Chapter 1040: Demon Overlord
Unfortunately, one day, while an orc tribe was excavating a mineral vein, they accidentally released a Demon Overlord who had been sealed beneath the Charred Scar.
The moment this Demon Overlord was unleashed, it annihilated the entire Blazeforge Orc tribe. The Charred Scar—once the most prosperous mining area in the Blazeforge Realm—was destroyed along with them. Every mineral vein and precious item within was utterly ruined, and the Charred Scar became a wasteland engulfed in raging flames.
This legend is one of the most widely spread tales in the Blazeforge Realm. Back when Skyhold Fortress contributed the surrounding region of the Charred Scar, they naturally conducted explorations there, but found nothing.
Rafael was one of those who ventured into the Charred Scar back then, so he instantly recognized that this place was identical to the Charred Scar.
The only difference was that this place looked vibrant and lush, with all sorts of vegetation thriving on the slopes, rather than the barren, blackened stones of the Charred Scar.
A group of people, faces filled with astonishment, carefully advanced deeper into the valley, but encountered no danger.
Just as they were about to pass through the valley, someone from the Odin Kingdom issued a warning.
"Orcs! There are orcs ahead!"
Sure enough, after rounding a bend, they immediately spotted a group of orcs riding giant wolves two kilometers away.
The orcs seemed to have noticed the group as well, charging toward them atop their giant wolves.
Everyone immediately drew their staffs, magical energy rippling out uncontrollably.
Rafael frowned, concern evident in his voice.
"This squad of orcs—all riding giant wolf mounts—each one is at least a Fifth-Rank Sword Saint, and the strongest appears to be a Ninth-Rank Orc Warlock.
Although they're not as strong as us, their numbers are three times ours. If it comes to a fight, they definitely won't be our match.
But if we fight here, the magical fluctuations will spread far. The undead passed through just two hours ago—if that Death Shaman left any detection spells within ten kilometers, they'll surely notice the battle's energy.
Rafael voiced everyone's concern. The undead had appeared so mysteriously and were terrifyingly strong—who knew if they'd sense the battle and come back, or maybe even tunnel up from underground if they detected the magical disturbance.
Everyone braced themselves, prepared for combat. Dida La stood at the front, the fire dragon embroidered on his Burning Soul robe poking its head out and glaring at the orcs ahead.
But to everyone's surprise, the orcs—charging on their giant wolves—halted a hundred meters away, watching the group warily.
And all the orcs seemed merely cautious, making no aggressive moves; there was no sign of hostility in their eyes.
This unexpected turn left everyone a bit stunned.
In the Blazeforge Realm, orcs and humans are sworn enemies. Whenever they encounter each other, a fight is inevitable; if either race catches someone alone, it's either capture or kill—there's no third option.
But these orcs were merely cautious, showing no signs of hatred or aggression, nor any intention to attack.
"Who are you people?"
The opposing leader, riding a giant wolf and flanked by his orc guards, stepped forward and asked, eyeing the group warily. His tone wasn't exactly friendly, but it wasn't hostile either—just the caution you'd expect toward outsiders.
Everyone exchanged glances, finally picking up on something different.
Dida La's expression shifted slightly. He turned to the group, signaling them not to make any moves.
Stepping out from the group, Dida La performed a mage's salute.
"We are human mages from another realm. While traveling through the planar pathway, there was a disruption and we got caught in a spatial turbulence, which accidentally brought us here. We mean no harm. May I ask, what place is this?"
Dida La made up a story on the spot. Such things were actually quite common—when traveling across planar pathways, even minor accidents could shift your route and land you in any realm. Surviving the ordeal was considered extremely lucky.
It was perfectly normal for the group not to know where they were—sometimes even orcs didn’t know. Such incidents happened from time to time, and occasionally humans would show up in orc territory due to a mishap with the planar pathway.
After Dida La finished speaking, the leader of the orc cavalry just looked blank, as if he had no idea what Dida La was talking about.
"What are you talking about? What's a planar pathway?"
Dida La was at a loss for words. And judging by the orc cavalry, it wasn’t just the leader—they all looked genuinely confused. There was no way they were faking it.
After a moment’s hesitation, Dida La tried to explain the planar pathway.
