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Chapter 321: San Venganza
"What did you say? The San Venganza Covenant? Blackheart took it long ago..."
Carter Slade, the previous generation's Ghost Rider, answered Tony's question with a look of anguish, an undeniable fear showing on his aged face.
Carter Slade knew full well that Tony, the new Sorcerer Supreme, was ruthless and wouldn't give him much time or opportunity to play games.
"What a shame..." Tony frowned, dropping Carter Slade to the ground. He clapped his hands together as if dusting them off.
"Why not give it directly to Johnny? He has greater power than you, a younger body, and an endless supply of hellfire. Why didn't you just give him the Contract?"
"I don't trust him. He's too young. The last time I saw him, he was on a mad killing spree at night. A nascent Spirit of Vengeance like that is simple-minded, and on top of that, he's bound to a contract with Mephisto. How could I possibly feel safe entrusting the San Venganza Covenant to him?"
Carter Slade climbed up from the ground and looked down at his mud-caked clothes with some resentment. This was the only set of clothes he had left.
There was a subtle connection between Spirits of Vengeance. As a veteran Ghost Rider, Carter Slade still had a trace of the Spirit of Vengeance's power left within him. He had found Johnny right away and, at dawn, had dragged the unconscious, reverted-to-human Johnny back to his home.
That was the only time they had met.
It was also the first time the cunning old man had tested him, but the result was not to his satisfaction. If possible, he would have been more than happy to hand the San Venganza Covenant over to someone reliable, saving himself the anxiety of keeping the secret.
He was old now, a time when he should be comfortably enjoying the leisure of his later years.
"I had no choice, Lord Sorcerer Supreme. I no longer have the Spirit of Vengeance within me, so I'm no match for Blackheart. He put his foot on my head and forced me, threatening that if I didn't cooperate, he would kill ten thousand people the next day as the price..." Carter Slade said with a pained expression.
Tony let out a chuckle. Bathed in the night, he looked like one of the villains from a dark and stormy night. He crouched down, patted Carter Slade's head heavily with one hand, and stared intently into his eyes, as if trying to see through him.
"Old man, you can't fool me. Blackheart can't kill you, otherwise you wouldn't have survived this long!" Tony tapped his finger intermittently. "Never mind. I don't care if you were acting to protect civilians or to save your own skin, but you did save me a lot of trouble."
Staring into Carter Slade's eyes, Tony truly saw the sliver of hellfire hidden in their deepest depths.
Carter Slade had been brewing one final, life-or-death attack all along.
Carter Slade remained silent, lying prone on the ground, seemingly resigned to his fate and not moving a muscle.
Tony let out a soft "heh," gave Carter Slade a knowing look, and opened a Portal, arriving directly at a strange, eerie town.
Only after Tony had been gone for a long while did Carter Slade cautiously lift his head, look around, and let out a huge sigh of relief, wiping away sweat that wasn't there.
In that brief moment, the pressure Tony had exerted on him was terrifying.
"This place isn't safe anymore, I have to move again..." Carter Slade struggled to his feet. The flame in his eyes vanished completely, sealed away and treasured by him, just as it had been in the past.
He picked up his broken shovel and sighed, a trace of worry in his eyes. He could only hope someone would be able to kill Blackheart...
...
In a dilapidated old town, not a soul was in sight.
It was situated in a remote corner of the continent, abandoned by people for some unknown reason. Only the dust-covered, drafty houses remained, indicating that humans had once lived here.
In reality, the town's residents had long ago become undead souls, sealed within an ancient Contract known as the "San Venganza Covenant."
Whoever obtained the San Venganza Covenant would gain control over all the undead souls and acquire their power.
For those with extraordinary abilities, this method of forcibly consolidating undead souls was crude and foolish, as it would cause immense pollution and strain on one's own soul.
But for Blackheart and Mephisto, such concerns were nonexistent. They desperately wanted the San Venganza Covenant to enhance their strength, rule Earth, and establish a new order.
Sometimes, destroying a person is incredibly simple; you just need to permanently withhold what they are owed.
Just as Mephisto had done to his son, Blackheart.
In the decaying town, a sinister smile spread across Blackheart's face, a ferocious grin that revealed the dense rows of sharp teeth in his mouth. His black-and-white eyes were swiftly replaced by pure blackness. The Parchment Scroll he gripped tightly in his hand warped under the immense force.
"Father, the thing you refused to give me no matter what, I have finally obtained it. I will gain power that surpasses yours, kill you, and build my world."
