Chapter 1125: The Abyss Responds
“Commander, what do we do now?”
What do we do? Truthfully, having been jolted from his slumber, Ashreign had no imdiate answer.
He was a lord who had deliberately concealed his power, slumbering deep beneath Starglow Peak. He hadn’t expanded his faction’s territory, nor had he preyed on other Abyssal races.
Orion’s arrival was a disaster that had co knocking on his door. Ashreign had thought that by lying low in the first layer of the Abyss, he could slowly heal his wounded soul in peace. He never imagined they would be scouted.
“We wait,” Ashreign said, his voice a low rasp. “This is the first layer of the Abyss. I doubt a being of his stature would start an all-out war here.” As commander of the Wraith Knight armies, he had a responsibility to his people, to find a viable future for them.
The truth was, Ashreign and his knights were not native to the Abyss. They were exiles from Hell. For reasons he kept buried, Ashreign had been cast out, forced to take refuge in the Abyss to nd his shattered essence. But the Abyss was, in its own way, even more inscrutable than Hell. His only recourse had been to hide in the relative safety of the first layer, hoping to avoid the notice of its unknown, powerful entities.
“My lord, will we ever have a chance to fight our way back to Hell?” his deputy asked, the despair in his voice palpable. “Without a territory to anchor us, our soul-fire will only continue to weaken.”
At the ntion of territory, the ghostly flas in Ashreign’s eyes flared, a flicker of anger and desperation.
“We wait,” he repeated, as much to soothe his own disoriented soul as to reassure his subordinates. He knew that decisions made in monts of turmoil were rarely sound. Orion had given a deadline of three months. He would wait.
“Three months…” Ashreign murmured to himself. To maintain a world barrier for three months was a feat beyond any ordinary lord.
“Commander, is he really going to hold the barrier for three months?” his deputy asked in awe. “Doesn’t that make him a King-level powerhouse?” (King-level was the term for an arch lord in so regions of Hell).
Ashreign didn’t answer. He simply tilted his head, his gaze penetrating the solid rock to look towards the summit. There, frad by the cross-shaped tear in reality, stood a figure of imnse and terrible majesty.
***
The Abyss, Second Layer. City of Miseria.
Makareth stood on his city walls, watching the last of his enemies retreat. He let out a long, slow breath of relief.
“Hulk, you’re a goddamn lifesaver!”
Makareth had been incredibly lucky. In his manic quest to prepare a grand welcoming gift for Orion, he’d managed to piss off every single one of his neighbors. He’d spent the last several weeks raiding their territories, plundering their abyssal sirens and succubi. Inevitably, the neighboring lords had ford an alliance to put him down.
Just fifteen minutes ago, he had been under siege, his gates about to be breached. In a final, desperate move, Makareth had used a priceless forbidden magic scroll, obliterating one of his opponents in a single cataclysmic blast. It was at that exact mont that Orion had torn open the world barrier nearby, the sheer power of the event drawing the attention of every lord in the region. The distraction had saved him.
The Demon lord was constantly dancing on the knife’s edge of disaster. As he saw it, all the surrounding territories would soon be his anyway. As long as he didn’t die, it didn’t matter who he offended.
“Hulk, when are you coming?” Now that the barrier was open, he knew Orion was gathering his forces. Makareth logged into the Survivor’s Platform, hoping to get a firm tiline.
In the Titanion Realm, the eyelids of Orion’s sleeping true body twitched. He did not wake.
“I will arrive in three months.”
The reply was sent. Orion’s consciousness slipped back into deep slumber.
Back in the Abyss, Makareth’s eyes snapped open, his face split by a manic grin. “Three months it is! You bastards besieging my city, you’ve only got three months left to live! Enjoy it while you can!”
Orion was unaware of Makareth’s glee. The Demon lord had been in a state of constant excitent ever since learning of Orion’s impending arrival, itching for a fight.
In reality, with the barrier open, Orion was only a single step away. If Makareth faced a true life-or-death ergency, Orion wouldn’t stand idly by. Makareth knew this. It was the only reason he was reining in his urge to go on a rampage, choosing instead to wait patiently for three months.
“Go on, go on!” he cackled to himself, staring out at the horizon. “The barrier is open. I’d love to see which idiots are dumb enough to challenge Hulk. Go, all of you! Die together!” When it ca to his enemies, Makareth was nothing if not malevolent. He was a true Demon lord, after all.
News of an arch lord raising his banner on Starglow Peak spread quickly throughout the first layer. Such events weren’t unheard of; ambitious lords looking to ascend would hold recruitnt drives from ti to ti, attracting lone wanderers and entire races to their cause. But everything depended on the perceived strength of the lord.
The claim that Orion would hold the portal open for three months was what truly captured their attention. Many factions and powerful entities were intrigued, dispatching envoys to Starglow Peak to see if he had the power to back up his boast. For many, if he could last even one month, they would pledge their allegiance.
Of course, there were dissenting voices and dismissive attitudes. The first layer wasn’t just a region; it was a world, filled with countless powerful and ambitious beings. Many watched Orion’s grand display in silence, with cynical eyes. To them, Orion was just another ripple in the endless ocean of ti, destined to be crushed by a bigger wave before he could even crest.
***
The Abyss, First Layer. An Unknown Region.
In a vast field of active volcanoes, where the crust of the world buckled and eruptions were a daily occurrence, the sky was permanently choked with ash and toxic gas, a vision of the apocalypse.
Yet, from within the largest of these volcanoes, three colossal figures made of living fla slowly rose from the churning lava. They all turned their heads in unison, their gaze fixed on the distant Starglow Peak.
“In the voice that carried across the world,” the lead giant rumbled, his words like the grinding of continents, “I sensed the touch of cosmic law.”
He stared towards the mountain, a deep longing in his tone.
“The one who sundered the world barrier… is an Eminence.”
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