Cursed Immortality

Chapter 1284: The Key of the Jailer

Deep beneath the Bone Citadel, the endless undead legions, and beneath the countless sacrificial streams now pouring through the Undead Skyfall Canyons, the chained altar remained suspended within the immeasurable abyss.

Billions of suppression runes still covered its colossal body while mountain-sized chains stretched into the endless darkness, each one humming with authority capable of suppressing Divinity itself.

Around it, the incomplete veil woven from countless undead scriptures had vanished, yet the atmosphere had subtly changed.

The moment the God of Hollow Undead accepted Destin Saint’s proposal, the latter didn’t delay anymore and began to unravel the seal.

Thus, the abyss itself began responding as a low metallic sound echoed.

‘Clang…’

It was neither produced by the chains nor the altar; instead, it came from nowhere- no, more accurately, it came from everywhere.

Alexandra’s pupils contracted. The countless suppression runes carved upon the altar suddenly illuminated one after another, not with the pale gray radiance of the ritual, but with a deep ancient silver that possessed neither Law nor Death.

It was an authority that stood above both, and the surrounding darkness slowly folded inward before something impossible emerged.

At the very center of the altar, there was a lock that did not descend from above nor rise from below; it simply manifested as though it had always existed, hidden beneath reality itself.

It resembled two concentric rings intertwined together, forged from neither metal nor stone. Its surface was smooth beyond imagination without any inscriptions, formations, or unique signatures.

There was nothing, yet the instant it appeared, the billions of suppression runes across the altar brightened as though acknowledging their master.

Alexandra instinctively took half a step backward as that thing gave her a sense of dread.

“What is that?”

Even she could feel it. That thing should not exist within the Middle Plains.

The sealed altar trembled violently before the Undead Skyfall’s voice sounded, “So…so it truly exists…”

For countless ages, “He” had only sensed it, but never once had “He” been allowed to witness it. Yet now, the true lock imprisoning “Him” had finally manifested.

Destin Saint merely smiled, “Hoho, it seems the old fellow really kept his promise.”

His tone remained as gentle as ever, almost respectful. Alexandra immediately noticed it, and she was slightly alarmed because for the first time Destin Saint wasn’t speaking playfully. Instead, there was genuine respect hidden beneath that easygoing smile, or it might be an illusion she couldn’t determine.

Destin Saint didn’t care as the next moment, the Fateless Celestial slowly raised one hand, but nothing happened-at least, nothing visible. Yet the Möbius-shaped Totem Sigil upon the Cloak of Occult suddenly began revolving endlessly. Its infinite loop reflected within the ancient lock.

The next moment, a tiny object appeared above Destin Saint’s palm. It was no larger than a grain of sand and completely transparent.

If Alexandra had blinked, even she would have missed it entirely because there was no aura, pressure, law, or divinity emitting from it.

It looked so ordinary that even reality refused to acknowledge its existence. Yet, the colossal lock immediately trembled, not from fear or excitement but from recognition.

The next moment, the transparent object floated forward, and without touching anything, it simply overlapped with the lock like two reflections becoming one.

‘Click…’

The sound was impossibly soft, yet it echoed throughout the endless abyss. Thereafter, every suppression chain vibrated, and every suppression rune shone brilliantly.

The lock slowly began turning, not opening, but merely turning, and somewhere inside the prison, the Undead Skyfall watched silently.

Even after countless years, freedom still remained beyond “His” reach. Because “He” knew only the bearer of that key could decide when the lock truly opened.

Destin Saint calmly lowered his hand, and the transparent key disappeared as though it had never existed.

“I’ve merely awakened it.” He smiled as he ambiguously stated, “The prison still recognizes only its jailer. The key simply allows me…temporary authority.”

The Undead Skyfall remained silent as “He” understood exactly what those words meant. If Destin Saint wished, “He” could immediately halt the unlocking process. Likewise, if Destin Saint never completed it, the prison would never release “Him.”

That was why, despite possessing enough hatred to drown worlds, the Undead Skyfall had absolutely no intention of betraying the one standing before “Him.” Not unless “He” wished to remain imprisoned forever.

At that moment, the entire abyss suddenly shook, not because of the lock, but because far above, the sacrificial ceremony had finally reached completion, and countless streams of invisible vitality poured downward, life.

It was filled with death, fear, faith, Undead authority, and fragments of shattered Laws as everything converged toward the prison, toward the altar itself.

Destin Saint had noticed it long before, but he said nothing as it was silent acknowledgment.

But Alexandra’s expression immediately changed as she blurted out, “What’s happening? What are you up to?”

She could clearly sense that unimaginable quantities of vitality were being drawn beneath the canyons.

Destin Saint merely glanced upward before chuckling as he commented ambiguously, “As expected. It seems our old timer prepared quite thoroughly.”

The Undead Skyfall’s voice contained unmistakable satisfaction as he didn’t mind Alexandra’s question nor Destin Saint’s tone.

“For countless ages…this God has remained sealed here. Do you truly believe I merely slept?”

Alexandra frowned, “You arranged all this while imprisoned?”

“Heh…” The altar trembled faintly. “My Divine Temple remained above. Although sealed…it still possessed enough authority to influence the undead. The armies outside are not merely followers. They have always been borrowing My power.”

As those words echoed, the sacrificial streams became even denser.

The Undead Skyfall continued calmly, “Every undead raised beneath My authority carries a fragment of My divine imprint. They consume, kill, spread death, and with the passage of time, they return tiny fragments of that borrowed authority. My Divine Temple merely stored everything.”

Alexandra’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve been accumulating power all this time…”

“Indeed. Today’s battlefield merely accelerated what had already been prepared.” The Undead Skyfall’s voice became increasingly domineering. “The sacrificial formation encompasses the entire vicinity surrounding this prison. It gathers the vitality of every living creature. It gathers fear. It gathers death. It gathers shattered laws of those who had formed law totems (Soul Totems: Legendary Rank). And…my undead become the final medium.”

The next moment, the countless rivers of sacrifice poured into the altar, and inside the sealed altar, now begging to unravel, Undead Skyfall absorbed it all like a dry desert welcoming rain after countless years!