Chapter 315: The so-called Demon King

In the labyrinth of the Sun Staircase Mountains, on the resurrection square where the sun cannot shine, several players are sitting cross-legged in the center of the square under the Demon King statue to set up stalls and shout, and players who come to receive tasks come and go nearby.

Just at this time, a calm and majestic voice suddenly came from the top of the statue, echoing over the entire square.

And at the same time, a line of pop-ups popped up in front of all players active in the area—

【Announcement: All Demon King servants below level 10 can go to the resurrection square to receive a brand new special task!】

"Damn? Hidden task?!"

"What's the situation?!"

The players who received the news stopped one after another, or packed up their stalls and stood up, looking up at the direction of the Demon King statue curiously.

And at the same time, a nether-colored light fell in front of the stone statue, turning into a slender figure.

That cold and handsome face was full of majesty, and light particles like pixels drifted under the pitch-black cloak.

All players recognized him at a glance, that is their most respected Demon King, the owner of the Graveyard—His Majesty Luo Yan!

Luo Yan's gaze swept over the players on the square, and he spoke slowly, his calm voice carrying an irresistible pressure.

"Subjects of the Graveyard, the new Demon King 'Yige' from the Demon Capital will open up a new Demon King territory on the Janna Continent on behalf of the Demon God. As his senior, I need some brave warriors to go and assist him in executing an attack mission on Deadwood Port."

"The level limit for receiving the task is lv10, and there is no lower limit. Those who are interested can start signing up immediately and go to the flag mark at the entrance of the labyrinth to gather."

"The action will start in half an hour, the rewards are generous, the quota is limited, first come, first served."

After saying these words, Luo Yan's figure gradually blurred and disappeared in front of the Demon King statue, as if he had never appeared.

After a short silence, the players' voices exploded, exchanging surprised glances with each other.

"Damn! The Demon King is back from Planet Kao?! The big brother who just took me to level up just went over!"

"What's the situation?!"

"I just checked on the official website, it is said that due to the 'impact of the subspace storm', the teleportation ticket price for returning from Planet Kao has risen by 1000%, and the time to return to normal is to be determined."

"Grass! Dark! Too dark!"

"Wait, Deadwood Port?! Isn't that our own territory? I remember our Lizardman technician is still repairing ships there!"

"Is this opening up faction battles?! Exciting!"

"Speaking of which, why is the level limit of this task so strange? Usually, tasks don't limit the minimum level, why is this limiting the maximum level?"

"You don't understand this, right! It's obviously a newbie village welfare!"

A player who just reached lv11 and could no longer receive the task beat his chest and stomped his feet, looking up to the sky and sighing.

"mmp! This dog-like planner didn't send it early or late, but sent it just when I reached 11!"

A player who just happened to be level 9 patted him on the shoulder with a smug face.

"Be content, brother, you are already level 11, it's time to change places to move bricks, let the hidden task go to us newbies! Don't brag, I'll enjoy this opportunity first."

lv11 player: "%￥#@!"

Just when the players were arguing, a little devil player with the nickname 【Don't Eat Kids】 suddenly screamed, his eyes shining as he looked at a corner of the square.

"Damn, brothers..."

"This new Demon King is so 'fragrant'!"

That duck-like voice immediately attracted the attention of countless players, and pairs of eyes were locked on "Yige" in the corner of the square following his gaze.

That was a delicate and pretty boy, with short silver hair passing his earlobes, the corners of his eyes slightly bent, and his eyes were like a harmless little deer.

Although the ID on his head did not mark his race, the aura emanating invisibly and the upturned heart-shaped tail all indicated his identity—

This guy is the succubus that the animals on the official website of *Catastrophe OL* are thinking about!

It's a pity that it's a male.

"Where? Let me see, let me see!?"

"Damn, the dog planner is awesome!"

"Hehehe, the official is understanding our players' xp this time!"

"Get lost! Remove the 'us', don't represent me! I only accept female succubus!!! I want to kill him, ah ah ah!"

"Sssha... hehehe..."

"This is a serious game, right? You guys make me a little scared..."

Although there are not a few complaints about not seeing big breasts, the bodies of most players are still very honest.

Some players who finished signing up even ran directly to the entrance of the labyrinth to queue up, for fear of missing the departure time of the task.

For a time, the originally deserted resurrection square was crowded with enthusiastic little players, and the voices of calling friends and companions rose and fell, looking very lively.

