Chapter 538: How Powerful Is Lilith?
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Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
In the Diablo world, Sanctuary, the High Heavens, and the Burning h.e.l.ls were physically isolated from each other. The High Heavens and the Burning h.e.l.ls belonged to different Purgatory s.p.a.ces, while Sanctuary was hidden in the gap between the two.
But because of the existence of portals, these three places were connected in spatial concepts. In other words, in theory, the mortals of Sanctuary could go to the High Heavens and the Burning h.e.l.ls.
However, in the thousands of years of Sanctuary’s history, there were very few rumors about the High Heavens and the Burning h.e.l.ls. The description of these places was only a general concept.
If the High Heavens forbade mortals to enter because of the pride of angels and their disdain for mortals, then the Burning h.e.l.ls forbade weak mortals from entering because of the cruel and terrifying environment.
Unlike the High Heavens that sealed most of the portals, the portals of the
Burning h.e.l.ls were actually open to Sanctuary. Demons dreamed of invading Sanctuary, so they naturally wouldn’t restrict travel between the Burning h.e.l.ls and Sanctuary.
In the site of the former Temple of Light in Trivancal, there had once been the largest Gate of h.e.l.l here, located in the deepest underground part of the Temple of Light. Of course, this Gate of h.e.l.l had now been destroyed, and even the temple had turned into ruins.
This Gate of h.e.l.l was a portal that Mephisto, Diablo, and Baal had opened during the time the Four Lesser Evils had ‘rebelled’ against them and expelled them to Sanctuary. Finally, they returned to the Burning h.e.l.ls through it.
The banishment of the Three Prime Evils was actually a scheme planned by the seven demon kings. Due to the Sin War, Lilith, one of the creators of Sanctuary, had been exiled into the Void again, and the other creator, Inarius, became the bargaining chip of the High Heavens. The angels handed Inarius to h.e.l.l, and the condition was that the Burning h.e.l.ls had to be like the High Heavens and could no longer enter Sanctuary again.
Clearly, this was an agreement, a contract. The angels noticed the astonis.h.i.+ng power of the nephalem and didn’t want the demons to use them, so they found a way to make such a contract.
However, they forgot that demons were the best at exploiting loopholes in contracts. Under the pretext of being expelled due to ‘rebellion’, the Three Prime Evils bypa.s.sed the contract with the High Heavens and could enter Sanctuary again. When they corrupted the Zakarum religion and achieved their goal, they made this huge Gate of h.e.l.l in the temple.
This Gate of h.e.l.l, opened by the combined efforts of the three demon G.o.ds, was quite magnificent and vast. It was originally used to let the Burning h.e.l.ls invade Sanctuary on a large scale. But the demons were not very lucky, and this plan was eventually discovered by the High Heavens. With the help of Tyrael, the nephalem worked together to destroy this Gate of h.e.l.l.
If this Gate of h.e.l.l was still here, people would be able to enter the s.p.a.ce where the Burning h.e.l.ls was after pa.s.sing through this portal.
As soon as someone came out of the Gate of h.e.l.l, the first thing they saw would be the Pandemonium Fortress. This was the outermost area of the Burning h.e.l.ls, and wandering here were all kinds of low-cla.s.s demons and souls who had died in the Eternal Conflict and couldn’t return. The Pandemonium Fortress could be said to be the place where the Burning h.e.l.ls mainly faced enemies in the Eternal Conflict. The angel army of the High Heavens had also fought here countless times. In order to stop the angels from continuing to attack the depths of the Burning h.e.l.ls, the demons had established numerous defenses here. All kinds of fierce and solid barriers stood on the mountain peaks, forming a powerful fortress. This was the origin of the Pandemonium Fortress.
After crossing the Pandemonium Fortress was the Plains of Despair. The Plains of Despair belonged to the Realm of Anguish of the Burning h.e.l.ls, and it was an area controlled by the Maiden of Anguish, Andariel. Toxic ashes permeated this place all day long, and even breathing made people feel pain, and this pain would make Andariel feel very happy.
If the Maiden of Anguish enjoyed mental pain, then her brother, Duriel, enjoyed physical pain. This was why Duriel was called the Lord of Pain. His territory, the Realm of Pain, was next to Andariel’s territory.
After pa.s.sing through the Plains of Despair and continuing deeper was the City of the d.a.m.ned. The City of the d.a.m.ned was very close to the central area of the Burning h.e.l.ls. This place used to belong to the edge of the territory of the Lord of Destruction. Baal liked to destroy, and he always built many magnificent buildings similar to mortal churches before destroying them all. This was only the most insignificant of the many destruction games of the Lord of Destruction.
