Outside the great city of Yles, vast swarms of demons were fleeing in a desperate exodus, filling the skies, the ground, and the underground.
There was no specific direction, only a frantic desire to escape the terrifying place that was Yles.
The largest and most prominent of these fleeing masses was the migration of the dwarf tribe, numbering in the millions. Each small contingent consisted of at least ten thousand individuals.
At this moment, every dwarf heart was a mixture of tension and excitement. They were on the verge of shedding their enslaved status, regaining their freedom, and living the ideal lives they had only dreamed of.
Yet, fear also lingered, for they were surrounded by massive groups of demons…
"Grandma, hurry, keep up with everyone!" a young dwarf boy supported an old woman leaning on a cane. The old woman straightened her back and quickened her pace, trying her best to keep up with the procession, but she was gradually falling behind the main group.
"Grandma, we're only thirty to forty miles from Ayre Plains. Once we reach there, we'll be safe," the boy urged, his voice filled with anxiety. He even crouched down, attempting to carry the elder, but he was too small and stumbled, falling himself instead.
"You'wai, my good grandson, Grandma needs a short rest. You go with the others first. Grandma will catch up later."
"No, Grandma! No!!"
They were not the only weak ones in the dwarf tribe. To ensure the safety of their race during the journey, many, like them, had voluntarily fallen behind.
In the last small team was Quitt. The young chieftain had already accepted and helped many of the stragglers – the old, the weak, the sick, and the disabled. Their team was also drifting further and further away from the main group.
"Great Chieftain, what about them?" the young chieftain asked, his heart consumed by worry. "How can the teams ahead abandon their own people?"
Quitt felt a sense of helplessness, understanding their plight. If it weren't for Qiqik and the others pushing him forward, he too would likely have been left behind.
"Great Chieftain, Chieftain, something is wrong, very wrong!" Suddenly, a dwarf scout, responsible for reconnaissance in the surrounding areas, rushed back, his face a mask of panic.
His agitated voice sent a jolt of fear through Quitt.
"What is it?"
"Demons! A force of half-demons passing by from the north is charging towards us!"
"What???" Qiqik and the others exclaimed in shock. Although the tribe was numerous, they had no warriors. They had been disarmed by the demons for hundreds of years!
Let alone a regular demon army, they couldn't even stand against ordinary demons.
Before the scout had finished reporting, Quitt already saw dust rising in the distance. A group of half-demons, exuding murderous intent, was charging towards them.
"A Demon King level leader!" Quitt's heart sank as he saw the leader of the approaching force. Yet, he immediately issued an order, "Quick, split into eight groups, escape in eight directions!"
"Yes!" The young chieftain executed the order without delay.
However, as the more than ten thousand dwarves began to scatter and flee, the half-demon contingent had already closed in.
The half-demons, having suffered humiliation and terror at Bai Ye's hands, now encountered their runaway slaves. The fury within them ignited like wildfire.
"How dare you run? Who gave you permission to escape?"
"Run? Can you escape? The only way for you dwarves to survive is by submitting to us half-demons!"
The guards beside the King-level half-demon were the first to draw their demonic weapons, slashing at the defenseless dwarves.
Before them stood two pitiful old women and a child. As they made their move, the runes on the half-demons' demonic weapons blazed with extreme intensity!
The old woman, unable to walk any further, mustered her last ounce of strength to shield the child in her arms.
"Ah! Grandma!!!"
As the old woman and child faced their doom, the sky suddenly rumbled, and several bolts of azure lightning struck the attacking guards directly.
In an instant, the guards lay on the ground as charred corpses, their sturdy demonic weapons shattered into pieces.
"Who?" The King-level half-demon turned abruptly. He knew this was not natural lightning, but magic, imbued with potent and concentrated demonic energy.
A Demon King level powerhouse!
"From this day forth, all members of the dwarf tribe are citizens of Bright City and are under the protection of Bright City!"
"Anyone who dares to harm the citizens of Bright City will be killed – without mercy!!!"
A resonant voice boomed, filled with authority and killing intent.
From the rear of the half-demon army, a tall figure slowly emerged. Clad in animal hides, radiating explosive power, with a Tang dao hanging at his waist, he exuded an aura of mystery.
His appearance was ordinary, yet impossible to ignore. The newcomer was Bai Ye, transformed into the likeness of the Lord of Bright City.
Not far away, Quitt and Qiqik heard the voice and turned back in surprise.
