Deep in the Living
Chapter 285 - 273: The Special Envoy

Chapter 285: Chapter 273: The Special Envoy

The "day and night" in True Hell are entirely different from the Human World; there is no sun or moon here, and the world’s hues relate solely to the pervasive ash smoke in the sky.

The birth of the powerful,

Wars and deaths,

The spread of plagues,

Activities of the world itself,

And the release of certain powerful spells all lead to copious ash rising,

The ash generated around the world gradually obscures the sky, causing True Hell to grow dimmer until it is engulfed in pitch blackness.

When the darkness reaches a certain level,

A special world mechanism activates.

The "Special Force - Hunger" then faces the sky together, devouring the ashes. Visible dark ashes are swept across to the other end of the world, and light reappears.

This cycle of ashes thus forms the day and night of Hell; coincidentally, the cycle happens to be 24 hours, which is also considered as [one day] in True Hell.

Moreover, Luo Di discovered that although demons come in various forms, their nascent bodies and the majority of Spine beings have a bodily structure similar to humans.’

Head, torso, and limbs.

Upon reflection, perhaps it’s this similarity that allows "human" Luo Di to connect here and realize stable Projection.

After all, the basic spine is structurally identical.

"World similarity" is an important point.

If it were a deformed and indescribable world, Luo Di himself would be unlikely to receive attention and welcome.

Crow Colt carried Luo Di through the vast thorny forest, across the Bellock Mountains which mark the territorial boundary of Spine beings, and thus arrived at the largest plain area in True Hell.

[Burning Earth]

The majority of demons without allegiance to any power, new-borns, all live in this area, and a large number of them will never be recruited by any power until the moment of death.

Crossing this area takes at least three days.

Ash fills the sky, reaching a maximum concentration; True Hell’s sky is completely obscured, and the night of Hell officially arrives.

Crow Colt slows down as it enters a small town established upon the barren land.

Like most demons, they do not possess night vision. As night falls, each household begins to light stoves, and building walls light up with lava stripes for illumination.

There’s another source of light that Luo Di is more familiar with, almost identical to that in the Human World.

[Candle]

Some high-end shops at their entrances light costly candles made from Corpse Wax, refined from demon bodies.

The better the body chosen, the higher the precision and craftsmanship, the more stable the eventual candle produced, and the aroma generated from its burning possesses a unique fragrance, which greatly aids in attracting customers.

Inhaling a faintly relaxing scent, Luo Di rides his mount to the entrance of an inn.

There was no need to flaunt his messenger status; the mere presence of Crow Colt was enough to deter the demons here. Not to mention the vivid, wing-structured spine necklace hanging from Luo Di’s neck.

After riding for an entire day, Luo Di gained a deeper understanding of Crow Colt.

As he sat upon the saddle, the entirety of Crow Colt began to disassemble.

Starting from the head, it transformed into a flock of pitch-black crows, cawing as they flew upward, circling above the inn, some even perching on the eaves.

Snap!

With a snap of Luo Di’s fingers and a flash of grey in his eyes,

The commanded flock quickly reassembled.

Mist spread,

And hundreds of crows merged into one that alighted on Luo Di’s shoulder, accompanying him into the Hell Inn. Unlike ordinary crows, beneath every feather of this crow, there was an eyeball.

Luo Di, without being overly showy or wasting time, chose a quiet room towards the top floor corner, and after a quick night’s rest, set off again.

Despite his low profile, news of the messenger’s visit still spread rapidly in the town.

Many demons heard and rushed over, staying up all night at the doors of the inn, hoping to showcase their talents... However, they couldn’t guess the messenger’s allegiance based on his appearance, which was just too strange.

Until the next morning,

Just as they saw the messenger about to leave the inn,

Little did they know, as soon as that dark shoe stepped out, a large flock of crows also appeared simultaneously outside the door, coalescing into Crow Colt and emitting an aura of fear.

A streak of grey flashed before their eyes.

This was an aura they had never felt before, evoking a psychological level of fear, instinctively clearing a path for him.

By the time they realized what happened, Crow Colt had already transformed into a shadow and disappeared, the messenger long gone.

Luo Di continued his travels by day, resting at night, staying at various different towns in succession.

During this time, a rumor started to proliferate across the Burning Earth Plain,

A Fear Knight capable of commanding a Crow Colt will randomly visit a certain small town, taking away those demons with unique talents. A new Hell Force is on the rise.

...

Day five of the journey.

A mountain range entirely different from the previous ones appeared in view, with the peaks glistening with a metallic sheen.

