The Cloud-Raised Brave Man's Travels

"This doesn't seem to be an inherent barrier? Instead, it looks a bit like a Noble Phantasm used by a Servant."

"Really? Then we overestimated her~~"

Merlin laughed easily twice and stepped into the temple first. The first few dozen meters here really looked like a temple, with tall marble pillars supporting the ceiling. But when they actually walked into the temple, everyone couldn't help but feel nauseous... A soft and sticky red and black substance like blood vessels covered everything they could see, and every few steps they could see several wrapped culture bubbles in these blood vessels.

Inside are humans who are like dry firewood. They are the food brought back by the monsters and the energy that nurtures this temple... No, this can't be called a temple at all, it is a monster's nest!

"Senior! They, they seem to be still alive. Although there are some abnormalities, they are really still alive."

Mashu said in surprise as he looked at a person in a bubble.

"It's better not to look at these. After all, they are not pleasant things."

Koya forcefully dragged Mashu away from that place. The moment the divine domain enveloped the area, he knew everything about the place. These "people" were already dead, devoid of consciousness, existing only as nourishment and the embryos of the monsters. What Mashu had just witnessed was actually the movements of the people about to become monsters. Next, the monsters would tear apart the human skin and then burst out of the bubble...

"Gorgon, what an ugly goddess of vengeance! To avenge herself on humans, she uses them to breed monsters... How disgusting!"

Ishtar looked at everything around her with a gloomy face, her face full of gloom and murderous intent. Ishtar now had only one thought, to kill Gorgon, the monster that trampled on life.

Along the way, Tachibana and the others saw hundreds of bubbles. Some of the bubbles contained people with intact bodies, some were monsters that were ready to break out of their shells, and some were defective products that were half human and half monster. Mashu's expression was obviously shaken. It was obvious that she also understood the truth, but this truth was a bit cruel.

However, all the creatures in these bubbles were motionless at this moment, because Koya had controlled the divine realm and bestowed upon them completely equal death. Apart from them, the only living creature that could move in this blood temple was the Gorgon.

The entire Blood Temple extends downwards, and the deeper you go, the larger the space becomes. At the deepest point, a huge space appears in front of everyone, as if it is a battlefield specially prepared for the decisive battle.

"This is the deepest part of the Blood Temple."

At this moment, Koya was more like the master of this place than Gorgon. After all, everything here was shrouded by the divine domain. The Blood Temple's original left and right had completely disappeared. In fact, before Tachibana and the others came in, those blood vessel-like things clinging to the Blood Temple were wriggling. Even if Koya only used the divine domain to sense them, he felt nauseous. Although he knew that these blood vessels only transported magic power, it still made people feel sick. In order to prevent Tachibana and Mashu from feeling uncomfortable, Koya

"Gorgon! Why don't you show yourself?"

It seemed that Gorgon's actions had angered many people. This was the first time Koya had seen Tachibana so angry. This anger completely dispelled her inner anxiety and tension. Although being dominated by anger was not a good thing, she should be angry now.

Chapter 177: Gorgon

The Gorgon's massive body emerged from the blood pool at the center of the hollow... The opening to the pool was only the size of a swimming pool, so how could the space beneath it be so vast? Blood splattered on the ground and walls as the Gorgon emerged, making this already physically unpleasant place even more terrifying.

In the ten days since we last saw her, Gorgon's strength had increased significantly. The reason for this was easy to guess: she had been frightened by Koya's earlier defeat and was eager to improve her strength quickly. Now, Gorgon's strength was on par with Ishtar, perhaps even slightly stronger, but still far from Quetzal. However, with her massive size and the added bonus of the pool of blood, she might be able to compete with Quetzal in this place.

Ultimately, Gorgon's foundation is not bad. Gorgon is the Greek goddess of the earth, a primordial deity who was belittled and slandered by the Celestial God. After becoming a monster, she is also the ancestor of monsters. After her death, her body gave birth to the Pegasus horse and the giant Chrysaor. Perhaps it is for this reason that she can connect with Tiamat and use the power of Tiamat's monster womb. However, using the power of the Creator Goddess is not easy. For Tiamat, creating monsters is just a matter of thought, but for Gorgon, it requires human flesh to bear.

