Chapter 906
Episode 228: The Fierce Battle at Grosh Fortress (Part 2)
Could this really be the fire ignited by a single human?
The demons couldn’t help but think so as they watched the inferno of cursed flames surge against their defensive lines. Everywhere their eyes reached, vast, blue flames danced like harbingers of destruction.
Every time Jin swung his Bradamante, the sky and sea violently convulsed. Below, shockwaves sent tidal waves crashing upward; above, the sword’s energy tore through clouds, slaughtering demons in its path.
“Pulling troops from our defensive wall just to block Jiple—do the commanders of the Demon Realm have no intelligence at all?”
The voice was low and chilling, yet carried an aura nearly divine in its intensity. Every demon holding the front line could clearly hear it vibrating across the battlefield.
At this moment, three Demon Lords were visible within Jin’s sight.
One of them was already melting away, swallowed by the cursed flames before he could even respond or reveal his name.
The horrific fire was beyond even rapid regeneration; no screams escaped him. The agonized cries came instead from the two Demon Lords flanking him, writhing in pain.
“Gyaaah…!”
“Kahak!”
But even they had only narrowly avoided fatal wounds—counterattacks were out of the question.
Where the sword’s energy didn’t reach, fire spread; where fire couldn’t reach, darkness crept. Murakan’s black chains and breath relentlessly slaughtered demons without pause.
Had they used the fragments of Jito’s flesh earlier, the Demon Lords wouldn’t have been pushed into such a dire crisis so swiftly.
But from the start, Jin had unleashed cursed flames at full power, fully aware of those fragments. The blue flames, imbued with eternal fire energy, melted Jito’s fragments first, and Jin carefully aimed his sword energy to prevent the Demon Lords from using any remaining remnants.
With the three Demon Lords in such a state, the lower-ranked troops couldn’t even bear to look at Jin.
Their bodies stiffened rapidly under the overwhelming battle aura he radiated.
Even if they hadn’t frozen, most wouldn’t have been able to pinpoint Jin’s location. They were frantically trying to survive, dodging the cursed flames that filled the air.
“I will not kill those who surrender. Nor will I kill those who flee—if they can escape me.”
Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, millions…
Jin had reached a level where such numbers were meaningless. No amount of troops could handle him.
Unless someone capable of fighting Jin and Murakan stepped forward, the defensive line was doomed to fall, and Grosh Fortress would be breached. Only those who could stop the two of them could make the numerical superiority of the Demon Realm army matter.
“How pitiful, demons. Even as mere foot soldiers, most of you must have existed for countless years like our dragons. And yet, have you lived all that time only to be senselessly slaughtered like this?”
Murakan spoke as he claimed the life of another Demon Lord engulfed in cursed flames. Only one Demon Lord remained on this defensive line—and though still breathing, he was effectively dead.
The golden ship’s bombardment was zeroing in on him precisely. The wall continued to rain down relentless fire.
Sssshhhk…!
The golden ship’s main cannon tore through space, leaving a massive trail. The thunder cannon, enhanced by the core of the light-hearted fortress and Feitel’s power, erased the last Demon Lord without a trace.
All demons caught in that trajectory perished alongside him.
Soon after, Jin summoned freezing magic, forming a straight path in the air. He calmly strode along it, moving through the burning Demon Realm army.
It was a grotesque scene. Demons turned to ash in the cursed flames, scattering like pollen, while Murakan’s massive spiritual barrier shielded Jin’s rear. The densely packed demons split in two as Jin advanced.
From the allied forces came distant cannon fire, and the crackling of the Demon Realm troops and their war machines burning.
No screams echoed.
Instead, the sobbing of a lone surviving soldier reached their ears. He sat slumped on the wreckage of a Demon Realm ship adrift at sea, overwhelmed by despair.
But he was neither surrendering nor fleeing—there was no reason to spare him. As Jin briefly glanced his way, flames gathered and consumed the man.
“I can’t tell who’s demon and who’s human anymore. Doesn’t it feel like the sorrow of a mere soldier crushed by orders and despair? Jin Runkandel… honestly, it’s terrifying.”
Suddenly, a dimensional gate opened before Jin. Five new Demon Lords stepped through—sent urgently by Sakiel Groshae to assess the situation.
Dailus Claupino, Tikano Belgashium, Begel Milotane, Slam Bakuria, and Ragal Pun.
Jin’s gaze settled on Ragal Pun, who had just mentioned the soldier’s sorrow. Though seeing him for the first time, Jin recognized him immediately by the intense poison aura he radiated.
‘Ragal Pun… I didn’t expect to meet you so soon.’
Currently, the Balmel Alliance was believed to be cooperating with Ragal Pun and Keliak Jiple.
