Chapter 680: Slaughtering the Demon

Reslin and the others stood at the waist of a mountain peak.

This was the edge of the Rockchis Mountains, a treacherous terrain that allowed a high‑ground view of the vast plateau at the eastern foothills. Around the Abyssal Gate, shrouded by a vortex of corrupt energy, the land for several hundred miles was tainted into a deep ink‑green hue, making survival impossible for any species other than demons.

The squad hid within an Invisibility Field, observing the dreadful land, and remained silent for half a minute without a word.

"Should be fine," Reslin said.

He used the All‑Seeing Eye to swiftly scan the area of the Abyssal Gate and the encampments built around it. Among the tens of thousands of demon troops, there were over a hundred legendary great demons, with the elite gathered outside the Abyssal Gate; perhaps due to the departure of the Baro Flame Demon, there was some unrest in the camp, but overall it remained fairly calm.

Obviously, the demons still didn't know that Dimae Tu was already dead.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be so quiet.

The others also noticed nothing unusual.

Reslin was about to cast a mass teleportation spell to launch an immediate raid on the Abyssal Gate when he heard Yizite sigh suddenly.

"Alas, Danfov..."

The teammates turned in surprise, the dark elf's expression seeming a little off.

At such a critical moment, every second delayed adds a minute of danger, yet they still had the mood to lament a dwarf city long erased from history.

In the late End of the Epoch, Danfov was one of the earliest cities breached by the Abyss, reduced to ruins, and later, during the Great Earthquake, even the ruins sank underground. The demons then chose the site to erect the Abyssal Gate, making it a key Abyss‑contaminated stronghold on the New Continent.

Over three thousand years have passed, and now no trace of the dwarf city can be seen on this land.

"Yizite, why bring up Danfov?" Beilake asked oddly.

He opposed attacking the Abyssal Gate, but the teammates all agreed, so he had to come along; now he just wants to finish quickly and withdraw.

Asina and Daoensosi were equally clueless.

Reslin halted his casting and looked at the dark elf; his Soul Eye detected a significant emotional fluctuation and a slightly ashamed expression. In fact, back at Albert Bay, when Yizite announced his plan to hunt the Baro Flame Demon, Reslin had already sensed that he hadn't said the whole story and that there was another hidden motive.

At that time, the Soul Eye confirmed the dark elf had no malice and that the plan was genuine, so no further questions were asked.

Now the Baro Flame Demon is dead, and Yizite finally is about to reveal the hidden truth.

"Do you have anything to say to us?" Reslin asked calmly, his voice low yet placing great pressure on the dark elf.

Yizite's heart leapt, and he dared not meet Reslin's gaze that seemed to pierce everything.

"Yes, everyone," he said with a guilty expression, "Besides hunting Dimae Tu, this plan actually has another purpose."

The three teammates' faces shifted slightly.

The dark elf didn't wait for their follow‑up questions and quickly said, "A Demonic Hunter advancing to Saint Rank needs the flesh and essence of a demon lord, preferably one whose power aligns with one's own. The most suitable for me is the Fear Demon King, not the Baro Flame Demon."

"But I still chose to hunt the Baro Flame Demon because it guards the Abyssal Gate at Danfov."

"Beneath Danfov lies an extremely important secret."

"If we can destroy this Abyssal Gate and weaken the demon forces in Danfov's domain, we will have a chance to slip into the underground ruins..."

The teammates were all extremely surprised, except Reslin.

When Yizite reached this point, he noticed Reslin's gaze was as calm as water, as if he had long known Yizite was hiding something, and couldn't help asking, "Reslin, have you already guessed?"

Reslin gave a faint "Hmm."

The first day he met the dark elf, he had already scoured the phone library for countless books on Demonic Hunters and quickly spotted the issue. Indeed, as Yizite said, the Fear Demon King is the optimal target for his Saint Rank promotion, and it is slightly weaker than the Baro Flame Demon.

Dimae Tu is even the top among Baro Flame Demons; on the New Continent there are surely a few demon lords easier to hunt, so taking such a huge risk is unnecessary.

Reslin guessed Yizite had another purpose, but didn't know it involved Danfov.

Beilake glanced at the young wizard's indifferent expression; after the recent battle, he found Reslin increasingly terrifying, yet Yizite's words now seemed more compelling.

"What secret lies underground in Danfov?" the Holy Spear Ranger asked impatiently.

"A Legend Grade treasure," Yizite said with a complex expression. "It possesses great power, but that's secondary; it holds incalculable value to the elf race, having been lost for over six thousand years, and elves have been searching for it for ages..."

