Chapter 505: Thanks For That

Chapter 505: Thanks For That

The [Original Demon], as the first and oldest faction of the Old Demon faction, devoted significant effort to the Demonic Refining Ritual, aiming to create the Seventh and evolve Demon Lords into a new Demon King.

Only through continuous Demonic Refining Rituals, producing countless Demonized Beings as sacrifices and nourishment for the Demon Lord Larvae, could the Seventh be successfully born.

To achieve this, the quantity and quality of the demons and monsters used in the ritual had to be guaranteed.

Under such circumstances, it was only natural for the [Original Demon] to target the Tegor Forest, the largest monster forest.

Therefore…

“A thousand years ago, after the war ended and the Old Demon Faction [Original Demon] was born, the Tegor Forest has been frequently used as the site for the Demonic Refining Ritual.”

Lid explained this secret to Shien.

“At first, no one noticed this, because the Tegor Forest is vast and secluded. As long as they hid within, no one could discover the anomaly. There were many successful cases of the Demonic Refining Ritual here.”

Those successful cases all turned into powerful Demon Lord Larvae, becoming part of the Seventh created by the [Original Demon].

It could be said that the Seventh within the [Original Demon] was born and originated from here.

“Later, because of the Goddess of Nature’s power and the vigilance of the elves living here, the Demonic Refining Ritual was finally discovered.”

Lid said calmly.

“It was then that we discovered the existence of the [Original Demon], the existence of the Old Demon Faction, and their foolish plan.”

Neither the Divine Race, the Demon Race, nor the human race could ignore this.

“The three races all sent many people, intending to completely annihilate the [Original Demon] in the Tegor Forest and destroy their plan.”

Unfortunately, the Old Demon Faction was well-prepared.

They had anticipated that the ritual would be discovered and had prepared an escape plan.

“As a result, that time, we only managed to stop the Demonic Refining Ritual, but we couldn’t effectively damage the [Original Demon].” Lid snorted coldly. “The most infuriating thing is that those rats became very cautious afterward. For a thousand years, they haven’t shown themselves.”

Airi had also said before, in the Atlus Gorge, that the [Original Demon] never revealed themselves easily, but would give Demon Lord Larvae to those Old Demon Faction branches or human forces who were trying to do something, using them to perform the ritual and gather sacrifices to achieve their own goals.

Because of this, this oldest branch of the Old Demon Faction also became the most mysterious, never revealing themselves, making it extremely difficult to effectively harm them.

“And when we left the Tegor Forest, those bastards would return at the right time, continuing to use the forest for the Demonic Refining Ritual to create Demon Lord Larvae and complete the Seventh. Once we received news and came here, they would immediately retreat. For a thousand years, the three races have been played by this [Original Demon].”

Lid’s voice was filled with anger, and even Millu looked furious, a terrifying killing intent emanating from her.

Shien could imagine how frustrated the three races were, being played by the [Original Demon].

“Even Nadue, the Goddess of Nature, intervened several times, using her power to monitor the world, and Lildas, the Goddess of Fate, also used her power many times, trying to find them, but they seemed to have anticipated everything, constantly shifting their base between the human world and the Demon Realm, using various methods to evade the Divine Race’s power. In the end, even the Divine Race couldn’t do anything to them.”

Lid sighed.

“Helplessly, we could only use some crude methods, setting up sentries and defenses in the places they often targeted, especially this Tegor Forest, a ritual site they couldn’t abandon.”

Therefore, although the Tegor Forest seemed dangerous, and no one would normally come here, not only was the [Original Demon] active here from time to time, but even the sentries and spies of the various races would frequently come and go.

This was the reason why Lid and Millu were here.

“In the Demon Race, Millu and I are closest in nature to monsters, and the territories under our jurisdiction mostly have various monsters. Moreover, since it’s difficult for us to act alone due to our special circumstances, we often team up and operate in the Tegor Forest.” ɽÁＮÓBΕⱾ

Lid finally revealed the reason for her presence here.

“This time is the same. Because my subordinates reported a new Demonic Refining Ritual, Millu and I came to the human world, to the Tegor Forest.”

They also knew about the habitat of the Elven Race, that the Elven Homeland was nearby.

Therefore, while they were here, they would occasionally visit the Elven Homeland, firstly to relax, secondly because of Millu’s curiosity and playfulness, and thirdly, to use it as a supply station, sometimes finding some human food to eat, sometimes finding a place to bathe.

At least, that’s what they did whenever a Demonic Refining Ritual occurred in the Tegor Forest and they needed to deal with it.

This time was the same.

“I didn’t expect to encounter you.” Lid looked at Shien. “This is an unexpected harvest.”

“Yes, yes!” Millu nodded repeatedly.

Clearly, these two had long known about Shien’s existence, and about his relationship with Airi.

This time, when Shien came to the Elven Homeland and unintentionally mentioned Airi’s name, they appeared and immediately guessed his identity, just like Shien guessed theirs.

“I originally thought that girl must have gone crazy. A dignified Dragon Demon, one of the Six Demon Lords, actually messing around with a human brat. If I didn’t know her personality, I would have suspected that she had slept too much and her brain had turned to mush.”

Lid’s words were quite vicious.

“Yes, yes!”

Millu nodded repeatedly, making it difficult for Shien to retort.

Of course, that was their initial thought.