Bones were scattered all over the City of the d.a.m.ned, and many chained souls were tumbling in the darkness. The dark and oppressive ground cracked in many places, and the River of Flame on the next level could be seen.
And the River of Flame was the most iconic area of the Burning h.e.l.ls.
This was a vast sea of magma mixed with winding rock paths. The River of Flame seemed to be the source of energy for the Burning h.e.l.ls, and this place was also the core area of the Realm of Destruction controlled by Baal. The demons had built many forges here and used flames and magma to create demon weapons with dark power to arm the demon army.
The source of the River of Flame came from the center of the Realm of Terror under Diablo’s jurisdiction—the depths of the Chaos Sanctuary.
The Chaos Sanctuary was Diablo’s seat of power. Deep underground was the source of the River of Flame. The Chaos Sanctuary was an enormous cross-shaped building similar to a broken cathedral. But this cathedral was surrounded by flames and magma. After countless years, lava and blood had scorched the exterior of the Chaos Sanctuary.
Inside the Chaos Sanctuary, countless skulls were piled at the bottom of the walls, scattered on the floor, and stuck in cracks in the walls. The blazing magma and huge torches standing on the floor brought a terrifying s.h.i.+mmer to the Chaos Sanctuary, illuminating the souls locked on the pillars and unable
to rest in peace.
The Burning h.e.l.ls was not a whole like the High Heavens but divided into seven realms. The seven realms of the Burning h.e.l.ls were isolated from each other by the Void, and each realm was an independent spatial bubble that could be reached through portals. Each realm was controlled by a demon king, and the environment was different. But overall, they were extremely cruel and had environments similar to those of the Abyss. It was unknown if it was like this when the Burning h.e.l.ls was formed or if the seven demon kings had gradually transformed it into this.
The reason for so many descriptions was to explain that the Burning h.e.l.ls was now full. The seven demon kings each had their own domains, and there was no longer any room to accommodate… Roy, an outsider!
This was a very funny thing. Mephisto had brought Roy in as external help from the Abyss, but he seemed to have never thought about how to divide territory if Roy wanted to enter the Burning h.e.l.ls.
This was actually not Mephisto’s fault. Even he didn’t expect the High Heavens to collapse so quickly after Roy intervened in this world.
Perhaps it was because the seven demon kings and the High Heavens had fought in this world for so long during the Eternal Conflict that the two sides couldn’t be any more familiar with each other. Their minds had already formed habits and set patterns, so they hadn’t been able to determine the winner. And when Roy, an outsider, suddenly intervened, the High Heavens didn’t understand his strength at all, so it collapsed at the first touch.
The High Heavens had been destroyed, so a problem immediately arose. The seven demon kings regarded Sanctuary as their exclusive property. After all, there were countless souls for them to seize, and there were also powerful nephalem forces for them to use. The High Heavens had already fallen, so
Sanctuary was the most delicious fruit of victory that they could easily obtain. They couldn’t let Roy lay his hands on it, and they couldn’t let him continue to stay in Sanctuary. They were afraid that he would s.n.a.t.c.h it first.
After escaping from the Black Soulstone, the seven demon kings were still in their recovery period. They needed to recover from the wounds to their souls and condense powerful bodies. Under these circ.u.mstances, their strength had weakened. From the strength Roy had displayed when he attacked the High Heavens, they didn’t have much chance of winning against him alone. Instead, in the Burning h.e.l.ls, the seven demon kings could join forces to fight against Roy.
Therefore, after the High Heavens War ended, Mephisto couldn’t wait to invite Roy to the Burning h.e.l.ls as a guest.
The seven demon kings had joined forces to fight against the High Heavens for many years. Although they had used some petty schemes against each other, their friends.h.i.+p was still there overall. So when facing an outsider like Roy, they let go of all their dirty thoughts.
Just like the Angiris Council set up by the angels, the seven demon kings had also formed a loose council named the h.e.l.lfire Council. This name was not as famous as the Angiris Council, and even many demons of the Burning h.e.l.ls might not have heard of it. To put it bluntly, this council was just the seven demon kings gathering together to discuss matters, and there were no rules or plans of action.
The h.e.l.lfire Council was held in Diablo’s Chaos Sanctuary. In a room full of powerful dark power in the deepest part of the Chaos Sanctuary, there were seven enormous thrones of darkness arranged in order of three and four. The seven demon kings each had a throne here.