Upon hearing it was a Legend Grade treasure, the three teammates' eyes lit up.

Then they were confused—how could it be an elf treasure when Danfov was once a dwarf city?

"Phoenix Crown?" Reslin asked softly.

"Yes! It's the Phoenix Crown!" Yizite nodded heavily, thinking the wizard truly lived up to his reputation for vast knowledge, and Reslin guessed it so quickly.

Reslin, however, frowned; the Phoenix Crown is indeed a Legend Grade magical artifact.

It was forged by elves and the Phoenix deity Asurilon, bestowed upon the first Phoenix King as a symbol of sovereign authority over the entire elf race.

However, in the mid‑Third Epoch, about six thousand years ago, during a revenge war lasting over six hundred years between elves and dwarves, the Phoenix King wore the crown into battle and was crushed by the dwarven High King's Thunder God's Hammer, turning the crown into the dwarves' most glorious trophy.

It is worth noting that the weapon that smashed the Phoenix King's skull was the Thunder God's Hammer.

Legend has it that the Phoenix, at the moment of death, turned its soul into a curse, causing anyone who wields the warhammer to be rebounded upon and meet a bad end.

Subsequent owners of the warhammer indeed met grim fates.

After that, the warhammer's original name "Thunder Warhammer" gradually became "Thunder's Fury, the Skullcrusher's Cursed Hammer".

As the current holder of the Thunder God's Hammer, Lei En naturally studied this history, so when the dark elf spoke, Reslin immediately understood he was referring to the Phoenix Crown.

With the Phoenix King's death, the dwarves claimed victory in the revenge war, though both sides suffered heavy casualties. When elves chose a new Phoenix King, rebuilt their strength, and prepared to risk everything to reclaim the Phoenix Crown, an elf explorer discovered the New Continent.

The two races' conflict shifted from war to the contest for the New Continent, and relations gradually eased.

In the following two dozen centuries, the elves repeatedly asked the dwarves to return the Phoenix Crown, but were sternly denied each time.

Helpless, the elves forged a second Phoenix Crown, but as a mortal creation its power was far inferior to the divine original, serving merely as a symbol of sovereignty—a perpetual wound in the elves' hearts.

Even now, the crown worn by the Phoenix King is a counterfeit.

"Isn't the Phoenix Crown in the dwarves' treasury?" Reslin asked, highly skeptical.

"That's false!"

The dark elf replied resolutely, "The real Phoenix Crown was accidentally lost by the dwarves. When the Abyss suddenly invaded the New Continent, the crown was mysteriously secreted to Danfov; before it could be moved, the city fell to the demon army, and the Phoenix Crown vanished along with it."

Beilake, however, was skeptical, "How do you know?"

If Yizite's words are true, the dwarves would never admit it, let alone publicize it. Such a massive secret might be unknown to the vast majority of dwarves, let alone the elves. Had the elves learned of it, they would have already stormed Danfov to retrieve the Phoenix Crown.

Yizite is a dark elf—how could he have obtained this information?

"Uh…"

The dark elf showed hesitation, as if unsure how to explain.

"Let's not talk about it for now," Reslin interrupted him, "We've already wasted two minutes; we'll discuss the Phoenix King Crown after we destroy the Abyssal Gate."

His own Mirror Image can still persist for eight minutes.

"Fine."

The teammates restrained their curiosity and prepared for battle.

Reslin's true form cast a group teleportation spell, while the real Mirror Image and twenty‑four ordinary Mirror Images teleported themselves; a few seconds later, the teleportation was complete.

The scene before their eyes shifted, and in the next instant the whole team appeared at the destination.

Hundreds of meters away, a massive Abyssal Gate stood on the ground; the circular portal rose upright, nearly a hundred meters in diameter, exuding such dense, almost solid evil energy that it surged skyward, the vortex of evil energy above the gate blotting out the sun and casting an oppressive weight.

At such close range to the Abyssal Gate, every breath was saturated with evil energy, infiltrating body and soul, creating a drowning sensation of suffocation.

The five of them materialized by teleportation and immediately alarmed the surrounding Demon army.

"Roar!"

"Human…"

"How dare a human approach the Abyssal Gate, kill them!"

The Demons, shouting in Abyssal Language in waves, surged forward like a tide. Demons need to absorb evil energy to cultivate and strengthen, so the closer a Demon is to the Abyssal Gate, the stronger it is; those qualified to guard outside the Abyssal Gate are all elite Demons.

Among the charging enemies, there were already over a dozen Greater Demons.

"Heaven's Light!"

Dao En Sosi unleashed a long‑prepared Divine Technique.