Now…

“Although I still don’t quite understand what’s wrong with that girl’s mind, since Big Sister has acknowledged you and doesn’t intend to pursue the matter between you two, and you seem quite capable, so young yet possessing at least legendary-level strength, and most importantly, not afraid of us and daring to face us, you’re considered passable for now.”

Lid’s evaluation was quite harsh.

But overall, Shien had met their standards.

Otherwise, they might have really attacked him.

As Lid said, if he wanted to be involved with Airi, he had to bear this risk.

Otherwise, did he really think he could easily gain the favor and protection of a Demon Lord, the pinnacle of the Demon Race, despite the difference in status and strength?

Perhaps Airi herself didn’t mind, but she was still one of the leaders of the Demon Race, her every move could influence the entire race, and even the world. Even if she didn’t want to, others would still act because of her. This was the influence of a high-ranking figure.

Shien naturally understood this.

But he never took it to heart.

With his special identity, he would eventually enter the sights of those at the top of this world. He was already mentally prepared.

Although his strength wasn’t to the point where he could act recklessly, he at least had some confidence now, which was why he wasn’t afraid and dared to follow Millu and Lid out of the Elven Homeland.

Thanks to this, if it were any other time, facing Lid’s arrogant evaluation, he would definitely retort.

But now, he was more concerned about something else.

“So, the Demonic Refining Ritual is still being held in the Tegor Forest?” Shien asked, “Did you find anyone from the [Original Demon]?”

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Lid answered directly,

“No.” Lid replied, “If they were that easy to find, this oldest branch of the Old Demon Faction wouldn’t have survived for a thousand years. They would have been eliminated long ago.”

“Yes!” Millu also nodded vigorously, as if agreeing, and even made a punching gesture. Her small fist created a surprisingly strong gust of wind, scattering the surrounding flames, a terrifying display of power.

Shien fell silent and sighed.

“What?” Lid asked, “Do you have a grudge against the [Original Demon]?”

Seeing how much Shien cared about the [Original Demon] and the Demonic Refining Ritual, Lid was a bit curious.

“A grudge?” Shien curled his lip. “If I have to say, it’s not that I don’t.”

Although the Garibaldi family was the main culprit in the Atlus Gorge incident, the [Original Demon], as the mastermind behind it, Shien hadn’t forgotten about them.

Coupled with his conflict with the Old Demon Faction, Shien naturally considered this most mysterious and oldest branch of the Old Demon Faction his enemy.

Of course, the main reason Shien was concerned about the [Original Demon] was still the matter of the Seventh and the creation of a new Demon King.

He was summoned to this world as the Hero. According to Nien, it was because she wanted Shien to resolve a hidden crisis.

And this hidden crisis was very likely the [Original Demon]’s actions of creating a new Demon Lord and a new Demon King.

Since that was the case, how could Shien not confront the [Original Demon]?

“Anyway, I’m not on good terms with the Old Demon Faction. You just need to know that.” Shien said to Lid, “If possible, I will definitely wipe them all out from this world.”

How ruthless.

However, Millu and Lid’s eyes lit up because of Shien’s words.

“I agree!”

Millu raised her hand energetically.

“Indeed, those bastards should be completely eradicated from this world.”

Lid also nodded repeatedly.

Clearly, these two, like Airi, loathed the Old Demon Faction.

It should be said that all Demon Lords and demons loathed the Old Demon Faction.

Especially the [Original Demon], who wanted to create a new Demon Lord and a new Demon King. This was trampling on the way of existence of Demon Lords and the Demon King’s authority.

Moreover, for their own purposes, they not only used monsters as sacrifices, but also targeted demons, harming their own kind. Every member of the Demon Race wanted to annihilate them.

Shien’s words resonated with Millu and Lid.

This also made them look at Shien more favorably.

“It seems that girl Airi has some good judgment.”

Lid even said this, showing how much she hated the Old Demon Faction.

Shien wouldn’t have thought that he, who was being scrutinized by these two big shots before, would now gain their favor because of a single sentence of shared hatred.

Shien only wanted to know one thing.

“Since you didn’t catch anyone, can you at least stop the Demonic Refining Ritual?” Shien frowned. “I didn’t sense the evil and dark magic power of the ritual. Could it be that the ritual site isn’t here?”

“No, the ritual site is nearby.” Lid shook her head. “However, the ritual has already been disrupted by Millu and me.”

“The ritual has been disrupted?” Shien was taken aback.

“That’s right.” Lid waved her paw. “Millu and I both took action. Do you think the ritual could still continue?”

Indeed, the identities of these two weren’t simple. Since they had come here and taken action, they couldn’t have gone to the Elven Homeland to relax without any results.

“Although the ritual was disrupted by us, we haven’t found the culprit yet, and some of the Demonized Beings formed during the ritual escaped and are now wandering in the forest.” Lid said, “These Demonized Beings might be recovered by the [Original Demon] and used to feed other Demon Lord larvae, so we need to eliminate the remaining Demonized Beings as much as possible.”

“Eliminate! Eliminate!” Millu cheered, seemingly full of energy.

Shien then understood.

“You’re not planning to use me as muscle, are you?”

Shien was stunned.

Lid smiled “kindly.”

“We just want to see your strength.” Lid said teasingly, “How about it? Isn’t it exciting? A truly invigorating activity, right? Makes you sweat a lot, doesn’t it?”

Thanks for that.

As Shien rolled his eyes at this, Nadue, who had been watching, narrowed her eyes.

“The [Original Demon] again?”

A cold glint flashed in Nadue’s eyes.

“It seems I need to keep an eye on this forest.”