Chapter 35: All Things Under Heaven Can Be Swords!
The Black Sea Great Plains stretched out, vast and desolate. This was once the bottom of a sea, where the remains and bones of countless living beings had accumulated over billions of years. Then, as the seawater dried up, it formed a gray-black, cracked wasteland. But upon this parched earth, high-temperature steam mixed with underground sulfur would occasionally erupt from fissures. It rose from the deep depths, then mingled with particles in the clouds to form murky acid water, falling as rain.
This sky-filling acid rain was enough to corrode steel and dissolve rock. But now, amidst it all, a black army was marching amidst a harsh, clamorous din.
It was an army of demons.
At the very front of this army of nearly ten thousand demons were over four thousand lesser demon vanguards. These demons, only half a man's height and covered in black scales, looked somewhat similar to small gargoyles at first glance—sharp claws, pointed horns, and bat-like wings—but they were far weaker than those powerful alchemical constructs. This group of lesser demons advanced without any formation, making irritating noises as they walked. The acid rain flowed down their bodies to the ground, but left no trace of corrosion, because any demon that couldn't adapt to the acid had already died during the worm incubation stage.
Following them were creatures in a state of maddened howling, monsters over a dozen times stronger than the lesser demons. They had powerful bodies about two to three meters tall, with bulging muscles and throbbing veins that seemed ready to burst through their black carapaces. These mid-rank demons, commonly called Frenzy Demons, all had a pair of underdeveloped wings on their backs, resembling festering tumors. When these wings fully unfurled, it was time for them to advance into high-rank Winged Demons. They were also the main subjects of most demon legends; many demon warlocks would choose to summon a Frenzy Demon with high potential as their initial demon.
These mid-rank demons, immensely strong and skilled in close combat, formed the main force of this black army. Besides them, there were also some scattered twisted monsters mixed in, such as Insect Demons with multiple blade-like limbs, Acid Slimes resembling mud monsters, Eye Demons skilled in casting spells, and War Behemoths, towering nearly five stories high.
This was likely all the accumulated wealth of a demon lord over many years. Now, they were marching rapidly, with the disorderly ranks forcibly organized by Winged Demon officers wielding long whips. After their chaotic nature was suppressed by pure violence, the demon army displayed astonishing efficiency. They advanced over a hundred kilometers in just a few hours, heading towards a predetermined assembly point.
But then, they stopped. Even the Winged Demon overseers stood frozen in place, instead of using their barbed iron whips to lash at their kin who were no longer advancing.
Because the sky was burning.
When the emblem of the Sword-Holding Hand appeared in the sky, almost all demons in the Black Sea Great Plains saw this dazzling mark formed by flames. Supported by some power, the golden-red flames maintained their complete form for several seconds before slowly dissipating. Large patches of scattered flames spread towards the surrounding black acidic clouds. In an instant, half the sky turned into a burning sea of fire, and lightning could even be seen spreading within it.
Unlike the mindless low-rank demons, all mid and high-rank demons fell into shock and confusion upon seeing the emblem in the sky. They clearly understood that this emblem was likely a means for the foreign Flame Demon and Blood-Magic Dragon to display their power and intimidate all local demon forces. Such arrogant and overbearing behavior indeed lived up to the reputation of Flame Demons and dragons.
Admittedly, though cliché, it was very effective. Seeing the sky, which had turned red from the flames and only extinguished after a long time, many monsters and wandering demons scattered across the Black Sea Great Plains let out strange cries, then moved as far away from the direction of the emblem as possible. The lesser demons in the army tried to flee, and the Frenzy Demons grew restless. Though fierce and cruel, they weren't stupid. Facing a Flame Demon and dragon of such power, even the local demon lord would have to exert themselves to deal with them, let alone cannon fodder like them.
Low-rank demons would panic at the enemy's strength, but for the controller of this army, the Great Corrosion Demon Ka Luo, the stronger the enemy, the sooner they should be eliminated. Originally, it worried that other lords of the Black Sea Great Plains might not act against this Flame Demon, but now things were different. Facing a foreign Flame Demon whose power might approach the Sovereign level, any demon lord would be on high alert and eagerly join forces with other demons to kill it, feasting on its body and soul fragments.