Using the object of revenge for revenge...breeding magical beasts and replenishing magic in blood pools really squeezes the value of humans to the fullest.

The Gorgon before Koya and the others was bathed in blood, the crimson lines on her abdomen and serpentine hair emitting an eerie crimson glow. Human bodily fluids were the most effective restorative potion for servants replenishing their mana. Gorgon had likely been confined to this pool of blood for the past ten days. With such a vast magical power, it was no surprise that she had grown so powerful so quickly.

Gorgon, like all villains, will definitely talk back and forth before the inevitable battle and try to win over the protagonist, while Tachibana is obviously a very traditional protagonist template. Her talk back is much more powerful than Gorgon's. To put it in an analogy, it's like Mr. Zhuge scolding old man Wang Lang. After a round of talk back, Tachibana is satisfied and Gorgon's defense is broken.

Gorgon cares a lot about the identity of Tiamat. No...it should be said that she has now completely regarded herself as Tiamat.

"Ants!"

The Gorgon's gnashing of teeth was truly amusing. What was she calling this behavior? She was asking for a scolding! Just as Koya was about to end this farce, Anna stopped them all. Anna knew full well that she had been summoned to this era to deal with this monster that had forgotten its own self.

"Gorgon... you can't even recognize your own appearance. Now you are just an ordinary monster."

Anna was standing right in front of Gorgon, but he seemed unable to see her or hear her voice. Although her pupils were fixed on Anna, they were filled with confusion and anxiety. It seemed that what she saw was not a lovely girl, but a sharp blade that could cut her throat.

"What... who are you! What is this chill, this nausea that feels like it's hanging on my neck? What the hell is going on! - Kingu! Where are you? Drive this ugly monster out of this temple!!"

Gorgon roared hysterically, her expression now not as furious as it had during her confrontation with Tachibana, but rather terror. She couldn't even bring herself to fight Anna. The utter fear and panic that washed over her from the depths of her heart made her lash out wildly, her tail whipping furiously. The ground and walls began to crumble under Gorgon's attack, but her body continued to retreat from Anna's position. The scene, like a mouse meeting a cat, puzzled everyone present, except Merlin, who still wore that calm, distant smile.

"As expected, you can't see me. If you were still willing to look at me, there might still be a chance of saving me."

Anna looked very sad. After hearing Anna's words, Tachibana had some vague guesses in her heart. She looked at Merlin with her guesses and got his affirmative nod.

Anna is the Gorgon... or rather, the Medusa before she degenerated into a monster. She is the Gorgon's childhood self, and she also represents the past that the Gorgon completely rejected. The current Gorgon is pure demon, a twisted product of Medusa's demonic nature, fully aroused. Having absorbed Tiamat's power, the Gorgon has taken this distortion to its extreme. The result is that she is now terrified of her past self, and desperately wants to kill the self she has denied...

"Anna——"

After receiving a positive answer from Merlin, Tachibana hugged Anna with some heartache. Anna was abandoned by Gorgon in the past, and Gorgon was Anna's destined future. It is conceivable that Anna is not feeling well now.

"I've been telling myself this from the beginning. I don't deserve to live. I'm destined to become a Gorgon monster, a monster who will kill my two sisters with my own hands. I shouldn't have been born in this world. I don't deserve to live, I don't deserve to laugh... But, I really want to live. Thank you, Tachibana, thank you, Mashu. You really saved me, so let me complete this final atonement. I should be the one to deal with the monster I created."

"Have you made up your mind, Ana? Do you want to release the divinity that has been suppressed until now?"

"Yes, I'm going to beat her...beat me!"

Anna's eyes hardened. Just as the monster Gorgon had been denying the past, Anna was also denying her future. She asked Merlin to suppress his divinity because she didn't want to follow in Gorgon's footsteps, but now she was -

"Children, don't overthink such complicated things. If you want to live, then live well. Don't say things that seem like you're sacrificing yourself. Have you finished the desserts in the spirit space? Leave the obstacles in front of you to the adults to solve -"

Koya smiled as he walked over and rubbed Anna's head. The girl, who had been hiding something on her mind, finally spilled the beans. But her demeanor, as if she was the only one who could handle the Gorgon, irritated Koya. What? Did she look down on him? With him there, how could this snake get away with such impunity? He'd been able to pin the Gorgon to the ground and rub it ten days ago, so he could do the same now!

