Chapter 985: Burning Legion

The flame storm dissipated.

Lei En's figure appeared; he had been scorched by high‑temperature flames for so long, and was hit by a Nine‑Ring Lava Ray, nearly reaching the Energy Furnace's absorption limit. His whole body was burnt scarlet, flames flowing beneath his skin, and waves of heat rose in bursts.

As the sky‑filled flames scattered, a massive Barro Flame Demon body coalesced and fell to the ground.

Bang…

The heavy Demon torso smashed a large crater; the decapitation sword and flame whip fell at the pit's edge, then fell silent.

It was merely an empty shell.

Lei En, through the air, seized the soul stone into his hand, glanced at it, and the Barro Flame Demon's demon soul inside thrashed and roared wildly, yet to no effect.

This is the most powerful demon soul I have ever obtained, bar none!

Within Bu Lukantik's demon soul are already two Flame Demon Crowns, two flame furnaces, and dozens of spells, including flame storm, lava art, extreme Meteor Burst, lava ray, flame explosion art, fire‑walking, and so on, virtually encompassing all known top‑tier Nine‑Ring flame spells.

Additionally there are Law Seal intimidation, Greater Dispel Magic, Greater Teleport, mind‑control technique, soul‑capture art, and summoning Demon Legion, among a series of powerful spells.

Its strength reached level sixteen, its resilience level thirteen, and it possessed various melee Elements honed to the extreme.

It also maintained three flame rebirths, but they ceased after death.

This Barro Flame Demon's power is top‑tier even among high‑rank Demon Lords; its melee, defense, spells, mental protection, combat experience, and resurrection have no shortcomings.

If it entered the Prime Material Plane, regardless of weapons or gear, it would be a peak‑level peer with Aiken.

Lei En originally thought a hard fight would be needed to slay it.

Unexpectedly, it committed the lowest‑grade mistake, and Lei En seized the chance, taking it down in an instant.

"This demon soul is valuable."

Lei En smiled faintly to himself, but he had no intention of selling the Barro Flame Demon's demon soul; he would definitely keep it for Reslin.

Both Flame Demon Crowns and both flame furnaces must be fully extracted and given to Reslin as constants.

Thus Reslin's Flame Demon Crowns total three!

Flame spells will replace Arcane, becoming Reslin's most powerful specialized spell; its lethality may still fall short of the Master, but within the Empire it ranks just below the Master.

The other dozens of Arcane Elements are mostly top‑tier spells, which can be forged into Law Seals.

Reslin can construct spell models without Law Seals, but can pass them to his students or gift them to a Weizelan councilor in need, as a favor.

The Barro Flame Demon's two weapons, the decapitation sword and flame whip, are Legend Grade.

Although their quality isn't high among Legend Grade, they are still Legend Grade; the material is superb, and even if I can't use them, they can be auctioned.

Lei En stored the soul stone and the two weapons into the Nebula Ring, released a mental force field, and commanded the Barro Flame Demon's corpse to soar into the sky.

"Bu Lukantik is dead!"

A shout in Abyssal Language rang across the entire battlefield.

On Luodong Hill, inside and outside the castle, and on both banks of the Gamma Lan River, every Demon locked in combat looked up, saw the Barro Flame Demon's body hovering motionless in the sky, a Dream Demon Lord standing on its corpse, exuding terrifying pressure.

The vast battlefield suddenly fell silent; demons on both sides froze, their eyes filled with disbelief.

The battle had barely begun, and Bu Lukantik, who had ruled the South Bank for over a thousand years, was slain?

Who was that Dream Demon Lord?

The most feared was Sat Demon Lord Wei Tuka; its strength was great, clashing with Ai Luotixiya and the ancient Prison Fire Dragon. Though at a disadvantage and suppressed by Ai Luotixiya, it managed to engage two enemies, holding both Demon Lords, which was exceedingly rare.

It hadn't used its full power, still watching, and would flee if the opportunity turned bad.

But the battle's tide changed too quickly.

Wei Tuka didn't even arrive to rescue, and Bu Lukantik died!

It is a Demon Lord on the Gamma Lan Plain whose seniority is second only to Bu Lukantik, predating Barazakun, fully aware of Bu Lukantik's terrifying might, and thus has been loyally steadfast for years, never daring to contemplate betrayal.

Yet that mighty Bu Lukantik was swiftly slain…

Wei Tuka immediately halted, forcibly interrupting the Nine‑Ring Shadow Magic being cast, discarded the black blade in hand, and knelt in mid‑air.

