Returning from the abyss

Chapter 1530 The Clockmaker and the Emperor
Earlier in the day.

Veronica and the serpent dragon's conversation had fallen silent.

Veronica couldn't understand everything the Serpent Dragon said. Although she could understand some of the pursuit of knowledge and ideals, she couldn't understand the almost fanatical sense of identification.

The serpent dragon did not love Rosemaryda; he simply wanted to see what he desired to see. However, he was also deeply influenced by Rosemaryda, clinging to nothingness… at least, nothingness in Veronica's eyes.

Are gods really that important? Ever since she and Vanessa began their tutelage under Father Thorne, they had received almost no divine blessings, let alone relied on prayer to solve anything. Father Thorne always did things personally, and he influenced the two of them to do the same. In Veronica's view, becoming a god was something that was dispensable.

"You're not convinced?" As if seeing through Veronica's thoughts, the snake dragon asked with a smile.

"I don't think it's something worth risking your life for."

Snake Dragon nodded: "It does seem so, but I think it is. Of course, it is precisely because of your mentality that you are more in line with the requirements... After all, we both agree that if someone who desperately wants to become a god were to actually go this far, he would be more likely to go mad than the current seven gods of the church. If Pan De'ang hadn't died, that would probably be his fate."

"You used him too?" Veronica knew the name.

"Using... it's not really about giving him what he wanted, just giving him a final chance. He had meticulously prepared so much in order to complete his own godhood ritual when necessary, but he still relied on existing gods to achieve it, so... he's probably just a derivative individual, completely incomparable to what Rosemerada wanted to create in terms of independence."

What kind of gods do you want to create?

"To be honest, I don't know. Rosemary is someone who will adjust her goals according to the progress at any time. Even if the big goal doesn't change, she will make appropriate trade-offs. For example, those six children, and you. She's not someone who's that demanding about the process, so there are many things that can be adjusted."

Just as Snake Dragon was about to describe things in detail to Veronica, he suddenly shut his mouth, held his long staff horizontally in front of him, and then a dark golden crack appeared in front of him. Bavotley emerged from it, kicked his staff, and sent Snake Dragon flying out of the Minute Church.

Bavotley has changed his attire. He wears a crown made of linked golden gears, and a metallic cloak flutters behind him without wind. His monk's robes have been replaced with a dark gold formal suit adorned with silver-white patterns. He holds a multi-tool knife in his hand, pointing it diagonally at the ground.

Four or five circular clock wheels appeared at his feet, their hands slowly rotating. When Bavotley appeared, Veronica heard a clear sound, like gears meshing.

“You’d better stop trying to preach your nonsense,” Bavotley said.

“That’s not proselytizing, it’s just sharing my thoughts with a rare audience. After all, I’ve gone this far, and there are very few people who can calmly listen to me.” The Serpent Dragon’s voice came from outside the door. “Since you’re here, why don’t you come out and fight? I’m, after all, wearing the shell of a saint, so I should at least have some respect for the gods.”

"Keep an eye on the church and don't let Rosemerada have a chance to sneak in."

After giving Veronica a word of advice, Bavotley turned and left the church.

He disliked tourists like Snake Dragon; as a proponent of order, he had a natural aversion to such unpredictable individuals. These kinds of people would cause trouble in any situation, and the only problem was that Snake Dragon was more capable than the similar tourists he had dealt with before.

The Emperor's abilities were revealed through his observation of various timelines and his study of the abilities of others. As one of the top esoteric practitioners, he was naturally aware of some of the rumors surrounding the Dark Ages. The powers of the tyrants were the most extraordinary abilities of that era, and among the tyrants, Yuwen Zheng was widely recognized as the strongest, so there were countless rumors, both true and false, about him.

A long-standing rumor, which many people do not believe, is that Yuwen Zheng's strength has been weakened, but no one believes it.

“Hmm…” Bavotley reached out and wiped the utility knife in his hand. With a gear-like sound, he flashed to the side of the Serpent Dragon, a dark golden light swirling around his fingers that had just been wiping the blade.

“Record and depiction of light and shadow”.

