Chapter 726: Bronze Fortress

Upon hearing the red dragon’s words, the Balor Flame Demon’s face changed drastically. He suddenly lashed out with his long whip, causing the air to explode. "Everyone attack! Kill this damned red-scaled lizard!"

"Kill—"

"Tear it apart!"

"For the great Will of the Abyss!"

Tens of thousands of demons of various sizes swarmed forward. They piled onto Cassius in layers, biting and gnawing madly, quickly submerging the red dragon’s figure.

But Cassius folded his broad wings in front of him, seemingly intimidated by the overwhelming demonic tide.

The Balor Flame Demon threw his head back and laughed loudly. "Hahahaha! Red-scaled lizard, what good is your strength now?

The power of the Abyss will consume everything—you’re no exception! Even if you’re stronger than an ancient red dragon, you can’t kill hundreds of thousands of demons!"

The Balor Flame Demon turned his head and pointed his flaming whip at the devils, his face ferocious and eyes filled with hatred. "And you bastards from Hell—I’ll tear you all to pieces!"

"Roar—"

A thunderous roar shook the heavens and the earth, releasing an immensely terrifying pressure.

"Th-this is..."

In an instant, even the Balor Flame Demon felt his ears buzzing and his vision spinning. He wobbled mid-air, nearly losing his ability to stay aloft.

As for the other demons, they fell unconscious one after another, plummeting from the sky, some even turning into dust on the spot.

With a deafening burst of air, Cassius suddenly spread his wings wide, revealing the dragon crystal on his chest that shone like the sun.

"Whoosh—"

The swing of his wings generated a terrifying airflow, creating a violent gale that swept tens of thousands of demons away.

Scorching dragonflame surged out, wrapped in violent wind and smoke, rapidly spreading across the sky. Centered on Cassius’ massive form, it created a storm of fire spanning over a dozen kilometers in diameter.

With every flap of the red dragon’s wings, the dragonflame grew fiercer. The firestorm grew more violent, shredding, tearing, and incinerating demons.

In this terrifying storm, demon bodies were like fragile sheets of paper fluttering in the air. They screamed miserably, mercilessly shredded by the wind and reduced to ashes under the radiance.

Next, countless angry serpents of flame shot into the sky, twisting wildly in the air like a towering column of fire connecting heaven and earth, sending smoke and ash into the clouds.

It was a fire tornado!

Any demon caught within it would be burned into shredded ash in less than two seconds, dancing within the whirlwind.

At this moment, Avernus seemed to have become a grand stage, and Cassius was giving a magnificent, dazzling performance—with demon lives as the material for the act.

Bringing destruction for the world-ending calamity, striking fear into the hearts of even mad demons—this was true catastrophe, this was true hell!

"Who... who the hell are you?!"

Now, the Balor Flame Demon—considered a walking disaster by mortals—looked like a struggling little bird in the storm, flapping his flesh wings and shouting wildly.

"Dragon! You dare defy the Abyss and obstruct the glorious Blood War? The furious Lord of the Iron Glacier won’t let you off! Never underestimate the wrath of an Abyssal Lord!"

"Abyssal Lord?"

Cassius slowly flapped his wings and floated before the Balor Flame Demon, a mocking smile on his face. "What a coincidence—I just killed an Abyssal Lord not long ago. I wouldn’t mind killing another."

Instantly, the Balor Flame Demon—Zand—froze. Deep dread, even fear, flickered in his clouded eyes.

"Y-you’re... the Demon-Slaying Dragon, Cassius?!" Zand’s voice trembled.

"You know me?" Cassius raised a brow, intrigued.

But he quickly figured it out. As an ancient flame demon, Jerlrazaks’ name must have been well-known among the Balor Flame Demons.

A wave of despair swept over the mind of the Balor Flame Demon.

He had thought he would be a hero of the conquest of Avernus, blessed by the Abyss. Instead, he encountered the monster that once slew an Abyssal Lord—the Ember Emperor, Demon-Slaying Dragon, Cassius.