"Mr. Di, once we cross the [Painful Mountain Range] ahead, we’ll leave the Burning Earth Plain. In less than a day, we should reach the [Sinners’ Great Bridge].

This mountain range serves as a boundary line; once we cross it, there are basically no more towns—we may not be able to rest midway."

"Once we get to the Spine’s side, we can rest~ Not resting for one day is no big deal, the Crow Colt still has plenty of rotten flesh reserves."

"Alright."

Every time the Crow Colt rests in town, it consumes a huge amount of rotten flesh, causing even its physique to increase significantly – the energy stored could support a 72-hour-long rush.

Over these past few days, Luo Di has grown increasingly fond of the Crow Colt, to the point that he even gave up on the idea of applying for a driver’s license after getting out of jail.

He’s already considering how to bring this thing back to the human world.

...

The so-called Painful Mountain Range lived up to its name, with various metallic-colored grasses strewn across the mountains. Accidentally stepping on them would bring piercing pain, and there was even a risk of metallic parasitism, prolonging the agony.

Fortunately, Luo Di had the Crow Colt acclimatize to this pain ahead of time, so even if wires penetrated the horse’s hooves, Luo Di could help quickly remove them.

Upon reaching the mountain top.

With fewer ashes obscuring the sky, Luo Di activated the camera effect of his clothing and adjusted it to the maximum zoom.

Before him lay an endless plain, only with numerous ground surfaces reflecting metallic shine.

Looking in the direction that Spine had reminded him of, Luo Di could faintly see the very tiny outline of a bridge—a day’s journey was indeed required to reach it.

"Hm? It seems like quite a few people are heading towards the bridge... on foot?"

Luo Di observed many demons traversing the mountains on foot, heading towards the bridge, and these demons were relatively lean.

"Painful pilgrimage~ These demons are genetically endowed with a certain tolerance to pain, and their innate reverence for the strong makes them unwilling to spend a lifetime within a small town.

They’re not good at anything else and can only pursue pain. Even though this is the most difficult path, obtaining a [Hell Item] is not any less challenging than some simpler methods of Demon Ascension.

To join Spine, one must walk over the Painful Mountain Range to the Sinner’s Great Bridge. In the end, only a very few demons can persist and be selected by Spine.

Of course, as long as you can join Spine, you’re definitely one of the elites. Even if you can’t obtain the [Letter], you’re at least a formidable being, able to enjoy the exclusive resources of Spine."

"To go on foot... It seems my luck is a bit too good."

Luo Di’s way of obtaining the Spine’s Hell Item was almost like cheating, directly gifted by Mr. Hook.

Without giving it further thought, the Crow Colt galloped, rapidly approaching the direction of the bridge.

Along the way, they occasionally encountered Painful Pilgrims. Most were hunchbacked with gray, even pale skin, and walked with canes.

The common trait was their [Backpack]—enormous bags hanging behind them, stuffed with food to provide all the sustenance needed for the pilgrimage.

Time passes.

Night falls once again, and a vast amount of ashes gather in the sky.

Luo Di would typically be lying on a big bed in the Hell Inn by this time, gnawing on steak while drinking Hell’s own quick-rehydrating brew.

Now, for the first time, he is traveling at night.

Just as Luo Di was preparing to watch how Hunger deals with the ash filling the sky.

An ash particle sharp like a spike suddenly struck his face. Due to the speed of the Crow Colt, this particle actually pierced Luo Di’s cheek, drawing blood.

"Hm?!"

Just as Luo Di was about to ask what was happening, the Spine hanging around his neck began to tremble.

"Mr. Di, danger!

There might be a problem on Hunger’s side, or it could be intentional... In any case, an [Ash Storm] is coming. This is not uncommon in Hell, nor common.

Storms occurring in these plains are endowed with Spine’s metallic properties, granting the ashes great lethality—considered one of the most deadly storms in True Hell.

There might be just one such event in half a month, I didn’t expect we’d actually encounter it~ Without the shelter of a town’s buildings, our flesh will be completely torn to shreds!

We have about ten minutes before the storm fully forms.

Mr. Di, start digging a hole quickly! Then hide underneath and wait for the storm to pass!"

In the face of Spine’s warning, Luo Di did not slow down but instead clamped his legs tighter around the Crow Colt, continuing to dash forward, even though both his and the Crow Colt’s bodies had already sustained many punctures and scrapes.

"Mr. Di!"

Just as Spine called out the name again, Luo Di raised his hand pointing ahead.

No less than a kilometer away, there was an illuminated building. Large characters reflecting from the scorched walls shone brightly

[Accommodation].