The sanctum of Skeldmar was a cathedral of horror.
Blood pooled in the grooves of the stone floor, flowing in silent patterns that pulsed with infernal rhythm. Severed arms hung like banners. Hollow skulls adorned the columns like sacred idols.
And at the center of it all stood Velgor, High Priest of the Crimson Thirst.
He smiled with blood-cracked lips as Liam and his companions emerged from the spiral below.
"You smell like ash, boy. Like burning guilt. The Cradle of Dust left its mark, didn't it?"
Liam's staff was already humming with divine energy. His golden-red aura shimmered like a storm contained in human form.
"No more talking," Liam said. "You die today."
Velgor's smile deepened.
"Then let the altar be fed."
---
GOD SYSTEM – STATUS
Level: 10
Faith Points (FP): 17
Followers: 42
Angels: 2 (Kaelion, Rennan)
Demons: 0
STATS:
• Strength: 18
• Speed: 19
• Endurance: 18
• Divine Power: 32
• Willpower: 22
• Charisma: 17
• Perception: 14
PASSIVE: Divine Sanctuary – Allies within 15 meters gain minor healing and resistance to fear and charm.
---
The cultists knelt in silence behind Velgor. Not a breath. Not a twitch. As if frozen in worship.
Then he raised one hand.
Blood erupted from every cultist's body in unison—drawn upward into a massive crimson vortex that hovered above him like a second sun.
Their bodies fell, lifeless, as the blood forged itself into a living construct—a Demon Avatar—fused with Velgor's own soul.
---
System Alert: Demon Avatar (Ritual-Fused) Detected
• Class: Bloodlord
• Attributes enhanced by mass sacrifice
• Immune to low-tier divine spells
• Weakness: Core sigil at sternum (targetable)
---
"Go!" Liam shouted.
Kaelion launched first, streaking through the air with flaming wings. He collided with the Bloodlord in a clash of fire and gore, sword biting deep into its shoulder. The demon screeched, its skin already trying to regenerate.
Rennan unleashed a barrage of holy glyphs, chaining the creature's limbs.
Elira fired runed arrows, one after another—each one aimed for the sigil.
But Velgor's laugh echoed louder than the thunder of combat.
"You think this is my end? I am the will of thirst. I am Eternal Suffering!"
He thrust both hands forward—and the blood vortex exploded outward.
Chains of blood lashed in every direction.
---
Liam conjured a divine shield, intercepting one that would have impaled Elira. Another chain wrapped around Kaelion's leg and slammed him into a pillar, cracking the stone.
"I'll sever your tongue before I kill you," Velgor snarled. "So the gods you beg to never hear your screams."
"I don't beg," Liam growled.
"I am the god."
---
Liam activated Divine Shatter—an ability he'd held back until now.
System Ability: Divine Shatter
Cost: 4 FP
Effect: Breaks through magical defenses and disrupts ongoing rituals in a 15-meter radius.
Golden light ruptured from his staff, crashing into the demon avatar.
The vortex above Velgor's head twisted—then collapsed.
Velgor staggered as blood rained from the ceiling, now inert. The demon form shrieked, destabilizing. Flesh peeled. Bones cracked.
Kaelion rose from the rubble, wings blazing, and struck the demon across its chest—right through the sigil.
It exploded in a wave of golden fire.
Velgor was thrown across the hall, landing in a broken heap at the foot of the altar.
---
System Notification:
Boss Defeated – High Cultist Velgor
+10 FP
+5 Followers (witnessed divine triumph)
System Level Up – Level 11 Achieved
New Ability Unlocked: Angel Ascension (Active)
---
CURRENT STATUS
Faith Points: 23
Followers: 47
Level: 11
New Ability: Angel Ascension (Cost: 10 FP)
• Promote a follower to angel status.
• Requires full loyalty and divine favor.
• Angel gains a unique divine form and ability based on their nature.
---
Velgor coughed blood. "You… don't even know what you're becoming."
Liam walked toward him slowly, his staff lighting the blood-soaked chamber.
"I know exactly what I'm becoming."
He raised his staff.
"No redemption," Velgor rasped. "Only the Thirst…"
Liam brought the staff down.
A flash of light. A howl swallowed by silence.
Velgor was no more.
---
Later, as the temple burned behind them, Liam stood at its peak. The city of Skeldmar sprawled beneath him, its people watching with wide, frightened eyes.
He raised his hand—and unleashed his divine voice across the city.
"I am Liam, Chosen of the God System. Skeldmar is free. The cult is broken. The blood has been answered. Your fear is no longer owed to demons."
His voice hardened.
"It belongs to me now."
---
That night, the city whispered his name.
The people who had suffered under Velgor's rule offered prayers—some out of gratitude, others out of fear.
The System drank both.
---
System Notification:
+20 Followers
+5 FP
+1 Potential Angel Candidate (Elira)
---
Elira sat alone near the ruins of the outer temple, gaze distant.
Liam approached and sat beside her. "You fought well."
"I fight because I have to," she said. "Not because I believe in gods."
"But you still follow me."
She didn't answer.
He opened his System silently and hovered over the Angel Ascension option beside her name.
But he didn't press it.
Not yet.
---
Later, the spirit returned.
"You've begun to shape your myth," she said, her eyes glowing like distant stars. "But myths demand sacrifices."
Liam looked out over the sleeping city.
"I'll give them what I never had," he said. "A god who answers."
"But who will answer for you, Liam?"
He didn't reply.
---
COMMANDMENTS – UPDATED:
> 1. Vengeance for the innocent is sacred.
2. Betrayal will be met with ruin.
3. All faith given will be returned in flame.
4. Mercy is reserved for the faithful. The unrepentant shall burn.
5. The godless may live, but never rule.
---
As the dawn broke over Skeldmar, the first sunrise in decades bathed the city in gold.
Liam stood at the altar, watching the light wash over ash and ruin.
His grip on the staff tightened.
This was only the beginning.
There were more cults. More cities.
More gods to silence.
[End of Chapter 15]