"What are you talking about, you bunch of ants! Die, die, die! Melt away and die!"

Gorgon finally couldn't hold it anymore. Her inner fear of Anna made her explode completely. She gathered dozens of light cannons that could destroy a street and fired them at Anna. Mashu subconsciously wanted to stand in front of Tachibana, but Koya was faster. He shot the arrows in a flash and arrived first. A violent explosion occurred in the air.

"Mashu, protect Rikka."

To deal with a monster of this size, you naturally need a monster to deal with it. Anna should keep the small sickle for herself.

The sky-covering wings blocked another round of Gorgon's light cannons. The forbidden dragon that even the gods feared came here again. The dark dragon and the furious snake demon are really a story that should appear in the Age of Gods!

"Roar--"

Koya's roar reminded Gorgon of the humiliation she suffered ten days ago when she was pinned to the ground by the dragon. She screamed and used every part of her body that could attack to vent her anger at Koya, including light cannons, sharp claws, and the entanglement of the snake's body, but all of this was as useless as it was ten days ago.

Koya's ferocious claws tore the snake's hair and his sharp teeth bit the snake's tail into pieces. The divine domain neutralized the light cannon and bright red blood flowed like a waterfall.

The world of the Black Dragon is one of endless monster-to-monster warfare. Following this same pattern, Koya excels at tackling monsters of his own size, not smaller humans. Every inch of Koya's being is designed for slaughter: claws, fangs, horn, and scales. He is the perfect and terrifying dragon of slaughter, a forbidden monster feared by even the gods.

"Who the hell are you! Why are you trying to stop my revenge? They deserve it!"

The wounded Gorgon screamed hysterically at Koya. She was really scared at this moment. The wounds caused by Koya were covered by a layer of black mist flashing with red lightning. The immortality she relied on most seemed to have lost its effect. No matter how she drew magic power from the blood pool, the wounds could not recover.

Compared to Gorgon's hysteria, Koya seemed much more "elegant". His current appearance could be described as strolling in the garden, but even just walking would cause the ground to shatter under his feet. The red thunder surrounding him gave him the aura of a demon king. Tachibana and the others stood far away, watching the scene in front of them. Although it was not a good idea to arrange Koya like this, his aura was really too scary. Compared to him, Gorgon seemed so harmless.

"aaaaaaaa"

Gorgon couldn't accept the fact. She roared and attacked Koya, but this time Koya was a little annoyed.

The wings behind him spread out, and his head lowered slightly. The piercing horn that seemed to reach the sky was aimed squarely at the Gorgon's heart. The piercing thunder was no longer concealed, and the black mist and red lightning snake enveloped the horn.

The next second, a roar was heard, and a hurricane followed. When Tachibana and the others struggled to open their eyes in the strong wind, they saw the huge horn piercing through the chest. Koya raised his head to show the trophy to the sky, then shook his head violently and threw the broken prey onto the rock wall of the cave.

boom--

The last roar exploded on Gorgon's body, and blood and broken flesh dyed Koya's dark body with a touch of enchanting red. Then, bits of starlight lit up on Gorgon's broken body, which was a sign that the servant had returned to Valhalla.

"Ge, the Gorgon spirit base reaction disappears."

Mashu uttered a trembling sentence. From the moment Koya transformed to the end of the battle, it took a total of one minute. They had clearly prepared themselves mentally before standing here, but now this Gorgon, whom they considered their final enemy, died so casually?

"Senior...it seems like there's no reaction from the Holy Grail?"

"That is to say?"

"Well, it seems the Holy Grail you seek isn't in Gorgon's possession. But Gorgon must have used the power of the Holy Grail to regain his past divinity in order to gain the power of the goddess Tiamat, since she isn't the holder of the Holy Grail. I see... the true holder."

The ceiling of this empty underground space suddenly collapsed, just like the scene when Tachibana saw Koya forcibly going down to the underworld. A person went straight through the ground and entered here.

"Mother! Are you okay?"

