Soulless Ones Bound for Hell

The first layer of Baator, Avernus.

This is a scorched wasteland full of rubble, with mountains and sloping hills breaking the monotonous landscape.

In the distance, a massive Zhu Zi over two kilometers high can be seen standing on the wasteland, constructed from twisted demon skulls, symbolizing the evil spoils of Blood War.

Blood-red light filled the air, fireballs danced in the sky, and deep cracks covered the ground, from which could often be heard the mournful cries of the wandering Petitioners.

Two burly demons with thorny beards on their chins were guarding a gate made of spines.

They were casually chatting, holding rusty machetes and wearing tattered armor.

"Sigh, this guard mission is so incredibly boring. We can't even see a shadow of an intruder. I really envy those guys who get sent to the Material Plane."

"Yes, it is said that they can easily plunder the souls of hundreds of mortals in that City of Sunrise, which is exactly the place I dream of."

"Heh, stop dreaming. We devils are lucky if we're not sent to the Endless Abyss Plains to fight those lunatics. The Blood War is never short of cannon fodder."

"Indeed, the City of Sunrise, a place once favored by the Sun God. Tsk tsk, that's a ranch that only Lord Zariel's confidants are qualified to visit."

"Rather than hoping to be transferred to Auguste, I'd rather hope a few mortals who have strayed here fall out."

Passages to other planes are common in Hell. These passages are called "Cursed Gate" by mortals and are usually guarded by demons to prevent the intrusion of demons and humans—such as these two Barbazu soldiers.

Just as they were discussing "how to torture the mortals who fell in," a ripple suddenly appeared in the center of the skeletal gate, and a human stumbled out.

"Where... where is this?"

The human was dressed in tattered clothes, looked extremely thin and pale, and appeared harmless, which immediately caught the eye of the two Barbazu who were craving souls.

"According to the rules set by Lord Zariel, we should report any outsiders immediately."

"Report it? You're still too naive! The souls of mortals are the sweetest, and they'll surely be fought over by countless great demons. By concealing this news, we too can enjoy the taste of fresh souls."

"That's right, anyway, he's just a weak mortal, he can't escape our grasp."

Thinking of this, the two Barbazu did not activate the communication array. Instead, they walked up step by step, surrounded the mortal, and grinned ferociously, as if they had already figured out how to torture him.

The Barbazu grinned maliciously and said, "Foolish and ignorant mortals, do you even know where you are?"

"A devil! It's a devil! Could this be Hell? I've actually stumbled into Hell?"

The human was so frightened that his legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground. His face was deathly pale, and he was incoherent, looking as if he had been driven insane by fear.

Another Barbazu held his cleaver in front of the human, his expression extremely excited. "You guessed right, mortal! Congratulations on arriving in Hell! This is our devils' Pure Land!"

"Haha, I never expected to find ordinary people in this desolate wilderness, what a pleasant surprise!"

The Barbazu stood before the humans, laughing without restraint, their thorny whiskers trembling and writhing, appearing twisted and terrifying.

They had expected the human to be so terrified that he would completely lose his mind, or even faint, emanating an aura of fear that they found incredibly enjoyable.

Unexpectedly, the human did not react that way. He stared wide-eyed at the Barbazu before him, a sly smile on his face, "What is a surprise? Translate for me, what is a surprise?"

"."

Both Barbazu stood frozen in place, gripping their large cleavers, at a loss for what to do.

What happened?

"Has this human gone mad with fright?" One of the Barbazu scratched its head with its claws and replied somewhat strangely, "No need for translation, you are our surprise."

Another Barbazu chimed in, "What stupid mortals! Does this even need translating? It's already been said."

The "human" leaped up from the ground with unimaginable speed, accompanied by a bloody gust of wind.

Veins bulged on his forehead, sharp fangs bared in his mouth, and he roared furiously, "I'll make you translate this for me! What the hell is 'surprise' and 'joy'!"

"Oh no, it's an enemy attack!"

"Damn it! This guy is definitely not ordinary! We've been fooled!"

The two Barbazu were terrified and fled in panic, shouting loudly as they tried to report to their superiors.

But it was too late; the prey and the hunter had already switched places in an instant.

"Translate this for me—what the hell do you mean by 'fucking surprise'!"

The "human" chuckled mockingly, hovering in mid-air, extending two hands with sharp nails, from which two deep vortexes emanating black mist surged.

