The Demon King's Rise (Double Chapter) (Continued)

If you want to take something, you must first give something.

Since the God Slayer have no need for mortals, they will create a need for them.

To proclaim the king's fame and glory, and to present him with rare treasures and playthings. Most importantly, to surround the king with ordinary subordinates, companions, and even friends. Once this is accomplished, the king's mind can be subtly influenced—this is an open strategy, because those self-proclaimed selfless individuals who immediately shouldered a mountain of responsibilities and obligations for the God Slayer are long gone. It is this level of guidance and enticement that will not be seen as an offense by the God Slayer, thus avoiding their wrath.

And so, the world became what it is today.

There are still over two hundred countries on the land, but in reality, they are not ruled by ordinary power structures, but by societies, orders, or sects comprised of powerful warriors of the caliber of Great Knight. The secular rulers are merely their agents, operating on a supply-and-demand basis, for these powers possess a deep-rooted historical strength capable of easily overthrowing their respective kingdoms. And when God Slayer is born, these powerful forces that dominate the land will swarm to support the new king, while they themselves will serve as his servants.

This is the norm, and Iron Rule. No matter how weak a country is, once it becomes the territory of God Slayer, it can become the world's top power in the next moment, even if it was a tiny place just a second ago.

Therefore, when the Seventh King of our time is confirmed to be born on earth, the world will be in turmoil because of her.

The woman with the umbrella was wearing a red plaid skirt...

The Red-skirted Knight shivered. The cold night wind in the Romanian wasteland blurred her vision. She gently exhaled a breath of warm air, and with the activation of her Curse Power, her clear thoughts returned to her mind.

A full twelve hours had passed since the divine war that began in Milan ended. And Knight Erica Brantri, a high-ranking member of a renowned Italy magical society, had to abandon her pursuit of the divine war less than half an hour later.

How can I avoid giving up?

According to the battle report compiled by the Greenwich Sage Society, the most authoritative assessment organization in the magic world, the battle between the newly born Seventh King and the Disobedient Surtr reached the top of the atmosphere from Milan within minutes of the start of the battle—a distant region that even a king unskilled in aerial combat could not reach. After the sun set the following day, the battlefield shifted to Polish soil.

Yes, Poland. A distant region a full 1,300 kilometers from Milan, the starting point of the war. And thereafter, the struggle between god and king began near Warsaw, traversed Slovakia and Hungary, then crossed the entire territory of Romania, finally settling at the mouth of the Danube River, on the border of the Black Sea. The result of this war was that thirty-seven rivers, large and small, dried up, eleven major mountain ranges collapsed, and over one million square kilometers of land were reduced to wasteland!

It would be foolish to even count the population and property losses, and even though the king seemed to have deliberately avoided densely populated areas, the war had still caused considerable damage to the three countries it traversed. And that's why Erica, who had originally planned to rush to the new king's side immediately after the war ended to offer her allegiance on behalf of the Crimson Copper Black Cross Society, was blocked by the local magic society on the Romanian border for over ten hours.

Erica, you are a knight, Lionheart Descendant who inherited the name of the Crimson Demon before even reaching adulthood. Always maintain grace and composure.

She pressed her hand to her chest and breathed softly. What came into view was a vast wasteland filled with charred remains, cooled lava, and wind-eroded mountains—she vaguely remembered that in her childhood geography lessons, the Romanian coast was a vast plain suitable for farming, but now it seemed that children's textbooks needed a complete rewrite.

The title bestowed upon that king by the Council of Sages is "King of Annihilation." While there are alternatives like "King of Fire" or "King of Embers," the destructive power of that king must be emphasized... tsk, to destroy three nations in one fell swoop, wiping out over a million square kilometers of land—even in historical records, such a devastating war is extremely rare.

There was no one around her. The Romanian magic society only allowed her to enter the territory alone. Thanks to a brief encounter with the king in Milan's city square, she managed to shake off the overt surveillance and 'accompaniment' of others. This wouldn't have happened in the past, because the major Eastern European societies at least had a nominal, unilaterally recognized lord, the 'King of Swords.' Even if their subordinates were fighting amongst themselves, at least there wouldn't be overt conflicts regarding matters of Royal Authority.

However, this time is different from usual.

Who could blame the King of Swords, who always ignored everyone and wouldn't listen to reason, for being unable to withstand even a single sword strike when intervening in the battle between the Seventh King and the Disobedient Surtr? And, amidst the Spiritual Vision of numerous fearless witches, he was violently sent flying from Slovakia all the way to the Baltic Sea, almost crashing into Stockholm!

While it's not uncommon for societies to immediately go and offer their assistance to the king, the sorcerers on the Romanian side seem to have chosen a different path.

Anyway, the king doesn't care.

That's right, I don't care.

The Romanians' calculations seem to have faltered. If they could obtain the King of Annihilation's permission, they would surely announce it immediately and establish its legitimacy. However, the lack of response and unwillingness to lift the blockade suggests they are still unable to establish genuine contact or communication with the King.

As she stepped into the wasteland, the intense heat seeping from the earth's surface made her frown—beyond the wasteland, excessive amounts of Ley Line material were evaporating into the atmosphere, causing torrential rains and cold air currents. This was precisely why she had just been shivering from the cold winds of Romania.