Looking at the enthusiastic "Demon King servants," Yige felt moved in his heart, gripped the sword at his waist, and said passionately.

"Everyone! I... I will definitely not fail you!"

Unfortunately, he is really not good at doing pre-war mobilization, and after pondering for a long time, he only squeezed out this sentence.

However, the players obviously didn't care—

They just wanted to skip to the most exciting part.

"Awoo awoo awoo!!"

"Charge Deadwood Port!"

The shouts resounded through the entire square, and some strange speeches were automatically skipped by the translation crystal and did not reach Yige's ears.

Yige looked at Luo Yan gratefully and said seriously.

"Senior! I'm going first!"

Luo Yan nodded approvingly.

"Hmm, go ahead."

The sunny Deadwood Port is now a place of peace and tranquility.

Seagulls stroll leisurely on the beach, pecking at the clam shells dropped by fishermen, and not far away on the pier, the Empire's engineering soldiers are working hard.

For building a pier, the Empire's workers are absolutely professional, which even players may not be able to compare with.

They first use a large number of cut and leveled oak piles, hit them into the bottom of the water to the stable layer with wooden mallets, ensuring that the spacing between each pile is exactly 1.5 meters, forming a basic grid, and then lay beams on the piles to form a structural skeleton.

After completing the skeleton, they stack granite strips on the periphery of the pile foundation, using the gravity wall principle to resist the impact of tides and ships.

These stones were not pulled from Saint Yier Castle, but directly taken from the nearby Sun Staircase Mountains. In order to easily obtain materials, General Hamorton simply waved his hand and built a military quarry through the quartermaster's approval.

The local stone is very good, especially the granite material is excellent, and it is close to the coast for easy transportation, and it has the potential to develop into one of the local pillar industries.

General Hamorton specifically talked to Baron Titch about this matter. After the port is repaired, that quarry doesn't have to be abandoned, and it can just be transported to ports along the New World coast.

Those ports and towns under reconstruction will always be able to use it.

In addition to the facilities of the port itself, the construction team of Saint Yier Castle also contracted the water wells, warehouses, customs office buildings and other facilities here for cargo registration, warehousing, and tax collection.

Such enthusiastic, thoughtful, and considerate service made Titch almost unable to help but suspect—would this guy also be a believer of the Demon.

Otherwise, it is completely impossible to explain why the General is better to these "remnants" who have just returned to the embrace of the Empire than to his own people.

On the other side, on the construction site of the pier.

The engineer holding a shovel squinted at the port under construction and boasted triumphantly to Captain Kaidesen standing on the side.

"The reason why your previous port was blown away is because the site selection was not very good!"

"First of all, you must ensure that there is a natural deep-water berth, that is, there is at least more than six meters of draft when the tide is out. Then try to avoid the wind, and be close to the main shipping lane, which is convenient for large ships to dock."

"I see you haven't considered it at all!"

That superior appearance is like an upper-class citizen facing a lower-class citizen, and it is indeed the case in name.

"Yes... this is indeed our negligence! It still has to be you professionals, haha." Listening to the engineer directing the construction boasting, Captain Kaidesen nodded and called it yes, but secretly complained in his heart.

Such a big wind, even the master's ship was dried on the top of the mountain, what is the use of your site selection!

Was Sardo Port not blown away?

And, I heard that this piece of land was completely sealed by the Great Barrier before, and the connection with the outside world was completely cut off, so there was no need to repair a trade port at all, okay?!

Of course, he also admits.

The port site re-selected by the Empire's engineers for them is indeed much better than the previous position, although it is a bit far from the town center.

This is completely the experience of a professional captain—almost all ports that are easy to dock on the east coast of the New World developed from military ports.

This point is completely opposite to the Empire's mainland.

Captain Kaidesen didn't realize at all that he and those sailors on the *Traveler* had unconsciously brought into the identity of "Janna people."

His "assimilation" was even more thorough than those sailors who settled down—he had begun to consider problems completely from the standpoint of Deadwood Port.

Just when Captain Kaidesen was pondering how to coax this guy to help them build a school and a church, and by the way, renovate the Governor's Mansion, the bell rang again from the direction of the watchtower.

His expression changed slightly, and not long after, he saw a sentry riding a horse and running over, shouting at him in a panic.

