Amid the vast gloom filling the palace hall, Marquis Ulysses slashed his hand through the shadows. Droplets of crimson blood connected midair into a totem, bursting forth into physical form.
It seemed to blend darkness and light—both an embodiment of art and a herald of destruction.
The screech of a giant scarlet blood eagle echoed through the rafters. Its feathers gleamed with a bloody luster, its eyes burned like two blazing jewels, and the overwhelming pressure of a Tier 8 bloodkin was laid bare for all to feel.
Marquis Ulysses lowered his arm, and the giant eagle beat its wings, taking to the air like a storm of bloody lightning that swept straight ahead.
Though it could not yet reach the throne, summoning the blood eagle across the distance allowed it to bypass several layers of barriers, lunging at McCarthy well ahead of Ulysses himself.
"If you want entertainment, beasts are far better suited as your opponents," Ulysses said. "Show me what you're capable of before it tears you down to the bone."
A single flap of the giant scarlet eagle's wings stirred up a furious gale that slammed into the barrier before Lanqi, scouring the dust and smoke from the palace carpet with rumbling echoes.
"..."
Lanqi watched True Night Lord's dream, diligently waking her, while lifting his head to look straight at Marquis Ulysses.
"Don't look at me. Your opponent is that bird."
Tenth Progenitor Ulysses directed the Tier 8 blood eagle to keep ramming through the barriers.
Though the blood eagle was far inferior to his true form, the barriers remaining before Lanqi would not hold for long.
"Damn it!" Fall Lord gritted her teeth atop the raised dais in the distance.
Tenth Progenitor's authority could even accelerate his progress in breaking through the barriers. Once he summoned a true army of thralls, the barriers would collapse even faster!
"Well? Strength is the essence of any summoned creature. Can your half-hearted resolve to hone your painting skills ever create something that surpasses mine?" Tenth Progenitor Ulysses asked.
"..."
Lanqi gave no answer. With a light flick of his wrist, he cast out an orange streak of light. Its distinctive texture made it look both illusory and ethereal, the flowing lines on the card pulsing like a living heartbeat, hovering at the boundary between substance and shadow.
The magic card instantly flared with dazzling brilliance.
As its power was unleashed, its intertwined spirals unraveled one after another, coalescing into a colossal vortex.
The radiant runes ringing the Regency Hall were warped, dragged inward, and torn apart by this vortex.
Once the vortex stabilized, a fissure opened at its core, revealing its true form—a massive wolf wrapped in deep crimson runes that drifted over its dark, fathomless body like fissures in space and time.
The crimson patterns across its flesh held the primordial power of world creation, each line pulsing and breathing as though tethered to another dimension.
Boom!
A deafening metallic clash rang out.
The light from the barrier shattered into a shower of sparks under the impact of Marquis Ulysses's giant eagle, but before it could fully break through, the mysterious colossus Lanqi had summoned leapt forward. Opening its jaws wide, it swallowed the scarlet eagle whole as it pounded against the barrier—leaving Fall Lord completely dumbfounded.
The giant eagle's fury and the great wolf's savagery peaked in that single instant, only to be extinguished immediately after. A brief, deathly silence descended upon the palace hall.
As the giant eagle vanished, a flicker of astonishment crossed Marquis Ulysses's face, while Lanqi remained as calm as ever.
"...?"
Tenth Progenitor Ulysses stared at the epic great wolf, finding the sight impossible to comprehend.
Unlike the earlier purgatory wraiths, this aberrant wolf possessed mana fluctuations intrinsically tied to the Glow Demon before him. Clearly, its creator was none other than the Glow Demon himself.
His giant eagle—a full Tier 8 bloodkin—had been dispatched so effortlessly by the opponent's wolf. To Ulysses, this was nothing short of a humiliating defeat.
"Hahaha, fighting with summoned creatures is truly exhausting. I suppose we can call it a draw," Lanqi chuckled with a sigh.
