Braving the Bronze Fortress

The fortress was cast from bronze smelted from the depths of Hell, its surface covered with spikes, demonic reliefs, and burning runes, gleaming with a dark green sheen against the blood-red sky of Avernus.

The city walls soared into the clouds, topped with hundreds of Arrow Tower, Hellfire cannons, and sentry cages imprisoning low-ranking demons. Countless imps and Steel Fork flapped their wings in the air.

Even the city walls themselves are imbued with a powerful Anti-Magic Field, making it difficult even for legendary mages to force their way in.

Outside the wall was an incredibly wide river, its bed churning with scorching, boiling lava, with Sulfur Scent white smoke billowing above, distorting the very air.

The suspension bridges spanning the River of Lava were the only way for outsiders to enter the Bronze Fortress. Demons grumbled and crowded on the bridges, and often Lemure would slip and fall into the river, letting out a mournful howl that caused lava to splash up.

The city gates were guarded by fully armed Chain Devil. They were hideous, tall and burly, and the iron chains wrapped around their bodies clanged against each other with a crisp sound.

"Splash—"

Chain Devil grabbed the little devil hiding in the truck, holding him by the back of the neck and yelling, "Damn bastard! Who let you in! Are you trying to disobey Lord Zariel's orders? How dare you not pay the toll!"

The little devil trembled, yet still smiled obsequiously, "My lord, the owner of this caravan paid a Silver Coin on my behalf!"

Chain Devil stated unequivocally, "It's charged per person!"

The little devil cried and begged for mercy, "Sir, I really have no money left, please spare me! I really had no other choice, I lost everything at the Modin Casino, all my possessions are gone."

Upon hearing that the other party was penniless, Chain Devil's expression grew even colder. "That's no excuse!"

He grabbed the Chain Devil's thick arm and pleaded, "Just give me three more days, and I'll immediately gather one, no, ten Silver Coin for you in the city!"

Chain Devil abruptly flung his hand, grabbing the little devil and hoisting it above the lava river. He roared, "Ten? How could a mere, weak little devil, a gambling addict in debt, possibly raise so much money?"

The little devil flapped its wings and shrieked, "No, no, don't throw me down! Sir, I have many friends in the outer city; I'm the know-it-all there! They'll lend me money!"

The Chain Devil grinned menacingly, about to snap the little devil's neck, "Do you think I look easy to fool?"

And—who would believe a little devil? Who would pay ten Silver Coin for something as lowly as you? What a joke!

"Exactly, just a little devil, how ridiculous!"

"Throw him down here! Don't waste time!"

"Hahaha, guess how horribly this guy screamed when he fell down?"

The demons crowded on the suspension bridge were making a ruckus, cursing the little devil in the most venomous language, wishing they could see him die immediately.

"Let him go, I'll pay for him."

A seductive female voice came from the bridge.

"Someone actually agreed to pay his ransom? For a little devil?"

"This is unbelievable!"

"That lucky guy, hopefully he'll be thrown straight into lava next time!"

The demons looked in surprise toward the source of the sound, and there stood a voluptuous woman before them. She was beautiful, with alluring eyes and two enormous black wings on her back.

—That is Succubus, a high-ranking devil, a fallen Celestial Being.

In the eyes of lower-ranking demons like the Chain Devil and the Barbazu, the Succubus Demon, being a higher-ranking demon, was already a formidable figure.

"Bite--"

Ten Silver Coin landed at the Chain Devil's feet with a crisp sound.

Seeing this, the Chain Devil quickly released his grip, picked up the Silver Coin from the ground, and said quite politely, "Succubus Demon, this little devil has a long history of misdeeds and has openly disobeyed Lord Zariel's orders. He is not worthy of your help."

The Succubus lowered her head, toying with her slender fingers, and glanced at him contemptuously. "Do I need you to teach me what I want to do?"

"I'm sorry, sir." The Chain Devil bowed deeply, his voice trembling, showing no trace of his previous arrogance.

This is Hell, a place of strict hierarchy, where every demon is bound by this complex order, with a clear distinction between superiors and inferiors.

High-ranking demons always live in fear of being demoted. They often vent their fear on their subordinates, who in turn intimidate and bully the even more lowly, and so on down the line.

Seeing the Succubus's help, the little devil immediately flapped its wings and flew forward, kneeling on the ground and crying out, "My lord, you have finally come to save me!"