It bowed to Ai Luotixiya, shouting loudly, "Wei Tuka pays homage to the great Succubus Lord; you are the supreme sole master of the Gamma Lan Plain, I humbly beg you to accept my loyalty!"

Sat Demon Lord's reverence was toward Ai Luotixiya, but its attention was on Lei En.

The Succubus was somewhat surprised, yet also ceased its attack.

"Master."

Prison Fire Dragon Pa Su Wei Ao shouted, "Wei Tuka is untrustworthy; having betrayed Bu Lukantik, it will betray you as well."

As it spoke, the dragon's eyes brimmed with hostility, its maw brewing malicious flame breath ready to spew.

Ai Luotixiya naturally understood why Pa Su Wei Ao despised Wei Tuka; it feared the Sat Demon Lord would seize its position and gains.

She had originally hesitated, wondering whether to kill Wei Tuka.

Pa Su Wei Ao's outcry made her instantly decide not to kill, keeping Wei Tuka to counterbalance Pa Su Wei Ao, letting the two Demon Lords oppose each other, which better served her control over the Demon Legion.

"Rise, Wei Tuka," Ai Luotixiya said calmly.

"Yes, Master."

Sat Demon Lord let out a sigh of relief; seeing Lei En make no move, it then stood, displaying complete obedience.

Pa Su Wei Ao reverted to human form, disappointment barely hidden in its eyes.

Ai Luotixiya glanced at the battlefield below, saw demons on both sides resume fighting, and ordered, "Wei Tuka, go halt the troops and make them cease combat. Pa Su Wei Ao, you also withdraw the troops back to the Wang Long Fortress."

"As you command, Master!"

The two Demon Lords answered in unison, each flying down to execute.

Before departing, they couldn't help but covertly watch Lei En, who had approached Ai Luotixiya, shocked and curious—who was this Dream Demon Lord?

Is he the Succubus's spouse?

Why had he never appeared before? Could it truly be as Bu Lukantik claimed, that he and the Succubus are servants of the Pleasure Queen?

Despite countless doubts, they lacked the courage to approach this mysterious and terrifying Dream Demon Lord.

The two Lords issued commands, swiftly splitting the battling Demon army.

Lei En placed the corpse of the Baro Flame Demon into the Nebula Ring, and his mind leapt to Ai Luoti Xi Ya's side.

"Lei…"

Ai Luoti Xi Ya realized the moment she opened her mouth that she could not utter Lei En's name.

"Congratulations, you have unified the Gamma Lan Plain!" Lei En said with a low laugh. "This is the most crucial step on the path to becoming an Abyssal Lord."

The succubus gave a slight nod, her face showing delight.

Everything lay unspoken.

The Gamma Lan Plain is only a small part of the Misty Mountains; over the long river of history it has been unified several times by powerful Demon Lords, but each time it soon fractured again.

Now Ai Luoti Xi Ya has also achieved this.

Using the millions of demon troops on the Gamma Lan Plain as a starting point, the next move is to march into the Frogg Basin in the northern Misty Mountains, the core region of this Abyssal Plane, where the greatest concentration of demons and many powerful Abyssal Lords gather.

The succubus is already looking ahead with a plan.

She watched the two Demon Lords issue orders, quickly separating the fighting demons; the battle gradually ceased, and the demon army under Ai Luoti Xi Ya withdrew from the field, crossed the river again, and returned to Wang Long Fortress.

Wei Tuka also restrained the demon troops on the South Bank, sending them back to their respective territories.

The combat lasted only briefly.

Yet the battlefield was left with over a hundred thousand demon corpses.

The Dark Angel Legion had just reached the gate of Luodong Flame Fortress and were about to storm in when Bu Lukank Tike died; at that moment the castle gates opened, allowing them entry.

Behind them, more than five hundred Hellfires were shattered into fragments.

Lei En was very interested in the spell that summons Hellfire, so he had the Dark Angel Legion gather all the Hellfire cores scattered on the battlefield and secretly hand them to Reslin.

Reslin can also summon Hellfire, but uses it very rarely.

If his research succeeds and he masters Bu Lukank Tike's method of summoning Hellfire, Reslin will be able to acquire a Ten-ring Spell in advance.

Moreover, using the energy stored in his soul pool as fuel, Reslin can summon more Hellfire and, unlike Bu Lukank Tike, will not be limited by casting costs; he can summon without relying on the lava pool of Luodong Flame Fortress.

The Ten-ring Spell's most terrifying aspect is its near-instantaneous activation!

It is equivalent to carrying a massive Hellfire legion at one's side, all of legendary-grade great demons; by contrast, the Ten Thousand Spirits Wizard's summoning ability is pitiful.

