Chapter 240: Uninvited Guests

Chapter 240: Chapter 240: Uninvited Guests

Five months had passed since the destruction of the Khamsin Clan. The world had settled into a fragile, uneasy peace, and the beach house in Nice had become a sanctuary.

Most of the group had scattered to their own paths. Mickey had returned to Nigeria to look after his family with his newfound wealth and power. Ryan and Iris had traveled to Spain to work on a joint research project with the World Government. Rose had gone back to the Chevalier mansion to spend time with her mother, Céline.

That left Lucian and Clara alone in the massive beach house.

Lucian, now nineteen, had shaved off his beard, returning to a cleaner, more predatory handsomeness. Both he and Clara had reached the Peak Grand Core Realm, their rapid advancement fueled by the intense dual cultivation sessions, Lucian’s alchemy pills, and the endless supply of dungeons purchased through the Chevalier family’s authority.

CLANG! BAM!

Sparks flew across the private training courtyard as Lucian’s Blood Reaver clashed against Clara’s S-Rank spear, Lunar Fang.

"You’re getting slower, old man!" Clara teased, her silver hair whipping in the wind as she spun the spear, aiming a brutal thrust at his chest.

SWOOSH!

Lucian sidestepped, the tip of the spear grazing his shirt. He smirked, his crimson eyes gleaming with amusement. "Slower? I’m just giving you a false sense of hope, love."

CLANG! CLANG! BAM!

He retaliated with a flurry of heavy slashes, forcing Clara onto the defensive. She parried each blow, her silver eyes narrowing in concentration. She was incredibly fast, her body a blur as she combined her gravity manipulation with her spear arts.

"Lunar Spear Art: Crescent Sweep!" Clara shouted.

A massive arc of silver, freezing energy erupted from her spear, slicing through the air. Lucian jumped back, the attack missing him by inches. He landed gracefully on the grass, a wide smile on his face.

"Not bad," Lucian praised. "But your footwork was a bit sloppy on the transition."

Clara pouted, resting her spear on her shoulder. "Oh, shut up. You barely dodged that."

As they were about to continue their sparring, the hairs on the back of Lucian’s neck stood up. His Primordial Sight flared, and his Blood Sense screamed a warning.

Danger!

"Clara, down!" Lucian roared, lunging toward her.

But it was too late.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

A catastrophic explosion tore through the courtyard. The massive beach house was instantly vaporized, the shockwave sending debris, shattered glass, and chunks of concrete flying in every direction. The ground cratered inward, a massive plume of fire and smoke rising into the sky.

When the dust and smoke finally began to settle, five dark figures hovered in the air above the ruined estate.

They were terrifying to behold. Their skin was a mottled, ash-grey, stretched tight over bulging, unnatural muscles. Jagged horns protruded from their foreheads, and massive, leathery bat-wings flapped slowly behind them. Their eyes burned with a chaotic, crimson fire, and they wielded jagged weapons of blackened bone.

CRASH!

From the heart of the rubble, two figures burst upward.

"My house!" Lucian shouted, his voice echoing with genuine anguish. "Do you have any idea how expensive this beach house was?! I just paid off the mortgage!"

Clara, her silver hair covered in dust, brushed the debris off her shoulders and glared at the floating demons.

Lucian activated his Primordial Sight, the world shifting into microscopic analysis.

Demons. Low-level demons, but their aura... Peak Grand Core Realm.

He frowned. What were demons doing on a low-tier planet like Earth? Most demons were sealed in Hell after the Great War five thousand years ago. Occasionally, rifts would open, and lesser demons would pop out, but they were usually mindless beasts.

These ones are organized, Lucian thought, his eyes narrowing. And their eyes... they’re hollow. They’re being controlled.

He extended his Blood Sense outward, searching for the puppeteer. Nothing. He scanned the surrounding kilometers only to sense nothing.

His frown deepened. Whoever was controlling these demons was hiding their presence perfectly.

Clara noticed his expression. "Who is attacking us, Lucian?"

"I don’t know," Lucian replied, his voice cold. "But whoever they are, they made a grave mistake destroying my house. Let’s take care of these fuckers first, then we’ll hunt down the puppeteer."

Light Acceleration.

ZAP!

Lucian vanished in a flash of blinding light. He reappeared directly in front of the center demon, his right hand shooting out and clamping around its face.

"Devour."

HUM!

A dark vortex opened in Lucian’s palm. The demon let out a muffled, agonizing screech as its dark, demonic mana and life force were violently sucked into Lucian’s body.

But Lucian immediately cut the connection, kicking the demon away.

BAM!

The demon crashed into the ground below. Lucian grimaced. The demonic mana was corrosive and chaotic, trying to latch onto his mana core like a parasite. If he wanted to refine it, he would have to sit down in a meditative state. He didn’t have that luxury right now.

The remaining four demons let out guttural roars, their wings flaring. They raised their clawed hands, and a massive, concentrated ball of black and purple demonic mana formed between them.

"Die!" one of them shrieked.

FWOOOSH! BOOOOOOM!

The massive blast of demonic energy slammed into Lucian. The explosion was deafening, tearing apart the remaining foundation of the house and sending shockwaves rippling across the ocean.

When the smoke cleared, Lucian was standing perfectly still in the center of the crater. He was protected by a brilliant, cube-shaped barrier of pure, golden light. The barrier had a few hairline cracks, but it held firm.

Light Sanctuary, Lucian mentally named the new spell.

Clara, hovering above the rubble, extended her hands. Her silver eyes blazed.

"Gravity Storm."

WHOOOSH!

A massive, crushing gravitational field enveloped the massive chunks of rubble, glass, and concrete from the destroyed house. She manipulated the gravity so the debris floated into the air, then with a flick of her wrist, she sent it all crashing down.

CRASH! BAM! BAM! BAM!

The demons were bombarded by their own destruction, crushed beneath tons of stone and steel.

When the dust settled, the demons slowly pushed the rubble off themselves. Their bodies were battered, bones broken, and wings torn. But before Lucian’s eyes, the wounds began to knit themselves back together, black blood oozing from the cuts.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, their auras intensified. The fire in their eyes blazed brighter, and a dark, oppressive pressure spread across the ruined beach. Their demonic mana surged, their muscles bulging as they let out synchronized, ear-splitting roars.

ROOOAAAR!

Lucian watched as they healed, his eyes narrowing. He murmured, "Even though they are low-level demons, they’re still demons, I guess."