God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

'Damn it!' Cain gritted his teeth as blood and pieces of minced organs flowed out of his parted lips.

Standing a few meters away was Stingè. He held onto a pitch-black spear. His wings were also flapping gently behind him as he hesitated above the ground.

An evil, wicked smile hung on his lips as he stared down at Cain and Hunter...

"Is this all you both could pull off? I'm quite disappointed."

What made Stingè so dangerous, was not only the fact that he was an entire Tier and an extra fifty-plus levels above them, but also that his skillset was one of the most deadly Cain had witnessed, or he thought he would witness in his lifetime.

This Demon was truly special...

The only other creature Cain had come across with an affinity with the spatial element was the {Devil-Eyed White Primate}. However, that beast's affinity was simply pitiful when compared to Stingè's.

'It's like he has the power to control the world itself.'

Cain knew this wasn't a trait every Tier 1 creature possessed. After all, he had briefly clashed with the {Alabaster Leviathan} once, and although he couldn't even scratch it, he still didn't get the same ominous feeling from it, despite it being such a large creature.

'The spatial element isn't immensely dangerous in and of itself. However, the way he uses it makes it seem like its only purpose is to kill.'

They had managed to hold out for this long because Stingè hadn't gotten serious yet. However, the moment he pulled his black spear out, both of them had fallen very quickly.

The black spear also had the very scary ability to nullify the passive restorative ability of {Draconic Transfiguration}. As such, Cain was battling with very serious injuries currently.

Struggling to his feet, he glanced at Hunter who seemed to have lost a lot of blood,

"You okay?" Cain asked.

Hunter groaned, "Couldn't have been better. I've always wanted to get piercings, you know?"

Cain couldn't help but chuckle despite these dire circumstances...

Asharpglint passed through his eyes as he spoke to Hunter through their mental link,

'How much longer?'

Hunter replied immediately, 'Five minutes. But I'm... I'm at my limit. I can't fight anymore.'

Cain nodded, 'You've done well. I'll take it from here.'

Hunter let out a sigh as he allowed his body to give way, allowing himself to collapse to the ground in exhaustion.

Stingè who was watching them had a very interested look on his face,

"Although you both are weak, the fact is that you both managed to last this long against me. Very impressive... You even forced me to use my spear."

When Stingè said that, Cain gritted his teeth as he recalled the destruction of the {Hand of Stingè}.

'I was wrong. That thing had absolutely no sentimental value!'

At the climax of the battle, Stingè had been so excited, he had accidentally poured too much energy into the blade, thereby, shattering it into a thousand pieces.

Weapons like the {Hand of Stingè} were not weapons meant to be used by being above Tier 0. The system always made sure it provided adequate weapons, equipment, and items for the appropriate Tier.

Even if Cain managed to kill a Tier 1 being, he wouldn't be able to use any weapon or equipment that dropped.

However, there were still special cases. Like the {Scale of the Abyssal Flame}...

Stabbing the tip of the blade into the ground, Cain leaned onto the hilt. Staring at Stingè, he couldn't help but make a face,

"You... You didn't seem so strong back on our planet."

Stingè chuckled, "We'll, that is because if I did let loose, the Void rift would have become unstable, and would have collapsed, leaving me stuck in your wretched world."

Cain frowned, 'So that's what that thing is called. A Void rift...'

Cain's face was scrunched up in pain. To be honest, he was curious about a few things. Till now, he didn't know much about Stingè or why he had even come to Urbus.

Seeing the expression on Cain's face, a knowing smile appeared on his,

"Ah... That expression. I've seen it many times without number. Are you curious?"

Cain remained silent...

Nevertheless, Stingè continued unperturbed,

"You must be asking yourself. Why did this Demon come to my world? What is so special about my little world? Why doesn't he capture the men, but only enthralls and spare the women?"

Cain nodded, "I am very curious, actually."

Stingè twirled his spear skillfully, "We'll, you are in luck. My mood has improved significantly, so I'll tell you a few things."

