“Not you!”
Tianhuo Dongxi froze. So this demon recognized her?!
Then how did it dare to speak to her like that?
What kind of background did this demon have, even able to call out her true nature…? Besides the gods and the other Disasters, no one else knew she was the incarnation of Huoyun Island.
Unless a god or a Disaster was behind it!
Gazing at the Blood Demon’s arrogant demeanor before her, Tianhuo pondered for a few seconds, then coldly asked with eyes that seemed to see through everything:
“Who sent you to do this?”
Was it one of the Five Great Gods of Humanity, or one of the Disasters?
Those bastards always act friendly on the surface, but behind the scenes, they’re constantly scheming!
But this was somewhat good news. Thankfully, the Meteorite Spell cast by her follower only summoned an Original Demon.
If it had been that terrifying existence from the mist, things would have been much worse…
Then the Blood Demon wriggled its body, raised its middle finger:
“Blabber all you want! Coward! I warn you, don’t waste my time anymore, or I’ll slaughter your little disciple right now!”
In reality, Truth pinched Ariel’s cheek hard. The latter whimpered in pain, wondering how this suddenly involved her. This isn’t my fault! Ariel was a little anxious.
Wait, maybe it actually was related to me…
“Hmph, if you have the guts, just wait right there for me!”
With that, Tianhuo ended the summoning, never once considering the fate of her follower. Then she shifted her thoughts and contacted an ancient coordinate…
……
At the edge of the world, inside a vast black abyss filled with chaotic energy.
As a massive purple wall slowly parted, the Chaos Demon Erosus received a message from an old friend:
“Tianhuo, long time no see.”
Erosus’s voice was low and weary. Time seemed to have etched deep marks upon it.
“You want me to help confirm the identity of a high-rank Blood Demon? As far as I know, there’s only one high-rank Blood Demon — named Yeyong, under the Demon God’s command… What? You say there’s another high-rank Blood Demon?!”
Erosus immediately perked up.
Over the centuries, due to constant suppression by the gods, only twelve Original Demons led by Erosus remained.
Among them, the three strongest had been taken away by the Demon God, leaving the other nine to band together for survival — eventually being driven to the world’s edge.
They had tried to support talented demons to break through the Nine-Rank and join their cause against the gods, but that detestable Goddess of Life would regularly launch demon hunts, leaving no room for low-rank demons to grow.
Now, the incarnation of Huoyun Island, Tianhuo, told him that a high-rank Blood Demon suddenly appeared near the Deya Plateau… Good news! The Demon Faction could finally gain a new general!
Though it seemed Tianhuo and this demon didn’t get along well?
After hearing Tianhuo’s description, Erosus immediately convened an emergency Demon Assembly. Soon, projections of four Original Demons appeared within the Chaos Abyss.
“Why are there only a few of you?”
Looking at the projections of “Curse,” “Blasphemy,” “Shadow,” and “Greed,” Erosus’s tone carried a hint of anger. Over the years, these Original Demons had been increasingly dismissive of him.
Moreover, the four who came barely acknowledged Erosus until he briefly recounted the situation with Truth. Then, the four demons spoke excitedly:
“A Nine-Rank Blood Demon we don’t recognize… Where did you hear that?”
“That Tianhuo actually said the Blood Demon might be obeying a god or another Disaster? Ridiculous. The Blood Demon race won’t obey anyone unless they’re crushed into submission.”
“Haha, not only crushed. Like Shadow here — a sewer rat — it’s a miracle if you can even find those who stab others in the back.”
“Eat shit, you!” Shadow Demon cursed loudly.
Shadow and Blood Demons are assassin-type demons; unless they want to be found, even gods have difficulty detecting them, much less subduing them.
“I need one of you to go to the Deya Plateau to make contact with that Blood Demon. Find out what’s really going on.”
Erosus cut off Shadow and Blasphemy’s bickering.
Blasphemy immediately volunteered, curious to see if Blood Demons really ignite as easily as Yeyong.
“I’ll check it out!”
With that, Blasphemy’s projection vanished from the Chaos Abyss. The others waited silently.
Five minutes passed… ten minutes…
Still no word from Blasphemy.
“What’s going on?” Erosus broke the silence first.
“Maybe it didn’t keep its mouth shut and got killed by that Blood Demon?” Shadow responded thoughtfully.
Whether Blasphemy was dead or not was unknown, but it was certain that Blasphemy would have gnawed “Blasphemy” into that Blood Demon’s flesh.
“Blasphemy probably can’t be killed by someone of the same rank. Maybe, as Tianhuo said, that Blood Demon is actually a trap set by another god or Disaster…”
These demons had survived multiple Great Purges by the gods, yet the gods still couldn’t completely eliminate them. They were only able to drive them to the world’s edge.
Even the Twelve-Rank Gods couldn’t wipe out these Original Demons, let alone that Blood Demon.
After some thought and failed attempts to contact Blasphemy, Erosus instructed the stealthiest among them, Shadow:
“You go check it out. See who’s trying to scheme against us.”
……
Deya Plateau, a gentle breeze lightly caressed Ariel’s hair.
At this moment, Ariel trembled on her knees, clutching her head with both hands, her backside sore from scraping against the ground:
“Tianhuo Lord, Storm Lord, Death Lord, Earthquake Lord… and who was the other Lord? Oh right, Mist Lord, please bless me… bless me so I can escape safely from the demon’s grasp…”
As a Disaster mage, none of Ariel’s prayers were answered by the gods, so now she called upon all the Five Great Cataclysms, not sparing even the supposedly “useless” Mist.
Above her, a gigantic blood-red rift tore through the sky. Dark blood poured like a waterfall from the crack, as if it would flood the entire Deya Plateau.
So terrifying… Ariel had no idea what was happening, but the thick metallic stench of blood alone made her skin crawl.
And whose blood was this? The Blood Demon’s? Or the Blasphemy Demon’s?
Five minutes ago, Ariel was carefully accompanying the Blood Demon, waiting for Tianhuo Lord’s arrival, when another Original Demon suddenly appeared from somewhere and scrutinized the Blood Demon.
Ariel immediately recognized the massive horned figure as the infamous Blasphemy Demon, one of the Twelve Original Demons.
It was her first time seeing a Twelve Original Demon outside of books, which was exciting — until the demon started living up to its name.
Blasphemy immediately pointed at the Blood Demon beside Ariel and loudly mocked it with words Ariel didn’t dare to listen to:
“Haha, you’re a dwarf! I didn’t expect such a high-rank demon to have to look up to talk to others, and others have to look down on you, and you’re even female! Let me see…”
Blasphemy Demon forcibly enlarged its sticky, bronze-colored eyes and stared at the “Deya Plateau” emblem on the Blood Demon’s chest:
“Yo~! I thought that Yeyong’s chest was small enough, but there’s always someone better. Tell me, are you male or female?”
The Blood Demon said nothing, standing silently, but Ariel felt the air around them nearly solidify. She sensed something terrible was about to happen…
A sharp whistle pierced the air.
In just the blink of an eye, the two demons vanished.
Before Ariel could react, a flash of red light exploded, and Blasphemy Demon’s rough screams echoed across the plateau.
A massive blood-red rift slowly opened in the sky!