In the narrow corridor, the Monkey King howled in agony, his voice tearing through the air.
The Cloudwalker Staff in his hand whirled with thunderous ferocity, striking the Skyward Legionnaires again and again, hammering into the unyielding metal walls.
Blood splattered, already covering every corner of the passage.
Wherever the Cloudwalker Staff swept, twisted faces howled in pain before fading from his sight.
In this crimson world, his eyes were wide and his face twisted, moving through the chaos like a vengeful spirit.
A spear thrust from behind, piercing his back armor and tearing flesh. It nearly reached his heart, but with a sudden turn, he dodged it.
Turning, the Cloudwalker Staff crashed into the Skyward Legionnaire's cheek, shattering the skull and splattering brain matter.
Three Skyward Legionnaires seized the opportunity to close in quickly.
Clouds gathered beneath his feet and he leapt into the air, spinning rapidly. The Cloudwalker Staff scraped sparks off the metal walls, and in that instant, the three nearby Skyward Legionnaires were shredded to pieces.
Yet the surge of Skyward Legionnaires did not falter. Driven by those behind, they lunged at the Monkey King one after another.
In the raging fire, the Celestial Army was all but wiped out, and the once overwhelming demon horde was now in chaos, fleeing, trampling, and wailing.
General Zhuo raised his left hand and looked up at the sky.
Clouds drifted across the sky, stars glittered, and the moon shone pale.
No rain?
The young officer beside him frowned, puzzled.
No rain, so the Drake King isn't here? A slow smile spread across General Zhuo's face.
Drake King?
Dragons are best at summoning rain, followed by the drakes. I've met the Drake King once; according to his nature, if he were here, he'd have brought rain to extinguish the fire." He squinted, speaking calmly to the young officer, his smile deepening.
Maybe, just maybe, he still had a chance to turn the tide!
Before the young officer could react, General Zhuo gritted his teeth, drew the long blade from his waist, and shouted: "Everyone listen up! Leave a thousand troops to deal with the demon monkey; the rest, follow me down! Scatter the demon army completely!"
If the Drake King isn't here, what does it matter if there are twenty thousand, or even a hundred thousand demons?
Yes—!
Only the battleship where the Monkey King was remained; the others began to descend slowly.
[Irrelevant chapter break indicator skipped.]
In the sea of fire, Leo stood atop a high blue rock, giant axe in hand, gazing up at the fleet that blocked out the sky.
Beside him, a demon wreathed in flames struggled, collapsed, and turned to ash.
The Skyward Legionnaires on the ground had been wiped out by the demons, but what about themselves?
Looking out, the sea of fire was filled with fleeing demons, corpses everywhere, and wails that pierced the sky.
[Irrelevant reading prompt skipped.]
The casualties from the Blaze Bombs might not have been fatal, but the entire force was scattered. More importantly, morale was collapsing.
Gradually, the rootless flames diminished, and the surviving demons gathered, each one looking up in fear.
Battleships hovered overhead, countless Skyward Legionnaires rising and pouring down like a waterfall.
The first to meet them were more than a thousand avian demons.
But before they collided with the waterfall, several Demon-Binding Nets were fired from the battleship, instantly trapping hundreds of avian demons.
The moment they touched the Demon-Binding Net, they felt all their strength drain away—even their wings could not flap.
The avian demons were gathered helplessly in the Demon-Binding Net like fish.
Countless Skyward Legionnaires surrounded them, thrusting their spears through the net.
Whether soaring in the sky or standing on the ground, every demon watched in stunned silence.
Soon, under the gaze of the endless demon horde, the Demon-Binding Net suspended in the air was silent, dripping blood like a garment pulled from water.
As the net was loosened, hundreds of avian demon corpses were discarded like trash.
General Zhuo smirked: "Fight me? Hmph, ha ha ha..."
To the demons, it was a terrifying sight.
In terms of strength, the Celestial Army was no match for these battle-hardened demons, but why would they need to compete in strength?
All the demons stared, a chill running down their spines.
At that moment, only the rootless fire crackled, and all the demons were stunned.
"This is the Celestial Army?" Leo stared blankly. "He knew this would happen... so why did he stay? Ha ha ha ha."
He laughed, but it was a bitter laugh.
From the Spirit-Focusing Realm to the Spirit-Refinement Stage, this lion demon had fought the Heavenly Court's minions countless times—but those were always Skyward Rangers, lone Skyward Rangers. Such a confrontation was a first.
It was also his first time truly witnessing the might of the Celestial Army.
The bat demons that had rushed the Celestial Army trembled and retreated, quickly torn to shreds by the surrounding Skyward Legionnaires.
A burly horse demon fled in terror, only to be shot through the heart by a Skyward Legionnaire overhead, collapsing soundlessly to the ground.
Fresh blood seeped into the scorched earth, snuffing out the surrounding flames.
Dozens of demons huddled together behind wooden shields, trembling. A Skyward Legionnaire hurled a blaze bomb into their midst, scattering them before shooting each one down.
Skyward Legionnaires flapped their wings around the battleship, receiving fire support from above.
They cruised close to the ground, moving with the rhythm of a hunt—wherever they passed, no demon survived.
Perhaps, if not for the Monkey King—if he hadn't slipped through that loophole—this would have been nothing but a hunt.
At this moment, whether Spirit-Focusing Realm or Spirit-Absorption, beast or bird, common demon or leader, it made no difference before them.
Before them stood just over a thousand Celestial Army soldiers, just over a thousand...
They had twenty thousand demons, yet before a thousand Celestial Army soldiers, they were nothing—like they didn't exist at all.
Ha ha ha... He was right—we still don't understand the Celestial Army. We thought a lucky win meant we could keep winning." Leo laughed helplessly, his laughter tinged with sorrow.
Tiger King and the lizard demon gathered at his side.
"What now? Should we run?" the lizard demon asked.
"Run where?" Tiger King retorted.
The lizard demon fell silent.
All around, the demons looked to Leo, awaiting his decision.
Leo glanced up at the lone, trembling battleship still surrounded by Skyward Legionnaires, then wiped the blood of Skyward Legionnaires from his axe blade.
He actually smiled—a quiet, peaceful smile.
Pressing his lips together, he said: "He didn't run—should we?"
He exhaled a faint mist, and for the first time in four hundred years, Leo's eyes glistened: "Heaven says we're demons, says we don't understand the Three Bonds and Five Constants, have no ethics, and pins all the crimes on us. Maybe you are, maybe you aren't—I know I'm not. I won't run."
In the sea of fire, axe in hand, Leo walked alone—under the gaze of countless demons—toward his nemesis, the Celestial Army.