"Move faster!"
Standing on a specially made seat atop a War Behemoth, the massive liquid demon at the center of the army shot out several acid tentacles like a jellyfish, 'swallowing' several hesitant Frenzy Demons that seemed about to flee. Then, several large bubbles emerged from Ka Luo's body, and a low, frenzied roar of command spread throughout the army as the bubbles burst. Soon, the demon army, halted by the flame emblem, started moving again, rapidly advancing towards the direction where the emblem had appeared.
Besides this army, three other demon forces of similar size were converging from different angles towards the same target.
And at the very center of all the demon armies' encirclement, the Flame Demon and Black Dragon, who had been running wildly, stopped at the warrior's command. Cone-shaped dust clouds slowly settled behind them, and the earth-shaking commotion gradually subsided.
"That's about enough."
Estimating the time, the warrior nodded slightly. He looked around at the desolate, vast plain and confirmed, "With such a big commotion, as long as the surrounding demon lords aren't blind or deaf, they'll definitely come to attack us."
Each layer of the Abyss was a different world, and the habits and types of demons living in each layer varied greatly. Some were insidious and cunning, setting traps and plots; others were chaotic, completely devoid of order or reason. Even the gods might not be able to say exactly how many types of demons existed in the endless Abyss. But Joshua could determine the habits of the demons in the Sixth Layer of the Abyss.
That was a hive-like mode of operation.
The Sixth Layer of the Abyss, the Molten Sea Fire Hell, was one of the main forces of the Abyssal army that had invaded the Mycroft Continent in his past life. Compared to the invasion tactics of other Abyssal layers, which were almost like scattered soldiers with no strategy, the demons of the Sixth Abyss were particularly conspicuous. Though equally chaotic and struggling to control their instinctive destructive urges, they could at least form teams and plunder in groups.
With Gold-rank or Ultimate-rank Greater Demons or demon lords as the queen bee control center, mid and high-rank demon officers as the nerves issuing commands, the chaotic low-rank demons could unleash power far beyond what they could achieve fighting alone. Additionally, they even had the logistical unit of incubating Insect Demons specifically for cultivating low-rank demons. This level of orderly division of labor was practically a breath of fresh air among a bunch of chaotic madmen.
On the Abyss's home turf, this control was even stronger. Demon lords used their fortress hives as strongholds, carving up territories and competing and attacking each other. But when facing powerful outsiders, these lords would temporarily join forces to eliminate the uncertain foreign element first.
In the past, Joshua didn't know why, but now he understood—most of the demons in the Sixth Layer of the Abyss were mutated products of the Insectoid civilization from seven thousand years ago. Beneath their twisted, evil exteriors, their life essence was still somewhat similar to a hive insect swarm. Coupled with the existence of an Abyss Lord as the hive master in this realm, this was why these chaotic demons had some concept of groups and territory.
Meanwhile, after running wildly for most of the day, the Flame Demon, whose flames were nearly extinguished, limped over to the Black Dragon's feet. This Greater Demon, feeling tired for the first time since its birth, asked the warrior in a voice tinged with fear and excitement, "Your Majesty, are you planning to carve out a territory here?"
The Flame Demon didn't know the warrior's thoughts, but with a demon's simple logic, it easily reached this conclusion—after all, a human bringing a Flame Demon to the Abyss and so blatantly provoking the local demon lords, what other possibility could there be besides wanting to carve out some territory? Using it, this demon, as a front to seize a piece of land, His Majesty the Sovereign could easily gather all kinds of information about the Sixth Abyss.
As it thought, the Flame Demon inwardly nodded at its own rare wisdom. Besides, it liked the environment of the Black Sea Great Plains, because beneath the thin crust lay vast active magma zones, and the various toxins in the acid rain were also to its liking. If His Majesty the Sovereign wanted to use this as a base, it would absolutely agree.
But to the Flame Demon's disappointment, Joshua shook his head.
"Carve out a territory?" Looking down at the Greater Demon at the Black Dragon's feet, he asked with some confusion, "Syndicate, why would you come to that conclusion?"
