Er Dongsheng stopped at a small stall. Its owner was a Winged Demon, a kind of Demon born with great wings on its back—well suited to scouting and fleeing!
"My lord, take a look. These are all fine goods!" The Winged Demon hurriedly put away several items in front of him that looked fake. You had to know whom you could cheat. Someone as formidable-looking as Er Dongsheng was best left alone!
A few Elemental Gems and Rune Stones remained on the stall, along with a palm-sized object shaped like a mirror. It even appeared to be made of metal!
He picked up a fiery-red gem. A faint warmth spread through his hand, and he could clearly sense the extraordinarily pure fire Elemental Energy within it. It was a Fire Elemental Gem. From what he remembered, these were food for certain Elemental Demons, or perhaps cultivation resources—much like the spirit stones of legend in his previous life!
He had only heard of them before, never seen a real one. He hadn't expected to find one here!
He quietly felt the desire boiling within him. The Ink Spirit Flame lurking in his heart was leaping especially fiercely, wave after wave of longing assailing him!
So did that mean I was undergoing Elemental Evolution too? The Ink Spirit Flame transcended this world, but it was still a kind of fire element after all!
He had long suspected that he was undergoing Elemental Evolution, but he had never encountered a matching Elemental Gem. Now he had found one, and a Fire Elemental Gem at that! What luck!
A Demon's evolution could broadly be divided into Physical Evolution, Elemental Evolution, and Spiritual Evolution. So far, Er Dongsheng seemed to be evolving along both the physical and elemental paths! Whether that was good or bad, he couldn't say.
"I'll take this gem. Set it aside while I look at the rest." Er Dongsheng handed the gem back to the stall owner and examined the other goods, only to be disappointed. Most of the remaining gems were Dark Gems, Death Gems, or other dark-aligned gems. But it made sense: in the dark Abyss, other elements were scarce compared with darkness, so gems formed from them were scarcer still!
He looked over several Rune Stones. They were all handmade by ordinary Demons, not Natural Rune Stones. They were useless, their power pitifully weak!
Rune Stones were generally made by Demons capable of crafting them, who carved patterns based on natural markings, their own insights, and certain secret arts! Their abilities varied wildly, as did their power! The ones before Er Dongsheng bore only ordinary Runes, capable of things like launching a small fireball. Not only were they pitifully weak, they also consumed a great deal of the user's own energy! Compared with the Mutated Small Fireball he controlled, they were next to useless!
He had heard, though, that some Natural Rune Stones were terrifyingly powerful, capable of destroying heaven and earth! Every Ancient Demon Lord possessed at least one mysterious Natural Rune Stone! Some even claimed that possessing one was the key to becoming a Demon Lord. Er Dongsheng scoffed at that notion. He didn't believe such nonsense!
Still, the power of Rune Stones was undeniable. For now, though, he could only covet them from afar!
"What's this?" Er Dongsheng picked up the copper disc beside him, which had struck him as odd.
A mirror? Surely not! It seemed strange. Who in the Abyss had so much time on their hands that they would make a mirror out of metal? Metal was precious. Such extravagance was asking for a beating!
"My lord, it's just a piece of metal. I happened to pick it up in a mountain range. At the time..."
The stall owner opened his mouth to explain where the mirror-like object had come from, when suddenly...
"It's you! Damn it, you still dare show your face here!" A voice seething with hatred came from behind Er Dongsheng!
Er Dongsheng turned around in surprise. Was there a Demon here who knew him?
"Well, well, it's you, beautiful. I didn't expect to see you here! What a coincidence!" Er Dongsheng smiled faintly. An old acquaintance indeed!
Who was it?
Xierjie, the Abyssal Fairy who had fled after fighting Er Dongsheng last time!
Er Dongsheng gave the beauty a casual glance. Her presence had grown considerably stronger since their last encounter. It seemed she had trained hard after escaping!
But he couldn't be bothered with her! Fighting wasn't allowed here, and he had only just arrived. In unfamiliar territory, it was better not to stir up trouble!
Though he honestly loved a good fight!
Er Dongsheng lowered his head again and studied the strange mirror in his hand. He had a feeling it concealed a great secret! Don't ask him how he knew. It was a martial artist's intuition!
Really, anyone who suddenly came across a mirror in the Abyss would find it strange!
"You!"
Xierjie stared at Er Dongsheng's indifferent face. He didn't seem to take her seriously at all! Her spirits sank. She hated him so much that she had sworn never to rest until she had her revenge, but now that they had met again, she discovered that this loathsome man didn't even consider her worth his attention!
Just like before! An ant, an ant! In his eyes, I'd been nothing but an ant from beginning to end! Even now! A cold gleam flashed in Xierjie's eyes. Her thoughts twisted and churned as she seemed to devise some vicious scheme!
She turned and left!
The Demons and Abyssal Species who had gathered to watch looked disappointed! Duels between Demons were rare, especially when one of them was Xierjie, an Abyssal Fairy well known in this region.
This female Demon was both powerful and beautiful, with no shortage of Demons pursuing her! Few dared provoke her. They had expected Xierjie to fight this unfamiliar Demon, but instead, nothing came of it!
In the Abyss, female Demons like Xierjie—powerful and beautiful—were sought after by many formidable Demons! To Abyssal Creatures, whether male or female, only the strongest were worthy of them. That was especially true of Demons who had successfully advanced!
Conquering a female Demon interested many Demons more than destroying an entire region! And when that Demon belonged to the Abyss's famously elusive Fairy race, the prospect of conquest drove the bored Demons wild!
After all, Abyssal Fairies were nothing like Succubi. Their race was fiercely reserved! They could be called the most faithful Demons in the Abyss, much like the Elves of the Sunlight Plane!
So how did that saying go?
Er Dongsheng was in trouble. Big trouble!
But did he care?
Fighting is my favorite thing!
Before you continue