Chapter 53: Balroth Fire Demon [Elite]!
A rumbling sound of collapsing buildings echoed as the city wall before them was finally breached.
Thousands of demons surged through the gap like a tidal wave, with the Soul Capture Demons at the forefront, frantically killing with unmatched zeal. Soren stood amidst the sea of flames, holding a charred head in his hands. The enemy Demon Lord had been slain by him, and the remaining demon leaders either fought back fiercely or fled in panic. This battle between Demon Lords concluded with Soren’s total victory, and from now on, this territory would completely belong to him, with part of the enemy’s forces falling under his command.
The struggles among demons are brutal.
However, it is precisely this cruel slaughter that allows demons to ascend rapidly. In one battle, Soren gained over a hundred mid-level demons under his command.
These newcomers, who rose through slaughter among low-level demons, would earn their deserved positions.
“Master.”
The Succubus Boss returned to Soren after killing a Frenzied Combat Demon, although her strength could easily have allowed her to ascend again. It was clear she preferred her Succubus form and chose to continue enhancing her power in that state. Many demons in the Bottomless Abyss opt to maintain their favored forms for extended periods; even if the Succubus is just a mid-level demon form, advancing to the Legendary Domain would still offer other forms for enhancement.
The flames on Soren gradually extinguished.
The Succubus Boss cautiously glanced at him and said slowly, “We found several Succubi in the inner chambers.”
“Will you be treating them as spoils, or…?”
Her voice paused at this point.
Succubi hold a unique status in the Bottomless Abyss; although they are demons, they are often treated as wealth and trade items, viewed by Demon Lords as a form of treasure. They are often given to subordinates as rewards or used for trade, and many Succubi lead tragic fates without an ounce of personal freedom.
What the Succubus Boss asked was how Soren would handle these Succubi.
If he intended to recruit them as his subordinates, their fate would be a bit better—they would have relative personal freedom, akin to other demon subordinates. But if Soren merely planned to treat them as items, their status would be similar to that of slaves, devoid of personal freedom, left imprisoned until they were needed somewhere.
“Let’s recruit them.”
“Incorporate these Succubi into the legion; you will lead them from now on!”
Soren pondered for a moment before speaking. Treating Succubi as mere items was not advantageous for him because they are one of the few mid-level demons with sharp intellect. Moreover, since Succubi’s factions are not as chaotic as other demons, they would be much more effective in carrying out his orders, often displaying more efficiency than other demons. However, by making such a promise, these Succubi would become Soren’s subordinates, and he could no longer treat them as commodities or easily strip away their freedom to sell them to other demons.
Of course, he would never do such a thing.
“Your mercy is truly commendable, my lord!”
The Succubus Boss appeared very pleased and, after bowing, prepared to recruit those Succubi. After all, they were all the same type of demon. She clearly did not wish to see them treated like slave goods. Even demons require a shred of dignity; being traded as slaves and commodities is something even Succubi find hard to accept. As if hearing his command, another high-ranking Succubus beside her glanced at Soren, a hint of a smile gracing her lips.
During the previous battle, she had shown remarkable ease, making it hard for Soren to gauge her true power.
Indeed.
Soren even began to suspect whether she had any connections to the Succubus Queen. A Succubus possessing strength nearing or even surpassing Legendary status seemed to approach the level of the Radiant Nun.
Most Succubi of such a level should have been gathered by the Succubus Queen!
Her origins were rather unclear, and she appeared just when the Succubus Queen had gone missing during the power struggles among the Radiant Nuns. It was a significant coincidence, and if Soren did not make such connections, he would truly lack perception. However, certain matters could not be clarified just yet; he needed to find an opportunity to test her first. For the time being, she did not seem to harbor any enmity toward Soren. On the contrary, she often appeared very compliant.
“Send someone to count the spoils.”
“Recruit the surrendered demons! Be cautious of those Evil Spirits; do not let them near the enemy’s treasure vault.”
These orders were directed toward the Demon Goblins. Soren still could not fully trust the Evil Spirits, who were mercenaries in this battle; they must not be allowed to approach the enemy’s vault.
This battle had also cost Soren significantly.
However, as long as they secured victory, everything was worthwhile. After assimilating the enemy’s legion, he could rapidly recover and expand, merging the powers of the two territories. Soren felt he was on the verge of obtaining a Virtual Deity status close to [Weak Divine Power].
Of course.
This power would only be effective within his own territory.
Demon Lords can assimilate the powers of the Bottomless Abyss. If strong enough, they can also alter the laws of a piece of land like devils.
