Death Knocks on Hell’s Door Chapter 85

Chapter 85 Inner Demon

The battle left both sides gravely wounded. Chief Seraph Lucifiel had rebelled, leading a third of heaven’s angels into the depths of hell. From that moment on, all those fallen angels were erased from the Book of Holy Spirits.

The first line on the first page of the Book of Holy Spirits, where “Lucifiel” had once been written, was now nothing but a blank space.

This great upheaval had all started because of a mortal named Adam. The fact that God drove away Lucifiel for that mortal caused hidden resentment among the angels who remained in heaven.

But Adam did not take Lucifiel’s place nor assume control over heaven. Instead, Michael was promoted to be the new Chief Seraph and inherited all the power that had once belonged to Lucifiel. As for Adam, God placed him in the Garden of Eden, where he lived a carefree but powerless life.

At first, Michael boldly speculated whether God had taken a fancy to the mortal, keeping Adam as one would a favored consort. But before long, God created a woman named Eve and sent her into Eden to be Adam’s wife, making it clear that there was nothing more to his intentions.

Michael was left puzzled. What had been the point of it all? Had it simply been to reclaim Lucifiel’s power?

Lucifiel had indeed wielded great authority, perhaps too much. The angels loved him more than they loved God, toward whom they felt only reverence and awe. But Lucifiel had always been devout in his worship. If God had asked him outright to relinquish his power, Lucifiel would have obeyed without question.

So why had God resorted to such a brutal and humiliating method, forcing Lucifiel to fall?

Michael dared not guess at God’s thoughts. He could only bury himself in his duties.

There was much to be done in the aftermath of the war. Managing all of heaven’s angels left Michael busier than ever.

Angels were divided into nine ranks, from lowest to highest: angel, archangel, principalities, virtues, powers, dominions, thrones, cherubim, and seraphim. The most common angels had only two wings, and for every three ranks they ascended, they gained an additional pair. Only seraphim were granted six wings. A glance at an angel’s wings was enough to determine their status.

Originally, there had been seven seraphim. Now, along with Lucifiel, Belial, Samael, and Beelzebub had also fallen. More than half of heaven’s highest-ranking officials were gone in an instant. Although God had promoted several cherubim to fill the vacancies, they were inexperienced in managing heaven’s affairs, leaving Michael overwhelmed. He was so busy that mistakes became inevitable.

At times like this, he missed Lucifiel more than ever. In the past, Lucifiel had shouldered all the work alone, completing any task perfectly, no matter how large the workload. The rest of them merely assisted him. His efficiency was beyond compare. He had reviewed millions of documents without making a single mistake, not even a typo.

The word “perfection” was created just for him.

Now that Michael had taken over, he realized just how impossible it was to reach Lucifiel’s level. He certainly never could.

No wonder Lucifiel had been so furious when God proposed replacing him with a mere mortal. Michael would have been just as enraged.

The angels who followed Lucifer to hell had all suffered physical damage, their appearances twisted by the corruption of hell. The demonic energy eroded their once-holy spirits, turning them hideous and staining their pristine wings black.

Only Lucifer retained his flawless appearance. Six black wings, capable of covering the sky, unfurled behind him, unbreakable demon horns crowned his head, and red eyes swirled with evil thoughts. His face was left unscathed from his captivating brows and high-bridged nose to his blood-red lips and sculpted jawline. Even demons could not resist the allure of such breathtaking beauty.

All of hell was struck silent at the sight of him. Even the fallen angels were stunned. They had seen Lucifiel’s unparalleled beauty in heaven, but then, he had been gentle and holy, nothing like the dangerous and seductive figure before them now.

A low-ranking demon stared blankly at the black-haired fallen angel for a few seconds before murmuring, “Even God couldn’t bear to destroy His greatest creation.”

In the stunned silence, the whispered remark stood out all the more.

Lucifer cast it a sidelong glance. A wisp of inky black magic flickered at his slender fingertips, and before the demon could so much as scream, it was reduced to ashes.

The fallen angels trembled in unison, snapping out of their daze.

Was this truly the same Lucifiel who had once hesitated to step on an ant?

But the blackened Lucifiel was still undeniably captivating!

“That name is not to be mentioned in hell, except in curses.” Lucifer conjured a throne and leaned back lazily against it. “From this moment on, your faith belongs not to Yahweh, but to me, Lucifer, the Demon King.”

“Your Highness……” The fallen angels hesitated before speaking cautiously. “We will follow you forever.”

Lucifer shook his head lightly and raised a hand. At that moment, the faces of the fallen angels, whose faces were disfigured by demonic energy, were restored to their former perfection.

They exchanged glances in disbelief, their hands reaching up to touch their healed features.

