The reason Zaphkiel got the moniker ‘Void Intermediary’ was very simple—he had already managed to intertwine his soul and spirit to the void. The reformed body beneath his cloak was the result and proof of his entwinement with the void.
At this moment, his wisps of consciousness that flowed within the void had now extended into the lair of the Broodmother.
Zaphkiel wondered as he surveyed the deserted nest.
With a frown, he allowed the void to extend and sweep through every nook and cranny of the lair. However, other than cracked ancient stone walls, numerous strands of spider silk, and several crushed dark elves, there really was nothing else of note in the collapsed cave.
The entire place was practically as silent as a ghost town.
However, Zaphkiel was absolutely certain that this was the lair in which Sandalphon had hibernated within for thousands of years. As a Supreme-rank, he would never make a simple mistake such as ‘entering the wrong door.’
In fact, not too long ago, Sandalphon’s shadow spiders had even delivered Michael’s orders to him. This was definite proof of her awakening.
Since she’s already awakened, she couldn’t possibly have just—Well, she did disappear into thin air.
Could she have personally gone to inform the others? But is it really necessary to mobilize everyone herself when it’s just such a simple situation?
Zaphkiel inspected his surroundings again, this time discovering an outlier in the cave.
There were strange markings where the stone walls and the ground connected. These closely resembled scratch marks from someone attempting to cling on and fight for their life.
If these marks were really made by fingers, without a doubt, Sandalphon was the owning living being that fit the bill.
In other words, owing to unknown circumstances, the person that had struggled viciously at this spot was indeed Sandalphon.
Could she have encountered an enemy?
It was only natural for Zaphkiel to come to this conclusion, and his face turned sullen.
Encountering an enemy at such a time was way too much of a coincidence.
He was instantly reminded of the common enemy they were going to face—the existence known as Lin Jie, the owner of that nameless bookstore.
Did he lay a hand on Sandalphon?
Zaphkiel considered the possibility, albeit with a sliver of doubt and bewilderment.
Because theoretically, the void which had enveloped every corner of the world should’ve alerted him about this battle which had taken place, yet he hadn’t had an inkling.
All along, Zaphkiel only had absolute trust in the information that the void held. However, this incident didn’t just make him uncertain; it also resulted in him having more questions than answers.
It had been the same previously when Gabriel died without a trace. How could a Supreme-rank just disappear like that as if practically vaporized?
Could this really be another Supreme-rank making a move? I don’t believe it.
Regardless, perhaps the bookstore owner is just putting up a front. Maybe, behind his facade is a greater force at play.
At this point, or rather, when the term ‘Primordial Witch’ popped up in Zaphkiel’s mind, the previously lull void had an abrupt reaction.
A deluge of information flooded out.
The Moon, a church, different girls, covenants, a silver ring, and lastly, a woman in a black veil that blurred her facial features.
The void seemed to be boiling as it bombarded Zaphkiel with an influx of information, causing his body beneath his black robes to either twist violently or pulsate before straight up bursting out smooth white tentacles.
Zaphkiel’s tentacles started to wriggle rabidly. Only after some time did he sigh as the intangible ripples started to calm as the void once more regained its serenity.
He felt a little overwhelmed but shook his head and calmed himself down.
It appeared that Walpurgis, the witch that controlled the night, had finally awoken within her dream and had once more returned to this world.
If so, the newly formed religion, Sun’s Faith, which all our Path of the Flaming Sword probing has proven fruitless, must have been Walpurgis’ doing. It all makes sense now!
No wonder that bookstore owner is so powerful; it’s because the one backing him is the very same Walpurgis that once protected mankind.
Zaphkiel came to this sudden realization.
That meant that the one behind all of it could very well have been Walpurgis. It was no wonder Zaphkiel hadn’t noticed anything at all. This was certainly possible with the power of a Primordial Witch.
The more Zaphkiel observed the strange gully-like markings, the more he felt that something was off.
These lines weren’t pointing towards the surface. Instead, they traveled along beneath.
Yet somehow, at some point, the trail disappeared midway. Thus, it was as if someone had reached out and pulled down from underneath. From this, the situation on the surface now made sense. Walpurgis must’ve activated her own Domain of Law and pulled Sandalphon into it, perhaps even killing her in the process, but Zaphkiel wasn’t too sure about that.
He couldn’t help but inquire into the void, “Is Sandalphon dead?”
Though Zaphkiel’s spirit was intertwined with the void, ultimately, he still wasn’t fully accepted by it. Thus, he wasn’t able to fully share information with the void and had to take the initiative for more extensive details.
That was the answer given by the void.
Zaphkiel could only leave his mouth agape, distraught written all over his face. He had never gotten an answer from the void before.
This was a definite question, not some open-ended query. There were only two possible answers—dead or alive.
Yet the void said it was ‘unclear.’
Unless Sandalphon was trapped in some sort of gas chamber, in a state between life and death?
Perhaps like before, Walpurgis had hidden the information before the void could pick it up.
This was the only thing that Zaphkiel could think of.
He followed up, “Where is Sandalphon now?”
The void only greeted him with silence.
“What are the origins of the bookstore owner?”
“Will our joint action be successful?”
None of the three questions could be answered!
Zaphkiel was at a loss.
Staring at the sullen void before him, he asked one final question, unsure if the question was meant for him or someone else, “Will this operation be worth it?”
The void suddenly reacted, its chaos like a complex mixture of dark shadows. However, the void by itself had an indeterminate color, hence such a minor change wasn’t very noticeable.
The message was sent to him:
There’s danger, but this was also the opportunity for him to get closer to God.
Realizing the void was actually not defective, Zaphkiel heaved a sigh of relief. “Since we’ll be resuming our plans, I can only wait till we meet to inform them of Sandalphon’s death in order to prepare for potential danger.”
He recalled the three unanswered questions again and lamented, “Primordial Witches are really tricky to deal with…”