The shadow beneath the snake dragon's feet was suddenly covered with dark golden patterns, then it quickly rose and transformed into a three-dimensional humanoid figure. This first attack surprised the snake dragon. He struck out with his staff, then grabbed with his hand, instantly launching "The Emperor's Judgment" at the shadow.

However, this time he didn't get anything.

"You can't use your abilities on yourself, can you?"

In the blink of an eye, Bavotley had already leaped into the air, raised his right leg, and slashed down with a vertical motion. The dark golden light and shadow almost split the serpent dragon in two, and even his divine weapon, which had been struck by the light, emitted a brief buzzing sound.

Snake Dragon's expression finally turned serious.

"Wow, that's impressive! Is this the power of a Mystic Instructor?"

“Oh, right.” Bavotley put his hand in his pocket, then pulled it out, a ball of golden light already forming in his palm. The figure created from the serpent dragon's shadow also launched an attack, wielding a shadow staff. Although it lacked the serpent dragon's abilities, its martial arts skills were no less formidable.

After exchanging a few blows with the shadow, the snake dragon suddenly felt the pressure increase dramatically. This was because Bavotley did not directly join the battle, but instead threw the golden light in his hand onto the shadow, enhancing its combat power, or to put it more directly, accelerating its time.

The opponent swung the staff at least twice as fast as he could, and his punches and kicks were even more ferocious, completely inheriting the deadly moves of the Serpent Dragon himself. The Serpent Dragon was able to hold on because the Shadow Staff was ultimately not a true divine weapon; if he couldn't withstand the attacks, he could simply resort to defensive measures.

However, the shadow is a minor issue; the biggest threat remains Bavotley.

His opponent knew his fighting style very well, so he almost never engaged in prolonged combat, but instead struck whenever he had an opening. After that kick, Bavotley stood not far away, letting his shadow fight him while subtly twisting the utility knife in his hand.

“There is a prophecy that says I will die by your hand.”

Bavotley seemed to have adjusted the knife, rubbing the side of it with his fingers again, giving it a gleaming shine.

"So I won't give you a chance."

The sound of gears turning came again, and Bavotley appeared beside the Serpent Dragon once more. This time, he swung his hand horizontally in a chop. It was such a simple move, but the Serpent Dragon had to exert all his strength to dodge it, thanks to the interference of the shadow.

But with his opponent so close, Snake Dragon countered with "Emperor's Judgment," and a golden light immediately detached from Bavotley and landed on Snake Dragon.

"Um……"

Bavotley raised his head unhappily, this time a flash of dark gold appearing in one of his eyes. "That ability isn't unlimited, is it? The charity of the distribution center usually comes at a price, and even if a mystery user develops this ability themselves, it's bound to be accompanied by madness. How could your power possibly come without any cost?"

"Then guess?" The snake dragon dodged the shadow's staff, then suddenly extended its own staff and swept it horizontally. Bavotley didn't dodge at all, but instead held his knife down, forcefully blocking the attack.

“Guess? No need. If your ability comes from Yuwen Zheng, then it must be related to his rumored ability to acquire a large number of points. Of course, I can't completely prove it, but in every timeline, you've kept the secret firmly in mind... You're very vigilant.”

So, what do you think?

“Observe, then judge,” Bavotley sneered. “How does it feel to accept this big gift?”

Snake Dragon really wanted to say it wasn't very good.

While there aren't many spellcasting schools, there are still quite a few of them, and this world isn't lacking in spellcasters who research various spells. Bavotley replicated a bunch of status spells used by people from various timelines, most of which were of little use in this battle, yet he could only plunder them all.

He wasn't short of points; before arriving in this scene and meeting Rosemerada, he had never recklessly used his ability to accumulate points, so his reserves were plentiful. However, Bavotley also possessed a near-limitless amount of things he could plunder; as long as his crucial status wasn't stolen, Bavotley wasn't worried.

Most importantly, this ability cannot be used to plunder physical goods.

He could only take away the buffs, but he couldn't steal the opponent's weapons or knowledge. Ultimately, it was an incomplete ability, and the Serpent Dragon had no idea how powerful Yuwen Zheng had been when he possessed all his abilities.