Seated upon his throne, the fallen angel drawled, “Call me Your Majesty.”

He had had enough of being heaven’s regent.

He was the ruler of hell.

For three seconds, the demons remained silent. Then, as one, they fell to their knees and shouted, “Down with Yahweh! Long live the Demon King! Down with Yahweh! Long live the Demon King! Down with Yahweh! Long live the Demon King!”

……

In heaven, God had imposed countless rules upon the angels, demanding their strict adherence.

Chastity, diligence, generosity, humility, gentleness, temperance, and patience — these were the seven virtues God required. The more an angel embodied these qualities, the closer they came to His idea of perfection.

But even angels had disputes, quarrels, pettiness, selfishness, and moments when they didn’t want to work hard. The only one in all of heaven who could achieve these seven virtues to the extreme was Prince Lucifiel, who was regarded as a role model by the angels.

Lucifiel believed that since God had entrusted him with leading the angels, he was duty-bound to set an example and never disappoint God. Even though pride was in his very nature, he had forced himself to maintain humility and gentleness in order to meet God’s standard of perfection.

And now? The seven virtues could go to hell.

There were no rules in hell. Strength alone determined the ruler.

As if in deliberate defiance of God, Lucifer established the seven deadly sins, each the direct antithesis of the seven virtues. He sought out the six demons who best embodied them — Asmodeus for Lust, Belial for Sloth, Mammon for Greed, Samael for Wrath, Beelzebub for Gluttony, and Leviathan for Envy.

As for the greatest sin of all, pride, Lucifer claimed that role for himself.

After all, it was the very sin God had condemned him for.

He might as well make it absolute. Only then would the punishment be justified.

There was no trace left of the former restrained, courteous, and compassionate Lucifiel in the blackened Demon King. He loathed mortals. He loathed God. He was reckless, cynical, and unrestrained. He didn’t act personally, but simply opened the gates of hell, releasing many demons to wreak havoc on the human world, bringing disaster, disease, and death to mortals.

Mortals had no idea that this dreadful Demon King had once been the Chief Seraph Lucifiel. They called him Satan instead.

Lucifer’s response? “Sounds good.”

Far better than that nauseating “Lucifiel.”

Lucifiel, the Morning Star of Dawn.

God had cast that brilliant star down into hell with His own hand. And so, Satan found that the darkness of the abyss suited him far better.

The heaven had flourished for countless years. Under Lucifiel’s governance, it had developed bustling marketplaces, angelic academies, grand libraries, and peaceful residential districts.

Hell, by contrast, had nothing. Only endless darkness, swirling demonic energies, and lowly creatures lurking beneath its barren soil.

Lucifer had no intention of enduring such poverty for even a moment. Upon arriving in hell, he ordered the land to be cleared and palaces to be built.

Samael unfurled a blueprint before Lucifer, who was lounging on his gemstone throne. “Your Majesty, is this the style of palace you had in mind?”

Lucifer lazily lifted his gaze. The moment he saw the simple, sacred structure in the style of heaven, he waved it away without hesitation. “I lived in that kind of wretched building for tens of thousands of years. I’ve been wanting to tear it down.” His tone was dismissive as he leaned back. “Samael, we’ve already fallen. It’s time we learned to enjoy life. It needs to be extravagant, opulent, something fit for grand balls, not for prayer gatherings. Understand?”

Samael nodded. “Understood!”

Without delay, he set to work.

Under Lucifer’s commands, hell soon began to transform. Magnificent palaces rose from barren ground, and one by one, various buildings were completed. Back in heaven, Lucifiel invested heavily in building schools and libraries, ensuring little angels spent their days studying rather than playing. Idleness was considered a sin, after all. But here in hell, Lucifer made entertainment his top priority. Bars and casinos opened their doors, and even a playground for little demons was a must. In short, this place was all about fun.

After being a workaholic for tens of thousands of years, Lucifer had completely abandoned responsibility, indulging in a life of pleasure. Although he was the Demon King, there was hardly any actual governance required of him. His days were filled with nothing but feasting and revelry. Compared to heaven, hell felt far more like paradise.

“If I’d known, I would’ve fallen sooner……” Lucifer murmured, stretching out on a luxuriously soft bed, his head resting against his enormous black wings. His relaxed posture exuded an effortless air of decadence.

He closed his eyes, and his consciousness drifted into his sea of awareness.

There, only endless darkness awaited him.

Once, Chief Seraph Lucifiel’s sea of awareness had been filled with light. But after his fall, darkness took over.

Lucifer suddenly appeared, existing in the form of a spiritual projection. He wandered aimlessly through the endless void.

After a while, he stopped. Ahead of him, in the midst of the darkness, was the only source of light.

