Chapter 450
The dry, stagnant air seeped into his lungs.
A desolate and eerily grim landscape.
This was the Demon Realm…
Specifically, the region ruled by Berial.
“Kuhaha! As expected of my apostle. You actually managed to lure that vile serpent in.”
Berial clapped his hands, bursting into laughter.
There was no greater pleasure than watching a plan unfold perfectly.
Of course…
For those on the receiving end, it was nothing short of a nightmare.
“You freed the Heavenly Demons from their brainwashing… and brought them to the Demon Realm?”
Guntafer licked his dry lips slowly.
He had expected his opponents to seek various means of survival.
But he had never predicted they would resort to something like this.
“Krrr…”
“Why… why am I here?”
“I remember being told that I would have a chance at a new challenge….”
The Heavenly Demons clutched their heads.
But only for a brief moment.
Shortly after, the memories of what had transpired flooded back into them.
“What are you fools doing? Didn’t you all make a contract with our lord?”
“Kill that human at once! Wipe him out!”
“The contract is still valid. As long as you kill him, we promise you a new Murim and untold wealth.”
Guntafer’s kin raised their voices.
If they wanted any chance of salvaging this situation, they needed the Heavenly Demons’ cooperation.
However—
“Even if you offered us the whole world, it wouldn’t matter. That’s not what we seek.”
Beauregard stepped forward, speaking on behalf of the Heavenly Demons.
Wooooong!
Countless swords emerged from the open subspace.
“We don’t fight for honor. We don’t fight for wealth.”
They had come here for one reason—because this world offered strong opponents to battle.
Even if it meant losing everything, they had no regrets.
They had no control over how their journeys began, but at the very least, they could choose how they ended.
“I am the Heavenly Demon, Im Cheonryeon.”
“I am the Heavenly Demon, Kandalion… Yes, that is me. I am Kandalion.”
Heavenly Demons from entirely different worlds.
Some had lived as soccer players, fathers, bakers, or chefs…
Even if their paths seemed ill-suited for a Heavenly Demon, it didn’t tarnish the lives they had built.
Due to their own circumstances.
Due to their own pursuits.
They had simply chosen a different path.
“But you… you defiled our names with your petty schemes.”
The pride of never bowing to anyone under the heavens.
That was the one thing they had always held sacred.
And it had been taken from them.
“Now, we’ll show you just how foolish of a mistake that was.”
From that moment forward…
The Heavenly Demons turned against Guntafer.
—
“S-stop them!”
“Call for reinforcements! Request immediate support from the territory!”
Guntafer’s kin scrambled to block the assault.
But a few demons were no match for dozens of Heavenly Demons.
Boom!
Boom!
“I’ll wipe you all out.”
Each strike was as heavy as a mountain.
The demons staggered backward, barely able to hold their ground.
“…Completely outplayed.”
Guntafer pressed his throbbing temples.
He had completely underestimated the possibility of someone crafting a grand formation capable of breaking Remia’s brainwashing.
“Seems like the tide has turned in my favor now… What do you think?”
Jinhyuk flashed a grin.
“True, this wasn’t the scenario I had in mind. But…”
Rumble!
A thick black flame erupted around Guntafer’s body.
“Now, this is actually turning into an interesting fight. But don’t think this battle has tipped in your favor just yet. Right, Behemoth?”
“Fufu. You’re absolutely right. I was worried this would be too easy, but this makes things more entertaining.”
Behemoth extended her hand toward the sky.
Ssssshhhk!
Blades merged together, forming a massive greatsword.
The full power of an Ancient Species.
Malevolent mana manifested into dozens of streaks of energy.
At the same time…
A long rift split open in the sky.
[Guntafer attempts ‘Incarnation’!]
[The Demon King’s Authority ‘Summon the Legion’ activates!]
Rumble!
The earth trembled.
Not just a handful—but an army of hundreds, thousands.
“You summoned us, my lord?”
“The Demon King’s personal legion, ‘Roaring’.”
“We have come at your command.”
A massive army of demons and monstrous beast soldiers marched through the gate.
From mid-tier to high-tier species, their numbers stretched beyond comprehension.
And Guntafer himself had completely transformed.
Now clad in black armor, he wielded a formidable sword in one hand and a fearsome axe in the other.
Those weapons…
Jinhyuk narrowed his eyes.
They were undoubtedly relics once held by a Demon God.
At this point in time, there was no way Guntafer should have had access to them.
Countless possibilities ran through Jinhyuk’s mind, but none would be of any help right now.
This was Round 2.
The real battle was just beginning.
“Leave no one alive. Kill them all.”
Guntafer ordered a full-scale attack.
—
“Kuaaagh!”
“Haaap!”
The battlefield erupted with screams and war cries.
The stench of blood filled the air.
Amidst the chaotic melee, it was almost impossible to distinguish friend from foe.
“This is as far as I go.”
Heimdall turned to Jinhyuk.
His role had been to shift the battlefield by moving the floors.
That was the extent of their agreement.
“This is more than enough. You’ve been a great help.”
“Then, I’ll see you next time.”
Heimdall vanished as effortlessly as he had arrived.
Good.
That part was taken care of.
Now…
It was time to check on the exhausted succubus.
“Are you alright?”
Jinhyuk supported Remia, who was on the verge of collapse.
“You said you’d spare my life… I nearly died just now.”
“Sorry, sorry. Who knew that guy would be so quick-witted?”
“You just didn’t care whether I lived or died, did you?”
