The cheers of the demons erupted throughout the hall the moment they heard their king's words.
The voices shook the earth and sky as demonic auras surged in every direction.
As for the Demon King, he sat upon his massive throne, watching the scene with a satisfied smile.
Then he turned his gaze toward the nine rulers gathered before him.
Each of them was a creature capable of striking terror into the hearts of enemies with a single glance.
The first was a Demonic Saint who stood calmly and dignified, yet the black aura surrounding him was enough to reveal how dangerous he truly was.
The second was a strange creature resembling an octopus, except it did not live in water—it flew through the air. It possessed dozens of arms and dozens of eyes scattered across its body in a way that made merely looking at it unsettling.
The third was a strangely shaped skeleton, cold green flames burning within its eye sockets.
The fourth was a man of unnaturally perfect beauty, with six enormous wings extending from his back. At first glance, one might mistake him for a holy angel, if not for the terrifying demonic aura emanating from him. Because of this, he was known among all as the Fallen Angel.
The fifth was Lilith, the Demon King's daughter.
The sixth was Medusa, who stood quietly beside her.
The seventh was the strangest of them all.
A massive mass of black clay.
It had no eyes.
It had no mouth.
In fact, it possessed no clear features at all.
Yet it moved naturally as though it were a complete living being.
The eighth was a gigantic demon with eight extremely long arms and more than forty eyes distributed across its body.
And finally...
The ninth was the Flame Demon.
Its entire body was composed of black and crimson flames.
Even the ground beneath its feet slowly melted from the immense heat radiating from it.
Because of that, no demon dared approach it too closely.
The Demon King laughed when he saw his nine rulers standing before him.
Then he spoke in a low voice, yet one filled with such authority that everyone immediately fell silent.
"Prepare yourselves."
The cheers stopped.
The noise vanished.
All eyes turned toward him.
Then he continued with a cold smile.
"We will launch an assault on the continent of Mira soon."
In the very next moment...
The hall exploded with cheers and cries.
The demons roared madly.
Their demonic auras released wave after wave of power.
Even the rulers themselves seemed excited.
But one of them suddenly raised his voice.
It was the ruler who resembled an octopus.
Dozens of his eyes turned toward the king simultaneously as he spoke.
"How did you recover so quickly, my lord?"
Then he added in confusion,
"We believed you would need far more time to regain your strength."
The Demon King laughed softly.
Then he raised a hand and pointed toward the silent mass of black clay.
"He brought me something extremely valuable."
The rulers fell silent.
The king continued.
"Something that helped me recover far faster than I expected."
Everyone looked toward the black clay ruler in astonishment.
This ruler was known among all for his extreme mystery.
He rarely spoke.
In fact, most demons had never heard him speak at all.
Even his true power remained unknown to the other rulers.
Thus, their surprise was immense.
If this creature had found a treasure capable of healing the Demon King...
Then it had to be an extraordinary treasure indeed.
At that moment, the eight-armed demon stepped forward slightly and asked,
"And what is this treasure, my lord?"
Then he added with obvious curiosity,
"It must be a legendary treasure to completely heal your injuries."
The Demon King nodded.
Then he lowered his gaze toward the black clay mass.
"He discovered some Ancient Demon Blood."
The moment he finished speaking...
Silence filled the hall.
Complete silence.
Even the sound of breathing seemed to vanish for a few moments.
The eyes of all nine rulers widened.
They looked at the king in obvious shock.
They knew exactly what those words meant.
Ancient Demon Blood.
The legacy of the first ancestors.
A power that had vanished from the world countless ages ago.
The Fallen Angel stepped forward and spoke in a slightly trembling voice.
"How?"
Then he repeated the question as though he could not believe what he had heard.
"How did he find that blood?"
He pointed toward the black clay ruler.
"Impossible..."
Then he continued.
"Ancient Demon Blood no longer exists in this world."
Silence returned.
The other rulers nodded.
And for an extremely rare occasion...
All of them agreed with the Fallen Angel.
No matter how often they disagreed with him, this was a fact known by everyone.
Ancient Demon Blood had become extinct long ago.
The Demon King laughed when he saw their astonishment.
Then he shook his head calmly.
"Have you forgotten?"
Everyone looked at him in confusion.
The king continued.
"The Great War is approaching."
His eyes turned into glowing crimson.
Then he spoke in a deep voice.
"And the world itself has begun preparing for it."
Silence filled the hall.
The king continued.
"When wars that determine the fate of ages draw near..."
He raised his hand toward the sky.
"...lost treasures begin to appear."
A mysterious smile appeared on his face.
"Buried secrets awaken."
"Forgotten powers return to the light."
And finally, he said,
"It is the world's way of maintaining balance."
Silence settled among the rulers.
Yet deep within their hearts...
A strange feeling began to form.
If Ancient Demon Blood had already appeared...
Then perhaps this was only the beginning.
And perhaps the treasures that would appear later would be far greater than they could imagine.
The moment the Demon King finished speaking...
And before any of the rulers could respond...
