Mael stood at the head of the altar and from his back 3 pairs of wings sprouted gloriously. He closed his eyes and was chanting loudly in a strange tongue. The other 3 Ark Angels looked down as he carried out the ritual and they nodded in affirmation.
"Although great care has been taken to keep this matter under wraps, paper cannot hold back fire. If this matter is spread out then the first person to show up will be 'that' Devil. We cannot let our guard down for a moment, stay sharp." Gabriel seriously spoke out to his partners.
"Hmph, So what if he comes. It's barely been a hundred years since then, I refuse to believe he has healed his injuries from back then. If he dared to come then he should be prepared to leave his life behind. With the Divine Edict from the Holy Son we're not afraid of him." Muriel was unconvinced. She lost her comrades in that mad devil's massacre a hundred years ago and now she hoped she would be given the chance to seek her vengeance.
Ludociel looked to the skies and then suddenly shook his head. "I'd rather not encounter that Devil...If even Arcadia isn't able to deal with him what makes you so confident that you can?" Muriel wasn't able to find a retort but she still let out a snort and flew off to one end of the mountain range.
Gabriel noticing the tension setting in let out a sigh and flew off in another direction. Ludociel was still looking towards the sky. "I have a very uneasy feeling...I hope I'm wrong."
Mael's chanting was intensifying as his voice sounded out across the range. The sky warped as an intangible presence descended. The girl on the altar seemed to be roused by all the noise as her eyes fluttered open. Scarlet pupils stared straight to the skies in a state of confusion.
She turned and looked at the bindings tying her to the altar and at the ceremony being carried out before letting out a forlorn laughter.
"To think even I will have such a day. To end up in such a state as this, if 5th brother comes I'm going to get seriously scolded." Mael was carrying out his chants and paid no attention to her while the others were too far away.
Lilith however felt no sense of danger from her current situation or more likely she did feel danger from it but she chose to ignore it. She didn't do anything and simply laid down on the alter like a salted fish as if unaware of the fact she was being used as a sacrifice.
'It's not like I can do anything about it in the first place, what's the point of struggling? It's a pity though, I've not played enough....' She closed her eyes as if coming to acceptance with her fate.
The intangible presence descended on the altar and covered her completely. She could feel it, like she was inside a body of water only this water was a bit more viscous. It ate at her and she felt her life waning meanwhile Mael's life energy was soaring.
On Mael's back another pair of wings seemed to be sprouting while his aura was rising. The feeling of power surging through him made him shout out in satisfaction.
The 3 Ark Angels present let out a smile. To them, the ritual was almost over and they have welcomed another comrade to their fold. With an extra Ark Angel and one born from a sacrifice as strong as this, a lot of things would be easily accomplished. At least, unless that mad man interfered, none of the other Devil Lords would be their match.
Ludociel looked down as the sacrifice gradually drew to an end. He never hoped for something to quickly pass as this moment.
' A sacrifice is a means we servants of Arcadia use to draw greater power to ourselves during breaking through to higher levels in the deity realms. By sacrificing something of high value we draw in the presence of Arcadia to bless our cultivation. In doing so, granting us greater affinity with the natural order.
Usually this is only done when breaking into the True God level but Ark Angels must start participating in sacrifices from when they are breaking through to the Demi God realm or 10th Evolution. 2 Sacrifices are done when breaking to the 10th Level and at the peak of the 10th Level, another sacrifice is done when breaking into the False God level and the last sacrifice is done when breaking into the True God level. In the case of the Holy Son of that era, they will carry out a 5th sacrifice to ascend to the Planar God level.
The strength of the sacrifice determines the blessing that will be bestowed upon the sacrificer by Arcadia. In the case of Mael, only the best of the best has been used for his sacrifices. A Demi Devil was used for his Demi God sacrifices, A False Devil was used for his False God sacrifice and now a True Devil is used for his True God sacrifice. Such treatment has resulted in his power being far above the normal and who knows he may even be chosen as the Holy Son of this Era.
