Chapter 104: The God of Death

Because he had lost the initiative, Xolotl was unable to dodge and was struck squarely by the cluster of pale blue flames. However, this attack from Deathmask was far more than a simple Praesepe Underworld Wave.

The moment the flames struck Xolotl, they exploded. Immediately following this, a pitch-black spatial rift tore open, centered exactly where Xolotl stood. Deathmask had successfully breached the barrier of the Underworld. His intent was to banish this divine manifestation to the realm of the dead. While this was nowhere near enough to kill such a being, it could divert the disaster and temporarily resolve their current crisis. After all, while deities might have the privilege of entering the Underworld at will, that did not mean the Specters and the gods of the Underworld would allow someone to trespass in their domain, especially not an evil god from beyond the heavens.

"Go to hell and keep Hades company!" Having landed the hit, Deathmask laughed and retreated a great distance. Having nearly been sucked in himself during his last encounter at Yomotsu Hirasaka, he was exceptionally cautious with this technique.

In an instant, the rift centered on Xolotl unleashed an unparalleled gravitational pull, dragging in surrounding vegetation, rocks, and corpses. Yet, eerily, Xolotl remained suspended motionlessly above the rift, like a pillar standing firm against the current, unmoved by the violent turbulence.

"What is going on?" Orion Rigel asked, stunned. Even from this distance, he could feel the immense suction of the rift. If he were in Xolotl’s position, he would have been pulled in instantly without a chance to struggle. But the reality was the exact opposite; Xolotl stood there as if nothing were happening, as if the rift's immense power were merely an illusion.

"This is impossible! How can you possibly resist the power of the entire Underworld?" Gone was Deathmask's usual mocking grin, replaced by a grave expression. The target had been marked by his Praesepe energy, locked in by the Underworld rift. To resist this suction was equivalent to opposing the might of the Underworld itself. Even if the god’s true form were present, it should not have been this easy to resist.

"Heh heh heh..." Xolotl slowly raised his head, sneering at Deathmask. "To use the power of the Underworld against a god of death—don't you think you are being far too arrogant?"

"Cancer—" he roared the final word.

"What?!" Deathmask’s eyes widened at this revelation. Earlier, seeing the god wield lightning, he had assumed he was a deity of thunder. He never imagined that his opponent possessed a portfolio related to death. Since most of his own techniques involved souls and the Underworld, they naturally fell within the domain of a death god. This meant his attacks were inherently ineffective and at a disadvantage against such a being. He finally understood why the guardian of this pyramid used soul-based attacks and why that lightning spear had carried the weight of a soul. This was, indeed, a god of death.

"It's over..." The realization caused Deathmask’s heart to sink into the abyss.

"Close!" Xolotl stepped firmly on both sides of the rift and clamped his legs together. With a thunderous boom, the Underworld rift that Deathmask had opened was forcibly sealed shut.

"Now, let me show you what true death is!" Xolotl gathered his Cosmo into his hands, and a mass of pitch-black energy began to swirl and take form within his palms. "Fang of the Necropolis."

Suddenly, the black energy drifted to the ground, transforming into canine figures wreathed in black flames. Strangely, each of these creatures lacked an ear, just like the emblem on Xolotl’s breastplate.

"Fall into the abyss and let your filthy soul be cleansed, Cancer!" At Xolotl’s command, the black-flamed hounds lunged at Deathmask and Rigel.

"Ignition of the Ghost Fire!" Rigel concentrated his Cosmo into his palm and unleashed a pillar of pale blue flame at an incoming hound.

"Foolishness!" Xolotl sneered, sparing no further glance for the Orion saint and focusing entirely on Deathmask.

Boom!

The blue flame pillar collided with the black-flamed hound, but unlike the clash with the lightning spear, this time was different. The hound moved like a phantom, passing straight through Rigel’s flames and pouncing on him.

"Not a standard technique?" Rigel was shocked, but it was too late to dodge. The hound reached him and bit down hard on his hands.

In an instant, the black flames engulfed Rigel, the intense heat melting his Gold Cloth and causing him to shriek in agony. "Ah—"

But that was only the beginning. Rigel felt his soul being ripped away, flowing from his arms into the hound biting him. He struggled desperately, but he possessed no knowledge of soul manipulation. Defenseless against such a direct assault on his spirit, his soul was swallowed by the hound in a heartbeat.

Nearby, Deathmask was tangled in a struggle with several other hounds. Since these creatures attacked the soul directly, they were no ordinary construct; they required soul-based techniques to counter. This was why Rigel’s flames had been ineffective. For Deathmask, this was the only silver lining: while his attacks had little effect on Xolotl, Xolotl’s attacks were similarly limited against him. His *Soul Burial* technique could suppress any soul-based ability, but with so many hounds attacking from different directions, it was impractical to use such a large-scale technique. Still, the gap in power was too great; even with his Praesepe energy, he was gradually losing ground.

At that moment, he witnessed the instant Rigel’s soul was torn away.

"Damn it!" Deathmask’s heart skipped a beat. Rigel was a Gold-level combatant who had awakened the Seventh Sense, one of Sanctuary’s most precious assets; he could not be allowed to fall so easily.

"Praesepe Underworld Wave!" Ignoring the hounds surrounding him, he broke out of the encirclement and fired his energy toward the hound that had consumed Rigel’s soul. He had to recover Rigel’s soul immediately, or the saint would truly be dead.

Seeing this, Xolotl sneered. "Utterly moronic!"

Deathmask could barely protect himself against the onslaught of hounds, and yet he was foolish enough to try to save another. It was suicide. Xolotl gestured, and a fresh pack of black hounds surged forward.