Bloodfiend Black Hole

Under the immense pull, countless pebbles rose into the air, while the two Barbazu were sent flying backward, struggling and wailing pitifully.

"No--"

"It's Vampire! Damn it, whose henchman is this?"

"Kill him!"

The two Barbazu were sucked into the "human's" palm. They struggled with all their might, swinging their cleavers behind them, the sharp blades slicing through the air.

But with a "rip," the two strong and robust Barbazu shriveled and dried up like punctured balloons, their blood drained away, leaving only two dirty and hideous skins, their tentacles still trembling.

"Smack."

The two drained bodies were carelessly discarded on the ground like two tattered rags.

The "mortal" hovered in mid-air, his face still deathly pale, a blood-red light flashing in his dark eyes, his body shrouded in thick blood mist, and a scarlet cloak billowing behind him.

"Tsk, this is what you call a surprise."

The Vampire, or rather, the Lang Li Bai Tiao, looked down disdainfully at the Barbazu on the ground and spoke in a lazy, aristocratic tone, with a hint of mockery.

However, the next moment, his cloak was ripped off violently, almost causing him to fall to the ground, and his aura as a vampire noble vanished completely.

"Alright, stop showing off. You're just dawdling over killing two mobs. You're always making a scene for yourself," the Lucky Emperor scolded irritably.

The Born Battle Maniac remained calm and said in a low voice, "Be careful. This is an extremely difficult dungeon with all sorts of demons and monsters. If we attract those great demons, we'll be wiped out."

Dark Night Wolf chimed in softly, "Yeah, boss, we're already in Hell, so let's not be reckless."

"How boring, no romance at all." Lang Li Bai Tiao scoffed, then descended from mid-air and poured a few drops of potion onto the remains of the Barbazu.

In an instant, the two withered bodies turned into fine powder, which drifted away on the bloody wind without leaving a trace.

Looking up at the blood-red sky, gazing at the towering skeletal pillars stretching to the horizon, and breathing in the air thick with the smell of sulfur and blood, Lang Li Bai Tiao sighed, "This is Hell. It's a rare and wonderful place."

The other three looked at him strangely. "What's so good about this place?"

Lang Li Bai Tiao smacked Dark Night Wolf hard on the back of the head. "It's one thing if they don't understand, but don't you, a Vampire, understand? This place has no sunlight, is full of evil and corrupting forces, and has countless enemies. It's practically a holy land for us Vampire players to level up!"

The Lucky Emperor complained, "You're lucky if you're not used as a source of experience points by others."

The Lang Li Bai Tiao turned around, his face full of indignation, his pale face even seeming to regain its color. "Who asked you? A mere cross-dressing master dares to shout here?"

Who are you calling a cross-dresser?

That's exactly what I'm talking about—

Suddenly, the emblem on the right arm of the Lang Li Bai Tiao began to flash, revealing flames, and an angry voice resounded in everyone's mind.

"Enough, contractors! I expended my power to teleport you to Hell, not so you could keep chattering here!"

A fawning smile immediately appeared on Lang Li Bai Tiao's face as he patted his chest and said, "Of course, of course, Bael Bayer."

We will certainly live up to your high expectations, strive to complete the work accurately, efficiently, and with high quality, and fight for your cause of reclaiming Avernus.

"."

The Lang Li Bai Tiao eloquently until the Flame Insignia completely dimmed, at which point he reluctantly stopped.

The Born Battle Maniac smoothed his bald head, his lips twitching slightly. Finally, he sighed and said, "Alright, enough talk, let's hurry up and complete the mission."

The four of them were all players who had made pacts with the devil, each with their own strengths and considerable combat power, and were exactly the "reinforcements" that Keosius had promised.

There are over a hundred such elite squads in Hell, appearing in every corner of Avernus, all there to support Zariel.

However, the team led by the Lang Li Bai Tiao Born Battle Maniac was the strongest in terms of overall strength, with an average Class Level of twelve. Naturally, they received extra care from Bael, their employer.

"Whoosh—"

Suddenly, a howling wind came from high above, and a powerful, evil pressure spread out.

A powerful demon wielding Steel Fork was slowly flapping its pair of wide bat wings, each over ten meters long, as it swept across the sky.

He was covered in iron-like scales, had a pair of huge horns, and a whip-like tail. His appearance was extremely ferocious and terrifying. He was a high-ranking demon from Hell — the Horned Devil.