Stabbing the butt of the spear into the ground, Stingè raised a clawed finger,

"One... I came to your world to search for food and warriors."

Cain frowned, 'Food and warriors? What does he mean by that?'

Stingè continued, "You see, this realm is what I'd like to call a Prison Realm. It is a sacred place where weak and powerful creatures are kept imprisoned by the Heavenly Emperor and his retinue.

Some of them are thrown in here because they went against the orders of heaven, some are kept here because they are Devils or associated with the devils, while others are here because they are considered as eyesores."

Cain couldn't help but ask, "Which one are you then?"

Stingè shrugged, "My mother and I were betrayed by my siblings, who defected to one of the minions of the Heavenly Emperor. Avery minor character in the grand scheme of things."

"As such, we were thrown in here as well."

Cain spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva,

"So this place is just a huge prison for those who piss off the wrong people?"

Stingè grinned, "Correct."

Cain frowned suspiciously, "But aren't prisons supposed to be well guarded? How did you find your way to my world then?"

The smile on Stingè's face melted away like snow. In the depths of his eyes lay a maliciously burning flame that could only have been fed by years and years of hatred.

"This prison has been around for eons. Beings as old as time itself are imprisoned here. However, time is unforgiving. Cracks have begun to appear in the prison, and Heaven seems to be too busy to do regular maintenance checks as well."

'I see... So just like the seals that held Lyx and Og-solath, this prison realm is wearing away.'

"Is this place connected to the aether realm in any way?" Cain asked.

Stimgè threw in a weird glance but still answered,

"Yes. Aether leaks into this place very often due to how close it is situated to the Aether Realm. A majority of the creatures here were born due to the interference of Aether. However, there is a very big difference between the creature of this horrid prison and the Aether Realm."

Cain's mind was filled with even more questions now,

'So looks like my theories were correct. This place was created to hold dangerous beings like the Primordial Devils. However, it seems so shabby done.'

If it was left to him, Cain would have kept the Primordial Devils under constant close supervision for all of eternity since he couldn't kill them. There was no way he was letting those universe-level calamities out of his sight...

However, it seemed as though Tian was so arrogant, he had become negligent...

Seeing Cain's contorted expression, Stingè sneered,

"If you think escaping from this place is easy, you have it all wrong. The only reason I could leave this place, was because I am very weak."

Cain's eyebrows shot up, 'You, weak?'

Stingè's expression was as dark as coals as he continued,

"I am too weak. Hence, I am given a certain leave of freedom. However, if my presence, or any prisoner's presence is gone for too long, it could alert the Warden."

Cain couldn't help but mutter, "The... Warden?"

Stingè said nothing but pointed at the gigantic pillar of light that stretched from the ground all the way into the thick clouds in the sky.

"I can only leave for very short durations. I also can't expend a lot of energy when on the other side. If I do, I can be noticed. That wouldn't be pretty at all." Stingè said in a quiet, dark tone.

Then, his tone changed again and he stared at Cain with an ear-to-ear grin,

"Now then... The reason I came to your world... Food and warriors."

Stingè turned to look at the other half of the battlefield that had been separated by a huge canyon.

There, Susan, Jenny, Ignis, Floki, and Galip were probably still fighting for their lives. Although Cain was worried about the girls, there was nothing he could do for now. Luckily for them, the cooldown for Evangeline's {Shadow Gate} would soon be over.

"Where do you think those guys come from?"

Stingè's question made Cain's blood run cold.

"What are you talking about?" Cain asked, his tone dark.

Stingè laughed, "These {Blood Abominations} are created by using ritual magic and alchemy. By altering the constituents of a creature's Ki, you can force a mutation. However, that much isn't enough to turn them into slaves..."

Stingè licked his lips as his eyes turned into crescents,

"First, you'll have to thoroughly break their spirits. The ones who can't handle it would be turned into food for my mother since she can't hunt for herself. The rest would be turned into warriors that are under my command. Once I have you both captured, I'll easily break your minds and turn you into powerful generals in my army. Rest assured, I'll make sure to give you preferential treatment."