"The Master is here?"
"No, it seems not… that person, he looks like the Lord of Bright City, the master of the place we are going to!"
"Although it's not the Master himself, the Master said someone would protect us, and it must be him."
…
"Lord of Bright City? Ye Ge?" The King-level half-demon frowned. He had heard of this name. Margaret the Holy King and Wu Xin the Holy King were apparently leaving the city to deal with him!
"Sir, as a Demon King of the demon race, do you not know that the dwarves belong to us half-demons? Demons and elves are forbidden from interfering."
Bai Ye offered no response to the King-level half-demon's accusation, only continuing to advance.
The King-level half-demon's expression grew more solemn. He questioned further, "With a great enemy at our doorstep and the demon race facing a crisis, your actions, sir, will incite internal conflict. Can you bear the responsibility?"
His attempts at persuasion proving futile, the King-level half-demon slowly drew his blade.
"That is between me and your Holy Kings," Bai Ye replied coldly, releasing his killing intent, filling the surroundings with a suffocating atmosphere.
"Within three breaths, all of you get out, or… die!"
The haughty expressions of all the half-demons immediately changed. For reasons unknown, they felt a sense of familiarity when facing this Demon King of the demon race.
The King-level half-demon's face contorted in extreme displeasure. "Sir, are you not afraid of Lord Wu Xin returning to settle accounts?"
He activated the runes on his demonic weapon, adopting a fully defensive stance. There was no intent to retreat!
Hmph! Bai Ye wasted no further words, raising his hand and launching a killing blow.
"Heavenly Descent Thunder!"
The clear sky suddenly transformed. In the blink of an eye, dark clouds gathered, and a terrifying black lightning bolt, hundreds of meters thick, descended from the heavens.
"Rumble!!!"
The half-demon warriors felt their scalps go numb and their souls tremble. Many were so filled with despair that they forgot to defend themselves.
"Unstoppable, Nine Slashes to Annihilate All!!!" The King-level half-demon, having anticipated this, unleashed a golden blade energy against Bai Ye's attack.
Each blade energy was dazzlingly golden, hundreds of meters long, and exuded a terrifying aura!
Boom!
Boom, boom!!
As each blade energy struck the terrifying black lightning, it was directly consumed by the lightning!
When the King-level half-demon unleashed his seventh slash, the terrifying black lightning struck him.
"Ah!! No—"
Boom, boom, boom!!!
The black lightning raged for nearly a minute before disappearing, leaving behind a dark, bottomless crater on the ground.
"Lord Boton, he, he's dead?"
"Run, run!!"
The surviving half-demon warriors, staring at the chillingly deep crater and unable to find any trace of their leader, were utterly terrified and fled for their lives.
"He's dead! That King-level expert, just like that, he's dead?"
"The Lord of Bright City, he's so, so powerful!"
"I feel… no less than that Master…"
"We, we are saved? That's great! That's great!!"
From a distance, the dwarves stopped in their tracks, tears of joy streaming down their faces.
Under Bai Ye's protection, the dwarf tribe gradually reached the Ayre Plains safely, and then the millions marched towards Bright City.
A day later, Margaret and Wu Xin, along with several other Holy Kings, returned to the great city of Yles.
Gazing at the battered city walls, the devastated city, and the ruined Sky Tower City, their faces were incredibly grim.
Seeing their return, Adolphe and Ovesdin dared to venture back into the city.
"You mean, the enemy with the power of flames was the strongest?"
"He controls the magic of a supreme existence?"
Upon hearing their words, Margaret and the other Holy Kings were astonished and even fearful.
"Impossible! If a supreme existence-level powerhouse could pass through the passage, our tribe's ultimate powerhouses would have already arrived!" Margaret stated, then asked, "Where is Lord Wu Xin?"
"He, he went to pursue those dwarf slaves!" a minor Demon King replied softly.
Margaret frowned, displeased. "At such a critical moment, why is he still concerned with those dwarves?"
The other Holy Kings dared not speak. The Demon King who reported swallowed hard and added, "Lord Margaret, those dwarf slaves… have already been taken by that Lord of Bright City…"
"What!!!" All the Holy Kings were shocked. They had specifically gone to Bright City and failed to find him, and now he had appeared in the great city of Yles!
And precisely at this moment? What a coincidence!
"Quick, let's go there immediately!" Lord Margaret had a vague sense of unease. Upon arriving at the great city of Yles, she immediately led her people eastward.