The battle was over.
Across the battlefields, the warriors began clearing the wreckage.
Some gathered weapons, secret treasures, talismans, and Storage Rings that could still be used...
Some cleansed the devilish energy and curses left behind by the dead Devil Race.
Some sorted through the belongings of fallen soldiers.
Everyone had a task. Every face was solemn, every expression heavy with grief.
They had won, but their losses had been immense!
This was no child's game. This was war!
A war in which one side lived and the other died!
A war fought against the extinction of their people!!
For it was not only the alliance's soldiers who had died. Among the fallen could be their own friends, family, disciples, and masters!
Some, of course, could be revived.
But for others, even that hope was gone...
Su Bai and the Great Elder stood motionless, silently watching the battlefield.
Their thoughts were on the far more distant future!
"Great Elder, was that a Demon King just now?"
Su Bai asked. Even he had felt suffocated by the owner of that gaze!
It was too powerful!
The Great Elder gave a faint smile. "Merely a False King. A true Demon King has yet to make a move."
"A False King?"
Su Bai murmured, sinking into thought.
Could that have been the ultimate form of Nine-Ring Fusion?
Was Nine-Ring Fusion really so much stronger than his Four-Ring Fusion?
Then what would a true King be like?
A short while later, the battlefield had been cleared.
The Great Elder turned to Su Bai and the others. A complicated smile crossed his face, carrying relief, satisfaction, and boundless hope.
"Come, heroes."
"There is an Immortal Pool in the city for healing, and immortal wine warmed in advance."
"We... need to discuss what comes next."
Su