Death Game: Starting as a Trickster, Pretending to Be a God

Chapter 825: The Book of Hell

Although everything was relatively controllable under the circumstances...

Lin Yu had to admit...

This [dungeon] was really a tough nut to crack.

He had come dangerously close to shattering the carefully crafted expert persona he had built.

If he had actually passed out... things would have gotten really dangerous.

Although Old Zheng seemed completely immune to the so-called "Death Sleep Technique" the Inquisitor of the Tribunal had unleashed, meaning there was still room to maneuver if he could take over as a substitute fighter... that would still be gambling his life on the operation skills and conscience of a brain.

Who knew if Old Zheng might suddenly grow a rebellious streak?

Besides, even if Old Zheng had been incredibly powerful back in the day, he was now nothing more than a solitary organ.

So...

Staying awake was still the best option.

And just as Lin Yu had anticipated...

Despite talking about a quick resolution, after seeing both Fish and the other person pass out while Lin Yu remained standing, the Inquisitor of the Tribunal made no further moves.

Lin Yu understood perfectly...

He just wanted to negotiate — this was merely a way to increase his leverage.

Sure enough, the Inquisitor of the Tribunal spoke again.

"So... Your Excellency Schreiber, although you have the strength to challenge Monarch-tier beings, and the mark in your soul once proved your achievements, I doubt you'd want to experience a life-or-death battle of this scale when caught off guard, would you?"

"Besides, the 'Original Sin Wraith' is different from ordinary Monarch-tier... It's an upper-tier dark creature recorded in the [Book of Hell], a terrifying existence that was already eradicated, once serving alongside demon gods."

"It's also the ancestor of the snake descendants... What we call snake descendants are merely remnants of the 'Original Sin Wraith's' bloodline."

Lin Yu didn't answer the Inquisitor's question directly. Instead, he countered.

"What's your purpose in doing this?"

"As the Inquisitor of the Tribunal in a big city like Lilee, why not just be a proper human and live with a clear conscience? Don't you already have power beyond what you can enjoy?"

"Taking the risk to create such a monster, even transforming yourself into a dark race... What benefit does that bring you?"

Although in the world of Night Valley, even supernaturals and those in power had limited resources they could enjoy...

It was still far better than the common folk — delicacies, fine wine, luxurious residences... these should have been within easy reach for the Inquisitor of the Tribunal.

"Heh heh, Your Excellency Schreiber, those things you mentioned, I grew tired of enjoying them when I was young," the Inquisitor of the Tribunal shook his head. "The reason I'm building this monster... isn't because I've abandoned the Church or the Tribunal. I'm searching for 'Truth'!"

"This twisted space in Lilee City is extremely unique. I went through great effort to come here just to verify the contents of the [Book of Hell]... You haven't personally read the [Book of Hell], so you have no idea what a magnificent work it is! It's a work that points directly to the truth! It reveals the reality of this world!"

Lin Yu listened to the Inquisitor's words, keeping his expression calm while internally furiously interrogating Old Zheng.

"What the hell is this [Book of Hell]?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I know this — in the ancient days of the Abyss, it was said to contain a region called 'Hell,' which was also a relatively independent dimensional structure subordinate to the Abyss."

"In 'Hell' lived the most ferocious and powerful and unimaginable dark creatures in the Abyss, a hundred times more intense than those damned snake descendants. Even ordinary demons would have to cover their asses coming out of there."

"Then, that place was blown to pieces by the gods themselves — anyway, for a while, a popular scam in Night Valley involved aging Abyss-produced weapons to pass them off as 'Hell-forged' Divine Artifacts. Things marketed with Hell's name flooded the market, and none of them were authentic — after all, whether that place even existed, or if it was just exaggerated hearsay made up by some demon, nobody has ever verified."

After hearing Old Zheng's quick explanation, Lin Yu had a handle on things and started playing along.

"The [Book of Hell]... What a load of nonsense. Have you been scammed by some weird group?"

Lin Yu sneered dismissively.

Sure enough, the proudly arrogant Inquisitor of the Tribunal immediately grew enraged.

Even though he clearly knew Lin Yu was mostly trying to provoke him intentionally, how could this old man have such good composure?

He looked like someone who had just been told that the "antique" he paid a fortune for was "brand new" by an expert — his whole body burned with fury.

"Your Excellency Schreiber, what do you mean by scam? Look at this 'Original Sin Wraith' — does this look like a scam? You've been in the Abyss so long, what the hell have you been doing?!"

Lin Yu remained calm: "This is indeed impressive, but I don't believe it's all thanks to a single book... You're a genius, and this twisted space is also very unique — that's explanation enough."

The Inquisitor of the Tribunal grew even angrier.

"Schreiber, I've transformed myself into the extinct 'Filth Demon' — can't you see that? How did you even get that Golden Cross Medal?"

Lin Yu sneered disdainfully: "Transforming into a dark species isn't anything special. The bloodline folk can increase their numbers through the Embrace, too."

"You goddamn idiot, you're just some back-alley adventurer. The bloodline folk's Embrace and my voluntary transformation are completely different things!" He knelt on one knee, pulled a ceremonial dagger from his chest, and cleanly slashed his own upper arm. Blood spurted out. "Today, I'm going to open your eyes!"

Mana manipulated the blood to automatically coagulate on the ground into a small magic circle. Then the Inquisitor of the Tribunal chanted in a low voice.

The already dense Abyssal aura became even more pronounced. The blood on the ground ignited with a phosphorescent blue-green flame, emitting crackling sounds.

Then, the Inquisitor of the Tribunal placed some bones and crystals onto it. The eight-pointed star burning within the magic circle began to slowly rotate.

Then...

"Whoosh!"

The magic circle opened some kind of passageway. Bloodlight surged up from the ground, and within the light, flowing, eerie luminescence seemed to contain movement.

Gazing closely at the bloodlight, one could almost see the reflection of a "burning world" within it, containing outlines of rocks and buildings, but nothing clear.

And right in the center of this bloodlight...

A heavy book with a dark red cover emerged.

"Do you see it now, Schreiber? This is the [Book of Hell] — the supreme scripture filled with truth, recorded with absolute reality!"

"Those false gods only received a bit of guidance from the [Book of Hell], and they ascended to divine thrones... And now, I possess it too!"

The old man shouted fanatically, looking at Lin Yu: "I can forgive your earlier disrespect... But now that you've truly seen this book, you should understand — everything I've done is correct!"