Sali had not wanted to play his final card here.
But to seize control of the Desolate Fallen Continent and dominate all demonkind, he had no choice.
He had to risk everything.
“Hels, bring out the umbrella and open it.”
Hels looked a little confused at Sali’s request, but he quickly understood.
A while ago, Sali had handed him a strange black umbrella and ordered him to keep it on his person at all times—just in case.
Though Hels did not know its purpose, he had obeyed and carried it with him.
“Understood, Lord Sali.”
Hels took out the black umbrella, opened it quickly, and held it over Sali’s head.
“Begin, Nicholas.”
Sali raised the staff in his hand and tapped the ground.
The gem on its tip changed color, shifting from a vivid crimson to an eerie black.
Nicholas stood up, spread his arms toward the sky, and began chanting in obscure, difficult-to-understand abyssal tongue.
“Huh? Is this guy saying…”
Via frowned.
She recognized the abyssal words Nicholas was speaking.
It sounded like he was praying for rain?
It couldn’t possibly be that the ancient Demon King’s ultimate trump card was just a rain-summoning spell, could it?
Besides, using abyssal tongue to call for rain felt far too bizarre.
Whoosh— Whoosh— Whoosh—
Rain began to fall from the sky in steady, pattering drops.
At first Via paid it no mind, but she soon noticed something wrong.
The rain was black?
“This guy is actually using a forbidden art?” Sashaya sounded surprised.
“Lady Sashaya, what is a forbidden art?” Kurei asked, puzzled.
“Come closer to me. Do not touch that black rain.”
Sashaya spoke seriously.
She raised her hand and summoned several dolls.
The little figures lifted a huge umbrella together, creating a sheltered space around Sashaya.
Kurei and Melu did not dare move.
They huddled beside Sashaya.
Before Kurei could ask what was happening, she witnessed a horrifying scene.
“Ah— Ahhh!!!”
Screams erupted like a tidal wave across the square outside Starlight Palace.
Black rain fell among the crowd.
The moment the pitch-black raindrops touched the demons, their bodies dissolved as if melting, turning into pools of blood and water.
Whether they were already dead corpses or those still clinging to life, every single one lost all semblance of their former selves.
Melu was too shocked to speak.
Kurei recoiled at the gruesome sight.
“So-called forbidden arts are taboo spells that sacrifice one’s own sanity to dramatically boost power. This mad behavior resembles that of abyssal beasts. For the sake of momentary victory, they bring extremely severe consequences, which is why they are classified as forbidden.”
Sashaya watched the scene below.
All the demons dissolved by the black rain were drawn toward Nicholas’s feet.
The ancient Demon King greedily absorbed the power of his own kin.
Aside from Hels and Sali, who were protected by the black umbrella, nearly every other demon had been mercilessly killed by Nicholas.
“These sacrifices are necessary to defeat the enemy. They come at a heavy price, but if it means overcoming a troublesome foe…”
“No wonder they call you the well-informed Abyssal Demoness—you even recognized a forbidden art at a glance,” Sali sneered. “That’s right. Since this puppet has no soul to begin with, sacrificing its sanity makes no difference. However…”
Sashaya had lost all interest in merely watching the show.
Her disgust toward Sali was now openly visible.
“To achieve victory, you would so casually turn your own kin into sacrificial offerings. Truly ruthless.”
“The Abyssal Demoness actually condemning someone else? How laughable.” Sali scoffed. “Don’t worry. Soon you too will become part of Nicholas’s power.”
“Though I would love to deal with a despicable thing like you right now, the one standing on the battlefield isn’t me.”
Sashaya’s gaze shifted and landed on Via.
“Via, can you still handle this?”
“Leave it to me.”
Via gripped Desolate Fire and pointed it at Nicholas.
Protected by the Demon King Armament, she remained unaffected by the black rain for now.
She could clearly feel Nicholas’s Abyssal Force rising rapidly.
Even the wounds he had suffered earlier were healing.
If someone like Sali were truly allowed to control Nicholas and become the new Demon King, the entire demon race would be harvested by him.
She would never permit that to happen.
Sali’s voice grew thunderously loud.
His roar rang out like a bell, stirring bloody waves across the square.
“Drink— Ahhh!!!”
Via raised the legendary demonic blade and swung out a slash of black flame that distorted space itself.
It struck the bloody wave and split it cleanly in two.
Through the gap in the wave, Nicholas leaped out.
His face was horribly twisted, his expression now utterly deranged, like a beast that had lost all control.
He slammed both fists toward Via.
The already distorted space was torn apart by the force of his punch.
The terrifyingly powerful strike landed squarely on the Demon King Armament.
“Ugh…”
Via’s vision blurred for a moment.
The opponent’s power had completely overwhelmed her.
Even with the awakening of her Demon King bloodline supporting her, she was still sent flying.
She crashed into Starlight Palace.
The ancient building that had stood for countless years collapsed instantly.
“Heh heh heh, hahahaha!!!” Sali burst into wild laughter. “It seems I am destined to rule the demon race after all!!!”
He did not believe anyone left in the Desolate Fallen Continent could possibly fight Nicholas, who could tear space apart with a casual strike.
“This is… too strong.”
Hels could not help but marvel.
He felt that Nicholas’s power had already surpassed the former Ville.
No wonder Sali had ordered him back then to deliberately allow the Silver Sword Princess Selina to enter the Demon King’s Castle and fight Ville to the death.
With a trump card like this, there really was no need for the difficult-to-control Ville.
Dominating the Desolate Fallen Continent was only the beginning.
In the future they might even sweep across the human empires and march straight north.
“Via’s presence has grown weaker.” Sashaya narrowed her eyes.
That last space-tearing strike from Nicholas carried absurd power—likely approaching the peak of Legendary tier.
“How could this be? Is the Demon King going to…”
Kurei sounded extremely anxious.
She looked on the verge of tears.
“Demon King, you can do it…!” Melu prayed.
“Meow meow, meow meow!” Little Ha cried out loudly, as if calling for Via.
“I almost got killed there.”
Via crawled out from the rubble.
Her mask had shattered.
A gash on her forehead bled freely, dyeing half her face red.
Though she looked far from fine, a smile still hung on her lips.
Facing the overwhelmingly powerful Nicholas, she slowly rose to her feet.
“Fine. Since you’ve played your trump card, I’ll show you what real uncontrollable power looks like.”