"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Orange-red flames blazed from within the launching devices!
The next moment, countless fireballs the size of basketballs rained down upon the Orefiends.
Although the Orefiends had extremely high physical resistance, they still could not withstand endless fireballs smashing directly into their bodies!
In just a few short breaths, the entire altar had already turned into a scene of utter devastation.
Many Orefiends did not even have time to react before their bodies were completely shattered and reduced to ash. Only the Orefiends Cores left on the ground proved that they had once existed.
But even after the Orefiends Cores had formed, the fireball barrage showed no sign of slowing down. Not only that, the firing frequency and quantity were still continuously increasing!
On the towering city walls, some foreign awakeners did not understand why this was happening.
All they knew was that killing Orefiends could yield Orefiends Cores. But the problem was, the Orefiends Cores had already appeared, so why did they keep bombarding them with fireballs?
So someone asked a demon race awakener beside him,
"Brother, I can already see the Orefiends Cores. Why havenât you stopped firing?"
The demon race awakener next to him smiled and explained,
"My friend, it seems you donât know much about our Abyss! So let me properly explain to you how Orefiends Cores are harvested."
"As you can see, when an Orefiend dies, it produces an Orefiends Core. But to tell you the truth, most Orefiends Cores are basically no different from trash. Only after repeated fire refinement, with the impurities burned away, can what remains be considered a qualified Orefiends Core."
"Of course, thatâs only the first step of the process. After that, there are many more complicated procedures, and those are confidential. Even I donât know much about them, but Iâve heard theyâre extremely complex."
While those awakeners chatted casually atop the city wall,
the Orefiends at the center of the altar had not been completely wiped out. After suffering the first wave of casualties, they had finally realized the gravity of the situation!
To put it simply, the Orefiends had finally realized that they had been living inside a lie since the day they were born!
All that talk about how, if they just worked hard enough, they might one day become citizens of the city-state. All that talk about outstanding performers being allowed to participate in Fallen Revelry.
Every bit of it had been a lie!
And so, dazzling light began to erupt from the bodies of some Orefiends!
The lights were chaotic and variedâred, yellow, green, blue...
Countless rays of light actually withstood the overwhelming rain of fireballs, shielding the Orefiends who had not been afflicted by the "curse" behind them!
At that moment, the Orefiends finally understood what those great figures had meant by the "curse" upon them!
How was this a curse?
This was clearly the Orefiendsâ final protection!
However, even though quite a few Orefiends had already awakened the power of the "curse," the endless fireballs were still constantly draining their energy.
After all, an individualâs strength was limited.
After enduring several more waves of fireballs, some of the awakened Orefiends, having exhausted their power, were once again smashed to pieces.
And the Orefiends Cores they left behind were noticeably purer!
So this... was the Mad Demon Core those great figures had been seeking all along?
Just then, Jester Tycoonâs cold yet crazed voice rang out beside every Orefiendâs ear:
"Angry? Heartbroken?"
"Then fight back! Donât just stand there waiting to die. Donât you want to save your families?"
"Accept the curse, and protect your people!"
"Stand up! Quickly!!"
For Jester Tycoon, the more Orefiends that awakened under the curse, the higher the quality of this batch of Orefiends Cores would be.
And when they were turned into Spirit Stones, there would naturally be even more of them!
With profits on this scale, of course he would do everything he could to provoke the Orefiends!
"What are you still hesitating for? Do you Orefiends really intend to labor your whole lives without complaint?"
"Look at that party just now. If we wanted to, we could hold such joyful celebrations every single day! But what about you? All you can do is keep hauling endless loads of ore. Are you really content with that?"
"Fine! Even if you are willing, then let me ask you thisâarenât you worried that your children and grandchildren will suffer the exact same fate?"
"Stand up! Where is the bloodlust of your Orefiends? Show it to me!!"
"Fight like real members of the demon race! Resist! You useless trashâdonât you have even a shred of backbone?!"
Under Jester Tycoonâs relentless abuse, more and more Orefiends completely broke down.
Not even in their wildest dreams had they imagined that the life they thought they could change through hard work alone would turn out to be this laughable!
As more and more Orefiends accepted the "curse," they began to awaken.
When Jester Tycoon saw this, a gratified smile immediately appeared on his face.
He swirled the goblet in his hand, the crimson wine inside sloshing with it.
Ah, what a beautiful aura!
This was the kind of satisfaction that only Orefiends Cores could bringâa fulfillment that came from the depths of oneâs heart and soul!
Not enough. Still not enough!!
Jester Tycoonâs eyes had gone red as well. No one knew just how long he had been preparing for this day.
He was not the one in charge of every Fallen Revelry.
In fact, he had spent more than three hundred years maneuvering to obtain responsibility for this particular Fallen Revelry. If he did not seize this chance to make a massive profit, Jester Tycoon would never forgive himself!
"Trash! You bunch of trash! Are you only capable of hiding behind the brave and trembling like cowards?!"
"Stand up! What are you still afraid of?!"
"Trash! A bunch of worthless trash!!"
Just as Jester Tycoonâs insults reached their peak, a massive black shadow suddenly appeared in the sky, blotting out the dark moon.
The next instant, the altar was swallowed by darkness.
Even the overwhelming fireballs seemed to dim in that moment.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Countless swords of rain fell from the sky!
In the next moment, the surrounding launching devicesâeven the altarâs core sectionâwere struck by devastating attacks!
Those enormous meteor-like greatswords smashed into the ground and effortlessly blasted out huge craters.
Very soon, demon race awakeners tried to fight back. They poured more energy into their flame shields, but before that overwhelming rain of meteor greatswords, those shields were as fragile as a sheet of paper!
"So you like playing bullet hell, huh? Today Iâll treat you to a barrage of my own!"