Chapter 89 - 31: [Ederic’s Wall]

Chapter 89: Chapter 31: [Ederic’s Wall]

RING RING RING!

"Magic Quality Indicator!" The two Demonized individuals suddenly recognized the glowing liquid inside the Magic Potion Bottle.

The Empire’s border was equipped with an alarm system designed to detect high concentrations of demonic essence. Ordinary bandits and smugglers with low demonic essence and weak strength wouldn’t trigger it, but if powerful criminals, smugglers evading taxes on high-level demonized materials, dangerous Demonized individuals, or the Demon Race approached, the device would immediately sound the alarm!

The two broke into a dead sprint toward the Empire’s interior. They hoped to use the ensuing chaos to shake off the pursuers from the border outpost once they crossed into the Empire’s territory, and then find a way to contact the Demon Race commander, Musa.

RUSTLE. A faint sound echoed from somewhere in the forest.

The male Demonized abruptly raised his hand. His right arm was instantly covered in a black exoskeleton, transforming into a grotesquely twisted pincer. Elongating into the shape of a blade, he spun around and thrust toward the source of the sound!

CLINK.

With a soft, gentle ring, a flash of blood-red light swept past. The pitch-black pincer fell to the ground with a THUD. Its severed end was perfectly smooth, shriveled as if it had been sucked dry by some monster, and emanating a faint red glow.

"Ah!" he shrieked. His face went deathly pale as he clutched his wrist, gritting his teeth to swallow the rest of his agonizing howl.

The regenerative abilities of the Demonized proved utterly useless at this moment. The scarlet wound showed no signs of healing; instead, it continued to tear further apart!

A hemorrhage was destroying his body’s structure. Barely able to stand, he relied on the sheer willpower of the Demonized to forcefully press his hand over the stump to stop the bleeding.

CLINK! SWISH! Twelve shadows closed in rapidly from different directions. Twelve blood-red Longswords moved in perfect unison, gently clashing against each other in pairs. They executed a neat, synchronized sword flourish before pointing directly at the two Demonized trapped in the center of their circular formation. Viewed from above, it looked as though a blood-red spider lily had bloomed in an icy, deadly posture.

The twelve Imperial Sword Guards, clad in tight, pitch-black military uniforms, held an identical stance. The Ederic Sword Crown and Iron Crown royal crest was emblazoned on their chests. Wielding uniform Blood Steel Longswords, their postures were elegant yet powerful, striding proudly like dancers performing a Military Rank dance at a ball. Their right hands held their swords pointed at the center of the encirclement, while their left hands rested behind their backs in an inviting, salute-like gesture. Yet, hidden within this grace was lethal intent—they half-concealed dark, heavy metal gun-like objects equipped with small Quartz Tubes.

Magic Potion Cannons. The masterpieces of the Ederic Imperial Legion Alchemists. Although they were prototype weapons not yet capable of large-scale mass production, rumors of their terrifying power had already begun leaking from scattered battlefields along the Empire’s borders. Pre-loaded and ready for use at any moment, they could be fired instantly with the raise of a hand. They boasted high lethality, immense armor and shield-piercing capabilities, and a powerful impact that could instantly break an opponent’s combat stance. The deafening roar of their discharge could also expel Magical Beasts.

"Bagman!" the female Demonized exclaimed instinctively. Grabbing her injured companion, she dodged past the edge of a Blood Steel Longsword in a flash. Spinning her body in a dance-like motion, she suddenly thrust a scorpion’s tail from beneath her robes, striking at the seemingly unprepared Imperial Sword Guard in front of her!

If she could just defeat a single Sword Guard and tear a gap in the encirclement, they might be able to escape!

SLASH. SLASH.

With two soft slashing sounds, the Sword Guards on either side drew their blades simultaneously to protect their comrade. With two effortless strokes, they chopped the Demonized’s scorpion tail into three pieces! Amidst flashing blood-red light, two segments of the severed tail hit the ground.

As the two blood-red blades crossed and swept through the air, the guarded Sword Guard in the middle raised the Magic Potion Cannon in his left hand.

The moment his comrades’ blades swept past and cleared the firing line, the pitch-black muzzle was revealed from within the wind of the swords.

BOOM!

Amidst the deafening roar of artificial thunder, the female Demonized’s mutilated body was blasted backward. The three Blood Sword Guards standing behind her corpse raised their blades in unison, swiftly slicing the body into three shattered pieces to prevent the corpse and the blood spatter caused by the Magic Potion Cannon from obscuring their vision.

The blades instantly sucked the blood dry. The corpse shriveled in a flash, looking as though it had been baking on a sun-scorched gallows.

"Halt." Following a cold command, the twelve Blood Sword Guards stopped their slaughter. Angling their Longswords upward, they assumed a [Blade Counter Stance], keeping the heavily wounded male Demonized surrounded in the center.

The male Demonized gasped for air, weakly forcing himself to stay upright.

A Swordsman officer, with his hands behind his back and wearing a formal military uniform, slowly approached the Sword Array. His leather boots trod silently on the grass, and a Blood Steel Longsword and a Magic Potion Cannon hung at his waist.

"Did Valak send you?" he asked, staring at the Demonized in front of him with an expressionless face.

The Demonized said nothing.

"Oh, right, of course, probably not." The officer looked thoughtful. "Judging by this skin tone, you’re from the Eastern Supar Empire. Valak hasn’t fallen so low as to recruit mercenaries yet."

The Demonized remained silent.

"Traveling this far to the northwestern pass border? Why?" the officer asked. "Are you a Demonized? Or... are you the product of some failed life Alchemy from the Supar Empire?"

Suddenly, the male Demonized made a move.

SLASH SLASH SLASH!

The surrounding Blood Sword Guards had maintained constant vigilance. The very second he acted, the ferocious barbed tips of six Blood Steel Longswords burst through his chest!

However, the Demonized had already pulled a Magic Potion Bottle from his coat. The blades shattered the bottle, and the signal flare within shot up into the sky, leaving behind the image of a blood-red scorpion and a skull.

"Who is he warning?" the officer asked calmly, looking at the corpse pierced through the heart by six swords, and waved his hand.

The six Longswords were withdrawn in six different directions, slicing the corpse into six pieces. The severed flesh and blood were completely dried out, emitting a faint, bloody glow.

The twelve Blood Sword Guards sheathed their Blood Steel Longswords, engaged the safeties on their Magic Potion Cannons, and holstered them at their waists.

They were one of the many secrets the Empire was steadily advancing. They were stationed at this border outpost because it was close enough to the Barren Land, allowing them to ride out at a moment’s notice to slaughter Magical Beasts on the Kana Plain or infiltrate Underground Cities for combat experience. Usually, they only came out to investigate when the alarm sounded; without orders, they were not allowed to reveal themselves casually.

"He sent a message before he died. There might be a high-tier Demon Race member nearby," the Blood Officer said, gazing off into the distance. "Mount your horses. Find him and dispose of him."

The twelve Blood Sword Guards saluted in silence, turned into formation, and jogged toward the stables.

A moment later.

Amidst the neighing of warhorses, twelve cavalrymen dragging their Blood Steel Longswords charged out of the outpost’s perimeter. They rode toward the plains beyond the border to begin their search, leaving behind a trail of hoofprints stamped with the Sword Crown and Iron Crown imperial crest.

"Carry the corpses back and have the Legion Alchemist examine them," the officer called out to the other steel-helmeted soldiers in the distance.