Was this fate’s punishment?

No. Zand could not accept such a fate. He was a demon—chaos and evil incarnate, the manifestation of universal entropy!

"Dragon, it’s not over yet! I’ll drag you to hell with me! Die!"

Zand howled at the sky, flames pouring from his eyes, nostrils, and mouth. His demonic heart surged with fire, a mighty energy ready to detonate.

"So boring... always the same old tricks."

The red dragon lazily extended his massive claw and grabbed at the air.

Instantly, an invisible force surged from all directions, forming a hundred-meter-long claw that seized Zand. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t move.

"Crack! Rip!"

With the sound of tearing flesh and breaking bones, Zand was ruthlessly crushed. His muscles and bones piled into a burning mass of flesh.

"Thinking you could drag me to the grave with that trick? What a foolish delusion."

Cassius grinned. He had seen through Zand’s attempt to self-detonate with an implosion spell.

But as the wielder of Chaosfire, why would he fear a mere Balor Flame Demon’s explosion?

The red dragon opened his mouth slightly, spitting a stream of dark-red dragonflame that resembled a ravenous, savage beast. In an instant, it devoured the flaming meatball that was once Zand.

A powerful Balor Flame Demon died just like that—effortlessly, silently, without even a ripple.

The surviving devils, still within the storm’s radius, were unharmed. They trembled, looking up at the red dragon at the center of the storm.

Amid the raging inferno, the enormous red dragon flapped its wings slowly, emitting an overwhelming energy that distorted the surrounding air.

The roaring wings blended with the sound of fire bursting, winds howling, and demons wailing—like the world itself venting its rage of destruction.

Then, the red dragon raised its head, stretched its wings, and let out a loud roar, commanding nature with an irresistible majesty.

In an instant, the dragonflame storm spanning over ten kilometers receded like a tide. The wind fell silent, leaving only scorched earth and thick ash—remnants of tens of thousands of demons.

"Lord of the Nine Hells..." A devil stared wide-eyed in a daze, mumbling in disbelief.

Though they knew the red dragon was technically their ally, the devils trembled all over. Their voices shook, their faces were filled with fear, and their eyes reflected deep dread.

Before such pure, all-consuming power, even cunning, wicked devils felt fear from the depths of their hearts.

Cassius looked at the devils. "You’ve heard of me, haven’t you? Who do you serve?"

The lead devil officer pondered briefly, then lowered his head and bowed deeply.

"Great Ember Emperor Cassius, from the Radiant Heavens to Baator’s Hell, your name is known far and wide. Your mighty power and majestic form have shaken me to the core.

Today, the sight of you burning the skies and slaying tens of thousands of demons alone will be etched into my memory forever. You truly are a nightmare to demons."

He snuck a glance at the red dragon again, his voice full of that unique devilish flattery and fear toward a superior being.

"Get to the point."

Seeing that Cassius’ expression hadn’t changed, just looked slightly impatient, the devil cautiously replied, "We are remnants of the 21st Legion under Lord Bel. Thank you for aiding us by slaying those Abyssal bastards and saving our lives."

"So you’re Bel’s men... Heh. Even if you once served Zariel, that crazy woman’s not making a comeback—I killed her with my own hands."

Cassius sighed, then asked, "Where is Bel now?"

The devil officer pretended not to hear the terrifying sentence before, and kept his head down as he answered, "Lord Bel is personally stationed at the Bronze Fortress, leading Avernus’ elite forces against the Abyssal Legion.

These past few days, he’s been exhausting himself resisting the invasion and often speaks of you."

"How’s the battle?"

"Not great. The demons are fierce and numerous. They’ve taken the northern part of Avernus and pushed all the way to the outskirts of the Bronze Fortress. Fortunately, Lord Bel is holding the line personally—barely."

"In that case... take me there." Cassius grinned. "After all, I’m his ’close ally’. How could I not lend a hand at such a critical moment?"

