lips felt dry. He licked them, a thoughtful glint flashing in his eyes.

Rumors don't exist without reason.

It was highly probable that there truly was an exit out of the Abyss.

Kev felt like he'd just found one more worth chasing

He asked his next question.

"How did you find out about me?"

He had arrived in the Abyss not long ago. He had no clue where he was. And yet, somehow, Natasha had found him. Was she some kind of omniscient goddess?

"It has something to do with my abilities," Natasha said. "I'm a Pathfinder. I can seek out the things I need. But there's no 100% guarantee that everything will work out the way I want it to."

She didn't elaborate further. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"

"I had an idea about your ability. I didn't know it was so impressive," Kev said humbly.

"Anyway," Kev said, "what were you about to say about the corpse spider? Why did you want me to visit its den?"

"What was it again?" Natasha nodded. "Ah, right. Just like how humans hoard grain in granaries for the winter, corpse spiders have a habit of hoarding corpses. They store them in their dens. The hole it fell from might lead directly to that den."

"I see..." Kev murmured, eyes narrowing with understanding. "Since there could be corpses, it's a trip I need to make."

His strength was directly dependent on the number of corpses he collected. He couldn't ignore such a tempting call.

"We're here."

While talking with Natasha, he unknowingly arrived at his destination.

He tilted his head back, eyes narrowing as he peered into the gap in the ceiling above.

Within, he saw a massive wall. He estimated it to be about ten to fifteen times his own height.

Scaling it should lead to the den of the female corpse spider, if Natasha wasn't mistaken, which he doubted she was.

His fingers twitched at his sides.

How was he supposed to climb a wall so tall?

He rationalized to himself that this climb was well within his ability.

He was four to five times stronger than when he had arrived in the Abyss, and he wielded powers that earthlings had only ever read about in stories. Scaling it shouldn't be hard.

Without further hesitation, he jumped into the hole, hooking onto the wall.

Worried for his safety, Natasha warned him, "Be careful."

"I will." Kev replied with a nod.

Then he began to scale it like a nimble monkey.

As he hoisted himself over the edge, his eyes widened.

Like the hollowed belly of some ancient beast, a horizontal passage stretched before him. Compared to human standards, it was massive.

And in this massive space,

Cocoons, around a hundred of them, lined the walls, clung to the floor, and dangled from the ceiling like grotesque fruit.

"There are cocoons everywhere I look," Kev said. "And it surprisingly doesn't smell as bad as I thought."

"Seems like our trip here won't be in vain," Natasha squealed in joy. "Hurry up and cut one open."

Kev pulled out his combat knife and stepped toward the nearest cocoon.

The moment Kev's blade sliced into the cocoon, a surge of foul air exploded out from within, smacking him in the face.

It was as if the hot, slimy, smelly, and disgustingly long and thick tongue of a sick devil had licked his face. His eyes stung, his nose crinkled in disgust, and his stomach lurched. A wave of nausea tore through him, bile rising in his throat and he vomited.

Just then.

The cocoon burst apart as a rotting corpse shot out. Its skin was half-sloughed off, revealing blackened bones and muscle crawling with maggots. Kev saw its face—what was left of it—only inches from his own, dripping with his vomit.

It was a damn disgusting sight. To get a close up of it was something Kev wouldn't even wish upon his enemies.

"****" Kev screamed in terror, his heart almost leaping out of his throat, as he stumbled back in shock. In his panic, he didn't notice the cocoon on the floor just a step behind him. He tripped over it and crashed to the ground, his dagger skidding from his hand.

"Lookout!" Natasha's warning came far too late.

It had already pounced and crashed down on him like a wrestler, knocking the wind out of his lungs and pinning him beneath its putrid, maggot-ridden flesh.

Its jaw cracked open unnaturally wide to bite.

Kev smell death in its breath.

Too close!

His arm shot up in desperation.

His fingers jammed into the corpse's eye, plunging deep into its socket. At the same time, his other hand pressed hard against its throat. He was desperately trying to keep its face from descending any closer to his flesh, but his resistance only aggravated it, its teeth gnashed toward him like a rabbit dog, snapping furiously inches from his face.

"I am not easy to bully!" he snarled.

His eyes turned pitch black.

Tendrils of shadow escaped his palm.

Closing in on the revenant's skull from all sides like a hydraulic press.

Pop!

The head popped like a balloon, splattering rotten flesh and brain matter across the floor and on his face. He even tasted some of it in his mouth and spat out in disgust.

The creature went limp, collapsing into a heap on top of him.

Kev lay there with a corpse on top of him, panting hard, eyes wide with adrenaline. Then, slowly, he shoved the corpse off and sat up, heart pounding in his ears.

"You alright?" Natasha asked

"Yeah," he replied, wiping the mess off his face.

That didn't seem to be a response that should come out of the mouth of a person who nearly died, so Natasha asked again, "You sure?"

"Yeah,"

Kev replied, not a single emotion to be seen on his face.

He didn't laugh. He didn't cry, his face in that moment was the perfect example of a stoic look.

Silently, his eyes drifted across the den.

If every one of those cocoons contained a corpse...

He was about to get a whole lot more powerful.