A figure with green hair and a white robe appeared. He had abandoned the monsters attacking the northern defense line, allowing them to launch a reckless attack like wild beasts and returned here. Enkidu nervously scanned the ground from the air. The most eye-catching thing was naturally the pitch-black dragon...

Enkidu's face calmed down; he was late in coming back.

"As expected, my absence is not surprising. This is indeed the natural result... Master of Chaldea, you have done a great job!"

Enkidu's chains emerged from his back and, like venomous snakes, swooped down towards Fujimaru Tachibana's position, only to be intercepted mid-air by Koya's breath. Enkidu glared angrily at the devoid of divine power, but quickly retracted his anger, standing in the air and letting the chains envelop him.

"Tsk, I forgot about you, such a troublesome fellow. Hey, I was hoping to keep her alive for a little longer. You guys in Chaldea really are a bunch of evil people."

"Wow……"

"Merlin!!"

Just as the two sides were confronting each other, Merlin suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, his face full of disbelief.

"What's wrong, Nightmare? Ah~~ It's you who's imprisoned your mother that's been broken, right? What a shame! You probably won't be able to see your mother's true form, and you won't be able to see what humanity's original sin truly is!"

"Hahaha, you are so cruel, Kingu, to connect Gorgon to Tiamat."

Merlin was certainly not surprised by this, after all, he was already familiar with all of this, but this did not prevent him from continuing to act according to Enkidu's words.

"There's nothing I can do. It's because I can't wake my mother. It seems she's simply forgotten the shadow of death. So... Fujimaru Tachibana of Chaldea, enjoy this final song and witness the dawn of our new human era in despair! Goodbye, this time forever!"

Enkidu flew out of the hole that was forced to open, while Merlin wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and walked to Koya who had regained his human form. The expression on his face at this moment was somewhat interesting, with disbelief hidden in disbelief. In simple terms, he was a little skeptical about life.

He originally thought that he would die once Tiamat woke up. He had even thought of how to comfort Tachibana and the others in a cool way and then leave gracefully. However, he didn't expect that Tiamat did not kill him. Instead, she brought him a message through magic.

"I won't let you go so easily next time, Nightmare. Be thankful you're my husband's friend."

"you?"

How should I put it? Merlin subconsciously felt that Koya was the husband Tiamat mentioned, but... is this really possible?

"Don't tell Tachibana and the others. Give them some trials to increase their confidence."

"You...you're so... You even managed to seduce Him. How did you do it?"

"Nothing, just a dream."

Chapter 178: Battle of Destiny

Only the Seven Knights of the Grand Class can stand against this existence, a beast that devours human nature, a beast of restraint, the Sea of Life, the Mother of the Origins. One of the Seven Evils of Humanity, the Beast of Original Sin, has awakened. She is humanity's greatest enemy, a being capable of destroying the world. Deep in the Indian Ocean, she slowly opens her eyes. A dark wave taints the sea, and amidst it, she emerges, beautiful and noble, yet a symbol of destruction.

Tiamat's hatred hasn't dissipated. Although she has decided to leave this world with Koya and agreed to stage this attack, her hatred for humanity hasn't diminished much. She hates the gods, but humans are their children. Now that the gods are gone, her hatred extends to humans. In fact, Tiamat's original plan was to cleanse humanity and create a new world where her beloved children could live freely. But now that she is leaving this world, she has naturally abandoned this plan.

In the black tide of chaos, a total of 100 million monsters are being born. They are monsters named Rahmu, and they are also the new humans mentioned by Jingu. Originally, Tiamat had high expectations for them, because it is the most intelligent of the eleven sons of monsters. She once hoped that Rahmu would learn from humans and then become a new human, but now it doesn’t matter. If they have higher intelligence, Koya will also find it troublesome, right?

【Don't kill the little red-haired girl and the people around her, then go hunt. 】

Tiamat personally erased the Lakhmu's ability to evolve and learn, leaving them in their most primitive form. Even so, their power far surpassed the monsters bred by the Gorgon, and even the strongest Sun Lions could not match them. As for numbers, there was no need to even consider them. Tiamat created 100 million Lakhmu not because she couldn't create more, but because if she did, Uruk would be destroyed too quickly, and there would be no need for any drama.