"Ships—Governor! In the south of Deadwood Port, near the quarry, an army appeared, numbering several hundred! They are moving toward the northern coast, and if nothing goes wrong, they will be here in an hour!"

"Army?!" Captain Kaidesen's expression changed completely, and he asked hurriedly, "Is it the army of the Gutafu Kingdom?! Why did they suddenly come here?!"

Did the fleet on the shore stimulate them?!

The sentry trembled and said.

"No, it doesn't seem to be... they are all a group of undead, and little devils or something."

Demons?!

Captain Kaidesen was completely stunned, and for a while didn't know what to do, after all, he only had a dozen militiamen under his command.

Looking at Captain Kaidesen, who was at a loss, the Empire engineer holding a shovel grinned, raised his chin slightly and said.

"Only a few hundred demons, this amount is not enough to see in the New World."

This group of bumpkins on the Janna Continent are really rare and strange. If they were in the martial-spirited Empire mainland, a group of conscripted militiamen could destroy these demons.

Captain Kaidesen of course also knows this truth, after all, he grew up in the Empire mainland, and only became the governor here after a shipwreck.

He swallowed nervously and said.

"But this is Deadwood Port..."

"Rest assured, brother, if you feel worried, just look at the warships on the sea. With those big guys there, no matter how many they come, they are just sending heads," the engineer reached out and patted his shoulder, laughing, "Okay, General Hamorton will solve this little thing, let's continue to talk about the construction..."

Captain Kaidesen looked at him suspiciously, but didn't say anything, and felt relieved to continue listening to him talk about those things.

Anyway, this place is right next to the pier, and if the demons of Hell really hit, he can board the ship with this group of Empire soldiers for the first time.

At the same time, Titch in the fortress camp also received the news, and was so shocked that he almost overturned the table.

"Demons?! Here?! They hit here?"

He pondered that he didn't offend His Majesty the Demon King either?!

What is the situation?!

Seeing Titch's unbelievable look, the sentry who came to report the news lowered his sweating head and reported quickly.

"Ye, yes! I saw it with my own eyes! I saw them set off from the foot of the Sun Staircase Mountains and head straight for Deadwood Port, numbering several hundred!"

Titch looked at Lumier for help, but the latter just hinted with his eyes not to panic, everything was the Demon King's arrangement.

General Hamorton, who was eating and drinking at the table, suddenly laughed, drank the rum in his hand, and slapped the cup on the table heroically.

"Baron, just a few hundred demons, you don't have to be so panicked! I thought how many enemies Hell sent, and they have the nerve to come out from underground with just this little bit!"

After saying that, he stood up with his hands on the table, took off the coat on the back of the chair, skillfully draped it over his shoulders, and smiled confidently.

"This amount is not enough for my soldiers to stuff their teeth... leave some of the dishes on the table, and we will continue to drink when I come back!"

Deadwood Port has no entertainment programs, but the food is unexpectedly good. He often comes to Titch's mansion for meals these days, and his stomach is almost drunk!

Looking at General Hamorton, who took the initiative to take on this trouble, Titch hurriedly went down the steps and stood up to salute him respectfully.

"Then the safety of Deadwood Port, I will leave it to the General."

Watching General Hamorton's back walk away, Titch hurriedly looked at Lumier, who was pretending to be a servant and standing on the side.

"What the hell is going on! Demon King... what does he want to do?"

Lumier glanced at him and said lightly.

"Hell sent a new Demon King recently."

Titch froze slightly and said immediately.

"That guy wants to replace the Demon King?"

Lumier shook his head.

"No, that guy is a puppet of His Majesty the Demon King... even, he was arranged by our Lord himself."

Titch was completely confused, stared at Lumier for a long time, and finally squeezed out a sentence from his mouth.

"Then what is he doing here?"

"His significance lies in increasing the value of us and the Gutafu United Kingdom to be won over."

Looking at Titch, who was lost in thought, Lumier paused and continued.

"A group of loyal Empire subjects have no value to the Empire to be won over, no matter how much we show our attachment to the Empire. But on the contrary, if Hell shows interest in us, our 'refusal to die' has meaning."

"The Gutafu United Kingdom is the same. Before Hell's tentacles reached here, all of the Empire's assessments of those Lizardmen were based on the position of colonial objects. And now, they have added a label of 'strategic object to be won over' in addition to that. They may not necessarily propose an alliance, but at least they will carefully consider the risk of pushing this behemoth to Hell's side."

