Chapter 800: Pursuit

“No! How is this possible—the grudges?”

The black snake screamed in agony, his face filled with disbelief.

Behind him, many high-ranking members of the Ouroboros cult were equally terrified. They watched helplessly as numerous spirits emerged around them. These spirits had blank expressions, but their eyes held a single emotion—intense hatred and a bloodthirsty desire.

“No… please…”

The black snake watched helplessly as a girl’s vengeful spirit brushed against his hand. Immediately, his entire palm began to rot.

“You actually thought this method of upgrading and purifying your bloodline had no consequences?” Wu Ming sneered. “Even though you had the giant snake devour these poor souls, their grudges would still cling to you, hiding within your bloodline. Even if I didn’t trigger them, eventually, at a crucial moment, they would surface on their own, letting you experience true terror…”

In reality, this method was actually quite safe.

After all, the bloodline of Ouroboros was powerful enough to suppress any vengeful spirit. Minor grudges were even less of a concern.

However, they encountered a bloodline superior to theirs, one that directly suppressed the power of the Ouroboros lineage. Without the suppression of the bloodline, the grudges, previously harmless, erupted violently. They became soul-hunting and life-threatening, more terrifying than any curse, because they originated from these half-serpent beings themselves, deeply entangled with their bloodline.

“No… don’t come near me…”

How could one defend against one’s own attacks, one’s own curses?

At this moment, the black snake was completely helpless. He could only watch as these vengeful spirits advanced, mouths wide open, revealing rows of white teeth, devouring his torso bite by bite.

It was the same for the other high-ranking members of Ouroboros behind him. Only a few at the edges, due to their lower status and lack of participation in the higher rituals, were fortunate enough to survive, although their injuries were still horrifying.

“Master?!”

Chris looked astonished.

She knew her master had plans to recruit the Ouroboros organization, but now, nearly all the upper echelons had been wiped out.

“These scum and trash are not worthy of being my subordinates!” Wu Ming said indifferently. “This organization has already decayed and needs a thorough cleansing! Even if everything is destroyed, I can rebuild the entire structure with one hand.”

“Hehe! Is this the magnanimity of the master?”

Chris’s eyes sparkled with admiration and fanaticism. “It’s truly intoxicating…”

“Alright, this isn’t the time for such talk…”

Wu Ming frowned. “Gather up whoever is still alive here and deal with them.”

“Wait! Master, I’m useful!”

Obviously terrified by the word “deal,” a young man with golden hair immediately crawled forward, prostrating himself at Wu Ming’s feet.

His previously handsome face was now pockmarked and scarred, a result of the previous curses of grudge. This indicated he also had a certain amount of guilt, although much less than his uncles. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have survived this long.

“Oh?”

Wu Ming looked down at him. “State your reason!”

“Master, even though you are so great that you transcend the world, you still need earthly agents, right? We, the Ouroboros Ring, can be your loyal dogs. And there’s also this Black Forest Castle, along with the resources accumulated by a certain count. I am willing to offer them all to you!”

“Oh?”

This fellow was indeed clever. Wu Ming glanced at Chris beside him.

“That’s right, Master…” Although Chris disliked the man, she dared not lie in front of Wu Ming. “He’s the black snake’s nephew, quite close in blood relation. At least, after the black snake and his son are dead, the next in line for succession would be him…”

Chris licked her lips. “Of course, if we kill him too, maybe I could become the Countess of the Black Forest!”

“No, you can’t!”

The young man immediately shouted. “You don’t have proof of noble status! Those old stubborn nobles in the kingdom will never recognize a bastard daughter… But I’m different. My identity has long been confirmed. And I can prove that the count’s death was merely an accident!”

To survive, it was clear he was ready to betray anything.

“Very well!”

Wu Ming pondered for a moment, then nodded. “As a reward for offering your loyalty, you shall receive it!”

With a slight wave of his hand, a layer of nectar descended, directly entering the young man’s face, quickly healing the sores and rot.

“What is your name?”

Wu Ming asked calmly, looking at the young man filled with surprise and joy.

“O great lord…”

The young man immediately knelt with the utmost reverence. “Your loyal follower, Adex, is ready to serve you at any time!”

“Such power, not even a god’s avatar could achieve this!”

Witnessing this scene, the members of the Ouroboros Ring were completely shattered.

