Demon Core of Flames (2)
The two halves of the Demon Core, split by the strike that severed immortality, began inching closer together.
The Raging Flames Demon King, Sabnack.
The Demon King Slayer, Yushin Gilliard.
Sensing the presence of the severed clone, the Demon Core unleashed a gravitational pull, drawing the pieces toward each other.
My body keeps getting hotter. Around the dantian...? Damn it! The embers piled up in my heart are clashing, shoving each other's power away.
Yushin, scattering mana through his body like ultrasound waves, detected the upheaval within himself.
The lightning embers amassed in his heart.
And the newly implanted Demon Core of Flames.
Like women yanking each other's hair in a chaotic brawl, they waged a brutal war inside Yushin's body.
“Yushin!”
Ardena shouted, smashing her shield into the monster lunging at him. The beast turned into a pulpy mess in an instant.
Having barely rescued Yushin, Ardena let out a sigh of relief and turned to the other monsters.
“Haa… haa…!!”
Yushin felt his breaths coming sharp and ragged all of a sudden.
Like he'd sprinted flat-out nonstop, each labored inhale and exhale drained massive energy reserves.
He exhaled through his mouth.
Oddly, his breath glowed red.
As the crimson-tinged exhalation spilled out, the crackling sparks snapping sharply around him started turning red too.
Whoosh!
In that split-second, a tiny ember flared in his breath before winking out.
“Ugh! Damn, they're crawling everywhere.... Ardena, Captain—you and Captain Miguel take point. Guard my husband!”
“Shut your mouth!”
Hundreds of monsters kept toppling, yet their numbers never thinned.
If anything, they swelled like breeding vermin.
The black horde surged like a tidal wave, vomiting hunger-fueled savagery that threw them into crisis after crisis.
But progress came.
Slicing straight through the ferocious monster surge brought Granata within reach.
Its walls now loomed on the horizon.
“Grah!”
Gasping repeatedly, Yushin teetered on collapse.
His eyes bloodshot crimson.
His heart pounded wildly, beyond soothing, while mana looped through his veins like a runaway locomotive, ignoring his will and barreling into every crevice.
“We can't punch through any farther!”
Captain Emily Leon yelled.
Her razor rapier had felled countless beasts, but no end in sight.
Stamina attrition was the real killer.
The elf captains sensed doom.
Pursuers often got boxed in like this.
“Fuckin' endless swarm, seriously.”
Bariteon whipped his spear, flash-freezing the lunging monsters around him.
He even raised an ice wall to halt their advance.
Temporary fix, though.
Those gluttons would claw through for a meal.
“Blind charges will just rack up losses. Link with reinforcements and carve a path.”
Miguel retracted his blood-and-gore-smeared fists.
He'd pulverized hordes.
But they regenerated endlessly.
Eyeing the corpses, Miguel saw shredded bodies knit wounds agonizingly slow, rising like undead from graves.
Not true resurrection. Immortality's god territory—a monster couldn't have it. Just regen so potent it mimics undeath.
Monsters transmuted gut-stored meat to mana for regeneration fuel.
Already bloated from feasting, they could shrug off near-fatal hits two, three times.
“Ah. You lot look roughed up bad.”
As the elves neared Granata, a black-armored spearman perched on the walls hailed them.
He sighed deeply.
His ruler's dispatched monsters were decimated.
Like fresh gear trashed already, pure pity.
Seeing unrecognizable meat blobs, he muttered, “How to report this....”
“With the mighty Demon King Slayer in play, hardly surprising.”
Red gleam from his helm flicked to Yushin amid the elf captains' guard.
Gazes locked midair.
Noting Yushin's stare, the spearman vaulted the wall, landing firm.
He let his black spear droop.
Gripping the slaughter-tool that diced demon legions in a blink, he blocked the captains to cover Sabnack's getaway.
Monsters insufficient, so he intervened.
“Ah, belated intro. I serve the southern continent's sovereign, apex of this world's monsters, dispatched to aid Demon King Sabnack's return—”
As he rambled, the erratic Demon King Slayer charged bull-like, cutting him short.
