Looking at the demon frozen in crystal, and its gradually cooling fury,
The demon, with only its head still able to move, glared fiercely at the approaching Sofia and the other two.
Sofia hadn't intervened in their fight, not only to allow them to test their fusion state, but also because she wasn't really suited to capturing these demons.
She was certainly adept at beating these demons to death, but capturing them alive would clearly be a challenge.
Jason and the others were clearly perfect for this task.
"What a shame! That demon was so fragile; it didn't survive," Jason muttered, looking at the demon's corpse, still pinned to the ground by a thick crystal spike.
Sofia silently stared at the massive hole in the corpse, the crystal spikes almost filling its waist and abdomen.
The power of the crystal spikes had clearly penetrated the demon's body. If it had survived, it would have been incredibly strong, having been nearly cut in half.
He turned his gaze back to the giant axe demon before him, frozen like a statue.
The demon's eyes widened, its mouth open; the smell of sulfur and heat could be felt as if it threatened to burst forth.
Seeing this, Sofia clenched his fist and launched a punch through the air.
The shockwave, compressed by the air, slammed fiercely into the demon's face.
"Cough... cough..."
The violent coughing interrupted the lava beam he had intended to spit out. The coughing cascaded forth, scalding him.
The fierce impact even ripped some of the demon's teeth apart, leaving his mouth filled with blood. His nose, already somewhat oddly shaped, was driven directly into his face.
Looking at the miserable appearance, Jason couldn't help but make a grimace.
"Why did you mess with her?" Jason grumbled, looking at the demon.
"Did the Devouring Mouth send you here?"
"Kill me, you ants!"
The demon roared, clearly not intending to answer.
"Why bother? I know killing you will send your soul back to the abyss, and you'll return to this world to cause trouble.
If you don't tell me, I'll freeze you into an ice sculpture and leave you here for the passing crowds. Then, the civilians here will admire you every day, admiring you, a defeated demon.
When that happens, your name will spread throughout this place, even to the demons' lands. Who knows, they might even want to come and see you."
Clearly, these words didn't scare the demon at all; he simply curled his lips in disdain.
"It's strange, don't you see? You've been deceived by the Devouring Mouth.
Otherwise, why would only the three of you attack us? He must have told you we were numerous, right?
You three alone were so easily defeated even in a one-on-one fight, let alone against all of us.
He clearly just wants you to die. If you keep it a secret, wouldn't that be just what he wants?
Perhaps that cunning fellow is sitting in his palace right now, watching you behave so utterly and happily with the surrounding demons." After a moment's thought, Jason spoke again.
This time, the demon before him clearly broke down.
He roared angrily, cursing in some strange, harsh, and unpleasant language.
Jason recognized it; it seemed to be the language of the abyss, whispered from the outside world.
I'd heard Lucelia describe it before.
But this language is too chaotic and disorganized, making it difficult to learn unless one is born in the Abyss.
Even if Lucilia came over, she might only be able to make out the general idea.
"That damned guy told us your strength is only at the fourth level of this world.
At most, your leader might reach the fifth level, allowing us to kill you without worry.
We don't even need to kill all of you; even if we kill just one, we'll still receive his reward."
He roared angrily. This wasn't even a fifth level; any of the targets were already at the fifth level.
Even if they were at the fifth level, it was clear that the people before them possessed more than one treasure, and they were incredibly powerful. They were completely overwhelming them, leaving them no chance of resistance.
Only if the three of them attacked together could they defeat one of them if they were alone.
This was a blatant deception, tricking them into committing suicide, at least in his opinion.
Perhaps the Devouring Mouth itself hadn't anticipated this.
Who could have imagined this? The last time they saw them, they were indeed in the fourth stage, and it had only been so long, only about three years at most.
For a demon like the Devouring Mouth that had survived from the Golden Age, three years wasn't much different from three or three months.
"Forget it, you can't give me any information. You're just a fool who was deceived." Jason cursed casually and waved his hand.
The crystal froze in its furious roar, completely encasing him within it, sealing him into a crystal ice sculpture.
There was really nothing to ask. They just needed to know that the Devouring Mouth knew they had arrived and was already targeting them.
"Someone else is coming."
Sofia, who hadn't turned off his detection wave, sensed something and spoke immediately.