Chain Devil lowered his head even further and said cautiously, "Succubus, I didn't know this was your slave. I was rude!"

However, Lord Zariel has ordered a thorough investigation of the identities of those entering the city; I hope you will understand.

The Chain Devil looked up and saw a nearly four-meter-tall, incredibly strong stone giant behind the Succubus. The stone giant was carrying an iron cage containing two enormous vampire bats.

The Succubus's face darkened, and he said impatiently, "Am I not even allowed to bring a golem servant and a few pet bats into the city?"

Chain Devil quickly waved his hand and replied, "Of course you can. I was overthinking it. How could a high-ranking demon like you be an intruder?"

"That's more like it."

The Succubus chuckled seductively, casually tossing a few Silver Coin at the Chain Devil's feet before entering the city with her "servants and pets."

The little devil followed behind the Succubus, flapping its wings and making a smug face at the Chain Devil and the demons watching the spectacle, which enraged the demons, who wished they could devour it alive.

Upon entering the city, one sees Hell inhabitants hurrying about everywhere, most of whom are lower-ranking demons such as lesser demons, Spined Devil, and Barbazu, but there are also some higher-ranking demons present.

Spined Devil flapped their wings and patrolled in mid-air, while on the streets, armies of Hedgehog Devil and Barbazu were marching urgently to the portal and head to the battlefield of Blood War.

The streets are lined with taverns, shops, pawnshops, and even brothels, somewhat similar to cities in the Material Plane, except that here, the best form of hard currency is only one thing—the soul of a mortal.

In this bustling city, the Succubus and her servants seemed less prominent.

The little devil followed the Succubus into the dark alley. He rubbed his hands together and said with a fawning expression, "Succubus Demon, my name is Dick. Thank you for rescuing me from that rude fellow."

"I heard you're very familiar with this area?"

"Of course, I've spent many years in the outer city and have been everywhere. Whatever you want to know, I will tell you everything I know. I just hope you can help me return it."

The Succubus did not answer, but instead took another iron cage from the golem's hand and revealed an incomparably beautiful smile.

"Etc."

"What... what do you want to do?"

The little devil immediately sensed something was wrong. He flapped his wings, trying to escape, but the iron cage suddenly opened, and a powerful suction force pulled him inside.

"Clang!"

The cage door closed, and the little devil grabbed the bars, shaking them frantically, trying to escape. But the runes outside the iron cage began to flash, and the iron bars turned scorching hot, making the little devil scream.

The Succubus crossed his arms and said coldly, "Don't make a futile struggle. This is a specially made iron cage, designed to imprison demons."

"And as long as I don't stop the magic array, you'll be burned to a crisp in less than ten minutes."

He quickly realized the situation, knelt in the cage, and slapped himself repeatedly, saying, "My lord, my lord, I dare not run away anymore. I was bewitched, I deserve to die!"

The Succubus nodded in satisfaction, then paused the magic circle and warned, "Be careful, these little devils are the most cunning; we must not let them escape."

The "golem" rubbed its bald head, which was covered in patina, and exclaimed, "This is the Bronze Fortress. As expected of a high-risk mission, I can feel many powerful and unfamiliar auras."

Meanwhile, the "vampire bat," also locked in an iron cage, flapped its wings and cursed, "Let me out! You filthy transvestite, who the hell is your pet!"

The Succubus's expression changed drastically. He abandoned his elegant demeanor and sneered with disgust, "You think I want to maintain this form? If it weren't for me, would you have been able to sneak into the city?"

"Tsk tsk, I think you just want to take this opportunity to satisfy your perverted fetishes."

"Lang Chu, have you forgotten your embarrassing past where you almost got slapped by that Old Vampire? I was just cross-dressing, you're the real pervert!"

"You son of a bitch—"

A human-like expression of anger appeared on the vampire bat's face.

The golem walked forward expressionlessly and separated them. "Stop arguing, or you'll be spotted by those Spined Devil patrols."

The other vampire bat stared blankly into the air, as if it could see something, and muttered, "Look, so many missions! Destroy the portal to Auguste, steal the blueprints for the Hellfire Cannon, kill Zariel's confidants. Wow, there's even infiltrating Zariel's palace? The reward is 25,000 Gold Coin. Just thinking about it is exciting."