The Horned Devil looked down at the earth with his murky eyes. He seemed to have noticed the anomaly near the Cursed Gate and roared, "Where are those two lazy fellows?"

"You beasts, Lemure! How dare you disobey Lord Zariel's orders—abandon your post! I'll send them to their deaths in the Abyss!"

He circled the Cursed Gate several times, but found no trace of the Barbazu, and then flew away angrily into the distance.

"Phew, that was close!"

The Dark Night Wolf breathed a sigh of relief. If he weren't Vampire, he would probably be drenched in sweat and trembling all over by now.

"This Avernus is indeed a high-risk instance; even the security captain guarding the area is so powerful," even the Lucky Emperor couldn't help but exclaim.

The Born Battle Maniac looked towards the spot where the Horned Devil had disappeared, clenched his fist, and said softly, "Challenge Rating 15 demon, I wonder how powerful it will be."

Lang Li Bai Tiao then removed the cloth covering everyone and shouted, "If it weren't for my invisibility cloak, you would have been wiped out right from the start. Why don't you call me daddy?"

The Lucky Emperor angrily retorted, "If you weren't wasting our time here, we would have already left!"

Seeing that the mission hadn't even started yet, there were already many conflicts within the team. Dark Night Wolf couldn't get a word in edgewise and was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

Finally, the Born Battle Maniac stepped forward, put his arms around the two of them on either side with his arms, which were thicker than a normal person's waist, and said kindly, "Teammates should put aside their differences, cooperate with each other, and work together to complete the mission."

You all agree—aren't you right?

Under the gentle gaze of the Born Battle Maniac fierce warrior and the coercion of his immense strength, Lang Li Bai Tiao and Lucky Emperor shook hands somewhat stiffly.

Dark Night Wolf pulled out a map, pointed to the massive, magnificent building in the distance, and whispered, "Look, that should be our mission location."

At the heart of Avernus lies a rugged, rigid, and massive city— the Bronze Fortress.

It is known for its twelve concentric rings of walls, each ring standing with countless War Machine. The city is filled with tens of thousands of low-level demons of all kinds heading to the Blood War, enough to assemble several Blood War legions.

At the center of those twelve concentric rings of walls lies the private fortress of Zariel, the Hell Lord controls Avernus.

"Intruders."

"They're right here."

"I've detected the scent of mortals; I absolutely cannot let them get away."

Sensing the chaotic air currents around him and listening to the subtle, noisy sounds, the Born Battle Maniac said in a deep voice, "If we continue to stay here, we risk being killed by that Horned Devil at any moment."

Moreover, the demons nearby have noticed the anomaly around the Cursed Gate, and they are consciously surrounding the area.

"Lang Chu, where's your cloak? Get it out now!"

"This thing can only be used once a day, and for only three minutes at a time. I just used up all my power trying to resist the Horned Devil's gaze, so..."

"Useless thing!"

The Lucky Emperor pulled out a scroll of Divination Spell, his eyes gleaming with blue light, and then said, "The southwest is their weak point; there are only a group of lesser demons and a Spined Devil there."

"Then..."

"Then let's charge straight out!" the Born Battle Maniac said confidently.

"Roar--"

The Born Battle Maniac roared and transformed into a muscular giant bound by Hell shackles.

"Boom!"

Once he unleashed his berserk state, he was like a moving mountain, smashing through the city walls and turning the dozen or so little devils lurking behind him into mincemeat.

The Lang Li Bai Tiao floated in mid-air, releasing hundreds of vampire bats from its cloak, which sucked the nearby demons dry into withered sacks.

"Intruders!"

We must not let them escape!

"Kill him!"

The demons roared, but due to their innate power Born Battle Maniac, none dared to step forward to fight. Meanwhile, in the distant fortress, the Horned Devil flapped its enormous wings and took to the air.

"Damn it, they really attracted that security captain!"

The Lucky Emperor pulled out a Spell Scroll from his backpack again, chanted an incantation, and a complex magic circle appeared beneath the four of them, constantly rotating.

"The wind's picking up, let's get out of here!"

The surrounding space distorted and folded, and their figures became flickering and elusive, like phantoms—a sign of a teleportation spell.

"Whoosh—"

With a crisp sound, the four of them vanished from their spot.

The Horned Devil arrived late and could only watch them leave.

The Horned Devil, unwilling to accept its fate, stretched out its sharp claws, wildly waving its Steel Fork, and letting out a heart-wrenching roar, "No—"