No one replied Emeric’s question.
“The toxic fog is blocking out vision,” Leon said. “It’s risky to approach like this.”
“Give me a moment,” Red said.
While his companions were trying to make out the ovoid shape in the chamber, he was busy making sense of what his crimson sense told him. The confusing flaring of fluctuations continued, and Red was able to pinpoint the locations of these presences to the inside of the giant egg. Yet, to his surprise, the egg itself didn’t seem to have a fluctuation.
‘Maybe I just can’t sense it.’
Red couldn’t assume his crimson sense to be perfect, as he knew some techniques could trick it. Still, amidst the sea of flickering fluctuations, he could pinpoint one fluctuation that remained constant in its strength.
“There’s a demonic cultivator here,” he said.
Their fluctuation belonged to someone in the Lesser Ring Realm, and the corruption infecting them seemed similar to that of the snakes from earlier.
“It must be the formation expert!” Emeric squinted. “Where do you see him?”
“They’re right by the egg, but that’s not the most important part. I can sense multiple other presences in the room, but they are all fluctuating in strength.”
“Fluctuating in strength?” Leon frowned. “Is that because of the egg?”
“Most likely, but whatever the case, don’t let your guard down. We might be swarmed by enemies out of nowhere.”
His companions nodded with severe expressions.
“Can your barrier be broken by spells from the inside?” Red asked Leon.
This question seemed to give the young noble some pause.
“It can be affected, but as long as you tell me beforehand, I should be able to open a path so the spell isn’t disrupted.”
“Then be ready,” He pointed in a certain spot. “I’m going to attack.”
Emeric’s eyes widened.
“Wait, just like that?!”
“They might be waiting in ambush, so there’s no point in walking right up to them. Since I can tell where he is, I’ll strike first, and we’ll move in after.”
“Right… I didn’t think about that. Do you need me to attack too?”
“Not yet. Just be ready to follow up if one strike is not enough.”
Emeric nodded, and Red looked back at Leon.
“Are you ready?”
“I am.” Leon nodded with a focused expression.
With this confirmation, Red turned around. He held his hand up towards where he could detect the demonic cultivator, and Azure Spiritual Energy gathered in front of him, forming a blade of wind. At the same instant the spell was formed, a gap appeared in the white barrier protecting them.
Red didn’t hesitate and let his spell loose.
This entire process took just a few seconds to happen, and the blade of wind cut a large path through the toxic fog into the room. Then, an instant later, the parting mist revealed a silhouette, but before they could discern their features, Red’s spell struck true.
The condensed wind exploded as it made contact, throwing violent gusts that created a contained storm within the room. The stagnant fog was sent into disarray, dissipating around the large chamber and giving them a better look into the previously blocked view.
Before the turbulent winds even settled, though, Red was already able to see his attack had missed as the silhouette of the cultivator remained standing.
‘No, not missed. It was blocked.’
A green translucent barrier shone in front of his target, insulating the figure from the cutting winds. Yet before he could even formulate a follow-up plan, something else caught his attention.
“W-What is that?” Emeric asked in a trembling voice.
The egg, previously blocked by the toxic fog, was revealed in full to them, though at this point it was hard to tell if this was still an egg. Rather than a solid shell, its surface was composed of a fleshy material that pulsed and squirmed as if alive, resembling a breathing organ. Blood and other sickly green liquids oozed from strange orifices, which also continued to spew more of the toxic fog that filled the entire chamber, but even that wasn’t what stood out to Red.
Humans, their skin dissolving and organs exposed, were attached at various points around the flesh egg, seemingly in the slow process of being absorbed into its unholy being. Only parts of their body remained above the surface, some being consumed feet first with their torsos still free, while from others only dangling arms and legs could be seen. Yet, despite their deteriorating flesh, the bodies of these individuals still moved, limbs and torsos squirming around soundlessly as if searching for something.
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They were still alive.
The sight was so grisly that even Red was shocked into silence. Yet, amidst his companions, he was the first one to recover his composure.
“Emeric, attack the egg!”
They had to grasp this opportunity before the toxic fog settled and their opponents reacted.
His shout seemed to snap Emeric out of his gaze. Though he was still affected, he raised both hands in the egg’s direction and started to chant something. A large fireball, far bigger than the ones Red could conjure with his talisman, took shape in front of him before shooting towards the egg with an enormous boom.
Yet, before it could make contact, it seemed to strike another invisible obstacle, and a blinding explosion of flames rose in front of their eyes. When it settled down, they saw another translucent green shield had appeared out of nowhere, blocking the spell before it could hit its target.
Red frowned, and he looked over at the demonic cultivator, whom he could now see was covered in a dark green robe and a snake-like mask. Inbetween their attacks, that figure had ample time to react, yet they remained standing in the same spot, staring at the invaders without moving. They weren’t the ones who had cast the barrier, and after taking another glance around the chamber, Red realized something.
Emeric gritted his teeth and raised his hand again, ready to cast another spell.
