Chapter 145: The Purple Demon
Han Ming''s success was undeniable.
Faced with such an unconventional display of water magic, Huang Ying had even forgotten to summon his beast spirit.
A water mage, once deemed useless by the world, had today created a miracle that shook the hearts of everyone present.
This was a triumph for all water mages.
While the Tri-Nation Tournament arena in Fila City was celebrating, nearly thirty cities on the outskirts of the Monte Empire had quietly fallen.
No one had any knowledge of what had happened in these cities. Everything appeared as peaceful and calm as ever.
The Tri-Nation Tournament had drawn most of the Monte Empire''s elite, leaving the cities with only a handful of skilled fighters.
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**Deep within the Savage Forest, in the ancient Gurgle Castle:**
In the reception hall, two men sat facing each other.
"Lord Gurgle, have you made your decision?" asked the man clad in black.
Gurgle narrowed his eyes, his voice heavy. "Your affairs with humans are none of my concern. Do not expect me to get involved."
The black-clad man laughed heartily. "Lord Gurgle, you should reconsider. This continent will soon be ours. You must understand one thing: how can you remain neutral when danger lurks at your doorstep? Do you truly believe you can stay out of this?"
Gurgle''s lips twitched. He reached for a cup of tea, but his anger caused him to crush it in his hand.
"Are you threatening me? You? A mere fourth-tier Shadow Guard? I don''t fear you. If your kind wishes to attack me, come at me. I, Gurgle, will not back down."
The black-clad man chuckled softly. "Lord Gurgle, you misunderstand. Let me give you two days to think it over. I''ll return then."
"Don''t bother seeing me out," Gurgle growled.
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**Above the Savage Forest:**
Several massive airships flew across the sky. Strangely, not a single magical beast dared to intercept them—a rare sight in such a dangerous territory.
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**In the Ghost Domain:**
The airships landed one after another.
Hundreds of demon soldiers moved in an orderly fashion, unloading crates and transporting them to a massive underground cavern.
The cavern sloped at a 45-degree angle, its entrance a staggering ten meters wide.
Teams of demon soldiers carried the crates deep into the cavern.
"Lord Wicked Ghost, we have successfully captured thirty cities in the Monte Empire, obtaining over a million magic crystals of various types," reported a demon captain to a burly figure.
"Good," the Wicked Ghost replied. "Humans think they know our numbers, but they have no idea our forces far exceed the 200,000 they believe. The information they received is nothing but a ruse."
"Lord Wicked Ghost, with over twenty fifth-tier Wicked Ghosts like yourself, isn''t that enough to conquer human society? Why do we need so many magic crystals?"
The burly figure let out a sinister laugh. "Because... we need to tear open the demon realm''s seal, even if just for a moment, to allow a sixth-tier Life Ghost to emerge!"
(Note: Demon soldiers are classified as follows: third-tier and below are simply called demon soldiers; fourth-tier are Ghost Envoys; fifth-tier are Wicked Ghosts; and sixth-tier are Life Ghosts.)
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**At the bottom of the cavern:**
Dozens of massive crates were arranged in a vast, circular chamber. The chamber descended sharply into an abyss, its surface covered by a barrier resembling intertwined lightning.
The barrier was already damaged in several places, with small holes through which demon soldiers climbed.
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In front of the barrier was a massive magic circle, divided into five sections, each connected to a smaller circle. The entire formation was drawn in human blood.
At the center of each smaller circle lay a weapon: a sword, a spear, a blade, a staff, and an axe. Beside each weapon stood an ancient-looking demon soldier, their eyes closed.
"Pour the crystals!" ordered the fifth-tier Wicked Ghost guarding the barrier.
The demon soldiers began dumping magic crystals into the surrounding pools. As the crystals were added, the pools emitted a faint black light, growing stronger with each crystal.
The five magic circles began to glow intensely, and the weapons hummed with energy.
When over a million magic crystals had been poured into the pools, the five outer circles radiated blinding light. The weapons glowed in various colors, their energy causing the cavern to tremble.
"Now!" the Wicked Ghost shouted.
The five demon soldiers gripping the weapons let out eerie cries as the weapons released a blinding light. The energy flowed from the outer circles into the central magic circle.
The central circle roared to life, five streams of energy converging into a massive orb of light. The orb floated upward and shot toward the barrier.
A harsh, corrosive sound filled the air as the orb began to dissolve the barrier, creating a growing gap.
Just as the orb vanished, the gap in the barrier reached its maximum size.
A black shadow shot through the gap, and the barrier instantly resealed.
All the demon soldiers in the cavern dropped to one knee, trembling in fear.
The fifth-tier Wicked Ghost, though also trembling, managed to look up with a mix of fear and awe.
The figure that emerged was a young man with purple eyes, draped in a flowing purple robe. His long purple hair cascaded down his back, and his androgynous features gave him an otherworldly appearance.