The expressions on all their faces suddenly changed.
The laughter stopped.
The smiles disappeared.
Even the turbulent demonic auras calmed for a moment.
All of them had sensed something strange.
Something they had not felt in a very long time.
Something that made even their hearts tremble despite their immense power.
A treasure.
An enormous treasure that the world itself was about to bring into existence.
The Demon King's eyes widened suddenly.
Then he rose from his throne with unusual speed.
He spoke in a low voice, unable to conceal the excitement within him.
"It is a sign..."
His crimson eyes blazed brightly.
Then he continued.
"A sign of the world's recovery."
He seemed to grow more excited the more he thought about it.
"The world stands with us demons."
The moment he said that, he turned toward his nine rulers.
Then he commanded firmly.
"Follow me."
No one hesitated.
In the next instant, all of their bodies shot through the sky at terrifying speed.
Heading toward the place where they had sensed the birth of that legendary treasure.
But they were not the only ones.
On the continent of Mira...
The Dragon King suddenly opened his eyes.
Near Asgard, out in the ocean...
The Titan Leader raised his head toward the sky.
And within the Heavenly Kingdom...
The Archangel's wings stopped moving for a moment.
They had all sensed the same thing.
They had sensed the treasure that the world had begun creating.
Therefore, none of them hesitated.
They rushed forward at the greatest speed possible.
Each leader brought their strongest followers with them.
A treasure of this magnitude could not be ignored.
Elsewhere...
Odin was still standing by the sea when he sensed the sudden change.
He slowly raised his head.
Then closed his eyes for a few seconds.
After examining the energy emanating from afar, he let out a faint sigh.
"As expected."
Then he opened his eyes once more.
"The treasure has not been born yet."
He continued while gazing toward the distant horizon.
"It still requires several years before its formation is complete."
Silence lingered for a few moments.
Then a mocking smile appeared on his face.
"I need to become stronger."
His expression turned serious.
"If I want to obtain a portion of that treasure when it is finally born."
In the middle of the ocean...
On a deserted island located near the islands separating the Demon Continent from the continent of Mira...
The sky began to change.
Dark clouds gathered above the island.
Thunder roared without end.
At the center of the island...
A massive sphere of energy was slowly taking shape.
Its energy was so pure that merely looking at it made the air tremble.
After a short time...
The great powers arrived.
The Demon King and his nine rulers appeared first.
Then came the Titan Leader.
Accompanied by the Titan Elder and several of their greatest warriors.
Some of their bodies were as large as mountains.
After that, the dragons arrived.
The Dragon King led them.
Behind him were three gigantic dragons.
The leaders of the greatest dragon clans.
Finally...
The white heavens split apart.
The Archangel descended.
Behind him came twelve angels.
Each possessing six enormous wings.
The sight made it seem as though an entire heavenly army had descended upon the world.
Silence filled the area.
A heavy, oppressive silence.
Everyone looked at one another.
Their gazes met.
Yet those gazes alone were enough to make the surrounding space tremble.
Every individual present was among the strongest beings in the world.
And with all of them gathered together...
The clouds above the island grew denser and denser.
The sea shook violently.
As though nature itself could no longer withstand their combined presence in one place.
Yet...
None of them stepped toward the island's center.
None of them attempted to touch the treasure.
For they all knew the same truth.
The treasure was not yet complete.
It would require several more years before it was fully born.
But that was not why they had come today.
They had come for something else.
They had come to determine who would possess it in the future.
Long minutes passed.
They exchanged nothing but gazes.
No one retreated.
No one threatened anyone.
Yet everyone understood the truth.
There was no agreement.
There was no solution.
And no side was willing to yield.
In the end...
They realized the time had not yet come.
Any attempt to decide the future owner of the treasure now would be meaningless.
For even the strongest among them...
Could not be completely certain of victory if a full-scale war erupted.
Thus, they all began to leave.
The dragons departed first.
Then the titans.
After them, the angels.
And finally, the Demon King and his rulers returned to their continent.
Yet despite their departure...
A heavy feeling remained in all their hearts.
For they had learned something very important that day.
When the treasure finally completed its birth several years later...
It would not be an ordinary competition.
Nor would it be a small battle between a handful of powerful beings.
It would be a terrifying war.
A war that could drag every race in the world into its flames.
A war filled with bloodshed, destruction, and annihilation.
And a war that might determine who would become the ruler of the world in the coming age.
(Author's Note):
Hello everyone! Thank you for your continuous support of this novel; your comments and interactions mean the world to me.
Stepping away from our story here for a moment, I wanted to share another project I've been working on with great passion. I have started publishing a webtoon (comic) on the Webtoon platform titled "Me and the Wolf."
It is a [Comedy / Fantasy] story about a miserable young man and a cunning wolf who is constantly getting him into trouble! If you enjoy my writing style and the way I build scenarios, I promise you're going to love this comic.
I would be so grateful if you could go check it out, subscribe to the series, and let me know what you think in the comments there!
🔍 Search on the Webtoon app for: [Me and the Wolf]