Even the Silver Star Duke would be envious.

As the highest‑ranked Ten Thousand Spirits Wizard, her summoned soul‑army is far inferior to Hellfire.

When Lei En followed Ai Luoti Xi Ya into Luodong Flame Fortress, he was already renaming Reslin's Hellfire summoning spell in his mind.

"Burning Legion!"

"That name sounds good, hehe…"

If possible, collect Hellfire cores of higher rank so that the summoned force is stronger; at least a thousand!

Also inscribe teleportation runes on the cores, like the Ten Thousand Spirits Wizard, so they can be recalled at any time and reused.

The cores should preferably carry an explosive effect.

Thus, when the summoned entities fall, they possess powers akin to Meteor Burst and Flame Burst, multiplying the damage of the first wave of bombardment.

Lei En's thoughts scattered outward.

If many of these ideas can be realized, the power of "Summon Burning Legion" would exceed the Ten-ring Spell, its ceiling beyond imagination. It may be of little use in a lone duel of a peak warrior, but on the battlefield, in large‑scale combat, the Burning Legion would be an absolute catastrophe for the enemy forces!

He was still contemplating when the Truth Will suddenly sensed extreme danger.

"Hm?"

Lei En snapped awake instantly.

He looked around but could not locate the source of the warning light.

This is the interior of Luodong Flame Fortress; Bu Lukank Tike had transformed his permanent hall into a volcanic crater over five hundred meters in diameter, with a solitary island of black rock in the lava pool, reachable only by a single passage.

At the island's center stood a tall, rough rock throne, the core of the entire Luodong Flame Fortress, governing the lava pool below and the castle's rune formation.

Massive fire‑element energy gathered here, the heat oppressive, like a furnace.

At this moment.

Ai Luoti Xi Ya stood upon the throne that once belonged to the Baro Flame Demon, receiving the allegiance of the South Bank demon army leaders.

Lei En stood beneath her seat, remaining silent.

However, whether the two Demon Lords or the many great demons, all were quietly watching Lei En's movements; when they saw his complexion change suddenly, they were baffled.

Lei En paid no heed to the demons' thoughts, his gaze sweeping back and forth as the All-Seeing Eye, Key of Doors, and Soul Eye operated at full power.

At last he discovered a clue.

In the distant void, a colossal being was streaming toward them!

Lei En felt a chilling shock inside.

In fact, he had been guarding against the Abyssal Lord behind Bu Lukank Tike; the Baro Flame Demon, at the moment of death, also called for its master's aid, but after a long wait there was no response, and the rumored Abyssal Lord never appeared.

Until now, it truly arrived!

Lei En's gaze pierced layer after layer of the Abyssal Plane, following the ripples of the void, and he saw a terrifying silhouette, its size exceeding any creature he had ever seen.

He instinctively thought it was the Abyssal Lord, but a second glance revealed something amiss.

It was merely massive in size, its aura rank low.

Not an Abyssal Lord!

Moreover, an Abyssal Lord would not easily leave its Abyssal Plane; it would be like a deity abandoning its divine realm, its power greatly diminished, danger heightened, and it could be exploited by enemies.

"What is that?"

Lei En widened his eyes.

A few seconds later, he finally saw clearly and involuntarily inhaled a cold breath.

What streamed in was a worm!

An incomparably gigantic worm!

Because it is still traversing the distant void, its exact length is hard to gauge; a rough estimate puts it over five hundred meters, perhaps even longer, almost comparable to a Star Destroyer. Its body diameter is also over forty meters, terrifying.

Lei En has never seen such a massive creature; even the Green Dragon King Zhanqing looks small compared to this worm.

It is entirely gray‑white, covered with a layer of slime.

From head to tail its shape does not change, and it has no extra limbs or organs, exactly like the most common worm, only magnified countless times!

Its front end lifts like a snake, opening a split, terrifying maw that blooms like petals, revealing rows upon rows of dense sharp teeth. In the middle of that massive mouth is a pitch‑black hole—its throat—through which it spews streams of dim light that blast the void, swiftly creating a huge planar gateway.

The gateway's destination is Luodong Flame Fortress.

Right beneath the Flame Demon throne, in the crater's lava pool!

When the gateway was about to form, Lei En also took the chance to pinpoint the worm's location: it is on the 399th layer of the Abyssal Plane, the "Worm Kingdom".

Lei En now knows who the Baro Flame Demon serves.

Boom—…

The entire castle, even the whole Luodong Hill, trembled, and a terrifying aura that makes Demons shiver descended.

(End of Chapter)