"The planar pathway is a road connecting one realm to another. It can be dangerous—any fluctuation can throw off your direction. A tiny mistake and you might end up in another realm, or even in the endless void..."
Dida La explained for quite a while, but the opposing leader still looked utterly lost, clearly not understanding a word.
"Enough. No need to explain—I don’t care where you came from. This is our tribe’s territory. Please leave!"
The orc leader was wary and unfriendly, and the orc wolf riders behind him gripped their weapons, clearly ready to attack at the slightest provocation from the humans.
But to the orcs’ surprise, not a single human made any aggressive move, nor did anyone seem eager to fight.
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Every member of the group was a top-tier powerhouse in their own faction, wielding considerable authority. If anyone tried to push them around outside, their first response would be to fight.
But now, everyone was relieved—as long as they didn’t start a fight and attract the undead, it was fine...
Dida La didn’t argue with the orc leader, simply nodded with an apologetic smile.
"Alright, we’re truly sorry. We didn’t mean to intrude on your territory—we’ll leave now."
Aside from Dida La, everyone else looked genuinely eager to leave, which only made the orc leader more suspicious, unable to figure out what these people were up to.
"We’ll escort you out of our territory—we have to make sure you leave!"
The orc leader was very firm, clearly distrustful of humans and determined to drive them out.
Yet none of the group felt anger—in fact, this arrangement felt preferable.
These orcs had clearly lived here a long time and knew the place well—they were surely familiar with the orc undead, too.
They surely knew how to avoid orcs, and following them would greatly reduce the chance of running into an undead horde. With the orcs' protection, the danger was much lower.
The group instantly understood—having someone lead the way was a blessing. Since the orcs insisted on escorting and expelling them, so be it; leaving quickly was the best plan.
Though the orcs remained suspicious and alert, seeing the humans so cooperative, they said nothing more. The orc wolf riders surrounded the group, guiding them through the canyon.
They had barely walked three minutes when a roar echoed from deep within the canyon, and thick black smoke shot skyward like signal fires.
A strong stench of sulfur filled the air, and the aura of the Abyss spread through the canyon. Seconds later, everyone saw a demon over a hundred meters tall, shrouded in black smoke, with two massive curved horns on its head, eyes like twin purple moons, limbs ending in metallic claws, and a huge scorpion-like tail trailing behind.
The demon strode forward, and wherever it passed, all vegetation withered and turned to ash, the ground itself blackening. With every step—covering sixty or seventy meters—its massive feet left flaming, charred footprints.
Trailing behind this Demon Overlord were a dozen Lesser Demon Overlords, each tens of meters tall and similarly monstrous in appearance.
Seeing this horde of demons, the orc wolf rider leader immediately roared.
"Damn it, it's the Purple-Eyed Demon Overlord! Everyone, be careful!"
The orc wolf riders instantly abandoned the humans and formed up for a charge. A Sword Saint, half a step into the Sky Rank, led dozens of riders, swinging his massive sword at the front.
Blazing golden battle energy slashes shot out, combining into a massive beam over a hundred meters long, striking fiercely at the Purple-Eyed Demon Overlord.
The Purple-Eyed Demon Overlord's violet eyes shifted, becoming two crescent moons. Instantly, its huge claws swelled, transforming into monstrous talons tens of meters across, which collided with the blinding battle energy slash.
The battle energy slash struck the demon's claws, producing a series of sharp metallic screeches. The massive beam, like a giant sword, was forcibly torn apart by the Overlord's claws.
The teeth-grinding sound of metal being ripped apart made the humans in the rear visibly pale.
Even the combined strike of dozens of Sword Saints was nothing to this Demon Overlord—it shredded their attack as if it were nothing.
"Scatter!"
At the orc leader's shout, the wolf riders immediately broke formation and spread out.
The next moment, the Purple-Eyed Demon Overlord slammed its colossal claw into the ground.
Instantly, the earth trembled violently. Thick fissures spread from the demon's claw, reaching hundreds of meters. Sulfurous fumes erupted from the cracks, followed by jets of scorching magma.
Within a second, magma flooded an area of two to three hundred meters. The orc wolf riders scrambled to avoid the blazing lava spewing from the fissures.
Within three seconds, all the wolf riders had retreated from the area flooded by magma, but two of their giant wolf mounts were burned to death by the scorching lava.