Ragal was also notorious for his mass destruction abilities and had previously cornered Elona, making him one of the highest-priority threats.
“Ragal Pun.”
Jin had a debt to settle with him. Ragal had tried to threaten Luna using the prodigal sons of Runkandel, now Kanesto. Jin needed to confirm whether Kanesto and Keliak Jiple were truly backing him.
“Ho! So my reputation has already spread across Inse. Well, I did nearly kill the one called the strongest in Inse, so it’s only natural. Yes, I am the Poison Demon! One of only two to hold the title of Demon of Poison in the Demon Realm—Ragal Pun!”
Ragal’s self-introduction was dripping with arrogance, causing the other Demon Lords to furrow their brows in disdain.
They were never friendly toward Ragal, all being closer to Claupino or Belgashium. Jin recalled the information Biceps had shared and identified the others.
‘The sword-wielding clan heads: Claupino of the Dailus family and Tikano of the Belgashium family. The others are Begel Milotane, lord of the frozen zone, and Slam Bakuria, lord of the plague zone.’
Compared to the Demon Lords Luna had faced during her preemptive strikes, these were far more formidable figures.
“Inse… no, the strongest human in this world is not Elona Jiple, Ragal Pun. Honestly, I was curious, but thanks to you, the hierarchy is clear now.”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“If you had faced the sword clan head instead of Elona Jiple that day, you wouldn’t be standing here now.”
Swish!
Jin scattered sword energy at the Demon Lords. Except for Dailus and Tikano, the others scattered in all directions, dodging the cursed sword energy.
Dailus and Tikano blocked the attacks head-on and closed the distance. Dailus even swung his spear, grazing Jin’s hair.
Though it looked like a close call, Jin smiled and struck Dailus’s forehead with his sword. Dailus barely avoided falling into the sea.
“The previous Demon Lords were too weak to be interesting, but it seems you lot are worth something.”
Meanwhile, Tikano charged at Jin’s side, aiming for his ribs, but was forced to stop after breaking through a barrage of black chains.
These two were the strongest among the newly arrived Demon Lords.
Dailus, somewhat shaken, gathered his energy. That single strike had nearly broken his stance.
‘I wanted to see how much gap there was between me and the sword clan head… but this makes comparison meaningless. I have no choice but to use Jito’s true energy directly.’
Of course, Jin was still mindful of Jito’s flesh fragments.
He intended to prevent Dailus and Tikano from ever using their fragments. If he could stop just those two from strengthening, the fight wouldn’t drag on.
Dailus tried to use his fragments as soon as he realized the gap, but found no opening.
He needed only a second or two, but Jin pressed him so relentlessly that even that was impossible.
“You want to use Jito’s fragments? Then you should have used them before coming here. Were you worried I might just leave and waste them?”
“Ugh…!”
Dailus barely pushed back the Bradamante weighing down on him, recalling the three Demon Lords who had died earlier.
Nowhere on the battlefield could he sense the true energy of Jito being used by them. Likewise, he himself couldn’t use his fragments, confirming Jin’s words: a clear mistake.
“I’m not some soft human who fights while calculating such things. Seeing this, Jito must be pleased. What do you think you are to Jito? If I were Jito, I’d see you as nothing but parasites feeding on his flesh.”
Murakan had reached the same conclusion as Jin. He was pressuring Tikano to prevent him from using his fragments.
It would be best if the other three couldn’t use theirs either, but that was harder. Even if they were weaker, it only took about two seconds to break the fragments. Begel and Slam were already breaking theirs while the others were under pressure.
Of course, if there were people to protect, Murakan would have focused first and foremost on Ragal Pun’s fragments.
But right now, our allies are far away, providing artillery support from behind the barrier. Only Jin and Murakan are fighting deep in enemy territory. It was impossible for Ragal to be staging a hostage situation.
“Wow… Jin Runkandel really is as terrifying as Keliak’s friend said. He’s got that Dailus guy gasping for air from the start. Even Tikano’s no pushover, but next to Murakan, he looks like a rookie.”
Still, Ragal never intended to truly fight.
He couldn’t ignore Sakiel’s call for backup, so he showed up reluctantly. Whether the Demon Lords who came with him lived or died was none of his concern.
That’s why, even though he had the option to use his flesh powers, he didn’t.
“Looks like it’s only a matter of time before the Demon Lords fall to those two. I’ll use them as a shield and make my escape at the right moment. Sakiel, you idiot. Why is it only you who doesn’t realize what Keliak’s friend and I both know? Right now, in the True Demon Realm, aside from Lord Jito, there are barely four or five who can stand a chance against Jin Runkandel.”
Unlike before, Ragal’s loyalty was no longer solely with Jito. In some ways, he even preferred Keliak Ziphl over Jito now.