Having successfully slain a secondary Demon Lord, Soren finally experienced the long-awaited breakthrough and gained a full 12 points of Divinity Value.
These Divinity Values still resided within his demonized form; perhaps, in the future, they would merge at the right moment.
Because the main body and the avatar can indeed merge!
However.
There was a prerequisite: Soren truly needed to lower the Divine Kingdom into the Bottomless Abyss. Only then could he transition from an Evil God to an Abyss Demon God, ultimately successfully merging the powers of demon avatars.
“Name: Soren.
Race: Demon.
Form: Balroth Fire Demon [Elite] [Tier 5] [Large Otherworldly Creature] [Interdimensional] [Evil]
Level: Biological Level 24.
Attributes: Strength 34, Agility 22, Constitution 27, Intelligence 25, Perception 25, Charisma 27.
Faction: Lawful Evil. (Note: Other demons will harbor slight hostility toward your actions.)
Life: 381/475.
Demon Power: 1506/6000.
Domains: Frenzied, Evil.
Skills: Stealth 215, Deception 185, Negotiation 155, Knowledge 180, Intimidation 320, Spell Identification 150, Use Magic Device 180, Listening 135, Reconnaissance 135, Search 120.
Abilities: Gaze of Fear, Fear Aura, Body of Flames, Flame Whip, Bind, Demon Claw (+1 Innate Magical Weapon), Demon Skin (Damage Reduction +10), Demon Resistance (Various Resistances +10).
Specialties: Dual Wielding, Improved Initiative, Multiattack, Weapon Specialization: Decapitating Sword, Extraplanar Weapon Mastery: Whip, Power Attack.
Spell-like Abilities: Summon Demon Legion, Soul Extraction Technique, Mind Control, Blasphemous Words, High-level Teleportation Spell, Terror (Can be cast at will), Fireball Spell (5 times per day, instant), Dominate Demon (once per day), Burning Hands, Summon Demon, Telepathy.”
…………
Balroth Fire Demon [Elite] form!
Soren felt he was just one step away from advancing to the Balroth Fire Demon, and with his current strength, his power would likely far surpass that of an ordinary Balroth Fire Demon.
The added abilities from the Elite form were not many.
They merely enhanced Soren’s attributes and added a [Evil] domain.
However.
The most significant improvement was not this; Soren also gained a new spell-like ability.
—— “Summon Demon Legion!”
A legendary spell granted due to the enhancement of his abilities as a Demon Lord, independent of the original summon demon power.
“Summon Demon Legion [Legendary Spell]: As a powerful Demon Lord, you can cast this legendary spell-like ability once a day. This spell will summon 1-2 Assassins, 2-4 Soul Judgers, Tempt, or Six-armed Serpent Demons from the demons you control, while also summoning 4-8 Frenzied Combat Demons, Balroth Fire Demons, or Succubi, among others. This spell will also summon a significant number of low-level demons, including but not limited to Coward Demons, Quasai Demons, and Violent Demons, summoning a total of around 36-108 low-level demons.”
This is a powerful ability.
The effect of the spell far exceeds other types of summon demons abilities. Only Demon Lords in the Bottomless Abyss can summon so many demons at once.
“My biological level is already 24!”
Soren looked at his data panel and thought silently: “I’m just one step away! Once the biological level rises to around 25, I should be able to advance to either the [Balroth Fire Demon] form or the [Fire Demon] leader form.”
Demons do not need to accumulate their original forms much.
Every refresh of a new form is like reshaping the flesh. However, Soren’s situation is a bit special; [Fire Demon] and [Balroth Fire Demon] are very similar forms.
Not like [Succubus] and [Frenzied Combat Demon], which are almost entirely different.
Therefore, Soren is now considering whether to first advance to the [Fire Demon] leader form and then to the [Balroth Fire Demon] form, or to directly break through the limits and enter the [Balroth Fire Demon] form.
The former is about accumulating strength gradually and likely has some advantages.
As for the latter, it means a significant power upgrade. Once Soren advances to the [Balroth Fire Demon], his combat power would immediately increase by over thirty percent.
He considered carefully.
He felt that there were currently no insurmountable enemies, so perhaps it would be better to accumulate gradually and first advance to the [Leader] form, then transform into the [Balroth Fire Demon].
The battle gradually subsided.
Soren looked over the battlefield, where all the demons dared not meet his gaze; as his gaze fell upon them, they all knelt down.
“Select a batch of prisoners.”
“The Gurenba Arena needs to hold a grand Death Arena; we will extend an invitation to the devils!”
“Tell those prisoners.”
“If they can kill those devils, I will grant them freedom and status.”
…………
(To be continued ~^~)