In the spreading dark mist, the strange bodies of the seven demon kings were faintly discernible, and their s.h.i.+ning demon eyes were the only source of light in the darkness, making this scene look eerie and terrifying.
As for Roy, he was currently sitting beside the three thrones. He had added his own throne, but the position of this throne was side by side with Mephisto and the other two demon G.o.ds, which was very telling.
It had been a few days since the h.e.l.lfire Council convened this time. From the beginning, Andariel and the other three Lesser Evils were dissatisfied with
Roy’s seating. After being beaten by Roy one by one, they accepted this seating.
Afterward, it was about how to deal with the prisoners of war of the High Heavens. The seven demon kings knew that Tyrael’s soul was now in Roy’s hands. They hated the Archangel of Justice, Tyrael, much more than they hated Imperius. After Inarius fell into the hands of Mephisto and the others, his eyes, wings, and limbs had been cut off, and he was still being tortured to this day. It was obvious what kind of miserable state Tyrael would be in if he fell into their hands.
However, Roy only had one word for the requests of the seven demon kings.
Roy had his own use for Tyrael, so no matter how the seven demon kings hinted, what conditions they offered, or what threats or temptations they said, he only had one att.i.tude—he absolutely would not hand him over!
The seven demon kings talked to Roy for a few days until their saliva was dry, but they couldn’t shake Roy at all. In the end, they could only give up temporarily and ask him for another spoil of war.
This spoil of war was found in the ruins of the Crystal Arch. It was a… key condensed from powerful holy light power! After the seven demon kings studied this thing, they found that it was actually the true core of Anu’s spine crystal. After the original colossal crystal of Anu’s spine collapsed, the remaining holy light power seemed to finally condense into this key.
Even Mephisto couldn’t guess what this holy light key was. The only one who might know about it was Imperius. But Imperius had already self-destructed his soul and died, so it was difficult to say what exact use this thing had.
However, combined with the origin of the High Heavens, after some discussion, the seven demon kings felt that this thing might be the key to reaching Eden!
Eden, the Garden of Eden! It was the origin place of Heaven, the true birthplace of all angels and holy light. It was the ultimate, highest-level Heaven. Gabriel, Michael, and Raphael, these famous original Archangels, were stationed in
Eden.
Because Heaven was at war with demons in the Infinite Worlds, various levels of Heaven were born. These Heavens were secondary military bases for angels to support the Eternal War between the angel legions and demons.
This point had been confirmed after they interrogated Tyrael’s soul. The High Heavens was a lower-level Heaven below Eden, and the High Heavens was even still connected to Eden. Tyrael had once found Roy’s name in the Book of Truth projected by Eden. This was proof.
However, just as the seven demon kings thought, Imperius was the only one in the entire High Heavens responsible for contacting Eden. The place of contact was also in the Crystal Arch, and it was probably related to Anu’s spine crystal. But it was unclear if this holy light key was the key to opening the gate to Eden. After all, in Roy’s guess, if Anu’s spine crystal really was the spine of a certain creature, it should be to a world-soul t.i.tan. Moreover, it should be a world-soul t.i.tan with both light and dark powers. Otherwise, it wouldn’t correspond to the creation myth of this world.
But because this world-soul t.i.tan courted death by wanting to separate into two, he played himself to death in the end. His two powers finally formed the two Purgatory s.p.a.ces of the High Heavens and the Burning h.e.l.ls. Later, angels and demons discovered this world and entered it. Then because the history of the Eternal Conflict was too long ago, the angels and demons here had vaguely formed their own factions, so they rarely mentioned their origins and finally acquiesced to the Anu creation myth.
Roy felt that if his guess was right, this world might be a ‘seeding place’ for world-soul t.i.tans. Otherwise, it was impossible to explain why Sanctuary had given birth to a new world-soul t.i.tan like Trag’Oul after Anu.
In short, no matter what this holy light key was, it was one of his current chips. He didn’t hold on to it like he did with Tyrael’s soul. Instead, he promised to give it to the seven demon kings, but correspondingly, they had to exchange for it.
After all, if this key could really open the Gate of Eden, Roy wouldn’t have the courage to attack Eden. In addition, if the key opened a gate to the birthplace of the world-soul t.i.tans, it would also be very dangerous. If the seven demon kings wanted to court death, he would let them go. He didn’t want to get involved.