His words made Fall Lord's eyelids twitch.
He seemed genuinely concerned about saving face for Tenth Progenitor Ulysses. Not only had he refrained from mocking him, but he had even offered such a polite courtesy.
He truly was far too gentle.
Yet the more Caliera listened, the more she felt Lanqi might simply be finding a novel way to deliver the ultimate humiliation to the Tenth Progenitor.
"With such skill, you could easily stand among the recognized great demons on the merit of your unique talent and brushwork. Why conceal your name and remain a nameless great demon?" Marquis Ulysses finally fixed his gaze upon the demon before him and asked, "No—why would a great demon with such superb art and power choose to be a mere merchant?!"
This was by no means comparable to an ordinary piece of art. Judging by this absurd, epic giant wolf alone, Ulysses was certain McCarthy was far from simple.
He quickened the pace of dismantling the barriers, causing spiderweb cracks to spread across the invisible barriers in midair before they shattered into pieces.
If this dragged on any longer, an ominous premonition told Ulysses things would turn out poorly!
"Because I've gotten bored of painting," Lanqi replied simply, spreading his hands.
He still looked thoroughly at ease.
"Bored... of it?" Tenth Progenitor Ulysses's voice carried a hint of disbelief.
"Yes. Once you reach the absolute pinnacle of painting, you realize something: you realize it isn't really all that much," Lanqi continued. "In my youth, I thought it was wonderful, but one day I suddenly understood that only world peace is the greatest, most sublime pursuit."
His languid, detachment-from-the-world tone made it impossible for anyone listening to tell whether he was joking or had genuinely attained supreme enlightenment.
"You bastard!"
Tenth Progenitor Ulysses had never encountered an artist who so blatantly held art in contempt and toyed with him. He clenched his fist tight against his chest.
His fingers trembled slightly and his breathing grew ragged. As a proud artist, he had never faced such direct disdain and suppression.
Yet he soon reeled his temper back in.
The palace barrier stood before him, giving so frail an adversary the gall to act fearless.
An absolute disparity in power could never be bridged by the environment alone.
"Hmph, very well. Let me see for myself just how capable you are to speak with such arrogance," Ulysses said, sweeping his arm outward.
After a brief flash of rage, he swiftly collected himself. Taking a deep breath, determination and resolve reignited in his eyes. In this crucial moment, he chose not to retreat, but to display his deeper strength!
Marquis Ulysses's fingers danced lightly through the air as his blood dripped once more. This time, the translucent totem he slowly traced in the air gleamed with an ominous, savage light.
He would summon even more creatures to see if that wolf could swallow them all!
"It's awfully dark in this palace," Lanqi remarked casually, letting go of a card that burst with a blistering orange cocoon of lightning, divine as the blazing sun.
Instantly—
Brilliance akin to the sun flooded the entire palace hall.
In a breath, it transformed into a world of pure white light, swelling as though it would burst through the doors of the Regency Hall, coating the first-floor corridors of Naicalis Palace in a rainbow haze.
Before this occurred, the entity lurking in Lanqi's shadow capable of telekinetic magic had thoughtfully floated a pair of sunglasses over to Fall Lord behind him.
Fall Lord closed her eyes briefly before slowly opening them again.
Her eyelashes fluttered. She could hardly believe that any demon in this world possessed power that counteracted the Blood Clan so thoroughly!
On the battlefield, this guy was practically the Blood Clan's own father!
A sphere of light resembling the midday sun rose within the palace, its blessed warmth washing over the earth.
Marquis Ulysses felt as though his brain were being impaled by needles, as if he had been thrust into noon with day and night turned on their heads!
Ulysses, who had been about to finish his painting, painfully covered his eyes, which felt as if they were being pierced by thousands of needles. Forced to break off his craft, he stumbled back several steps, losing his balance.
The half-formed bloodkin he had hastily summoned was likewise baked by the sun and tormented by the melody, letting out shrill cries of agony.