Holy light illuminated the dim space, and the sudden brilliance caused the Demons to instinctively close their eyes; black smoke rose from their skin as if scorched, accompanied by cries of pain.

Bang bang bang bang…

Beilake's dual‑wielded Bolt Guns spewed flames, crazily spraying the approaching Demon horde.

Axina swelled to over three meters tall, and Yizite also transformed into a towering Demon form; the two charged into the Demon army, unleashing a slaughter. Everywhere they passed lay countless Demon corpses.

However, in terms of killing efficiency, the four teammates together were still less than one‑tenth of Reslin's.

His true form did not act.

Twenty‑five Mirror Images again cast the Eight‑Ring Light Spear, and instantly three hundred and twenty‑five purple crystal spears appeared in the sky, each over two meters long, radiating dazzling violet light, agile as living things, moving at lightning speed.

In an instant, the Light Spears converged into a massive purple torrent that swept down like a blanket.

Boom!

The purple torrent, like a giant sword held by an invisible hand, stretched over a hundred meters, sweeping low around the teammates in a circle.

Whether Greater Demon or ordinary Demon, any struck by the Light Spears had vital parts instantly pierced, collapsing to the ground; the Demons within the area were cleared in an instant like leaves swept by autumn wind.

A vast open area appeared around them.

The boiling Demon camp fell silent for a second, then saw Light Spears soaring across the sky, flying hundreds of meters aloft, turning direction, accelerating toward the Abyssal Gate.

"Stop it!"

Roars of many Greater Demons echoed around, as they realized the humans' intent.

Boom!

The torrent of Light Spears was like a thick beam, striking the Abyssal Gate in an instant.

Reslin had already activated the All-Seeing Eye, locating several relatively weak points on the circular Abyssal Gate, and chose one on the lower‑right base side.

Over three hundred Light Spears all aimed at that point, firing like a storm.

The explosion roared deafeningly.

This Abyssal Gate had a history of over three thousand years, reinforced by successive Demon lords; its primary material was Saron Dark Iron, possessing properties similar to refined gold—high density, great hardness, and extremely strong conductivity for evil energy—making it far sturdier than a magically summoned Abyssal Gate, and difficult to destroy by ordinary means.

However, even the toughest metal could not withstand the relentless bombardment of Light Spears.

The Eight‑Ring Light Spear can summon thirteen purple crystal lances; each alone is as powerful as a Six‑Ring spell, combining penetration and explosive effect.

Light Spears surged forward one after another, targeting the same spot on the Abyssal Gate.

The massive Abyssal Gate shook violently.

After three breaths.

With a boom, the explosion abruptly ceased for a half‑second; the remaining Light Spears all pierced through, carving a half‑meter‑wide hole in the lower‑right frame of the Abyssal Gate.

The Abyssal Gate's constructed teleportation channel instantly became unstable, and the erupting evil energy sputtered.

The surrounding Demon army was terrified to the brink of panic.

If the Abyssal Gate were destroyed, they could not return to the Abyss, nor would they have the evil energy for cultivation; the entire Danmofu region's Demon nests would also be affected.

Greater Demons frantically urged their subordinates to kill the enemies, surging like a tide and filling the freshly cleared ground again.

The teammates employed their strongest tactics, striking at the overwhelming Demon surge.

Dao En Sosi erected a holy protective barrier, blocking the Demons' incoming spells; Axina abandoned melee, casting a lightning storm for wide‑range devastation; Yizite's twin eyes emitted a pale‑green beam, rotating his head to sweep enemies before him; Beilake's gunfire never paused for a second, bullets pouring out.

However, the Demon army's numbers were simply too great.

In less than five seconds, the Demons surged outside the holy barrier, frantically attacking it, causing Dao En Sosi's complexion to turn pale.

A whistling sound, and violet light blossomed before them.

The torrent of Light Spears looped around from the opposite side of the Abyssal Gate, circling the holy barrier; Demons fell like wheat being cut, easing the onslaught.

As the Demons died, their souls were devoured from afar.

The soul power pool surged wildly!

The energy charge, already near full, rose at a speed far exceeding Reslin's and the Mirror Images' spell consumption.

Far away in Glamorgan, Lei En had long been seated in his study, opening his phone interface and channeling the energy charge into his Element, experiencing a sensation never felt before, as if the charge were inexhaustible. Those high‑consumption Element users, previously reluctant to invest, could finally boost them freely today.

Here in Danmofu, Reslin and the Mirror Images replenished their stock of Light Spears.

After clearing the charging Demons, the torrent of Light Spear rose again, locked onto the second weak point, and fired wildly.

(End of chapter)