Spearman hoisted his black spear in riposte.
“Demon King Slayer, no respect for foes—rudely interrupting my intro....”
Spotting red lightning roiling, he snapped silent.
Clamped his yap.
Flame-infused lightning shook his red eyes wildly.
Intense disbelief, eyes be damned.
Lightning incoming—he backpedaled fast, wary.
That lightning packs flame power... Sabnack's domain. How's a human wielding Demon King mojo? Even an Another One—no way!
Touch it, poof—gone.
Instinct screamed crisis.
“Yushin!”
Ardena yelled, unnerved by his heedless rush.
Out of character.
Yushin probed foes first, struck calculated.
Worst, blue lightning gone red—terrifying.
“Whoa, this is legit deadly....”
Yushin double-gripped his hilt.
Spearman, eyeing the wide red-lightning swing, whispered dread.
KRA-A-A-ANG!!!
Lightning slashed.
Red surge severed spearman's arm, pulverized the rear wall wholesale.
Granata's fortress walls, iron bastion proud, sheared neat—incredible.
RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE---!!
Massive wall tumbled.
Dust-shrouded spearman slammed his black spear down, spawning razor bone spikes.
Downswing veered sudden. Can't control his output.
Shoulda hit—grazed arm only, body-crusher wasted on wall.
Thus, spearman clocked: Slayer mishandled flame power.
Lucky break.
Square hit? Instant delete, no fight.
“Rise, impale.”
Spikes erupted earthward.
Thorn inferno that skewered Granata's demon besiegers.
Crucifixion spikes rocketed, spearing Yushin merciless.
Thorns volleyed sharp.
No escape—front-back-left-right, total surround.
“Chopsticks away.”
Yushin stomped—the spike torrent shattered like rotten logs.
Shrapnel flew wild.
Honeycomb-makers deformed, scattered.
Red lightning bloomed from Yushin-core, vaporizing spikes.
Spearman gawked mute at his spike deluge demolished—chatty no more.
“Ngh....”
Yushin, blitzing spearman to corner in seconds, twisted in agony, groaning deep.
Output over limit.
Overdrive backlash.
Kicked spearman into wall rubble, backed off to reset.
Steadied breath, reined wild innards lightning.
“We'll handle now. Yushin, withdraw.”
“Thanks.”
Yushin nodded to Ardena, mopping brow sweat, heaving hard.
Time-waster punk.
Sabnack crossed strait to south continent by now.
Sea-crossed? Gone for good.
Monster delay cost 'em.
But empty hands no-go—nab south-linked spearman.
“Owned this hard... how long since?”
Lightning-lopped one-arm spearman sighed.
Drooped spear-tip.
No more fight vibe.
“Drop it!”
“Sabnack's trail—now!”
Captains menaced one-armer fierce.
Seize, haul to Maherith.
Spearman chuckled.
Surrounded, yet chill.
Death? Nah, just fun interlude.
“Demon King Slayer.”
Locked eyes with glaring Yushin past captains.
Then spearman's body warped like wet clay fresh-molded.
Stump oozed black sludge drops.
More plopped, body wobbled dire.
“Regrettably, end here. But worthwhile. Demon King Slayer, learned you wield flame power. Haha, human hurling Demon King might... Master'll love it. That lord... greedier than any... sovereign....”
Sludge cascaded.
Body-collapse broke speech garble.
Flesh fully crumbled.
Grip-spear? Mud-forged fake, slumped earth-heap.
“D-Died? Nah, didn't feel like....”
Rosta muttered.
Miguel eyed sludge, spoke.
“Auto-recall teleport on near-death damage.”
Scrutinizing pile's transfer-magic weave, Miguel confirmed: real deal, not clone—arm-loss forced evac.
“Yushin.”
Ardena neared, probed his form.
Hand to brow.
Body scorching coal-hot.
Fever-sweats, heat-radiant.
Yushin tapped flame power sure.
Ardena fretted deeply.