[Hmm, that seems like a bit too many. Forget it, let's just send out 200,000 first.]

Tiamat casually sent out a number of troops that the Gorgons could not even imagine, but compared with the 100 million, these 200,000 were not even enough for the pre-meal snack.

[Koya~Koya~Hehehe~~]

Tiamat sat on the sea that had turned into a black tide, and did not rush to attack the land. As a good actress, she naturally gave the other party some time to react.

·Dividing line·

"The streets of Uruk are burning..."

When Tachibana and the others returned to Uruk on Koya's back, the scene they saw made them open their mouths wide. Alien monsters had flooded into the streets of Uruk. The streets that should have been full of laughter and joy were now replaced by people's terrified wails.

These alien monsters are purple-black in color, and their bodies can barely be seen as human shapes. They walk upright, but their feet are like two tentacles and do not touch the ground. Their movements depend entirely on the four freely movable "arms" growing on their backs. Their arms are similar to the structure of the human body, but below the forearm there is a complete spike-like shape, and their heads are even more terrifying, with no facial features, only a mouth with big white teeth and a card standing up. The sounds they make are like children's laughter, which makes people feel chilling.

Their methods of killing were extremely cruel. They would use their spiked hands to pierce the human body and then tear the body apart. The streets of Uruk were covered with blood and scattered limbs and internal organs...

The one who saw this scene in the sky and looked the most unbearable was not Tachibana and Mashu, but Koya... Of course, it was not fear. He had seen more horrifying scenes in the doomsday world. His unbearableness came from the anger in his heart, anger towards these monsters... anger towards Tiamat who created these monsters, and anger towards himself.

He didn't understand how he was supposed to face Tiamat. He would have torn the Gorgon apart without hesitation after seeing the devastation it had caused, but he couldn't do that against Tiamat. More importantly...how was he supposed to face Tachibana?

"roar!!!"

The fear in his heart made Koya mobilize all his strength. The divine domain completely enveloped the city of Uruk, and for the first time he began to seriously mobilize the essence of the divine domain to control energy. Flames, hurricanes, thunder, ice crystals and the power of dragon seals appeared in every corner of the city. With every flash, a Rahmu died. There were about 100,000 Rahmu attacking Uruk, but they all disappeared within ten minutes under Koya's sweep.

The price was that Koya's mana was exhausted...

He could no longer maintain the form of the Black Dragon. It was the first time he knew that even with the complete Black Dragon template, he would return to his original form due to exhaustion. After all, he was not a Black Dragon. If a Black Dragon was seriously injured or its energy was exhausted, it could fully recover by closing its eyes and resting for a while, but he had to recover his physical strength in the human form before he could continue to transform into a Black Dragon.

"Tachibana, take Merlin to the divine tower to meet Gilgamesh and explain the situation. I'll go to Ishtar's temple to rest for a while. The divine domain won't dissipate for now. If that monster comes again, the divine domain will automatically attack."

"Okay, go and rest."

It was the first time that Tachibana saw Koya exhausted. Seeing his pale face and the way he couldn't stand steadily during the battle, she was very worried. She quickly asked Ishtar to carry Koya to the temple, while she, Mashu, Merlin, and Anna ran towards the sacred tower.

When they arrived at the ziggurat, they found it crowded with people, presumably seeking refuge from the monsters' attack. The residents looked on with horror at the bodies of Lahmu scattered across the streets, while at the throne room, guards reported the damage to Gilgamesh.

"All the unidentified monsters have perished, but the damage to Uruk is devastating. The market and forges have been completely destroyed, and residential areas have been damaged as well. The death toll is still being counted. Please issue your orders!"

Gilgamesh sat on his throne, brow furrowed. Clearly, although he had already labeled Tiamat a false enemy and taken numerous precautions, he had taken things for granted. Gilgamesh had faced gods before, and he subconsciously lumped Tiamat in with them. But now he understood... compared to the true Mother Goddess of Creation, those gods were mere scum! He took a deep breath and rose from his throne.

When he stood up from the throne, his expression was serious, but he was no longer conflicted. As a king, he was the one who carried the expectations of the people of Uruk. Everyone here could feel fear, but he alone could not!