The next moment after the girl cried out, the Magic Array, woven from her blood, suddenly expanded, enveloping an entire vast area around and even disrupting the miasma at the center of the sanctuary.
Immediately afterward, at the center of the Magic Array, accompanied by an unreal shattering sound, as if someone had driven a giant nail through space, a pitch-black hole, as large as a city gate, suddenly appeared.
It was an unstable space portal, established through the summoning ceremony with immense Magic Power.
As the teleportation portal opened, the miasma, which had floated for long years beneath the Divine Throne, found a vent and rushed toward the massive black hole in the sky.
The once-silent sanctuary was instantly filled with the sound of the gale; the surging miasma spiraled around the hollow, forming a massive vortex with only the eye of the storm remaining eerily calm.
An excess of magic element and concentrated curse power clashed and collided in the air, blooming with a cold and dark radiance like the electric element in thunderclouds, illuminating the underground temple shrouded in darkness for a millennium.
The Hero lifted her head, watching the scene without a move, her expression showing a hint of shock.
Magic could even accomplish something ...
The Night Tiger, who had been intimidating the surrounding Magic Creatures beside her, had vanished without her noticing, while Hunting Knowledge had melted into the darkness, becoming silent.
The snake-shaped hairpin on her head no longer shone, now appearing as an ordinary ornament.
At this moment, the girl seemed alone, standing forlornly under the whirlpool of curses, gazing up at the godlike majestic presence descending.
The next moment, a sight[] came down from the black cavern.
From the black void, countless cold Insect Eyes opened, the compound eyes casting emotionless gazes that seemed to pierce the Hero from all directions.
With a strong Perception, the Hero became acutely aware of the gazes and felt the hairs on her body stand on end.
Though the presence before her was not as menacing as the Corrupted Phoenix, it was still formidable for her, now without the Ancient Hero by her side.
[The Hero activated the skill, "Innocence (Performance)"]
2d102+30=d102(61)+d102(72)+30=163
The Hero instinctively gathered her spirit, corrected her expression, and revealed a hint of anxiety and tension amid excitement.
This expression was not at all feigned; she was both exhilarated by the success of the summoning and uneasy about the strong Magic Power...
And felt nervous about the impending hunt.
[The Devouring Curse Demon's Alertness (Perception, the difference between the summoning ceremony and response -64)]
The layered piercing gazes seemed quite satisfied with the Hero's expression, mostly moving away from her body and dispersing to all directions.
The sight pierced through the darkness, scanning the entire underground space, but naturally, it found nothing.
After a few breaths of silence, the whirlpool in the air slowly calmed, and then a colossal creature slowly crawled out from the pitch-black cavern.
It was an enormous gray-black Demon Scorpion, its many feet firmly planted in the dense miasma, climbing down from the void leisurely, allowing the Hero to witness its full form.
Its hideous shell reflected a heavy metallic sheen, and its pincers were as massive as a hill; in comparison, the Night Tiger, having resumed its original form, seemed like a mere kitten, leaving no doubt that this giant scorpion possessed strength enough to split mountains.
Meanwhile, the stinger at the Demon Scorpion's tail seemed to be formed by countless fine scorpion tails entwined together, interweaving like quicksand, with each stinger uniformly extending outward; the scorpion tail ended with a spear-like stinger, thick and sharp as a dragon spear, intimidating all who gazed upon it.
However, the most terrifying feature was its entire body covered with Dark Green Insect Eyes, these crystal-like visual organs had no pupils, only a dark red light point in the center, emitting a sinister, grim gleam.
Under the Hero's thrilled yet grave gaze, the monstrous giant scorpion finally detached from the abyss, appearing within the sanctuary.
In an instant, the surrounding miasma grew several times denser than before.
This was a Witch Demon Scorpion that had grown almost to its limit, a Demon King Level Devouring Curse Demon!
[Devouring Curse Demon King LV63]
Destructive Claw LV10: A vent of hatred and anger. Melee attacks accompany binding effects, Armor Break +60.
Demon Eyes LV10: A gaze of jealousy and resentment. Applies curse effect to the enemy being stared at, additional curse damage D10*Perception/10.
Reverse Curse Armor LV9: Casts spell with Immobility, curse forms. Agility is first deducted when taking damage, Armor +54.
Curse Body: A magical body condensed by myriad curses. Performs a D Constitution counteraction check against contacted enemies, failed results add a special curse.
Curse Poison: A toxic curse that has corroded countless beings. Stacks curse, for every 2 layers of curse, the object gains 0.5 vulnerability status.
Hatred Chain: Never kills, hatred knows no end. Targets locked by Demon Eyes gain group attack D2 and inflict vulnerability status on the enemy based on deducted Constitution of self.
[Devouring Curse Demon's extreme failure in alertness, with the difference exceeding 150, what happened next?]
1. You've been chosen as the new Shamaness
2. You possess a savory curse
3. One drop of blood, a hundred Goblins
4. Use your body to spread the curse to Goblins (direct attack)♛
9. Corrupted Phoenix, so you're still alive
10. Critical Success/Extreme Failure
The Hero gazed at the Devouring Curse Demon that had completely exited the space portal, and before she could decide on her next move, the light points within the countless Insect Eyes began to turn.