However, the interior of the wasteland was completely different from the outside, which was only a few meters away—after walking just a few steps, her feet became unbearably hot. And after venturing hundreds of meters deeper into the wasteland, she even saw streams of heat flowing through the valleys!

According to the Society's investigation, the Seventh King's true name is Surtr. Born seventeen years ago in the countryside of Milan, he was orphaned at a young age; all his relatives perished in a magical accident, and he himself was plagued by illness. Although they have found many people who had contact with the young Seventh King, unfortunately, not a single one of them is familiar with him or can speak with him.

She crossed the natural broken bridge over the lava lake, leaping across the forest of stone pillars that had only existed for a dozen or so hours. The air was thick with the smell of Sulfur. In the distance, one could even vaguely see primordial fire spirits frolicking and floating in the boiling pool of fire.

Several shadowy figures flickered in the distance—clearly, they were messengers sent by other societies. Since the king ascended the throne, no witch dared to spy on him with her Spiritual Vision. Even the most seasoned diviners could only roughly ascertain that the Seventh King of Purification was located in this desolate wasteland.

A dull thud came from the ground, a geological movement, as if a volcano was brewing—the beautiful knight in the red dress subconsciously quickened her pace, passing between two corresponding, door-like giant rocks, only to be met with a blast of scorching air.

She plunged her sword into the rock face, the strong wind nearly blowing her away. Several minutes later, she finally climbed to the top of the giant rock, and then, the former entrance to the Black Sea came into view.

The Danube River.

She can no longer see the blue Danube River.

Because an active volcano sits on the coast, scorching heat flows from the breach into the azure river—the blue Danube becomes the red Danube. Huge plumes of steam overflow, turning into gray clouds that, along with the cooling heat, surge into the Black Sea.

She saw numerous lights on the distant land, the lights of a procession; the Romanians had prepared a grand welcoming ceremony for the king, complete with hymns. However, it was obvious that the person the procession was meant to welcome was not actually present at the ceremony.

Erica took a few breaths, not heading in that direction— God Slayer were never creatures who would accept an invitation without question; they were concerned with social etiquette. Since the king hadn't ignored them but hadn't left, he must have his own private matters to attend to.

What could it be?

Several overlapping mountains appeared before the knight, which she struggled to climb, only to find more pools of fire and blazing flames before her eyes. Passing through the rugged, overlapping terrain, an even hotter region soon came into contact.

According to the deductions of the Council of Sages, the Seventh King had already defeated a pillar god before contacting Surtr, a fact unknown to most. Based on traces from the divine war, it can be confirmed that the Seventh King used Eastern Immortal Martial Arts and possessed the 'Three Flowers and Five Energies' —qualities believed to be possessed only by immortals in mythology. The earliest origin of the concept of the Three Flowers and Five Energies is attributed to Yunyazi, the legendary compiler of the * Zhouyi Cantong Qi *.

Therefore, the Council of Sages speculates that Yunyazi was the first god defeated by the Seventh King. Her method of defeating the god was likely through wisdom, or the battle took place within the immortal's 'Dongtian.' Only in this way can we explain why the long-ailing Seventh King possessed power before his campaign against Surtr. This also suggests that the Seventh King might have been more inclined to think in the way of the Eastern immortals.

She recalled that after the Council of Sages obtained this conjecture, their initial idea for the title of 'Emperor Lord of Flame King' was to bestow upon the Seventh King name that simultaneously highlighted his achievements in both Eastern and Western mythology. However, considering that this might be seen as a provocation by the Wuxia King, it was ultimately abandoned. Nevertheless, the word 'Emperor' still guided Erica's thoughts.

If the King thinks in the way of an Eastern sage, then...

She turned around and used her magic to fly towards the volcano located on the banks of the Danube River. The intense heat made her skin burn, and the thick flames emanating from the crater made all the other messengers except her hesitate to approach.

Even Great Knight cannot survive in magma for long after activating magical protection, but if he stays there for only a short time, he can barely hold on!

[Are you blind to talent?]

She stood at the crater, looking down at the boiling lava that kept gushing out, and then at the welcoming ceremony that was directly opposite the volcano—on the entire wasteland created by the war of gods, there was only one volcano like this.

—The immortals of the East love to play this trick of making something seem far away yet so close at hand. A leaf before the eyes obscures Mount Tai.

So she widened her eyes and suddenly leaped into the pool of fire!

Come down.

What rushed towards us was the intense heat of the fire.

Erica almost turned around the instant she crashed into the pool of fire, abandoning her foolish conjecture. However, in the end, her knightly confidence and pride prevented her from pausing for even a moment.

She fell into the pool of fire.

She pierced through an invisible barrier.

As her fear and joy surged like a tide, she saw a vast space unfold beneath her feet!

—You made the right bet!

Landing lightly, a vast black land floated in a sea of fire—flat and devoid of anything superfluous. Only at the very center of this black land stood a jet-black throne!

She saw a fiery-haired girl in a black dress sitting on a throne with her eyes slightly closed. Her pretty face, much younger than when she first saw her, only slightly older than herself, perfectly matched the description in her Spiritual Vision and memories—the girl leaned against the throne, embracing a black and red greatsword. And around the throne, invisible and colorless yet substantial fire floated.

[Laevateinn... is that the power the Seventh King gained Disobedient Surtr?]

The young female knight knelt down on one knee the moment her feet touched the ground.