The Demon Race was cruel, cunning, evil, and bloodthirsty.
Chaos was the race's defining trait. Humans, elves, dwarves, orcs, and the like all shared more or less common racial features, such as pointed ears or short stature.
The Demon Race, however, was different. Every one of them looked bizarre in their own way, and what they looked like depended entirely on what monsters their parents had eaten. The more of a particular monster they ate, the more their offspring resembled it.
The truth of this theory remained to be verified. Someone had tried feeding a demon only vegetables, but it still hadn't produced a Vegetable Person.
In short, if something had horns on its head, a tail behind it, dark skin, and all sorts of mutations, it was a demon.
They were no less intelligent than humans, but their desire to kill far exceeded that of humans, making them notorious across the continent.
Every one or two centuries, or perhaps every two or three, a super-strong individual would be born among the Demon Race. They were called the "Demon King." When that happened, the Demon Race would follow the Demon King's orders and unleash a disaster that swept across the continent.
Whenever a Demon King set out to destroy the world, Brave Heroes would rise up to face him. History recorded that no Demon King had ever defeated a Brave Hero.
The Demon Race now huddled in the Western Continent, lying low as they awaited the Demon King's revival.
So how had these things ended up in Sain Underground City?
The Arnor Kingdom bordered the sea to the east. Its northern side was shrouded in dense fog year-round, while a vast desert separated its southern side from the other human nations. To the west lay the Western Continent, where the Demon Race had made its home.
Fortunately, an unbroken range of mountains between the two regions blocked the miasma, but few people lived near the Arnor Kingdom's border.
Bed City lay in the southwest. It wasn't quite on the border, but it wasn't exactly inland, either. It was stuck somewhere in between.
For demons to reach Bed City, they would have to pass through dozens of major cities. The border also had strict magic for detecting demons. How had they made it here alive?
Was there anything in Bed City worth risking their lives to reach?
"I'd like to catch a few and ask them some questions."
Gong Qiying grew interested.
Although he was now an undead, and his daily work involved preying on adventurers—who were mostly human for now—he had always considered himself a good person.
When it came to the Demon Race, those universally despised things, he held a simple sentiment: he wanted to kill them.
Whether for the greater good or his own sake, he couldn't pretend not to notice. Demons killed people, after all, and every person they killed meant one fewer potential customer for his dungeon.
Why not use demons instead of humans? They both gave him Mental Power, didn't they?
The answer was that Gong Qiying simply preferred humans to demons. It was that simple.
He would capture and interrogate two of them, then break the limbs of the rest and toss them out of the dungeon for the people outside to deal with.
He quickly came up with a plan and kept watching the demons, looking for an opportunity along their route.
"They're headed that way. I remember adding a new trap there. It should come in handy."
Five demons trudged through the swamp.
Their eyes were dull, as if shadow had settled over them, making their already fearsome appearance even more terrifying.
They didn't speak to one another, seeming to regard their companions as if they weren't there. Yet when monsters rushed in to attack, they fought with remarkable coordination.
"Gada Gada—"
At Gong Qiying's command, several Skeleton Monsters charged a demon whose entire body was covered in blades, even his arms shaped like long swords. Normally, Skeleton Monsters were resistant to slashing attacks.
That demon knew it, too. He turned slightly aside. A whoosh rang out, and an Iron Ball the size of a human head suddenly appeared, smashing the Skeleton Monsters to pieces.
They were so thoroughly shattered that even if they weren't dead, they wouldn't be getting back up anytime soon.
One of the demons silently pulled back the Iron Ball. On closer inspection, it was attached to his body: his left arm was a tentacle, with the Iron Ball firmly connected to its tip.
The demons attacked using their physical features. Those with long blades for arms slashed, while those with wings on their backs took to the air and rammed into their enemies.
"Not bad reflexes."
Gong Qiying continued to direct monsters in attacks against the demons. But whether he used Sneak Attacks or confronted them head-on, they always found a way to defend themselves, suffering only a few injuries at most.
He controlled five waves of attacks in all, seriously wounding two demons and lightly injuring three.
But after their flesh writhed for a while, the demons healed all the injuries he'd worked so hard to inflict. Clearly, they had a powerful ability to recover.
Still, even though their bodies had healed on the outside, the two demons who had been badly wounded began to stagger as they walked. They couldn't recover their lost stamina in an instant.
"They look intimidating, but their actual combat strength might even be a little below Sithran's." Without realizing it, Gong Qiying had started using the people around him as benchmarks for combat strength.
The good news was that these demons weren't particularly strong. He could take them down.
The bad news was that even demons this weak had managed to slip into the city. What were Bed City's guards doing?
Were the people near the Teleportation Gate blind?
With monsters chasing and hemming them in, the demons hurried along, darting through the swamp like headless flies. Before long, they had lost their way.
As they fled, any monster that got in their way was mercilessly killed. They were already being pursued by countless monsters, and if they slowed down, they could be surrounded and trapped. Yet the demons were still willing to waste time killing the monsters closest to them.
Was the rumor true, then? Were demons truly so bloodthirsty that they couldn't control themselves?
Just then, a treasure chest appeared in front of them. Many dead trees surrounded it, making it look as though they had encircled the chest, with an opening facing the demons.
The demons glanced at one another. They still said nothing, but they had already made their decision. Together, they walked over to open the chest.
Were they careless or simply ignorant? Either way, they all walked into the circle of dead trees.
One demon tapped the chest, confirmed there was something inside, and lifted the lid with a little force.
The demons nearby gathered around curiously.
There was indeed something inside—but it was strange: a slick, slimy tongue, and a row of sharp teeth along the edge of the chest.
What the hell? It was a Mimic!
Before the demons could react, two thin, pale arms shot out of the chest and grabbed the nearest demon. Its huge mouth opened, and with one bite, it tore away half his body!
The other demons came to their senses and unleashed a storm of attacks on the Mimic, ripping it to pieces in the blink of an eye!
But it was too late!
When they tried to turn back, their escape route had vanished! Dense dead trees had surrounded them, even blocking out the sky.
Just then, waves of danger-laden energy appeared. Light shone across the ground: magic arrays, dozens of them, so densely packed they were dizzying to look at!
Inside each magic array, the shape of a monster slowly began to form!
"Finally took the bait."
Gong Qiying's undead face split into a grin, revealing a horrifying smile.
He'd come up with this trap while reminiscing about Sword Art Online.
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