Beneath Blackheart's frenzied exterior, he struggled to suppress his ecstatic heart, so much so that his body trembled slightly.
As long as he absorbed and devoured the souls in the Contract, he would gain immense power and the ability to regenerate infinitely.
He would drive his father, Mephisto, out completely and possess everything.
Mephisto's clone, appearing in its full demonic form, stood at the other end of the town street and began to laugh wildly. The harsh, grating sound was like a jeer at some private joke.
"My child, you know nothing about the true nature of this Contract..." Mephisto sneered. The sharp horns on his head slowly flared up, and the shadow of his demonic body stretched out, covering a large expanse of space behind him.
Mordo slowly emerged from the shadows, his face as dark as ever, though at this moment, it was unavoidably grim.
"Oh? A servant?" Blackheart mocked in a low voice. "My father, you are always like this, hiding in the shadows and playing tricks like an Underworld Rat. You have the title of a Great Demon, but not a single shred of a Great Demon's dignity. Look at you now, you even need the power of a lamb to deal with your own child!"
"Therefore, you are only fit to be hunted by the Ancient One, whereas I, after you die, will ascend to become the new great demon! And I will use Earth as the stronghold for the new lord!"
Blackheart wildly spread his arms out to his sides. Gripping the San Venganza Covenant tightly in his right hand, under the cold gazes of Mephisto and Mordo, he pressed down hard. A foul power surged into the Contract, activating it.
Countless screams erupted from the Contract. Then, it wasn't just the Contract itself; the entire town seemed to come alive. A vast number of undead souls suddenly appeared—children, the elderly, women... one after another, they eagerly rushed out and slammed violently into Blackheart's body.
With every undead soul that entered his body, Blackheart's power grew stronger.
"What an idiot..."
Mephisto laughed under his breath, then turned to Mordo beside him and said in a benevolent tone, "Soon, I will occupy this world. I will give you the chance to destroy Kamar-Taj. You'll have the opportunity to deal with those hypocrites with your own hands..."
"That won't be necessary. No matter what, I will not cooperate with a Demon." Mordo's expression was grim, but his voice was surprisingly calm.
Mephisto paused, then smiled silently. The teeth inadvertently revealed at the corners of his mouth glinted coldly in the dark night.
(end of chapter)
"What did you say? The San Venganza Covenant? Blackheart took it long ago..."
Carter Slade, the previous generation's Ghost Rider, answered Tony's question with a look of anguish, an undeniable fear showing on his aged face.
Carter Slade knew full well that Tony, the new Sorcerer Supreme, was ruthless and wouldn't give him much time or opportunity to play games.
"What a shame..." Tony frowned, dropping Carter Slade to the ground. He clapped his hands together as if dusting them off.
"Why not give it directly to Johnny? He has greater power than you, a younger body, and an endless supply of hellfire. Why didn't you just give him the Contract?"
"I don't trust him. He's too young. The last time I saw him, he was on a mad killing spree at night. A nascent Spirit of Vengeance like that is simple-minded, and on top of that, he's bound to a contract with Mephisto. How could I possibly feel safe entrusting the San Venganza Covenant to him?"
Carter Slade climbed up from the ground and looked down at his mud-caked clothes with some resentment. This was the only set of clothes he had left.
There was a subtle connection between Spirits of Vengeance. As a veteran Ghost Rider, Carter Slade still had a trace of the Spirit of Vengeance's power left within him. He had found Johnny right away and, at dawn, had dragged the unconscious, reverted-to-human Johnny back to his home.
That was the only time they had met.
It was also the first time the cunning old man had tested him, but the result was not to his satisfaction. If possible, he would have been more than happy to hand the San Venganza Covenant over to someone reliable, saving himself the anxiety of keeping the secret.
He was old now, a time when he should be comfortably enjoying the leisure of his later years.
"I had no choice, Lord Sorcerer Supreme. I no longer have the Spirit of Vengeance within me, so I'm no match for Blackheart. He put his foot on my head and forced me, threatening that if I didn't cooperate, he would kill ten thousand people the next day as the price..." Carter Slade said with a pained expression.
Tony let out a chuckle. Bathed in the night, he looked like one of the villains from a dark and stormy night. He crouched down, patted Carter Slade's head heavily with one hand, and stared intently into his eyes, as if trying to see through him.
"Old man, you can't fool me. Blackheart can't kill you, otherwise you wouldn't have survived this long!" Tony tapped his finger intermittently. "Never mind. I don't care if you were acting to protect civilians or to save your own skin, but you did save me a lot of trouble."
