Birth of the Demonic Sword

While Noah and Fergie were busy training and exploring the magical beasts' domain, Divine Demon and the rest of the army that had attacked the Crystal City were traveling through the Outer Lands.

Their assault on the Crystal City had turned out to be a massive success. The Legion had destroyed the entire structure and killed many fanatics in the attack. Only a few members of that force and the two rank 8 experts had managed to escape.

The fight had not been fair. Divine Demon and Wilfred were powerful, but their opponents weren't weak either. Yet, Luke wasn't a member of the Crystal City, so he had eventually stopped caring about the battle and focused on retreating.

Madame Canson could only order a full retreat at that point. Miss Canson, Miss Nine, Shandal, Lord Ethan, God's Right Hand, and other core members of the Crystal City managed to escape, but they had to sacrifice all the other experts in the area.

The Legion won, but its army ended up stranded in those foreign regions. Only King Elbas had a vague idea of their position, but the journey back to the Outer Lands turned out to be quite chaotic.

Luke and Madame Canson had warned their allied forces about the assault. The territorial advantage allowed those organizations to ambush the Legion multiple times during their journey back to neutral zones.

Divine Demon and the others were deep in the realm of the Crystal City, and they were also on the other end of the human domain. Their enemies had the chance to attack them countless times, but they didn't manage to balance the losses inflicted during the assault.

Their journey became safer once they reached the Outer Lands. Wilfred and the other hybrids had never lived in those regions, but they knew them better than their enemies.

Once the Crystal City and its allies lost their advantage, the Legion managed to fend off the ambushes without suffering any loss. Still, it never managed to make its enemies lose its tracks.

The forces of the human domain rarely chased enemies in the Outer Lands, but the Crystal City and the Sailbrird family were livid. The losses suffered during the assault didn't matter too much, but letting Noah escape was a spot to their reputation.

The Crystal City and the Sailbrird family had to make the Legion pay, but their assaults lost their success rate once that force reached the Outer Lands. The pursuit became a matter of endurance, but the hybrids were unbeatable in that field.

"Why don't you create something that teleports us home," Divine Demon said in an annoyed tone. "I have an inheritance waiting for me."

"Why don't you ask Wilfred to build it?" King Elbas replied. "He destroyed our transport so carelessly. He must have had a plan."

The army had built an encampment near a mountain to recover from the recent attacks. Everyone had gathered around a large fire to relax and celebrate their victory over the fanatics.

Wilfred pretended not to hear that discussion. He knew that Divine Demon was only blowing off steam. The expert seemed to like poking King Elbas with his sharp words.

"Well," Divine Demon said while standing up. "Jordan, I need the usual. Make sure to treat my disciples with care."

Jordan arched her eyebrows at that request. Divine Demon had asked that favor many times already, and she was growing bored of satisfying his eccentric needs. However, he was a rank 8 asset that could benefit the Legion, so she didn't dare to reject him.

A chill ran down Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon's spine at those words. They were on the other side of the fire, near their companions from the lower plane, but their Master didn't want to let them rest.

"My treasured heir is missing because you had to get yourself captured," Divine Demon said after snorting. "You can't be my disciples and be this weak at the same time."

"I told you many times already," June said before taking a sip from her cup. "He isn't missing. He is probably using his time in the magical beasts' domain to cultivate."

"You might be his woman, but I am his Master!" Divine Demon said while waving his hand. "Our bond knows no barriers!"

"What's your idea then?" June asked.

"He is definitely cultivating!" Divine Demon replied. "What probably. My heir doesn't know probably."

June massaged her temples. Talking with Divine Demon was tiring. She could never argue with him, and he also reminded her of her previous Master.

"Feel lucky that he doesn't make you wear large hats," June said toward the two Demons while Faith patted her shoulder.

"I will also join the training," Daniel exclaimed before standing up and walking toward the two Demons.

Faith held his hand, but the duo exchanged an intense gaze before separating. June ignored the whole interaction, but she soon felt Faith's eyes on her.

"What?" June asked.

"He will reappear," Faith said before a hint of doubt appeared on her face. "Sooner or later."

"You know him," June replied. "He is alone among countless magical beasts. I bet he has already forgotten that the Crystal City had trapped us."

"I don't know how you put up with that," Faith said.

"Because I'm the same as him," June replied. "The Crystal City has trapped us for centuries. We didn't get the chance to improve properly during those years. I wouldn't spend much time with him even if he were here."

"Your man has already prepared everything for you," Faith said. "You have enemies everywhere. You don't even need to do anything. Battles will come for you anyway."

"I still need to improve first," June said. "This isn't like the clash with Great Elder Diana. We had lost Noah back then, but our force was still superior to hers. Here, even Noah was about to die."

"We should have amassed enough experience to reach the liquid stage," Faith replied in a cheerful tone. "Power comes from pain, and we suffered a lot. We might even reach Noah before he comes back from the magical beasts' domain."

"You can't even imagine to surpass him," June teased Faith.

"You heard Divine Demon," Faith replied. "Noah has already proven himself as a monster here. Elbas has become his subordinate, and he has also survived the shockwaves radiated by rank 8 existences. I don't see us catching up."

"I'm not his subordinate!" King Elbas shouted from the other side of the fire, but Faith and June ignored him.

"What's the point of discussing this?" June asked. "I can't stop anyway. I will always search for another battle, and he can provide an endless struggle to be the best. I would follow him even if I weren't his lover."

"Luckily, I'm on the other side in my relationship," Faith said before heaving a helpless sigh.

"Vanity is pointless," Daniel said when he heard Faith's comment.

"But you still bother to reply," Faith added, winking toward Daniel when he turned.

"They are finally here," Divine Demon said when he noticed a few figures in the distance.

Jordan flew in front of a pack of red dragons that she had found in the Outer Lands. Her innate ability allowed her to easily find members of those species, and Divine Demon didn't hesitate to use that feature to punish his disciples.

Most of those dragons were in the lower tier, but some were in the middle tier. Jordan had chosen a pack that the Demons and the others could face at their current level.

"How many of you this time?" Divine Demon asked.

June promptly stood up. She had never missed one of those training sessions. Divine Demon was brutal, but his methods worked. She could sense her potential brimming after that long journey and the many battles.

Flying Demon gave voice to a loud laugh before shooting in the sky. Daniel, Dreaming Demon, and June followed him as their auras expanded in the area.

The other hybrids had become used to that scene, so they took those battles as entertainment. They turned toward the dragon and observed Noah's friends working hard to become relevant in the higher plane.