Chapter 724: Chapter 474: Smuggling the Demon Shadow, Six-armed Snake Demon Lord (Part 2)

As the text coalesced, a terrifying force erupted from the depths of the rotating spatial rift, emitting a dazzling black light. Fueled by this black energy, the rift, which had been on the verge of collapsing, gradually stabilized. Moments later, a shadowy figure emerged from its depths.

It was a burly figure, and the ground rumbled as it landed. However, much like Qin Hui, this nearly four-meter-tall giant was also covered in wounds. It exuded a weakened aura, but its face showed the sheer relief of having cheated death.

"These unstable spatial rifts are too dangerous. Thank the Holy Demon, we didn’t die during the passage."

As two figures appeared in succession, a torrent of shadows burst forth from the spatial rift, each one emerging grievously injured. At that moment, a terrifying aura of Chaotic Evil emanated from the rift’s depths, causing the newly stable fissure to tremble violently.

The heavily injured giant’s expression shifted. "This is bad! Lord Azklos’s chaotic aura is too strong; it’s being rejected by this space."

Qin Hui, however, remained perfectly calm. "Don’t worry. This passage can withstand any lifeform below the Silver Tier, including the esteemed Six-armed Snake Demon, Lord Azklos."

Just as Qin Hui had said, the spatial rift trembled violently, and a formidable figure exuding a terrifying presence stepped out.

Its body was four meters tall, slender yet powerful, with every inch of its skin emitting a cold, metallic sheen. The upper body was humanoid with knotted muscles, while its six arms were covered in fine silver scales. Its fingertips extended into sharp black claws that gleamed with a cold light.

Each of the six arms held a different weapon: a pair of Curved Sabers burning with Abyssal Flame, a Bone Shield inlaid with tormented souls, a long whip entwined with Shadow Energy, a Magic Staff inlaid with a Black Gem, a pair of daggers that could release corrosive poison, and one empty hand, its palm condensing a volatile sphere of Shadow Energy.

The Six-armed Snake Demon’s head was not quite human. Its facial contours were sharp and cruel, and its eyes, like two burning purple flames, radiated endless malice and cunning. Below the waist, its body transformed into a gigantic snake tail, the tip as sharp as a Long Spear, capable of easily piercing thick armor. As its serpentine tail slithered across the ground, it emitted a low, grinding hiss—the overture to Death itself.

The moment this figure appeared, a terrifying aura blanketed the area. The surrounding Demon Worshipers, already weakened and dispirited, all lowered their heads, their legs trembling uncontrollably. Before this fearsome being, they—who had completely become servants of the demons—felt an instinctual fear and submission that crushed any thought of resistance. This was a fundamental difference in their level of existence.

With the arrival of Azklos, the spatial rift in the cavern dimmed and fell into a dead silence.

Azklos took a deep breath, an intoxicated expression spreading across its face. "So this is the air at the juncture of worlds? I smell the aroma of so much delicious food."

Qin Hui stepped forward and said respectfully, "Lord Azklos, congratulations on taking the first step to conquering Blue Star!"

Azklos ignored Qin Hui, whom it regarded as being as lowly as an Abyssal Worm. It surveyed the shivering Demon Worshipers, its gaze turning cold and bloodthirsty.

"This time, Lord Balzac consumed vast resources, making hundreds of localization attempts just to send us through. According to your previous intelligence, this should be one of the spatial junctures between the Human Alliance’s Longxia Federation on Blue Star and the Mythical World—the Fierce Beast Mountain Range. The energy here is chaotic, space is turbulent, and information is shielded, making it a training ground for the new generation of human Professionals.

"Recently, several Legendary figures from Blue Star delved deep into our Holy Demon territory and killed the eldest daughter of Demon King Balzac, inciting his fury.

"Demon King Balzac himself has left the front lines. He is pursuing those human Legendaries into the depths of the Multi-Dimensional Star River, determined to have blood for blood.