Bavotley threw another punch, a standard-stance Crushing Fist, but imbued with a dark golden power. The powerful impact was too much for the Serpent Dragon to withstand, forcing him to retreat continuously. Shadow immediately caught up, coordinating with Bavotley's attack to continue putting more pressure on the Serpent Dragon.

"Records of the Battle of Heqi".

As Bavotley waved his hand, the snake dragon felt everything in front of him blur, and in an instant, he felt himself falling into some kind of hallucination.

"Fake history?"

"it is true."

The shadow wielding the long staff suddenly took shape. Snake Dragon saw a middle-aged man, dressed in armor and seemingly of noble birth, but his eyes had turned blood red, as if he had been blinded by bloodlust on the battlefield and had no other thoughts. The weapon in his hand had also transformed into a large sword. Snake Dragon raised his staff to meet him and found that this man's martial arts were actually quite good, and unlike the shadow's imitation of his own style, it was martial arts honed on the battlefield.

It took him more than a dozen moves to figure out his opponent's moves, and then he used the same amount of time to smash his opponent's head.

“I see… You’re still observing and analyzing, trying to avoid anything that could lead to your death. You chose my shadow, you chose the cost of those recurring spells, you chose to test the waters further with pseudo-history… You’re still worried, Bavotley.”

The serpent dragon saw a second person appear beside him, whose appearance, age, and style of armor were completely different.

This is the kind of attrition warfare that Bavotley excels at, but it's also the kind of attrition warfare that the Serpent Dragon dislikes.

"But the more vigilant you are, the easier it is to make mistakes!"

He twirled the long staff twice in his hand. If it were the shadow from before, he might not have been able to deal with it, but the current situation was just right!

"Dismantle the Universe!"

The illusion shattered with a crash, and a kick to the chest was already within reach. The snake dragon had no way to dodge, and he was kicked away again. However, the fatal crisis had been averted. He rolled over twice to steady himself and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"So close! Bavotley! If I had been even a fraction slower, we might be best buddies now!"

"Tsk."

Bavotley glanced regretfully at his toes, where the time ripples had been dispersed by the blow, and it seemed impossible for the dispelled ability to recover quickly.

Although troublesome, this was the expected outcome. Bavotley never believed that the Serpent Dragon could be dealt with by some conventional attrition. He gave the Shadow another order and then prepared the next spell.

Just then, the snake dragon suddenly raised its hand and grabbed into the church.

"You can't always be the one attacking!"

The moment he made his move, the shadow's staff came crashing down. This time, the snake dragon could only defend with one hand, and his strength was insufficient to withstand the blow, so he was struck on the shoulder. But he still laughed, straightened his shoulder, and flicked the staff away, then struck the shadow through the chest.

"Your secret technique can't replicate my current state? That's still a bit lacking," the Serpent Dragon said provocatively to Bavotley. "But once I understand what you're planning to do, I'll have a way to deal with it."

“You stole the nascent divine power from Veronica.” Bavotley brandished his utility knife. “Trying to close the gap with this? I thought you’d use some smarter methods.”

“I don’t need any of that. For me, any enemy, any defense, is just a matter of a moment. I only need to find the time to seize your weakness once. And you… you can’t kill me with one mistake from me. Our battle is not evenly matched.”

"Well said. Documentary: The Burial of Shen Shu."

Bavotley suddenly transformed into a blue shadow, his utility knife radiating a blood-red glow, and instantly slashed across the Serpent Dragon's chest. By the time the Serpent Dragon swung his staff, it was too late; blood gushed from his chest, and even with divine power, the wound did not heal very quickly.

"But all of this is on the premise that you can hit the target. I already know your speed, strength, and reaction ability, plus some unformed divine power. Serpent Dragon, I have prepared for this battle very meticulously. For this, I did not hesitate to use the power of killing gods from another layer of history."

The holy war he loathed, the memories he didn't want to recall, was also... a miracle that man could create against God.

If the Serpent Dragon can take this too, that would be even better.