Once he breaks through although he may not be a match for the 5th Devil Lord, he should still be able to handle the other Devil Lords and if all three of us join with him we should be able to even-'
"How bold." Ludociel thoughts was interrupted by a voice laced with deep murderous intent. He looked down at the altar and he was shocked to see that at some time, the ritual had stopped and there stood a young man on the Altar. He held the sacrifice to his chest with one arm while his other arm pressed on Mael's chest and a glaring hole the size of a basin appeared there.
The young man wore a black pant with gold linings made from some unknown material and a sleeveless black jacket with an image of a strange gold demon on it's back, that reached to his ankles. The jacket completely exposed his chest and his exposed skin showed purple tattoo lines that flashed in and out of existence. His long silver hair that reached to his ankles was similar to Lilith's but somewhat brighter.
On his arms he wore silver gauntlets with sharp claws that reached to his shoulders and on his feet was steel boots that reached to his knees. His eyes were a gleaming gold and they seemed apathetic as he coldly looked at the Ark Angels present. His lips curled up in a disdainful sneer as he reiterated "How bold"
He pulled back his arm and shook off the blood on it as Mael fell to his knees. The vitality of a False God would not allow him die so easily. The young man picked Lilith up in a princess carry and walked down from the Altar, not forgetting to step on Mael's body as he did so.
"Now then, it seems you lot have gotten quite bold hm? I left you all alive cause I know my juniors would not deal with any invaders and also to keep the world in order but it seems my kindness was treated as a joke."
"KINDNESS! KINDNESS!! WHAT KINDNESS!!!" Muriel had enough and couldn't hold back the anger in her heart. "You killed us in droves and stand here to speak of kindness. Bullshit! Gabriel, Ludociel what are we waiting for?"
Ludociel's face had gone pale as he gritted his teeth. Gabriel however looked towards the sky as he furrowed his brows. "It doesn't make any sense, this is a natural Fence of Heaven. You shouldn't have been able to find this place so easily and moreover you were able to easily pierce through the fence before any of us could react. This isn't something a mere Devil Lord can do and unless you have been able to take care of your wounds from back then you should only be able to use that level of power."
"Ho? Are you Ciel's replacement? A smart one aren't you?" Ludociel's face turned even more pale at the conjecture of facing this Devil at his peak state and even Muriel had a grim look on her face.
"It could also be you managed to suppress your injuries but that shouldn't be possible unless...unless you had aid from one of the 3rd Devil Lord's items or ability. In that case it wouldn't be too much of a surprise, she was able to bring the dead to life so suppressing your injuries should be barely possible for her."
Gabriel's pensive look cleared up suddenly as he pulled out a weathered scroll and unhurriedly tore it apart. "But it doesn't matter, you still have to deal with us before even thinking of walking away from here."
"Really now? According to you, the current me isn't too lacking from the me at my peak, facing me is suicide. Aren't you afraid?" Lucius didn't stop him but watched on as Gabriel tore apart the weathered scroll.
"Of course I'm afraid but all of it is for the glory of Arcadia. If we can aggravate your injuries in this battle it will make it that much easier for Arcadia when you face off in that final gamble." The scroll was completely torn apart and an overbearing power surged out from the torn scroll before condensing to form a golden humanoid phantom with 5 pairs of wings, thousands of metres tall and holding a sword in one hand with a scale in the other.
Heaven and earth toiled and rumbled as the phantom let out a silent roar that sent the world into chaos. The mountains shattered and the earth broke apart, the sky sundered and space warped but around Lucius none of this chaos existed.
He stood there with the same disdain on his face as he looked on at the phantom's 'tantrum'. He took a step forward and behind him rose a phantom that was extremely chaotic. It looked like a bunch of scribbles pulled together in a humanoid form. It towered to the skies and covered the earth in its shadow.
The golden phantom had it's facial features covered in a glaring light while the scribbles had no facial features besides a pair of gold piercing eyes.
The three Ark Angels joined together at the golden phantom's side and a halo appeared above their heads as they seemed to be given a buff from it. Lucius didn't bother putting down Lilith and still carried her in his arms. He laughed disdainfully at the antics of the three.
"You don't understand. If Paul were here it would be a bit troublesome but with just you lots even if I am injured, even if you have a Divine Edict and even if I am handicapped from using my hands you are not worthy nor capable of making a move on me."