“Damn it, they blocked it! We need to-”
“No,” Red raised his hand to stop him.
“What do you mean?!” Emeric stared at him in surprise.
“There’s a formation protecting them.”
After the toxic mist cleared away, Red saw it - the plates and lines drawn in a vast circle around the egg and the demonic cultivator. This was a large protection formation, and it wasn’t one made in a rush either.
“Can we break through it?” Leon asked with a frown.
“I don’t know,” Red shook his head.
“Then what do we do?” Emeric looked at the egg in alarm.
Red didn’t respond immediately, instead staring at the demonic cultivator hiding behind the formation. Although he couldn’t discern their expression behind that mask, he could tell they were surprised and even somewhat anxious at the sudden intrusion. They weren’t expecting Red and the others to make it to this point, or at least not this quickly.
“Let’s approach,” He said.
The toxic fog had somewhat cleared with Red’s wind and Emeric’s fire, but there was enough of it to cover the chamber again once it settled down, not to mention that more was being spewed by the flesh egg. They needed to make their way over before they lost sight of their opponent.
“Are you certain?” Leon asked with a frown.
“They haven’t moved yet, so they’re confident in the strength of their formation,” Red said. “Whatever the case, I won’t be able to do anything from this far. I need time to study the formation.”
“Right,” Leon nodded and looked over at Emeric. “Protect Master Viran if he gets attacked. He is our only hope of breaking through the formation.”
“R-Right!” Emeric nodded.
With that, they started approaching the center of the room with careful steps. The cultivator kept staring at them without moving, and they could see two reptilian yellow eyes beneath their mark. Eventually, they reached the edge of the formation and came to a stop.
This close, the details on the surface of the egg were much clearer, and they felt an unnatural force affecting their minds. They all had the distinct feeling they were looking at something that shouldn’t exist, a violation of the principles of life itself, and every second they spent in the presence of this thing, this feeling of revulsion grew.
The egg was a source of corruption, and it was extremely strong.
“You violate the sanctuary of our mother, intruders.”
A melodious and almost hypnotic voice came from the masked cultist. Red couldn’t tell if it belonged to a man or a woman.
“You…” Leon glared at them. “What are you doing to them?”
“I am giving them a chance to become something greater, to feel the blessing of our Mother.”
As the cultist said that, one of the people being absorbed by the egg groaned, their voice an almost inaudible croak as their body sank further into the demonic flesh. Despite their corroded bodies, it seemed they were still fully aware of the sensations enveloping them.
Emeric and Leon stared at this in horror.
“H-How can you be so cruel?” Emeric asked.
“Cruel?” The cultist laughed. “There is no pain in this, only pleasure and happiness, my child.”
“Happiness?! How could there be happiness?!”
“Don’t you see it?” They pointed at the egg. “Their euphoric expressions? They are in bliss, children, not pain.”
They looked up at where the cultist pointed. There stood someone who was still maintaining their lower body above the surface, their body in the process of corroding just like the others. Yet, their half-melted face maintained some semblance of human shape still, and in it, they could recognize an expression.
It was a smile.
“Look past the mere surface, children,” The cultist said in fanaticism. “Our skins block us from experiencing the world as it truly is. Only by shedding these restrictions and uniting in flesh can we truly know the pleasures our Mother can gift us.”
As if responding to his words, the flesh egg pulsed and the bodies on its surface sank faster. At the same time, the revulsion they felt receded, and beneath it, a different feeling started to grow.
A yearning to be part of something greater.
Red and the others stumbled on their feet, and for a moment, the barrier protecting them from the toxic fumes flickered. Leon, however, shook his head and managed to keep the protection up, while Emeric seemed to struggle more as he fell down on one knee.
“Master Viran!” Leon looked at Red with a desperate gaze.
Red was faring better than the others because of his natural resistance to the corruption, but it was clearly affecting him, too. He frowned in discomfort and pain, but still kept his focus as his mind continued to work.
“Why do you resist, children?” The cultist hypnotic voice reached their ears. “What is the point of fighting against it? What awaits you on the other side is not pain, not sadness, not hell - it is eternal bliss. It is paradise.”
Their words continued to eat away at their mind, and it was clear by his companions’ expression they would soon reach a breaking point. However, Red had already accomplished his goal.
“Emeric, strike there!”
He pointed at a spot in the formation not too far away from them.
Emeric looked at him with a struggling expression, but still did as he was told. He raised his hand, summoning another fireball, smaller than the one from earlier, but still powerful enough to cause a large explosion. At the same time, Red conjured another wind blade in front of him and aimed at another spot in the invisible barrier.
Their spells shot out and hit the invisible barrier simultaneously, causing the translucent green barrier to manifest. It was still able to block the attacks from penetrating the formation, yet something strange happened as the barrier, once as rigid as a wall, wobbled like a piece of sheet metal.
It happened just for a moment, but following that, the glow of the translucent shield diminished significantly.
“What are you doing?!”
The cultist shouted in a shrill voice as they saw this.
The formation was suddenly on the verge of collapsing.