The devil officer was overjoyed. Bringing such a powerful ally would be his achievement—he might even win the favor of the new Lord of Hell and rise in rank.

He raised his trident and pointed south, hastily saying, "Emperor Cassius, please follow me. I believe Lord Bel would be delighted to see such a powerful ally arrive."

"Very well."

Cassius turned his head and looked into the distance. A towering pillar made of demon skulls stood in the wasteland, as if it could hold up the heavens.

The devils in armor flapped their bat wings and flew ahead to guide the way.

The sky thundered. The red dragon unfurled his vast wings, trailing fire as he flew across the wasteland with scorching wind, casting a massive shadow on the ground.

Both inside and outside the Bronze Fortress, the air was filled with the roars of demons and the war cries of devils.

On the flat plain outside the fortress, a tide of demon troops swarmed—minotaurs, vrocks, balguras, succubi, and even demonized giants filled the sky and ground.

Each attack came like crashing waves.

The disciplined devil defenders stood ready outside the Bronze Fortress. Formed in tight formations, they operated hellfire cannons to repel the demonic tide again and again.

The battlefield was piled with tens of thousands of demon corpses, reeking of blood and a salty, rancid stench.

"For the great Will of the Abyss! Tear them apart! Avernus shall be ours!"

"Kill these Abyssal bastards!"

"By the Lords of the Nine Hells, damn these beasts! We can’t let them breach the Bronze Fortress!"

The devils were well-organized and tactically precise.

Some held giant shields in front, others fired arrows from afar, and others manned hellfire cannons that vaporized demons on impact.

Groups of twenty-some devils each played their role in a coordinated defense system. Even weak lemures and imps scurried about, building fortifications.

In contrast, demon tactics were crude. They often just roared and charged forward recklessly.

The clash between order and chaos was evident even in their methods.

Demons surged like tidal waves at the lines, tens of thousands clashing with devil defenders. Blood flew, limbs scattered—life here was as cheap as grass.

Though endless in number, the demons were held off—for now—by the devils’ superior tactics. The Bronze Fortress still stood.

Then, an uninvited guest entered the battlefield and shattered the fragile balance.

"Roar—"

A deafening dragon roar echoed across the sky, stunning both demons and devils mid-battle.

Flames swept the earth like a raging tide, incinerating the outer demon ranks at the Bronze Fortress. Ashes replaced the horde, clearing out hundreds of meters.

The red dragon circled in the air, flapped his wings, then landed heavily on the fortress walls, making them quake and scatter dust and rubble.

Not far away, a towering, burly devil appeared in midair amidst hellfire.

His entire body was covered in dark red scales. A pair of massive bat-like wings extended from his back. Around his waist hung a belt strung with twelve angel heads. In his hands was a blazing greatsword.

At his appearance, overwhelming authority spread across the walls. A power of lawful evil filled the space, and the surrounding devils all knelt in reverence.

With such presence, his identity was clear—this was the temporary ruler of Avernus, Bel.

Bel looked at the red dragon who had landed on the fortress, his face dark and teeth clenched. Hatred and fury burned in his eyes.

Cassius nodded slightly and greeted him first with a smile. "Long time no see, Lord Bel, my loyal ally. You’ve finally reclaimed your position and command over Avernus."

"Yes, it has been a while... Your Majesty Cassius, you’ve finally arrived." Bel forced a polite smile, but his voice was full of barely suppressed rage.

As he spoke, intense hellish power radiated from him, pressing toward the red dragon. But soon, crimson light glowed from Cassius’ chest, releasing a matching pressure.

The two forces clashed, equal in strength, forming cracks and turbulence at the boundary. The surrounding devils lowered their heads in silence.

Bel stared at Cassius with burning eyes.

This familiar power... Yes, it’s definitely him!

He’s the one who stole my dominion over Avernus. The one who stopped me from becoming a true Lord of Hell!