"Greetings, Life Ghost!" the Wicked Ghost said, his voice shaking.
"Call me Purple Demon," the young man said emotionlessly, glancing around.
"Yes, Lord Purple Demon."
The Purple Demon''s gaze fell on the five weapons in the magic circles. "These five demon weapons are destroyed, I assume?"
"Yes, Lord Purple Demon. It was worth sacrificing them to summon you. Now, as long as we continue to gather magic crystals from the human world, we can slowly erode the barrier and bring forth more low-tier demon soldiers. Soon, the human world will be in our—no, in your hands."
The Wicked Ghost trembled, realizing his mistake.
The Purple Demon smiled faintly and stepped closer. "Shall I end you, or will you do it yourself?"
"Please, Lord Purple Demon, spare me! I misspoke! I deserve death, but I beg for your mercy! Please, for the sake of—"
The Purple Demon''s hand shot out, gripping the Wicked Ghost''s throat. Black energy flowed from his palm into the Wicked Ghost''s body. The Wicked Ghost let out a gurgling sound before disintegrating into dust.
The other demon soldiers trembled in terror, their flesh falling off their bones.
The Purple Demon clapped his hands, the sound of his sharp, purple nails clinking like metal.
"Continue your tasks," he said calmly.
"Yes, Life Ghost—no, Lord Purple Demon!"
The demon soldiers were terrified, knowing they had misspoken again.
"Hmm... replace them," the Purple Demon said with a smile.
Before the soldiers could react, the Purple Demon waved his hand, sending out dozens of black threads that reduced them to bone dust.
---
**In the Savage Flame Prison:**
The Purple Demon walked calmly through the fiery landscape. Flames parted before him, and magical beasts knelt in submission.
Half a day later, he stood before the ruler of the Savage Flame Prison, Lord Vantian.
"Join our demon army," the Purple Demon said with a faint smile.
"Impossible!" Vantian declared.
The Purple Demon nodded. "Do you know the consequences of refusing me?"
Vantian laughed. "You, this androgynous creature, think you can make me submit? Show me what you''ve got!"
A short while later, a massive fiery figure shot into the sky, fleeing in disarray, blood raining down.
The Purple Demon watched coldly. "He has some skill. Few can escape from me with such injuries. But I have no time to deal with him now. Let him suffer for a while."
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**In the Savage Stormlands:**
In the main city of Stormwind, Lord Adela, a fifth-tier wind warrior, sat trembling in his chair, staring at the door.
The door opened, and the Purple Demon walked in.
"Lord Adela, will you join us?" he asked, his tone calm but commanding.
"I... I will," Adela stammered.
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**In the Savage Forest:**
"I said I will never join your demon army! If you want me to join, you''ll have to defeat me!" Gurgle roared, though he knew the demon forces were too vast to resist. He had assumed the barrier would only allow fourth-tier demons at most, with perhaps a few fifth-tier ones. He had believed he could handle them individually.
But as he spoke, his heart skipped a beat. A sense of dread he hadn''t felt in decades washed over him.
A purple figure shot toward him.
"A sixth-tier powerhouse! How is this possible!?" Gurgle exclaimed, summoning his beast spirit—a massive ape.
The ape intercepted the Purple Demon, their collision shaking the castle.
The ape''s arm shattered but quickly reformed, though its form grew fainter.
The Purple Demon continued his assault, each blow causing the ape to disintegrate and reform, growing weaker until it finally shattered into green light and returned to Gurgle.
The Purple Demon''s sharp nails pressed against Gurgle''s throat.
"Lord Gurgle, your beast spirit is impressive. Few can withstand my attacks for so long."
Gurgle''s forehead dripped with sweat. What had happened to the demon realm''s seal? How could such a monster emerge? A sixth-tier demon could sweep across the entire Northern Alliance. Humanity was in grave danger.
"Well, Lord Gurgle? Does your earlier vow still stand?" the Purple Demon asked with a faint smile.
Gurgle nodded reluctantly. If only he had obtained that wood spirit core from Miron, he might have been able to hold this monster off for a while.
---
**In the Savage Desert:**
The Purple Demon stood before the leader of the Desert Snake Clan, Lady Shameer.
"I assume you are the current ruler of the Savage Desert, Lady Shameer," he said with a faint smile.
The veiled woman tried to remain calm, but her trembling hands betrayed her fear.
"Will you join the demon realm?" the Purple Demon asked.
Lady Shameer nodded helplessly. Even if the former leader, Rockfall, a fifth-tier earth warrior, were here, he would be no match for this sixth-tier Life Ghost.
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**In the Savage Ice Plains:**
The Purple Demon stood atop an icy peak, his eyes closed as he searched.
"How strange. The Savage Ice Plains have no ruler?" he murmured.
He was unaware that the only potential ruler of the Savage Ice Plains—the most powerful creature in the entire Savage Forest, the Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor—had already been slain by Han Ming, who had absorbed its core.