A lone angel sat curled up in a corner, his knees drawn to his chest. Six pristine white wings folded tightly around him, shielding his face from view.

Lucifer took a few steps closer, standing over him with a lazy air. He looked down and drawled, “Afraid to face me?”

The wings remained motionless.

Lucifer’s lips curled. “The brave and noble Chief Seraph, Prince Lucifiel. What could have made you so cowardly that you no longer have the courage to even look at me?”

A gentle yet cautious voice came from behind the veil of feathers. “Who are you?”

Lucifiel’s tone was laced with unease.

He still remembered falling into chaos for nine days and nine nights.

How he had hoped for God to reach out and save him.

But God didn’t.

In the end, his heart withered, consumed by despair, and he fully surrendered to the darkness.

The one who awakened in hell after that was no longer him.

His consciousness was swallowed by the shadows. The overwhelming pain and hopelessness drowned his once-radiant sea of awareness in endless night. Forced into a corner, he had barely any space to exist. Some other, far more powerful force had seized control of his spiritual form, suppressing him completely. He could see everything happening in the outside world, but he could no longer command his own body.

He watched as a black-haired, red-eyed fallen angel opened his eyes, taking control of his body, and doing many things in hell.

Lucifiel had been a six-winged angel of holy light, unaccustomed to darkness. But the fallen angel who had taken his body was the opposite. From his prison within his own sea of awareness, he saw that fallen angel rise as the Demon King, establish the seven deadly sins, and build grand palaces from the wasteland. Under his rule, hell slowly took shape.

But who was he?

“They call me Lucifer.” Lucifer chuckled softly. “A name you gave me, Lucifiel.”

Lucifiel was stunned.

Yes, in that moment of despair in heaven, he had cast aside the title given to him by God and taken the name Lucifer.

But that was…… nothing more than an impulsive act.

His pride had refused to let him kneel before a mere human. So, for the first time, he had defied God.

After all, that was tens of thousands of years of companionship, tens of thousands of years of loyalty……

He had never expected God to mercilessly strike him down, grievously wounding him and casting him into hell.

Strangely enough…… even though it was a very heartbreaking event for him, now that he thought about it, he felt no pain, only a sense of loss.

Lucifer said, “Lucifiel, I am you.”

Lucifiel asked softly, “Are you my inner demon?”

“Inner demon?” Lucifer repeated, as if he had heard something amusing. He nodded. “You could say that.”

“I have existed in your sea of awareness for a long time.”

Lucifer turned, gazing into the endless darkness. “It wasn’t always like this. It used to be so bright it was blinding. I could only survive in the shadows, just like you are now.”

Lucifiel stared in disbelief. “When……”

He was full of light, without any distracting thoughts, fully complying with the seven virtues. He had been perfect and impeccable.

So why…… why would he have an inner demon?

“I know. You were perfect. You are perfect. And you have spent your entire existence striving for perfection.” Lucifer looked at him with something almost like pity. “But no one can be perfect forever. Even God sleeps, gets distracted, acts unreasonably. And yet, you demanded of yourself more than what God demanded of Himself. Weren’t you exhausted?”

“I wasn’t—”

“You are tired. You’re exhausted. Otherwise, I wouldn’t exist.”

“……”

“All your pressure, your fatigue, your suffering, the urge to give up, every negative emotion you’ve ever had, became my nourishment. But your self-discipline was so extraordinary that even God would be in awe. For tens of thousands of years, your negativity remained nothing more than a tiny speck. I was weak, insignificant.

“Until now, when God humiliated you, made you suffer, filled you with hatred and despair, and shattered your faith. Only then did I become strong.”

Lucifer knelt slightly, reaching out to brush his fingertips over Lucifiel’s trembling wings. His tone was almost tender. “You don’t have to be afraid of me. I won’t hurt you. On the contrary, the darkness you don’t want to face, I will face for you, the pain you can’t bear, I will bear for you. You can think of me as your second personality.

“I was born to protect you, Lucifiel. Now, are you willing to look at me?”

The demon’s fingertips grazed his wings, sending a faint, tingling sensation through him. Lucifiel remained silent for a moment before slowly unfurling his pristine white wings and folding them behind him.

The golden-haired angel, still hugging his knees, gradually lifted his eyes.

The faint light illuminated the vast darkness around him, yet his radiance was still undeniable. His face was pale and beautiful, his white wings lightly touching the ground, revealing a fragile, glass-like quality.

Before him, the black-haired, red-eyed devil knelt slightly, his massive dark wings draping behind him. His flawless face was tilted downward, long fingers gently brushing against the angel’s cheek.

Identical faces, like twin angels.

The light and dark side of the same soul.

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