"I refuse to acknowledge this! I will never acknowledge that a flippant wretch like you could fight me to a standstill!" Tenth Progenitor Ulysses roared in torment within the blazing light.
In that final fraction of a second, he had caught sight of that blazing sun. He could not believe that a Glow Demon could create a sun from the body of a living mortal.
Though Marquis Ulysses preferred to believe the blinding light was merely an illusion, the reality was that his strength had withered to less than a tenth of its peak!
"If you believe that resolve and passion alone can deliver results, you are merely indulging in a sweet dream," Lanqi sighed with sorrow. "When supreme brushwork became your goal, you failed to realize that the peak of any craft is not a mountain summit, but a boundless, shoreless ocean."
"You creature who insults and disdains art, stop pretending you know everything!" Marquis Ulysses roared with his eyes squeezed shut.
Even as he strained with all his might to break through the barrier, the other demon was nonchalantly treating him like a playmate.
"It is precisely because I haven't disgraced art that I'm explaining this to you so patiently," Lanqi said, continuing to observe True Night Lord's story while speaking to Marquis Ulysses. "Your anger is merely proof of the wavering in your heart. Come now, don't worry. It's no great issue if you can't grasp it. You've already entertained me quite well."
His tireless, lecturing tone stoked Tenth Progenitor Ulysses's fury into an inferno.
At a moment like this, he would have preferred for his opponent to heap scorn upon him rather than offer these soothing words of considerate comfort.
Ulysses's face twisted, his eyes burning with a rage that could incinerate anything in its path. His body was enveloped in a tempest of Blood Clan mana, a force so violent it warped the space around him.
Even under the sun, he still retained strength surpassing Tier 7!
"Hahaha, hahahaha!"
Ulysses clutched his forehead and began to laugh, his voice turning heavy and menacing, every breath venting the fury and resentment within him.
"She is the only princess of your demon race! As long as I drag this out with you, her soul will dissolve into the gentle slumber of the fall! Let's see who has the last laugh!"
Ulysses had thought it through. If this continued, he might not be able to stop the Glow Demon from waking True Night Lord.
McCarthy held a massive advantage on the defense.
Yet Ulysses possessed immortality; he could outlast anyone!
What if he shifted to defense instead? Even if McCarthy could hold out, would Fall Lord dare to drag things out with him?
"Fall Lord, even if the Blood Clan's plan fails, before I depart, I will ensure your demon race loses the final key to the ancestral land! McCarthy, how do you expect to win?!"
Ulysses's fingers curled tight, the mana in his palm expanding like a sphere of blood on the verge of exploding.
"What if there's another one?" Lanqi asked, puzzled.
He opened his hand and released the final orange light from his palm, as though restoring freedom to a stray flower petal.
In every battle, calling her onto the field essentially signaled the end.
After all, this was the Fallen Land of Gentle Slumber.
Defeating an opponent did not require destroying their physical body.
Ulysses had likely forgotten what it meant for one's resolve to shatter inside the Fallen Land of Gentle Slumber.
Orange feathers of light drifted down as a girl resembling an immortal spirit among flowers stepped into the Demon King's palace.
Her red dress fluttered like scattered rose petals. She moved with effortless grace, carrying a faint floral fragrance, her eyes brimming with a soft smile.
Before Fall Lord's heart could race with alarm and anger, she stared in astonishment at that angelic visage.
"Ohoho, this one also has royal blood, you know~" Poet of Great Love said, covering her mouth with the back of her hand, leaning back slightly as she giggled with wanton charm.
Instantly, Ulysses felt his heart jolt violently.
Though he could not open his eyes, his mana could perceive it.
The creature McCarthy had just summoned—
It possessed genuine demon royalty aptitude. Just like Princess Hyperion, she was a royal-blooded demon!
"...Impossible! The intelligence couldn't be false! Where did you find a second princess?!"