"But that is not nearly enough! The Demon King has ordered us to repay blood with blood by launching an even stronger retaliatory strike against the new generation of human Professionals.

"Intelligence reports that the Fierce Beast Mountain Range is a frequent training ground for the Seed Students from the Longxia Federation’s top ten military academies. The direct bloodline of the human Saint, Marshal Bingzheng, may also be here hunting or undertaking a trial.

"We are the first squad to arrive at this world juncture, which makes our mission critical. We must find traces of the target individuals as quickly as possible and kill as many of the enemy’s elite geniuses as we can! Success will bring immense rewards for everyone, but it also means we are deep behind enemy lines with no support.

"Under these circumstances, we must be cautious! Therefore, until my injuries are fully healed, no one is to leave this area. We must avoid exposure and prevent any accidents. Understood?"

At this, Azklos’s expression turned frigid. Excluding the Demon Worshipers sent ahead as scouts, their elite strike team had set out with three hundred members. Only thirty-eight had made it through the rift, and all of them were severely injured. Even for Azklos, the son of a Legendary Demon Lord with abnormal physical Attributes and exceptionally strong recovery, it would take at least half a month to heal from the damage caused by the spatial rift. Their Tiers, originally at the peak of Bronze Upper, had all been forcibly suppressed to Bronze Middle as a consequence of crossing the World Barrier.

Qin Hui and the others responded respectfully, "We understand."

Seeing this, Azklos nodded slowly. "Rest assured, I know you all harbor great hatred for the Human Alliance, so I will not restrain you for long.

"This passage is our only route of retreat. According to Demon King Balzac’s plan, it will continuously consume energy to remain stable for about thirty days.

"In fifteen days at most, you will be free to hunt those geniuses among the human Professionals. Whoever finds Marshal Bingzheng’s direct bloodline will be handsomely rewarded and may even undergo the Demon Ascension Ceremony to become one of us, the noble Holy Demons."

Instantly, bloodthirsty and excited smiles appeared on the faces of the Demon Worshipers.

Due to Energy Concentration limits and to avoid early detection by the Human Alliance on Blue Star, this infiltration force was composed solely of Demon Worshipers below the Silver Tier. Although their Tiers were not high—most having been suppressed to Bronze Middle by the World Barrier’s rules—each was an absolute elite of their level. They paid no mind even to the battle-hardened elite Teams of the Human Alliance Army’s Bronze-Tier soldiers.

As for the Silver-Tier officers the Longxia Federation had stationed in the Fierce Beast Mountain Range, they were few in number and usually tied down by command duties. This infiltration squad had no need to clash with Silver Powerhouses head-on. They just needed to exploit this window of opportunity. So long as they could find a trace of Marshal Bingzheng’s direct bloodline and kill as many human Bronze Professionals as possible before being discovered by the Human Alliance’s powerhouses, their mission would be a success.

The four-meter-tall giant couldn’t help but lick his lips, grinning viciously. "When the time comes, I’m going to twist the heads off those promising young human Professionals and turn them into goblets!"

Qin Hui’s eyes were bloodshot with hatred. "I’ll skin those dogs of the Human Alliance alive..."

***

Meanwhile, as a demonic cloud drifted silently over the Fierce Beast Mountain Range, Fang Zhou was completely unaware. He had already returned to the forward outpost to submit the spoils of his recent hunt.

The tally came to over 15,000 contribution points. He also found a merchant guild to sell the Magic Crystals he’d hunted, converting them into Magic Stones. In just three months, he had amassed nearly 20,000 Magic Stones.

This haul was achieved despite the limited capacity of his Space Storage Capsule, as a great deal of the flesh and blood from his kills had been absorbed by Tiamat and the Corpse Warriors. From the Fierce Beasts he hunted, he only kept the Magic Crystals; everything else was either absorbed directly or had its souls and Flesh and Blood Essence extracted. Fang Zhou now had several hundred of these crystallized essences stored in his Space Storage Capsule, which could later be used as a basic resource for nurturing Tiamat or other Undead Creatures.