“Ahem. What a harsh thing to say… Our company prides itself on employee benefits, you know?”
“Yeah, sure. Your words…”
Remia let out a long sigh.
She grumbled, but she didn’t push Jinhyuk’s hand away.
Perhaps, deep down, she was grateful that he had saved her life.
“Just rest here. We’ll handle the rest from now on.”
“Mm. I’m too sleepy… I’ll just close my eyes for a bit.”
Remia drifted off to sleep.
Jinhyuk placed the Eternal Campfire near the Ancient Species’ egg.
Fwoosh!
The flames rapidly began heating the egg.
Having already absorbed enough mana within the valley, it wouldn’t take long for it to hatch.
“Did you really think I’d stand by and watch?!”
Guntafer moved personally.
A sword and an axe.
Two pitch-black weapons slashed toward Jinhyuk’s head.
At the same time, two daggers appeared in Jinhyuk’s hands.
Clang!
A flurry of intersecting strikes.
The moment their initial attacks clashed, the difference in strength became painfully obvious.
Jinhyuk frowned.
…Heavy.
Even though he focused on dodging direct hits, the sheer force behind the Demon King’s strikes was on another level.
Left!
Jinhyuk lowered his stance, barely grazing the ground.
An instant later, the axe cleaved through where his waist had been.
Rumble!
One swing of that attack could have carved out an entire canyon.
And not just its power—the speed was absurd as well.
‘A Demon King is still a Demon King, huh?’
A direct confrontation was a losing battle.
Even with the buffs from his [Gap] and [Luck] stats, they weren’t nearly enough to close the gap between them.
But that was fine.
Right now, the goal wasn’t to overwhelm the opponent—it was to stall.
‘All I have to do is dodge until the Eternal Campfire completely heats the egg.’
Judging by the egg’s color, it wouldn’t take more than five minutes.
In that case…
[Unique Ability ‘Grave of Swords’ activates!]
[Unique Ability ‘Blessing of the Stars’ activates!]
The crimson glow of Balmung and the sacred light of Barnard flared to life.
And almost simultaneously—
A barrage of spells unleashed through [Triple Magic] stormed forward.
Ice, fire, and lightning struck first.
The three elemental spells engulfed Guntafer’s entire body.
Boom!
Immediately following was a series of sword strikes imbued with various energies.
This should buy at least a little time—
“You can’t seriously think that’s all you’ve got, can you?”
Guntafer emerged unscathed from the explosion.
Clearly, that had been too optimistic.
“Can’t you go easy? You’re a Demon King, do you really need to go all-out against a single human?”
“You’re an annoying little pest for a mere human.”
Guntafer condensed his dark energy.
It was similar to Goguma’s unique holy chant from earlier.
The difference was that while the power was slightly reduced, the speed had been significantly enhanced.
Zap!
A crimson-black flame flickered.
Countering it?
That wasn’t an option.
[Zodiac Authority ‘Pisces’ is unlocked!]
Pisces, among the twelve constellations, governed ‘distortion.’
It was an ability that allowed him to divert incoming attacks that were too difficult to handle.
The problem was…
There was no telling where the deflected attack would land.
It scattered without distinguishing between friend and foe, making the outcome unpredictable.
‘But given that we’re outnumbered, this is actually perfect.’
In all likelihood—
Statistically, it was far more probable that it would hit an enemy rather than an ally.
And if it happened to strike the Heavenly Demons instead… well, that would just be bad luck.
Boom!
“Aaaargh!”
“Kugh!”
The black flames exploded among the tightly packed ranks of demons.
Over a hundred were instantly incinerated in a single blow.
“You coward…! What have you done to my subordinates?!”
“You killed them yourself. Why are you playing the victim now? Tsk. Classic Demon King behavior.”
“I’ll rip you apart, you insignificant worm!”
This was the perfect moment—while Guntafer was blinded by rage.
“Berial!”
“I know.”
Berial, who had been waiting for the right moment, raised his black spear, ‘Kishan.’
His arm tensed like a drawn bow.
At that instant, another Demon King’s unique holy chant activated.
Fwoooosh…
…BOOM!
The shield surrounding Guntafer shattered entirely.
Since Berial had refrained from fighting directly and had been waiting for an opportunity, his thrown spear was devastatingly effective.
“Graaaagh!”
A direct hit.
Guntafer had sustained serious injuries—enough to leave him incapacitated for at least several seconds.
A perfect opportunity.
The battle between the Heavenly Demons and the demons remained at a stalemate.
Meanwhile, Goguma and Behemoth were engaged in a fierce duel.
“Mo… Mogi!”
“Come on, try harder. I’m just getting warmed up. You got anything spicier?”
Behemoth, fully manifesting her true power, held a significant advantage.
Not just Guntafer—she was proving to be another major headache.
‘For now, I just need to focus on what I can do.’
Jinhyuk fine-tuned his control over the campfire.
Adjusting the heat, the angle, and even his connection with the egg—
Not a single mistake could be afforded at this stage.
“Berial… Kang Jinhyuk… You both… This humiliation…”
Guntafer gritted his teeth.
His body was rapidly regenerating.
Given the sheer density of dark energy in this region, his recovery speed was far beyond expectations.
Time was running out.
Quickly.
Just a little longer…
“Krrr… That trick won’t work on me a second time.”
Guntafer had completely recovered.
And at that moment—
Crack!
The shell, now fully heated by the Eternal Campfire, began to break apart.
“…Miyoo?”
A new Ancient Species had awakened.