Due to the high potential risk of this key, Roy didn’t intend to hold it.
Moreover, this thing might have to be used with the cornerstone of the Burning h.e.l.ls: the h.e.l.lforge. Thus, Roy didn’t ask too much. After exchanging for a considerable number of souls from the seven demon kings, he gave the key away.
After finis.h.i.+ng all of this, the main event finally came. It was about the distribution of the cake of Sanctuary.
In fact, at the demon king level, Mephisto and the others had long looked down on ordinary souls. The population of Sanctuary was not high, so the number of souls they could obtain was naturally very limited. The seven demon kings shouldn’t be so concerned about Sanctuary.
But it was actually wrong to think this way. The quality of the human souls in Sanctuary could be said to be beyond imagination. In addition to the influence of the nephalem bloodline, this world had suffered too much! Just like how Tyrael could see the tenacity and kindness of the mortals born under the suffering, demons could also see the distortions and darkness produced by the suffering of the mortals here!
War was actually the greatest test of human nature. Under the repeated baptism of the High Heavens and the Burning h.e.l.ls, the human souls here could be said to have ultra-high quality that humans in other worlds couldn’t have.
The souls could be saintly like Uldyssian’s or twisted like Skeleton King Leoric’s… In short, the mortal souls of Sanctuary were extremely attractive to the seven demon kings.
In the early years, the seven demon kings had invaded Sanctuary only because of the Worldstone. After the destruction of the Worldstone, their covetous eyes s.h.i.+fted to the nephalem.
In particular, Mephisto and the others had partic.i.p.ated in the Sin War. They had seen the mighty power that erupted from Uldyssian and were very clear about the power of the nephalem. The stronger they were, the more they would lose control. Since the restrictions imposed by the Worldstone on the nephalem no longer existed, the nephalem were on the verge of losing control as their strength increased. And the nephalem who lost their humanity after losing control would completely fall into the darkness and become the best tools for demon kings!
Imagine what it would be like if Roy attacked a certain world with hundreds of thousands of Dante, Vergil, or the Four Hors.e.m.e.n of the Apocalypse behind him.
Not to mention the seven demon kings, even Roy wanted this world after figuring this out…
Therefore, after seeing the extremely greedy expressions on the faces of the seven demon kings, he understood that it was impossible to persuade them to retreat to the Abyss and leave Sanctuary to him.
What Roy said to Tyrael earlier might really become reality. He was probably
going to fight the seven demon kings.
It was not rare for allies to become enemies among demons, so Roy didn’t partic.i.p.ate in the dispute between the seven demon kings and only quietly watched them roar at each other.
Of course, he wouldn’t expose his thoughts about Sanctuary here. But perhaps his silence was abnormal, so Mephisto noticed. Mephisto roared a few times to suppress the voices of the other demon kings before turning to Roy. “Osiris, don’t you have any thoughts about Sanctuary? Don’t worry. Tell us your request, and we’ll try our best to satisfy you!”
Roy looked at Mephisto, Diablo, and Baal and then at Andariel, Duriel, Azmodan, and Belial, who were sitting below. He sneered. “I don’t want to say anything because I feel that it’s meaningless to discuss this now. Mephisto, don’t forget. In the future, you saw Lilith’s return. She is the mother of the nephalem. If you want to take Sanctuary into your hands, you have to get past Lilith. Before defeating her, what you’re discussing is all empty talk!”
“That’s right!” Mephisto nodded. “And this is also why I found you from the Abyss. Osiris, on behalf of the h.e.l.lfire Council, I promise you that as long as you work together with us to defeat Lilith, you will be the party who obtains the greatest share of Sanctuary!”
“Let’s talk about this another time!” Roy waved his hand and looked at Mephisto solemnly. “Tell me honestly. How strong is Lilith? Why are you so afraid?”
Mephisto, Diablo, and the others looked at each other. After hesitating for a moment, they said, “To be honest, I’m not too sure. In the past, Lilith only displayed the combat strength of an ordinary demon king, and she was even inferior to Andariel. But that was thousands of years ago. Now that she’s been exiled in the Void for many years, we don’t know what her true strength is…”
“Then, why did you invite me here so solemnly?” Roy asked with a frown, suspicious.
“Because in a future scene, I saw… Lilith holding Diablo’s skull!” Mephisto said with a dark expression. “Not only that, but I even saw her kill all of us demons.. I, Diablo, Baal, Andariel, and the others all died in Lilith’s hands…’