"So that's it..." Titch looked at Lumier with admiration, "Did that Lord plan this from the beginning?"

Lumier placed his right hand on his chest and said incomparably devoutly.

"That Lord didn't tell me, but based on my understanding of him, he often saw the next dozen steps when he dropped the first chess piece."

He didn't tell Titch everything he inferred.

Not just the Empire.

Hell is the same.

Although Lumier doesn't understand the full picture of the game the Demon King is playing, he can still roughly infer—the Demon King's use of Deadwood Port Demon King territory and the cabinet is also based on a similar logic.

A territory hanging overseas has no value to Hell, but it would be different if the Empire got involved here.

"As for more, you don't need to know, you just need to play your role loyally."

"And this is also for your own good."

The sunset was like blood, dyeing the forest with crimson glory.

Accompanied by the dense sound of military drums, five hundred Empire soldiers lined up in five neat rows, their military boots pressing firmly over the grass, making a powerful sound of footsteps.

At the forefront of the team, General Hamorton rode a pure-bred highland warhorse, his sharp eyes staring at the dense jungle ahead.

In the sky, two Griffin cavalry circled.

The anchor-like hook claws were curled on their abdomens, exuding coldness, and the blood-colored cavalry spears were like blood-stained dragon teeth!

And in contrast, in the nearby forest, a group of about five hundred monsters were squeezing out from under the shadows.

Among them were gaunt skeleton soldiers, rotting corpses, slimes crawling forward, and baring fangs and brandishing claws demon wolves...

Some of them were newbie players who had just entered the game, and some were monsters summoned by the labyrinth core—the kind that would turn into magic crystals after being killed.

I saw a nervous, delicate and pretty boy in the center of the monster group, gripping a short sword tightly, his silver hair fluttering messily in the wind.

This guy is probably not on the battlefield for the first time, but he is obviously standing in the position of commander for the first time.

"Hey! You guys... go to the front! Don't crowd around me!"

"Hehehe... guhehehe... so fragrant..."

"Good brother, move aside, let me smell it too!"

"You skeleton soldier doesn't even have a nose!"

"Damn! You slime has one?!"

Yige: "???"

Looking at the group of monsters crowded together, Hamorton's expression gradually became

Ig: "???"

Looking at that group of monsters huddled together, Hamorton's expression gradually became strange.

It is true that the aura of Hell radiates from these monsters, but the movements and momentum of this march look like a rookie's lack of organization no matter how you look at it.

Have they really received training?

And what surprised him even more was the one standing in front of the formation—

"... Succubus?"

His eyebrows twitched subconsciously, and then the corners of his mouth hooked into a mocking smile.

Not just a succubus.

Judging from those monsters that were clearly from the labyrinth, this guy seems to be a Demon King?

Has the Demon King of Hell become a stray dog on the side of the road these days, how come any Tom, Dick, or Harry is arranged in...

Although he looked down on these small fry from the bottom of his heart, Hamorton still solemnly raised his right hand, signaling the soldiers behind him to stop marching, while issuing the order for artillery coverage.

"Launch the signal flare! Full volley of naval guns for three rounds!"

"As you command!"

The messenger following him responded and quickly passed the order down.

Almost at the same time, a crossbowman stepped forward, set up the heavy crossbow, pointed it at the sky, lit the signal flare hanging on the crossbow bolt, and pulled the trigger.

"Whoosh—!"

A fiery red signal flare dragged a long tail flame into the sky, exploded in mid-air, and the dazzling light marked the area where the monsters were gathered.

The fleet waiting on the coastline had already completed preparations for firing.

Almost at the same time the signal flare lit up, a deafening roar like rolling thunder came from the direction of the horizon.

The players who were marching with Ig hadn't recovered from what had happened, when they saw dense black dots appearing in the air.

Ig's face changed suddenly, and he roared in exclamation.

"Quick! Scatter!"

It was too late!

"Boom—!!!"

The cannonballs flying all over the sky covered the edge of the forest with the momentum of destroying the withered and decaying, lifting large pieces of mud, gravel, and broken limbs, instantly blowing the disorganized monster group and the trees behind them into pieces!

The explosion sound had just subsided for a while, and then there was another muffled thunder-like loud noise from the direction of the horizon, and at this time, more than five hundred monsters had already lost half their numbers!