Ulysses trembled so hard he could barely stand.
It was not just the bizarre reality of it; the demonic voice sent his mental state into utter madness. Dazed and confused, his vision flickered between bright and dark, stars bursting before his eyes, his head feeling as though it were splitting apart.
Ulysses was certain this was a summoned creature originating from his opponent, yet this lifeform that felt so real was a masterpiece he could never create in a lifetime!!
"I painted her. Royal blood isn't anything special. You simply haven't seen what a truly disgraceful princess looks like," Lanqi said, shaking his head, a slight curve at the corner of his lips carrying a touch of humility—or perhaps the recollection of something that made him want to laugh.
"...?!"
At this moment, Ulysses felt there were simply too many things he could not comprehend.
It was the final straw that broke him. His brow twisted, his mouth began to quiver, and after a moment of stunned silence, an uncontrollable eruption of emotion burst forth.
"Did you cross blades with me just to humiliate me?!" Ulysses clutched his chest, a sweet taste rising in his throat, as he demanded in fury.
"...Of course not," Lanqi replied, his gaze clear as water.
He blinked, as if asking how he could possibly harbor the slightest ill intent.
Yet to Ulysses's ears, those pitiful, innocent words sounded as though they were telling him:
You are merely a common mortal born in an era that lacked my presence.
"McCarthy..."
The voice made him feel as though his internal organs were rupturing.
Like a madman, he lunged forward to confront Lanqi.
Yet before he could even reach him, he froze motionless like a stone statue.
Ulysses had fallen into [Fallen Land of Gentle Slumber] first.
Inside the barrier of Fallen Land of Gentle Slumber, taking a step the size of a single floor tile meant plunging into the illusion once more.
This time, Ulysses was clearly incapable of maintaining his flawless heart. Reality had turned into a cruel purgatory for him, leaving him as a statue frozen in place.
"This..."
Fall Lord Caliera stared at the Glow Demon's relaxed posture.
She could not understand. This was clearly her innate magic, yet another demon wielded it as effortlessly as if he were in his own home.
Poor Marquis Ulysses. He had been ruined by a manipulative phony, crossing paths with a great demon who held him in the palm of his hand.
From the start, McCarthy had never intended to crush Tenth Progenitor Marquis Ulysses through brute force. Instead, he had snapped his proud spine step by step, plunging him into an unreal world.
"Alas." Lanqi let out a sigh of regret. "I told you your mental fortitude wasn't up to par. Take your time to adjust. We'll be waiting for you to come back, brother."
Hands clasped behind his back, he shook his head, paying no more attention to the defeated foe as he walked toward the raised dais.
It was time to focus on waking his great demon friends. He would entertain the Blood Clan Marquis properly later.
Back on the fourth basement floor of Herrom Prison, even Selena, the fourth-floor warden specialized in illusions, hadn't dared to play a round with him. Now that he had met someone willing to play, he was thoroughly satisfied.
The one advantage the Blood Clan had over Askesan was that once they collected themselves, they truly could return.
Reaping two Blood Clan Progenitors at once would surely add a splendid stroke to his Blood Clan ecological report, and Dean Loren's performance review for the year was undoubtedly secured.
With no further words spoken, the only two conscious demons went about their respective tasks, winding down the battle that had neared its end.
A long-overdue morning light, filtering from the sky after the sky barrier was dispelled, cast its rays down upon the high-ceilinged corridors of Naicalis Palace. Golden sunlight spilled into the Regency Hall, restoring a touch of the glory the demon race had enjoyed thousands of years ago at their peak.
Inside the Throne Room, great demons gradually began to stir awake.
All they could see was the faint silhouette of a Glow Demon crowned by the sun.
His figure in the blazing light was unseen, unheard, and unspeakable—like an angel who had awakened them to lead them into the light.
"..."
Beside the throne, Caliera gazed at the distant figure of the Glow Demon, her eyes brimming with curiosity.
Chapter 585