Staring into Carter Slade's eyes, Tony truly saw the sliver of hellfire hidden in their deepest depths.
Carter Slade had been brewing one final, life-or-death attack all along.
Carter Slade remained silent, lying prone on the ground, seemingly resigned to his fate and not moving a muscle.
Tony let out a soft "heh," gave Carter Slade a knowing look, and opened a Portal, arriving directly at a strange, eerie town.
Only after Tony had been gone for a long while did Carter Slade cautiously lift his head, look around, and let out a huge sigh of relief, wiping away sweat that wasn't there.
In that brief moment, the pressure Tony had exerted on him was terrifying.
"This place isn't safe anymore, I have to move again..." Carter Slade struggled to his feet. The flame in his eyes vanished completely, sealed away and treasured by him, just as it had been in the past.
He picked up his broken shovel and sighed, a trace of worry in his eyes. He could only hope someone would be able to kill Blackheart...
...
In a dilapidated old town, not a soul was in sight.
It was situated in a remote corner of the continent, abandoned by people for some unknown reason. Only the dust-covered, drafty houses remained, indicating that humans had once lived here.
In reality, the town's residents had long ago become undead souls, sealed within an ancient Contract known as the "San Venganza Covenant."
Whoever obtained the San Venganza Covenant would gain control over all the undead souls and acquire their power.
For those with extraordinary abilities, this method of forcibly consolidating undead souls was crude and foolish, as it would cause immense pollution and strain on one's own soul.
But for Blackheart and Mephisto, such concerns were nonexistent. They desperately wanted the San Venganza Covenant to enhance their strength, rule Earth, and establish a new order.
Sometimes, destroying a person is incredibly simple; you just need to permanently withhold what they are owed.
Just as Mephisto had done to his son, Blackheart.
In the decaying town, a sinister smile spread across Blackheart's face, a ferocious grin that revealed the dense rows of sharp teeth in his mouth. His black-and-white eyes were swiftly replaced by pure blackness. The Parchment Scroll he gripped tightly in his hand warped under the immense force.
"Father, the thing you refused to give me no matter what, I have finally obtained it. I will gain power that surpasses yours, kill you, and build my world."
Beneath Blackheart's frenzied exterior, he struggled to suppress his ecstatic heart, so much so that his body trembled slightly.
As long as he absorbed and devoured the souls in the Contract, he would gain immense power and the ability to regenerate infinitely.
He would drive his father, Mephisto, out completely and possess everything.
Mephisto's clone, appearing in its full demonic form, stood at the other end of the town street and began to laugh wildly. The harsh, grating sound was like a jeer at some private joke.
"My child, you know nothing about the true nature of this Contract..." Mephisto sneered. The sharp horns on his head slowly flared up, and the shadow of his demonic body stretched out, covering a large expanse of space behind him.
Mordo slowly emerged from the shadows, his face as dark as ever, though at this moment, it was unavoidably grim.
"Oh? A servant?" Blackheart mocked in a low voice. "My father, you are always like this, hiding in the shadows and playing tricks like an Underworld Rat. You have the title of a Great Demon, but not a single shred of a Great Demon's dignity. Look at you now, you even need the power of a lamb to deal with your own child!"
"Therefore, you are only fit to be hunted by the Ancient One, whereas I, after you die, will ascend to become the new great demon! And I will use Earth as the stronghold for the new lord!"
Blackheart wildly spread his arms out to his sides. Gripping the San Venganza Covenant tightly in his right hand, under the cold gazes of Mephisto and Mordo, he pressed down hard. A foul power surged into the Contract, activating it.
Countless screams erupted from the Contract. Then, it wasn't just the Contract itself; the entire town seemed to come alive. A vast number of undead souls suddenly appeared—children, the elderly, women... one after another, they eagerly rushed out and slammed violently into Blackheart's body.
With every undead soul that entered his body, Blackheart's power grew stronger.
"What an idiot..."
Mephisto laughed under his breath, then turned to Mordo beside him and said in a benevolent tone, "Soon, I will occupy this world. I will give you the chance to destroy Kamar-Taj. You'll have the opportunity to deal with those hypocrites with your own hands..."
"That won't be necessary. No matter what, I will not cooperate with a Demon." Mordo's expression was grim, but his voice was surprisingly calm.
Mephisto paused, then smiled silently. The teeth inadvertently revealed at the corners of his mouth glinted coldly in the dark night.
(end of chapter)