"Holy crap—the dog-gone NPC doesn't talk about martial arts!"

"MMP! I knew it, there's no good thing about a mission that even newbies can participate in!"

"I'm so stupid, why did I believe the Demon King..."

The newbie players wailed one after another; they hadn't even had the closed beta qualification for a month before they were taught a lesson by this damn game.

However—

For them, this can also be considered a kind of experience.

Having experienced death, they will soon realize that this game, which seems to be out of common sense, is actually terrifyingly real.

Looking at the subordinates who were losing numbers continuously, Ig only felt his hands and feet cold, and his pupils were full of deep powerlessness and despair.

Although he had expected such a thing to happen, Ig, who had only served in the central region, still underestimated the power of the Imperial naval guns.

It is true that those cannons have no accuracy, but there are too many of them!

So many that every monster beside him could be assigned one and still have some left over...

The necklace at the neck radiated pink light, a shield emerged from beside Ig, and a huge barrier was propped up to block the shock wave of the explosion.

However, even so, he, who was bathed in artillery fire, was still blown by the deafening roar, his head buzzing, and his brain blank.

If it were before, he, who served on the front lines, only needed to consider charging or retreating, and didn't even need to consider this.

However, now—

He deeply realized the weight behind the word dilemma.

"Charge up! Quick, quick!"

His voice was trembling slightly, and he issued the charge order in a panic, but before the monsters had taken a few steps, the Imperial soldiers who were ready had already raised their guns.

"Prepare for volley!"

"Fire—!"

As the command sword in the company captain's hand swung down, the guns pointing forward in unison instantly exploded with a thick smoke!

Dense lead bullets harvested the monsters rushing up like mowing grass, skeletons and corpses fell one after another in the sound of breaking through the air, and even the Shi Laimu were shot and cracked, turning into a puddle of soft mud spread on the ground, or turning into cold magic crystals.

The griffin in the air let out a loud screech, indicating that there was no ambush behind the enemy.

Seeing this, Hamorton smiled coldly, pulled out the long sword at his waist, and the cavalry following him also pulled out their swords.

"Cavalry, charge!"

"Kill—!"

Led by General Hamorton, the Imperial cuirassiers swept across the flank of the battlefield like thunder.

The iron hooves of the warhorses stepped over the broken formation of the monsters, and with the cavalry's left and right hacking, the battlefield was instantly filled with corpses and blood!

Listening to the drummer's beat, the Imperial musketeers calmly loaded bullets, waiting for the next volley opportunity.

Watching the servants lent to him by his senior die one after another, Ig's eyes instantly turned red, he gripped the short sword in his hand, and let out a desperate roar.

"Hamorton! I'll fight you to the death—"

Before his words fell, a black shadow suddenly appeared from the air and landed steadily behind him.

Before Ig could react, he felt a pain in the back of his head, his eyes went black, and he fainted directly.

Shadow Demon General Thanos easily caught the fallen Ig, then looked at the chaotic battlefield indifferently, turned into a black smoke again, and disappeared silently.

At this moment, Hamorton arrived on horseback, but he had missed.

He frowned and scanned the surroundings, only to see broken limbs and corpses on the ground, and the boy suspected of being the Demon King was long gone.

"He actually ran away."

Hamorton sneered, although regretful, there was no other way, and he could only silently remember that handsome face.

He held his sword above his head and roared loudly with a heroic voice.

"Victory!"

Responding to him was the shouting that resounded through the battlefield—

"Victory!!!"

The contest between the Empire and Hell on the Gana Continent once again ended in a comprehensive victory for the Empire.

This time it was military.

Surrounded by cheers, the soldiers carried their muskets and returned home, chatting and laughing along the way, not taking the monster attack just now to heart at all.

Too weak!

Completely incomparable to the demons of the New Continent.

They even felt that their sortie was redundant, and it would have been settled by leaving those guys entirely to their brothers at sea and in the sky.

Hamorton waved his hand to signal the soldiers to clean up the battlefield, while he turned his horse's head and rode toward the fortress on the mountain.

He had only eaten half of his dinner, so he could just continue when he got back.

The sun slowly set, and the afterglow shone on the messy battlefield.

And what no one noticed was that in the shadows of the forest, a slender figure in a cloak was quietly watching the end of this farce, the corners of his mouth curled into a meaningful smile.

"Next, it's time for 'Prince Kelin' to appear."

(End of chapter)