Episode 682
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The reinforced beasts of the abandoned continent hurled themselves against the barrier, trying to break through.
Seeing this, Elizabeta turned to Anastasia, who was collapsed behind her.
“This is no time to be lying down! Summon your forces to the fortress and hold back those beasts!”
Anastasia, looking as if she were on the brink of death, replied weakly.
“Ugh… I can’t even move a finger, let alone summon anything…”
As she muttered helplessly, Anastasia suddenly sensed an ominous presence behind her.
“No way…”
Before she knew it, Asmodeus was standing behind her, his expression emotionless as he gripped her face.
Anastasia’s face turned pale as she screamed.
“No, stop!”
With a sharp sound, Asmodeus’s claws pierced into her mind.
Holding her in place, he forcibly injected his unyielding flame into her consciousness.
Sssss—
As the relentless flame flooded her mind, Anastasia let out a piercing scream, feeling as if her brain were melting.
“Aaaaah!”
Yet, despite the agony, she could feel her depleted magic and mental strength being replenished.
This was the terrifying power of Asmodeus’s unyielding flame: no matter how exhausted or near death one was, it granted the strength to move again.
Once he judged her sufficiently recovered, Asmodeus withdrew his claws from her head and spoke slowly.
“Stop complaining and summon your minions to fend off the beasts.”
Anastasia felt both the searing pain and the surge of power within her.
“Ugh!”
Caught between these conflicting sensations, she raised her hand and activated the fortress’s power.
Magic circles appeared throughout the fortress.
From these circles, her demonic minions began to emerge, summoned from the netherworld.
Sssss—
Anastasia’s minions, bewildered by their sudden summoning, glanced around in confusion.
Then, her voice echoed in their minds.
【My minions, rid this place of those filthy beasts trying to invade our domain.】
At her command, their eyes sharpened as they quickly located the intruding beasts, glaring at them with intent.
The demons raised their weapons and leaped from the fortress, charging toward the barrier.
“Die!”
True to their nature as Anastasia’s minions, they displayed a wild, frenzied demeanor.
They slashed at the beasts with sharp claws, bit into them, and crushed their necks with thick tails.
Anastasia’s minions and the frenzied beasts clashed fiercely at the barrier.
Watching them, Asmodeus wore a satisfied smile.
“You’ve got quite the capable minions.”
As the former master of Gehenna, Asmodeus was accustomed to beast-like subordinates, so they suited his taste perfectly.
Meanwhile, Elizabeta and Yekaterina, standing behind, shook their heads at the lack of decorum among Anastasia’s minions.
At that moment, Arataso, the captain of the Shadow Legion, and Nevilos, leading the Undead Legion, emerged from within the fortress.
Asmodeus addressed Arataso.
[Why do I not see the
Arataso hesitated briefly before responding respectfully to Asmodeus.
[My lord has ventured into the canyon. It will take some time before he returns.]
Though he had disappeared into the canyon without a word, Arataso did not suspect he had fallen into a trap.
He believed his lord would return after exploring the canyon, so he decided it was best to return and defend the fortress.
Asmodeus, knowing that few in the celestial realm could match Zeke Draker, accepted Arataso’s explanation.
He surveyed the battlefield to issue new orders.
Bound to Zeke, he had no choice but to follow his commands faithfully.
The task was to defend the fortress.
Just then, something emerged from the warship.
Caw!
The Apollyon Knights, mounted on dragon-like creatures resembling wyverns, charged out from the warship.
Seeing this, Asmodeus immediately instructed Arataso.
[Captain of the Dawn, take the skies. I’ll cover the rear.]
Arataso nodded and led the Shadow Legion into the air.
Asmodeus then turned to Nevilos.
[Nevilous, lead the Undead Legion with the fortress’s minions to hold back the beasts.]
Acknowledging Asmodeus’s authority in Zeke’s absence, Nevilos nodded.
He led the Undead Legion to the opposite side of Anastasia’s minions.
Once in position, he waved his bone staff, unleashing abyssal magic at the beasts trying to breach the barrier.
Rumble!
Massive bone structures rose in front and behind the barrier.
The Undead Legion took their positions and hurled bone spears at the approaching beasts.
Thud!
The beasts, struck by the bone spears, staggered back, only to be impaled by the bone structures.
Caw!
As the beasts perished in agony, Nevilos waved his bone staff again.
The corpses of the fallen beasts rose once more, becoming undead and turning on their former allies.
Growl!
The undead legion, capable of turning enemy corpses into allies, made it nearly impossible for the beasts to breach the barrier.
With the defense stabilizing, Asmodeus looked to the sky.
Unlike the ground, the Shadow Legion led by Arataso was struggling against the Apollyon Knights.
Whoosh!
The Apollyon Knights, wielding elemental swords, unleashed wind blades that tore through the shadow warriors.
Some used their aura to block the shadows’ movements.
But the most concerning aspect was their increasing precision over time.
Whirr—
The Apollyon Knights, connected to one another, shared combat experience, allowing them to grow at an unparalleled rate.