All the surviving members prostrated themselves before Wu Ming with utmost sincerity, begging for his forgiveness.

“Your sins are not yet deserving of death…”

Wu Ming waved his hand again, and redemptive rain fell, causing the remaining members of the Ouroboros Ring to be overwhelmed with gratitude and immediately swear their loyalty.

“Do not believe in oaths; they are the most false things in the world…”

As for this, Wu Ming merely smirked.

The reason he spared these people was that he still needed to leave a framework for the Ouroboros Ring, otherwise, he would be overwhelmed by the countless affairs that would follow.

Moreover, there were still witnesses needed regarding the death of Count Black Snake and the succession of the title.

…

Half a month later, within Black Forest Castle.

The dark clouds in the sky had dissipated, and the long-missed sunlight shone down, making everyone in the castle feel as if they had been reborn.

“This gloom has finally passed…”

Many guards and maids could not help but sigh in relief as they passed through the castle corridors.

Previously, their count was not a man of good temper or mercy. Almost every month, some maids who had angered him would mysteriously disappear.

Even regarding his subjects, the lord showed indifference. After all, the Black Forest’s produce was quite meager, far less profitable than what the Ouroboros organization brought.

A noble who ruled his territory solely with harsh punishments would not be popular.

When the people of the entire territory heard that their lord had unfortunately passed away and ascended to the gods, their first reaction was not grief but relief.

As for how the count died? Did it concern them?

Other nobles and high-ranking officials within the territory, along with royal envoys, did not raise any objections due to the testimony of Adex and his relatives and confidants.

Of course, there were also some clever individuals who suspected the count’s death was abnormal, but they only considered it as internal family power struggles. They never imagined there were so many twists involved. After Adex visited them one by one and offered some benefits, they chose to remain silent.

“Even in a Western world where gods preside and civilization is highly developed, the shadows under the sun cannot be avoided…”

Wu Ming sat in the former count’s study, a pot of mint tea in front of him, and a book open in his hand.

“Master, everything has been taken care of. There won’t be any problems!”

The door opened, and Chris, dressed as a maid, walked in with a charming smile. “With the cooperation of other members, Adex has basically secured the position of count. He just needs to go to the capital once, and the procedures will be completely legal.”

“Good!”

Wu Ming put down the register.

What he was reading was not an ordinary book but the internal member records of the Ouroboros Ring.

It must be said that these families, after such a long accumulation by a great being, indeed had a deep foundation. There was even a secret intelligence network spread across the entire Western continent, with a baron as a spy even in Evansport.

“It’s just that the high-level forces were completely swept away by me, which is somewhat troublesome…”

If the black snake were still alive, with the strength of him and the other high-level members, the Ouroboros would dare to confront any god’s church—of course, assuming the god himself didn’t intervene.

However, Wu Ming did not feel particularly regretful about killing the black snake.

On one hand, the fellow deserved his fate. On the other hand, having been the top leader for so long, his prestige was too high, making it easy to sideline the agent Wu Ming had cultivated.

“What about the ordinary members now?”

Wu Ming asked casually.

“They’re a bit panicked, but they have no way out!”

Chris expressed her meaning steadily. “As long as the master displays a power even more terrifying than that false god, I guarantee they will surrender to you…”

“Hmm, Ouroboros… this is indeed a problem!”

A flash of light appeared in Wu Ming’s hand, and a thunder pill emerged, within which a black mist faintly swirled.

In fact, after seizing the will of this incarnation, he had been researching its mysteries. Now, he had finally made some progress.

“Firstly, one can confirm this: the entity controlling the Ouroboros Ring and demanding blood sacrifices is indeed closely related to the Infinite Snake, perhaps even one of its incarnations, of course, before its demise…”

The Infinite Snake that had previously schemed against Wu Ming was its true body, which had taken an unknown amount of time to revive after its original body perished.

The Infinite Snake here was merely a pure incarnation.

“It should have been an incarnation separated before its original body’s demise. Due to damaged imprints, it was also severely injured. However, it was fortunate enough not to perish directly…”

A gleam of light appeared in Wu Ming’s eyes. “At this moment, the original body of this incarnation should be hiding in some semi-dimensional plane attached to the main world, continuously repairing itself by instinct…”

Without a doubt, Wu Ming was determined to completely eliminate the Infinite Snake.