Frightened, Jason and the other two immediately braced for battle, then looked in the direction Sofia had indicated. However, the creatures coming from there weren't demons, but rather several enormous, bird-like creatures soaring through the sky.
A closer look revealed humans sitting atop the birds.
A massive, white bird, clad in armor and resembling an eagle, fluttered its wings and landed in front of them.
This appeared to be a whole squadron of bird knights.
There were six of them, and one of the knights held a banner. It had the image of the Seed of Life on it, while the other featured a simplified image of a soaring eagle.
The humanoid figure on the bird's back wore light armor, a longsword at its waist, and a very longbow slung across its back.
Two quivers hung from the bird's sides.
He leaped down and first surveyed the battlefield, immediately observing the different deaths of the three demons. He removed his helmet.
Long, slightly greenish hair was revealed, and a pair of pointed ears jutted out from between them.
This was a woman, slender and tall.
She looked at the wary Sofia and the other two.
"Did you kill these demons?" she asked, speaking the same language Julia had used earlier.
It was the official language of the Sea of Life.
Clearly, this was a force from the Seed of Life.
Sofia and the others relaxed their guard slightly; they seemed to be a patrol or something.
Sofia nodded.
"It seems they're coming for you. They've also sent numerous demon squads to harass us, drawing our attention.
Sorry we're a little late. Are any of you injured?"
This knight was more polite.
Hearing this, Sofia shook his head.
"Without these demons, wouldn't they have caused us any casualties?" Sofia asked. Upon hearing this, the female Bird Knight glanced at the demons nearby.
These demons were quite recognizable in appearance, all considered powerful on the battlefield.
Looking around, she saw no one else besides the three before her.
Furthermore, none of them bore a single wound, and their clothing was even very respectable. It was clear that the recent battle hadn't burdened them too much.
One could even say it was somewhat comfortable for them.
She confirmed that the three before her were all powerful.
"That's good. This was our oversight."
Then she looked at the demon frozen into crystal behind Sofia.
"If you don't mind, could you please hand this captured demon over to us? Perhaps we can extract some information from its mind."
Hearing this, Sofia turned to Jason and the others. Seeing them nod, she nodded as well and said, "Please do as you please."
This demon truly meant nothing to them. If it weren't for this team of knights, they would have literally turned the demon into an ice sculpture and left it standing there. Provoking the Mouth of the Abyss.
"Thank you for your help. The Seed of Life will remember your kindness."
He waved behind him, and the soldiers behind him dismounted their birds and began carrying the demon sealed in the crystal.
As they were moving, a female soldier wearing a helmet tilted her head and looked at Sofia.
"What can I do for you?" Sofia, sensing her gaze, asked the female knight.
The female knight was stunned, unsure what to say for a moment. The captain who had just communicated with Sofia was also looking at her.
Seeing this, she could only say, "I think I saw her in a dream.
There were demons back then."
Hearing this, the captain turned and observed Sofia closely. Then, as if a sudden realization struck him, he seemed to have hit upon something.
"Excuse me, are you from the Compass Eye Treasure Hunt?" Sofia, without concealing anything, nodded in acknowledgement.
"Ah, so it's you! It seems these demons are the Devouring Mouth's way of targeting you."
She clearly knew Sofia and the others, and even knew something about their conflict with the Devouring Mouth.
"Why do you know us? We're probably not that well-known, are we?" Jason asked, somewhat curiously.
Clearly, the knights before him knew not only their team name but also their vendetta against the Devouring Mouth.
As soon as he finished speaking, something clicked in his mind, for the female knight had just mentioned a dream.
"We had that dream in our dreams. We saw you thwart the Devouring Mouth's plot outside the island, leaving him utterly devastated.
A few years ago, we often dreamed of it.
And according to the captain and the high priest, it seems to be true.
So, did you really thwart the Devouring Mouth's plot in your dreams? You made him look like a fool."
At this point, the captain's tone was filled with curiosity and excitement.
Sofia nodded. This was clearly no longer something worth hiding.
Now they understood why the Devouring Mouth hated them so much. Even these ordinary knights knew it in their dreams, and apparently, almost everyone in this place knew it.
On the front lines of the battlefield, the Devouring Mouth would undoubtedly reappear from time to time. In this situation, the enemy would taunt him with this incident as soon as the fight began, and he wouldn't have a word to refute.