Though numerous, they moved as if they were a single entity.
Arataso, leading the charge against the Apollyon Knights, realized his forces were gradually being pushed back.
‘The Shadow Legion is at a disadvantage in aerial combat.’
Had it been his original subordinates, they might have held their ground, but the shadow spirits were insufficient.
Whirr—
The Apollyon Knights, having shared more combat experience, skillfully maneuvered their mounts and swung their swords more sharply at Arataso.
Whoosh—
A blade, infused with wind and aura, grazed Arataso as he retreated, transforming his sword into a spear and striking back.
His spear found its mark on one knight’s shoulder.
Crunch!
The knight, wounded by Arataso’s spear, fell back with a grievous injury.
But then, something astonishing happened.
Sssss—
The wound inflicted by Arataso healed almost instantly.
Arataso’s eyes widened in surprise.
“A human knight with self-healing abilities?”
To his knowledge, only Zeke possessed such a power, leaving him astounded by the knights’ capabilities.
Their rapid growth, incredible healing, and formidable swordsmanship were unlike any knightly order Arataso had encountered in his long tenure in the demon realm.
‘Did my lord face these foes alone?’
Arataso was newly impressed by Zeke’s prowess.
His fighting spirit reignited, he swung his sword with renewed vigor, while the Apollyon Knights pressed the Shadow Legion even harder.
Despite attempts to disrupt them with magical projectiles from the fortress, the warship’s barrier deflected them.
As the battle continued and Arataso’s forces were pushed back, something approached from the distant sky.
Rumble!
Arataso’s eyes widened at the familiar sensation.
“Could it be…?”
It was none other than the Bone Legion of Asmodi, the second battalion of the Morning Star.
Boom!
Clad in bone armor, Asmodi led his knights toward the Apollyon Knights’ warship, not the knights themselves.
The Apollyon Knights, mounted on their dragons, halted their advance and turned to face the new threat.
Behind the Bone Legion, another group of knights appeared.
They were the Dawn Brigade, Arataso’s original subordinates.
“Ha! Comrades!”
The knights of the Dawn Brigade, thought lost with the fall of Babel, charged toward Arataso.
Zeke had used the power of the Arrogant Savior to bring them back.
Thud, thud, thud!
Before long, the knights of the Dawn Brigade joined the fray.
With their arrival, Arataso moved with a fluidity that was entirely different from before. It was as if they had become one, moving with the seamless coordination of the Apollyon Knights.
“Strike them down!”
Arataso and the Dawn Brigade targeted the Apollyon Knights from behind as they turned to protect their warships. Unlike before, they moved as a single entity, catching the Apollyon Knights off guard with their rear assault.
The scene was a stark contrast to their earlier struggle against the Shadow Legion.
Meanwhile, the Apollyon warships, seeing the Bone Brigade charging at them, began to fire their cannons.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Compressed magic shells rained down on the Bone Brigade. Yet, the Asmodi knights, wielding shields made of bone, deflected the incoming fire and pressed forward. For the Bone Brigade, veterans of the harshest battles in the demon realm, this was nothing.
As they closed in on the warships, Asmodi pulled a bone from his shoulder. It grew into a massive spear, which he hurled at the nearest ship.
Crash!
The bone spear spun fiercely, piercing through the ship’s shield and embedding itself into the hull.
Crack!
The spear took root, and sharp bone blades began to sprout from it. The sudden counterattack forced the warships to change formation.
As the ships maneuvered, some Apollyon knights broke off and charged toward Asmodi, leaving a portion to face the Dawn Brigade.
Asmodi swung his bone spear with both hands, the weapon imbued with a fierce energy. Though not elegant, its power was undeniable. Several Apollyon knights, caught off guard, were struck and fell from their mounts to the ground below.
Seizing the momentum, Asmodi hurled his spear at the advancing knights, sending them tumbling to the earth.
The remaining Apollyon knights’ eyes shifted, and they retreated toward the warships, adopting a defensive stance.
Suddenly, something shot out from the direction of the warships, heading straight for the Bone Brigade.
Whoosh!
A knight clad in ominous black armor, wielding a blood-red sword, emerged and swung at Asmodi.
Crash!
Sensing the danger, Asmodi conjured a bone shield. The sword strike collided with it, but to his shock, the shield, harder than any metal, crumbled to dust.
Boom!
The impact cracked Asmodi’s bone armor and helmet. As his defenses shattered, other Bone Brigade knights rushed to shield him.
The black-armored knight turned his sword on them, slicing through with ease.
Slice—
The Bone Brigade knights were cut down without resistance, their forms dissolving into nothingness.
Asmodi gripped another bone spear and faced the knight. But before he could act, someone stepped in front of him.
“Stand down, Asmodi. I’ll handle this one.”
Emerging from the shadows, Zeke pointed his sword, Levatein, at the black-armored knight.
“Rivain, false god of the new order. Come. This time, I’ll make sure you are utterly destroyed.”