“Lord Demon King, have you become stronger again?”
Kurei asked curiously.
At this moment, she was making pastries.
In Sashaya’s manor, the pastries were usually made by the dolls, and the options were always the same.
Sashaya had long since grown tired of them.
Out of curiosity, Sashaya had the two demonkin maids make pastries for her instead.
With proper ingredients, Kurei could naturally create delicious treats, which quickly won Sashaya’s favor.
Since they would be staying here for the time being, Kurei and Melu took turns cooking in the kitchen for Sashaya.
“Yes, after the last research session, I successfully broke through and reached Transcendent tier,”
Via replied.
She had absorbed extremely high-purity abyssal aura into her body.
With Sashaya’s assistance, she successfully converted that abyssal aura into her own power.
According to Sashaya, this process was quite risky.
The slightest carelessness could result in being devoured by the abyssal aura.
However, the abyssal aura behaved remarkably obediently and cooperated perfectly with Via.
The conversion process went exceptionally smooth.
In the end, her strength advanced dramatically, and she finally became a Transcendent-tier powerhouse.
“That’s wonderful, Lord Demon King!
You’re finally no longer a minnow!”
Kurei said happily.
“Mm.
Still, Transcendent tier alone is not nearly enough.”
Via felt that if she wanted to dominate the entire Desolate Fallen Continent, she would need to at least return to the level she had in her previous life.
“Isn’t this still a good start though?
Lord Demon King, I believe that as long as you keep working hard, you’ll soon return to your former heights!”
Kurei said with conviction.
“Let’s hope so.”
While Via and Kurei were chatting, the kitchen door opened.
A short-statured, haughty-looking witch stood at the entrance.
“So this is where you were, Via.
I’ve been looking for you.”
“Lady Sashaya?
Are you here for afternoon tea?
The pastries are almost ready,”
Kurei asked.
“They’ll be done soon.”
“Then wait a bit.
I need to go out for a while.”
“Oh, alright.”
“Via, come with me.”
Sashaya gestured for Via to follow.
“Me?
Okay.”
Via didn’t know what Sashaya wanted, but she followed anyway.
“How is it?
You should have broken through successfully, right?”
Sashaya asked as she led Via out of the manor.
“I’ve reached Transcendent tier.”
“Good.
At your current level, you should be able to walk through the abyss with me.”
“We’re going into the abyss?”
“Yes,”
Sashaya said mysteriously, “to the forbidden land of the abyss.”
Behind Via stretched a murky darkness.
Within that darkness, pairs of ghostly crimson eyes stared at her with malicious intent.
In front of her was Sashaya.
The Abyssal Demoness had her dolls carry lanterns that only illuminated the path ahead as they walked through the abyss.
“Those are abyssal beasts.
It’s best not to look at them too much,”
Sashaya warned.
“Without the protection of the light, the abyssal beasts will swarm you.
Some of them might even have mental manipulation abilities that could make you lose focus and step outside the illuminated area.
That would be disastrous.”
Via had already realized just how dangerous the abyss was.
Still, she couldn’t help but marvel inwardly.
Sashaya had clearly lived in the abyss for a very long time and mastered special methods that made even the abyssal beasts wary of approaching these lanterns.
“There are many dangers and unknowns beneath the abyss.
Even I have not explored everything.”
Sashaya looked ahead.
On the stone wall, she saw a dark red rune that lit up as they approached, indicating the correct direction.
“Very good.
The marker is still working.
We should head this way.”
“Where exactly are we going?”
Via was somewhat puzzled.
After leading her away from the manor, Sashaya hadn’t explained what they were doing, only telling her to follow.
“Via, do you think demonkin are a special race on this continent?”
Sashaya suddenly asked a strange question.
“I suppose so.”
“Why?”
“In this world, most living beings will be eroded or corrupted upon contact with abyssal aura.
They lose their sanity and turn into uncontrollable monsters.
However, demonkin have much higher resistance to abyssal aura and can even harness this violent power for themselves.”
“Correct.
That is what makes demonkin special.
However, this also raises a question: where do you think abyssal aura comes from?”
“About that…
I’ve never really thought about it.”
Via didn’t know either.
Even the history of the demonkin contained very few records regarding the origin of abyssal aura.
The source of abyssal aura was shrouded in extreme mystery.
“For many years, I found no answers.
After hitting countless dead ends, I finally turned my attention to the abyss itself—this is an undeveloped land of death that no one has explored.
Aside from abyssal beasts, no demonkin would approach it.
I once tried to find the origin of abyssal aura here, but I searched for a long time without success.”
Sashaya recounted her experiences.
“I carved out a space within the abyss to serve as my base, built a manor, and slowly began exploring the surrounding area.”
“Did you find anything?”
“After spending many long years, I finally discovered a forbidden land deep within the abyss.”
Sashaya stopped walking.
Ahead of her was a massive crevice located on an enormous stone wall.
Behind the crevice glowed a purple light, particularly striking in the dark abyss.
Unknowingly, the abyssal beasts that had been following the two of them had all disappeared.
“Something’s off…”
Via frowned.
She felt a heavy pressure, as if a small mountain were pressing down on her shoulders.
If she hadn’t already reached Transcendent tier, she probably wouldn’t be able to move at all.
The purity of the abyssal aura in this area is terrifyingly high. It can reach up to 100%. Even I cannot resist it.
Sashaya stared at the mysterious crevice, her gaze growing complicated.
“The extremely high-concentration abyssal aura I used in previous experiments was extracted from here.
Even the abyssal beasts don’t dare approach this place lightly.”
“What’s behind that crevice?”
“I don’t know.”
Sashaya shook her head, looking somewhat lost.
“I cannot get close to that crevice, so I’m unable to explore it…
But my intuition tells me that the truth behind abyssal aura is definitely hidden inside.”
Via seemed to guess what the Abyssal Demoness was thinking.
“Lady Sashaya, are you saying—”
“That’s right, Via.
You are quite special.
Unlike me, you can withstand extremely high-purity abyssal aura.
Your talent has given me hope.”
Sashaya looked directly into Via’s eyes.
“I hope you can go in my place to explore that crevice and help me uncover the secret of abyssal aura.”