The little devil beside him stared in disbelief, kneeling blankly in the cage, his whole body trembling.

Why are the Stone Golem and vampire bats starting to talk? And this "Succubus Lord" is behaving strangely. The little devil points at the "Succubus" with its slender claws, its throat bobbing. "You... you're outsiders?"

He recalled the military order of Lord Zariel circulating in the city, which stated that anyone found to be colluding with outsiders would be subjected to the cruelest punishment, to be tortured in endless purgatory for two hundred years.

Thinking of this, the little devil's voice trembled, and the wings on his back stiffened.

The Succubus, or rather, the Lucky Emperor, lightly patted the cage and said with a sinister grin, "Dick, face reality, you're already on our pirate ship. Hand over all the information now!"

"Yes, yes, sir."

The little devil's face turned ashen, and he could only nod helplessly. He thought he had met a benefactor, but he found himself jumping into another deep pit. There is no greater despair in the world than this.

The Lucky Emperor interrogated, "Where is the portal to Auguste?"

"Um, I think it's the Fourth Ring Road?"

Where are the blueprints for the Hellfire Cannon?

"It should be the Third Ring, where Lord Zariel's most trusted craftsmen are working day and night, including a Pit Fiend and two hundred Dragon Demons, to forge cannons for her."

"Where is Zariel's trusted general Alex Rives?"

"I think it was in that Hell briefing I saw last time. Hmm, General Alex should live in the Second Ring. He has a luxurious obsidian mansion there with thousands of Petitioners. It's really enviable."

The Born Battle Maniac glared at the little creature in the cage and asked in a deep voice, "Aren't you a know-it-all? How come the information you're giving is all so vague!"

Dick was on the verge of tears. "Sir, you've misunderstood me. I'm just a little devil who was kicked out of the twelfth ring. How could I possibly know information about those big shots in the inner ring?"

After a moment's thought, Lang Li Bai Tiao asked, "So, you know a lot about the Twelfth Ring?"

Dick nodded vigorously. "I know it like the back of my hand."

"So—how do we get from the outer ring to the inner ring? I see that the entrances to those passageways are heavily guarded."

"Yes, my lord. It seems that Lord Zariel is planning something big recently. The Bronze Fortress is heavily guarded. Everyone who enters or leaves must be screened by high-ring magic. Not even a purgatory bat can fly in."

Dick glanced cautiously at the Lang Li Bai Tiao, now transformed into a vampire bat, and said somewhat flusteredly, "Of course, sir, I wasn't talking about you, I meant those ordinary ones."

Lang Li Bai Tiao raised its right bat wing. "Alright, I'm asking you—is there a way to smuggle yourself into the inner ring?"

The little devil was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up, and he clapped his paws and muttered to himself, "It seems... there really is one."

Twelve Rings, Heart-Burning Casino.

The dim light and eerie firelight intertwined, and the pungent smell of sulfur filled the air, mingling with the mixed odors of cigarettes, alcohol, and unknown fuels, creating a uniquely suffocating atmosphere.

The gamblers here come in all shapes and sizes: some are powerful and wealthy people who committed many evils in their lives, some are ordinary people who have lost themselves due to greed, and even many devils have fallen into their trap.

They were dressed in either splendid attire or in rags, but their eyes all gleamed with a desire for victory and a fear of defeat.

"I... I lost again!"

"Impossible!"

"Hahaha! I won! This time, your eyes, heart, and thighs are all mine!"

"Don't be too happy yet, I'll win sooner or later! I will win, I will win everything back."

"So what, you poor penniless wretch, you've run out of chips!"

"No, no, no, I have one last bargaining chip, I still have—my soul! I'm going to bet it!"

"Great! That's more like it!"

"Hahahaha! Going bankrupt, that's the real fun!"

The gamblers' laughter, curses, cheers, and wails mingled together, creating a heart-wrenching symphony of Hell.

Deep within the casino, in a secluded room, a richly dressed devil reclines languidly on a human skin chair, meticulously toying with a vase in his hand that imprisons the souls of mortals.

"Heh, Dick, how are you going to pay off your debts?"

The devil put down the vase in his hand, turned around, and stared greedily at the little devil kneeling before him. "Or are you prepared to offer up your soul?"

Dick looked up, a fawning smile spreading across his wrinkled face, "You'll see for yourself when you go. What I'm about to offer you will be absolutely unexpected."