God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 313: Heart of the Mountain (1).

Cain called in the {Dark Soul}...

Immediately, the nature of his surroundings was revealed to him...

Just as he had thought, the hole in the wall was the entrance to a tunnel that had been artificially dug out. However, for some reason, it had been sealed shut.

'Why would they seal thus place up? Is there something down here that we should be afraid of?'

Cain couldn't help but worry. What if the Primordial devil of Chaos wasn't truly dead, and Og-Solath was just sending him to his death?

'That would be a waste. Surely, that's not it...'

Cain was convinced that this was not the case. Rather, he had very good reason to believe that the Chaos creatures had sealed the cave for a totally unrelated reason.

The whole was filled with fresh air, which was rather strange since they were moving deeper into the mountain. He could also feel the concentration of Devil Essence in the air increase as they moved deeper into the hole.

'Seems like I was right...'

Although Cain was happy to know that his theory was right, something about it still felt off.

Why exactly was it sealed off? Cain had a feeling that the answer to that was waiting for them down below.

The tunnel was wide enough that Evageline and Cain could move through it without one being a bother to the other.

The descent into the belly of the mountain was uneventful for a while. However, they ran into a bit of trouble after a while...

As they descended further, the previously horizontal slope quickly began turning vertical. The walls of the tunnel began sloping even more until Cain and Evangeline were faced with what seemed like a straight drop should they take another step.

Cain could see Evangeline's frowning face in the darkness,

"What do we do now?"

Cain paused, "Hold on..."

Cain gave the {Dark Soul} a mental command. With that, the dark apparition swam through the dark tunnel and into the vertical drop.

Cain immediately began observing the world through its eyes...

'Hmmm...'

Even after a long time of traveling downward, the {Dark Soul} still didn't find anything different. Eventually, the {Dark Soul} reached the border of the link it shared with Cain and came to a halt.

Cain turned to Evangeline and shook his head. He quickly explained his findings to her with a grim look on his face,

"That isn't good..." Evangeline said, a frown on her face.

"Just how was this tunnel made? It certainly isn't naturally formed. However, what kind of idiot would dig a tunnel like this??"

Evangeline shook her head, "We need to find a way down... I'll try using {Shadow Drifter}."

The {Shadoe Drifter} skill was the skill Evangeline used to travel through shadows. It was very useful for espionage, as it allowed her to move through spaces undetected. It was also very useful during battle. Its efficiency was even greater than Cain's {Nexus Tether}, which made use of both metal and spatial elemental principles.

Evangeline's face immediately contorted. Cain looked at her with a raised brow,

"What's wrong?"

She turned to him, a scowl on her face, "The energy flow in here is too chaotic. I can't activate anything."

Cain couldn't help but frown...

"Is it similar to the [Ki Fire] ability of the {Chaos Orc}?" Cain asked.

Evangeline nodded. However, she shook her head immediately after,

"It is similar, but not exactly the same..."

Cain frowned as well before he decided to activate a skill as well. He tried to materialize a metal sphere using the {Divine Essence of Metallurgy}. However...

To his surprise, he realized that it was incredibly hard for him to do so. There was no forceful obstruction occurring. It was just difficult for him to actualize and execute the skill.

His face paled...

Evangeline also had a serious expression.

'Whatever we are about to face, it is different. It is unlike anything I have ever experienced.'

Cain could feel a sudden wave of fear wash over him. Even when he had been in the presence of Lyx, or Og-Solath, he hadn't felt like this.

Cain had no idea that the reason for this was quite simple. Lyx and Og-Solath had been sealed for an incredibly long time by Tian. Even though Tian had been younger when this happened, that didn't mean he was any weaker.

As such, their powers had deteriorated greatly. It had reached a point where their power was not even a billionth of what it was. The difference was massive. However, Bemethshal, the Primordial devil of Chaos, was not not sealed. Rather, he had been killed.

It was almost impossible for a primordial devil to be killed...

And yet, that was what had happened. The heart of the Primordial devil of Chaos had been left unsealed. The energy in the heart was depleted, but it had begun to recover. After some time, the energy that was being recovered had begun to leak out little by little, creating a situation where the Primordial devil of Chaos would never be able to return.

However, his presence would continue to exist due to the state his heart was in.

This unique situation had led to the birth of the race of Chaos creatures...

However, Cain didn't know this...

As such, he could only theorize...

'Could it be that the Primordial devil of Chaos is still alive? If that is the case, u doubt it will be willing to have a chat and hand its heart over nicely...'

Letting out a sigh, Cain turned to Evangeline after a few seconds of thought,

"We have no choice. We have to keep going down. While it might be an inconvenience, it is nothing undoable..."

Evangeline said nothing and continued forward. Once they reached the part of the tunnel that turned into a vertical drop, Evangeline took on a strange, spider-like posture.

She summoned two short swords into her hands and stuck them into the walls easily. Throwing a glance at Cain, she began her descent, using the swords for support so she wouldn't fall to her death.

Cain let out a snicker as he summoned the {Hand of Stingè}. Following Evangeline's example, he stuck the blades into walls and began his descent as well.

Although it was strange at first, he got the hang of it quickly...

Evangeline on the other hand didn't look stressed even a single bit. Her body moved dexterously, turning every protruding rock, or crevice into a handhold or foothold.

Cain was stunned, 'Where did she learn rock climbing?'

Thinking like this, Cain was forced to remember how life was before the apocalypse. It was strange to think about it. It wasn't very long ago, but it seemed like a lifetime had passed. He didn't miss his stepfather or brother one bit. He even wondered if they were dead or not. However, he didn't hate them.

He just forgot about them...

As soon as the events signaling the conception of the apocalypse had begun, he had thrown his previous identity away. He had abandoned his old life completely.

The same could not be said about others. Rather, Cain had a feeling that most others would try to cling to their previous sense of self in order not to lose themselves in the dangers of the new world.

'I wonder what her life was like before all this...'

Cain couldn't lie to himself. He was very curious about Evangeline. He was also curious about the other members of his team. He knew that Hunter and Dan were involved in some shady business on the side before the world collapsed.

He knew that the fatty and Steve had some ties with the dark side of the city. He also knew that Susan was part of an influential family. He even knew Ignis was an alien being...

However, he knew next to nothing about Evangeline...

As such, it was only natural for him to be curious. However, he didn't dare to ask any personal questions. After all, they were not very close. They were more acquaintances who had no inhibitions about one another, rather than friends or strangers.

It was a strange status quo...

'Best let sleeping devils lie, then...' Cain wasn't one to look for trouble that wasn't there. As such, he simply focused on himself. He had bigger problems to face...

As they descended deeper into the belly of the mountain, Cain couldn't help but think,

'Where is all this fresh air coming from?'

He still couldn't wrap his head around it. Fresh air coming from within a mountain? How was that possible?!

'The energy in here has gone haywire as well. The deeper we go, the worse it gets.'

If the [Ki Fire] of the {Chaos Orc} caused a disturbance in the energy flow within the body, then whatever was causing this affected the mana flow patterns that existed as one with the world.

To put it into perspective, the mana flow patterns were like sheets filled with different embroidery being fluttered by the wind. The energy disturbances were similar to a hurricane. The sheets had gone from gentle fluttering to completely ballistic as they drew closer to the hurricane.

Once they got to the center of the storm, Cain wondered what it would be like...