Then, the warrior raised his head, gazing at the horizon in the distance. He spoke in a casual tone that sent chills down the Flame Demon's spine: "My goal is to eliminate all demon forces here. And you are merely the bait to lure them in."
"Alright, Syndicate, look up. They're here."
Hearing this, the Greater Demon trembled slightly as it slowly turned around. It looked into the distance. In the Flame Demon's unique thermal vision, faint deep-red glows began to appear at the edge of the earth. That was an army of tens of thousands of demons. And there were four such armies of similar scale, each containing a few enormous, blazing white light points—no need to think, those were undoubtedly the figures of Gold Peak or Ultimate-rank demon lords personally arriving.
In the Abyss, demons could devour each other to gain power. A Flame Demon's toxic body would be a delicacy for a Corrosion Demon, its sturdy metallic skeleton the best material for a Blade Demon's body, and even its pure energy core and soul fragments could greatly enhance another Greater Demon's essence, giving it the potential to attempt advancing to Sovereign.
To preserve the strength of this realm, the Sixth Layer Abyss Lord [Gluttony Demon King Goliath] strictly prohibited large-scale internal conflicts among local demon lords. A powerful foreign demon was a rare delicacy in the eyes of these long-starved demon lords.
So many?! Even a Sovereign might not be able to face so many demon armies head-on!
The flames on its body dimmed instantly. Syndicate subconsciously took a step back. It had fought other Greater Demons before, but unlike the Sixth Abyss, Greater Demons in other layers mostly fought one-on-one, never bringing tens of thousands of troops to press the attack. Seeing those approaching claws, tentacles, sturdy carapaces, and flesh, the Flame Demon's body instinctively wanted to flee. But then it fell into despair—not only had it just accompanied a maddened Black Dragon in a wild sprint across the plains for most of the day, depleting most of its internal energy, but more importantly, standing on that Black Dragon was a Legendary warrior!
Run? Where could it run to? It was desperate too!
The four different demon armies drew closer, accompanied by heavy footsteps that shook the earth. The four demon lords, along with their armies, completely surrounded the warrior and his group. Tens of thousands of ferocious demons glared with their crimson eyes, roaring some unclear words in madness. Upon seeing the Flame Demon and Black Dragon before them, they didn't pause, nor did they consult or coordinate with each other. They simply obeyed their lords' cold commands and charged towards their target with an avalanche-like momentum!
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" Seeing this, even the notoriously fierce Flame Demon couldn't help but panic. It nimbly hid under the Black Dragon, who was idly drawing circles on the ground with its front claws, and said in a panicked, hoarse voice unique to demons, "I can't possibly be a match for this group of demons—"
"Of course you can't like this."
Standing between the Black Dragon's two horns, the warrior lightly stamped his foot. The Black immediately understood its master's intent. It stopped its little paw movements, then raised its head high and let out a dragon roar that shook the atmosphere, far surpassing thunder. At the same time, Joshua casually waved his hand, and the Flame Demon hiding under the Black Dragon involuntarily floated into the air, as if weightless, drifting before the warrior.
Looking at Syndicate before him, Joshua smiled slightly. He raised his right hand, his fingers slowly closing into a fist. The Flame Demon's high-temperature, toxic, thick black liquid body began to tremble violently. Amidst a harsh grinding sound like twisting metal, this nearly five-meter-tall behemoth rapidly compressed and deformed. Soon, the Flame Demon's entire body transformed into a plain-looking black greatsword.
The blade of this black greatsword seemed to writhe like liquid, with rings of golden-red light swirling around its edge. A pained, twisted demon face was imprinted on the broad blade, from which came continuous, agonized wails.
Then, the warrior reached out and grasped it. Black-red flames engulfed the entire blade. Wild, abundant energy surged in, instantly transforming the plain black greatsword into a blazing greatsword resembling the Flame Demon itself!
"But like this, you can win."
In the agonized Flame Demon's ears came a demon-like whisper. Joshua tightened his grip on the sword hilt, and even more despairing wails emerged.
"Black," he said to his mount. Flames blazed in Joshua's hand. The Legendary warrior swung the greatsword, making the red flame light trace a conspicuous arc through the air. He grinned savagely, "Charge!"
"ROAR!"