Perhaps it wasn't just his opponents; given the demonic nature of you, even his companions and even his subordinates might secretly mock him.
In this situation, he had no choice but to kill Alka himself. Only by taking their heads and souls could he refute these insults directed at him.
No wonder the Devouring Mouth held them so dear.
This hatred had inexplicably grown so profound.
…
Alka walked along the winding city walls, most of which were covered in plants similar to coral vines.
These plants were clearly no ordinary plants, covered in poisonous thorns and extremely tough.
This was likely a defensive measure taken by the Seed of Life.
Following behind the two witchers, he could already see in the distance a building resembling a flat-roofed tower where the city wall extended beyond it.
Through the mountain that blocked his view, the top of the city wall was revealed.
The two witchers quickened their pace, occasionally saying a few words to Alka: "We're almost there, just ahead."
The three of them ran quickly, and they could already see some people on the city wall dressed similarly to the witchers.
They stared at Alka, who was following them, with some curiosity.
Finally, after rounding a jutting cliff, Alka finally saw the witcher fortress.
The entire fortress was built against the steep mountain.
The towers of the fortress were directly against the cliff face.
Atop the peak, he could see some massive fortifications, with walls and towers rising in clusters, and a variety of elite soldiers and defensive equipment covering the entire area.
The defenses here were as strong as steel.
Alka could already see layer upon layer of various defensive spells affixed everywhere.
Atop the main tower of the Demon Hunter Fortress, a large gray-purple gem could be seen, emitting a strange light that snaked in lines around it.
However, Alka could sense that it was some kind of energy source, likely protecting the fortress.
Passing through the base of the tower atop the city wall, Alka officially entered the fortress.
Two soldiers in black armor immediately stopped Alka.
These soldiers were clearly not pure humans; they possessed various strange features, clearly a subspecies of human. Looking at Alka, they asked sternly, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
One of the two demon hunters who had been accompanying Alka and the others said, "We brought him here. He's looking for the High Inquisitor."
Upon hearing this, the soldier gave Alka a serious look, as if ready to question him further.
At this moment, a deep, solemn voice echoed from behind them.
"Move aside, he's my guest."
Hearing this, the surrounding soldiers and two witchers immediately bowed their heads and saluted: "Your Excellency, High Judge."
The witcher judge, who had met Alka once before, stepped through the cleared aisle.
"Long time no see. Why did you come straight here?"
Without further ado, Alka reached into the space and pulled out a treasure box, handing it over.
"Thank you for your help earlier. I'm here to personally return the item I borrowed."
The witcher judge took it, opened it, and nodded. He then handed it to an adjutant following behind him.
"Just give it to your archbishop, and he'll naturally deliver it to me. There's no need for you to come here in person."
Hearing this, Alka shook his head and smiled, saying, "Like you said before, I'm curious about this place. Besides, there's nowhere else safe outside, so we came here."
Hearing this, Greyfar nodded without saying anything. He understood.
In his position, he obviously knew a lot, including how much the Devouring Mouth hated Alka and the others.
Because even he had used this incident to mock the Devouring Mouth, and more than once.
Being affected by this...
With such a cunning and disgusting creature, unlike a demon, targeting them, running around outside would be dangerous.
It would be safer to stay on an island with a church or in a place like this, facing the devouring mouth.
"A wise choice, but are you alone? Not with your companions?" Greyfar asked curiously.
After all, this demon wouldn't care about such things.
"No, they're in the port city. I came here alone."
Greyfar nodded without further questioning.
At this moment, a dull yet sharp horn sounded, piercing the air and piercing their ears.
As the sound rang out, the soldiers on the city walls and elsewhere immediately entered combat readiness.
Greyfart obviously didn't have time for small talk with Alka. He said, "The demons are attacking again. You go inside the fortress first."
"Can I come up here with you? I've never seen anything like this."
Hearing this, Greyfart glanced at him and nodded. "Sararo, take him with you."
Then he turned to Alka and said, "Follow him. He'll explain the rules here. Don't attack rashly; join the army."
Alka nodded in understanding. He certainly wouldn't attack without knowing anything.
With that, Greyfart hurried away.
Alka turned.
From where he stood, he could already see a vast expanse of crimson in the distance. The demons were charging towards him.