Soul Drinkers

As a Warp Demon of Undivided Chaos, Hill was not as powerful as other demons; on the contrary, it was incredibly weak, so weak that it couldn't even defeat a Nurgle of Nurgle.

Fortunately, the Warp is vast, and the regions encompassed by the Four Gods occupy only a small fraction; there are countless spaces for weaklings like Hill to survive.

Regardless of the species, even for a demon, survival is always the top priority.

As the sister to the Physical World, the Warp is not as dead and silent as people imagine; this world possesses its own ecosystem, which one could even say is overly prosperous.

Undoubtedly, at the apex of the Warp are those One Proof of Eternity deities. They claim mountains as their kingdoms, command countless legions of demons, and are constantly engaged in that eternal holy war, wantonly churning the Sea of Souls.

But even the deities of the Warp are not omnipotent; there are countless realms that do not belong to the Four Gods, and Hill is precisely one of those inhabitants.

The law of the jungle applies everywhere. To survive, Hill spent every day scurrying about for its next meal, even though demons do not need to eat, it would still do so.

After all, as an individual birthed from the soul tides of the reality world, every demon—or rather, the vast majority of Warp Creature—possesses a talent: the consumption of souls.

The more intense the emotions contained within a soul, the more precious it is. This stuff is like a tonic, allowing a demon to gradually grow stronger.

The problem, however, was that Hill was too weak. It could not pierce the thick dimensional barriers to trick sentient beings into offering sacrifices, nor could it receive blessings from deities like the organized legions of the Four Gods. It could only drift with the Warp tides, taking things as they came and scavenging for leftovers that no one else wanted.

It sounds pathetic, and in reality, it truly was, but one should never underestimate the job of a scavenger.

The Sea of Souls is not a kind place; a moment of carelessness and one would be swallowed by a Warp storm, not to mention that the roles of prey and predator can flip in an instant. Only the most experienced Scavengers can fish for souls amidst the tides and hold onto them.

And Hill was exactly such an experienced Scavengers, which was also one of the few sources of joy in Hill's life.

It sounds incredible that a demon could possess a positive emotion like joy, but that is the truth. Demons also have joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness; they also feel fear, especially of death, which they fear to their very marrow.

Hill believed that as long as it persevered, one day it could become a powerful demon, perhaps even claim a mountain as its own and become an overlord.

What was even better was that Hill recently discovered its luck had turned. It found a geomantic treasure trove that other Warp Creature dared not pry into: a ship, a massive steel vessel that other predators avoided like the plague.

According to fellow demon peers nearby, there was a group of humans here with dim souls who emitted a strange odor, and among them was a terrifying monster—one must never get close.

But like all fishermen, as long as they can catch fish, even if they know there is a bomb nearby, a fisherman will not abandon the fishing spot.

With no predators prying, Hill was able to scavenge a large number of ownerless fragments every time, and it also discovered that the quality of these soul fragments was surprisingly high, completely contrary to this place that made a demon's heart race with anxiety.

"The rougher the waves, the more precious the soul; I definitely won't capsize."

Self-soothing, Hill became increasingly bold. It no longer collected those floating fragments in the soul tides but began to follow alongside the ship to better accumulate power.

Perhaps those who drown are always the ones who know how to swim. Just as Hill was happily leveling up as usual, a wave struck, slamming it directly into the Geiger field of the Abomination Exemplar, pinning it firmly against the outer wall of the porthole.

"Snap!"

A crisp sound rang out. Our demon Scavengers Hill was knocked to the ground, shivering like a little girl, not daring to look at that terrifying monster at all.

"Speak, why were you peeping on my ship? What exactly did you hear? Answer me!"

"Wuwuwu,"

???

"Not talking, are you? I like those with a stiff mouth. You're out of luck today, catching me in a bad mood. Demons are arrogant, right? Today I'll show you what cruelty is. The Khan, hang him up and keep hitting him."

Receiving the order, the First Captain pulled the chain, directly hoisting the unlucky demon up.

Perhaps having Realized something, Hill struggled desperately, emitting strange wailing sounds, but The Khan didn't care about that; he stepped up and unleashed a flurry of heavy punches.

"Telling you to be stubborn, daring to pry at my window, you're tired of living, continue!"

Even though The Khan wasn't using his full strength, he was, after all, a Space Marine, and Hill was a weakling. In just a few hits, it was beaten until its head was bleeding and its body was smoking; the entire demon was almost shattered.

"Wuwuwu"

"Still 'wuwu'-ing, damn it. I think you're really looking to die."

"Um, Father, is there a possibility that this Warp Creature has already begged for mercy, but it's in so much pain that it can't speak?" The Khan asked, offering a reminder.

The Khan, who had been brought along to interrogate the prisoner, was very afraid. Father had suddenly gathered them, first punishing Tom, then feeling inexplicably sorrowful, and finally dancing and speaking things he couldn't understand.

Now, he was even making him torture a Warp Creature from the roadside. The Khan was very worried about Father's mental state, fearing that some accident might occur.

"How is that possible? This is a demon, and demons have no sense of pain."

In truth, Mordred didn't know if demons felt pain, but he knew that no demon was a good thing. Perhaps it was a spy sent by the Four Merchants, plotting to harm him.

But after hearing The Khan's opinion, Mordred did not give the order again, instead giving the demon time to recover.

Ten Minutes later, Hill's jaw, which had been shattered by a single slap, was finally usable again, and it hurriedly shouted:

"My Lord, spare my life! My Lord, spare my life! I really didn't hear what you were saying, and I've never even harmed a single human; I don't have the ability to do that at all!"

"Bullshit. Since you've never harmed a human, then How Could you speak Gothic, and it's High Gothic at that, more fluent than mine.

Speak, why did you appear near my warship?"

At this, Hill really couldn't hold it together. Big Brother, I'm a demon; is it strange that I can speak Gothic? How are you, a human, even more barbaric than me?

Hill dared not say these inner thoughts, fearing he would enrage the monster in front of him, so he could only explain:

"It's innate. With so many human souls dissipating in the Sea of Souls every day, it's normal to be able to speak, my Lord. As for why I came here, I'm just trying to scrape a living."

For the sake of its own life, Hill didn't dare to hold back a single bit, wishing it could grow two more mouths.

"Then why didn't you say so at the beginning."

"I fear you."

Hill's answer left Mordred deeply puzzled. After exchanging a glance with The Khan, he slowly approached the bizarre demon and continued to press him:

"What is it you fear about me?"

"I fear you will devour me, ah--."

Mordred's palm Descended from the Sky, pinning the demon's chest. Accompanied by a soul-piercing wail of agony, half of Hill's torso dissolved into black smoke, sinking directly into Mordred's body.

Thinking his father had been attacked, The Khan let out a roar and grabbed his Power Sword, intending to execute the demon on the spot, but he was stopped by Mordred.

"Father? Are you alright!"

"Fine. I have never felt better than I do now. The Khan, what was the previous name of our Legion again?"

"Soul Drinkers." The First Captain seemed to have Realized something, the title squeezed from the corner of his mouth.

"Yes. It seems we cannot be the Light of Humanity, but that is fine; all of this is within my plan."