Clyde lunged at them first with his fists clenched, throwing his fist towards a targeted Demon.
Thanks to his speed, Clyde managed to land a punch to the Demon's chest, sending him flying into the air like a bullet just fired from a gun. Not wasting any time, Clyde immediately attacked another Demon that was next to the one he had thrown earlier.
However, because the Demon had already seen Clyde's previous movements, he managed to raise his shield just in time.
*CLANG!*
Clyde's punch struck the shield and pushed the Demon a few steps backward. The other Demons in the vicinity didn't just stand and watch; they began to attack as well. They came at Clyde from various angles with their respective weapons, not intending to give Clyde any openings to escape.
A greatsword descended on him from his left side, while a hammer came from his right side. Clyde could also see a spear heading towards his back as he glanced behind.
With a sudden exertion, Clyde sent a shockwave from his body, blasting the Demons away from him. The shockwave was so powerful that they were all thrown into the air and tumbled on the ground. But of course, it wasn't enough to stop the Demon forces.
They could stand up almost instantly, their teeth grinding, and their expressions furious. Their previously bloodshot eyes now glowed even redder, with a kind of fire gleaming in their eyes.
Clyde smirked. He knew he could take on these Demons even with his bare hands. He even felt that he didn't need to use his skills.
The five Demons charged at him again simultaneously. It seemed like they had some kind of strategy or tactic for attacking him. Clyde couldn't tell if it was because they were foolish or if they were too confident in their strength.
The Demon holding the spear hurled his weapon towards Clyde's back. The spear was suddenly enveloped in flames from his hand.
Clyde turned and swung one of his hands to slap away the spear. The flaming spear shot off in another direction and exploded as soon as it struck the ground, creating a massive explosion.
The Demon who had thrown the spear widened his eyes in surprise when he saw Clyde simply slap away his spear, which he had imbued with his mana and the power of very potent hellfire. Normally, only Demons and Celestials could handle the power of hellfire. Yet now, he witnessed Clyde, who was supposed to be an ordinary person with system-granted abilities after the Selection Stage, deflecting the spear as if hellfire was no serious matter.
The other Demons immediately reconsidered their decision. They no longer blindly attacked Clyde with their raw strength. They could see clearly that Clyde couldn't be defeated with just that.
Those who had initially intended to rush him suddenly halted, hesitating. Then, they began telepathically communicating with each other.
Clyde grinned, watching how their enemies immediately changed their minds upon witnessing his display of power. They must have been shocked when they saw him casually deflect the spear with one hand.
It didn't take long for the Demons to come to a conclusion. They charged at Clyde again without showing any change in their tactics.
This made Clyde suspicious, but he didn't worry too much about it. He accepted their attacks as before and engaged in an intense one-on-five battle. Of course, Clyde hadn't unleashed his full power yet.
When the Demons saw Clyde very focused on receiving and countering their attacks, one of the Demons signaled another.
Suddenly, above Clyde's head, a blood-red magic circle appeared. When Clyde looked up, it was already too late. Chains of blood-red color descended towards him, and the hooks at the ends of each chain immediately attached to Clyde's hands, feet, back, and chest.
"ARGHH!!!"
Clyde groaned in pain as the hooks caused considerable pain, enough to make him grimace.
The Demons sneered, thinking their plan had succeeded. Clyde also believed their plan had worked to trap him, except for the fact that he had absorbed a lot of Celestial power and could withstand their attacks better than they expected.
The pain was sharp and came suddenly, but it didn't bring Clyde to his knees.
'None of them seemed to be chanting something or preparing for these chains. That means... There's another Demon hiding as their backup,' Clyde thought.
These Demons weren't as foolish as he initially thought.
Then, the Demons began to attack Clyde brutally. They swung their weapons relentlessly at Clyde's body, accompanied by sinister laughter.
However, it didn't take them long to realize something odd. Clyde's body wasn't being destroyed even though their weapons struck him. All they saw were bruises.
Clyde laughed, raising his head, which had been bowed. "Are you done?" He said. "Then, it's my turn."
Clyde activated both his [Skill: Burning Hand] and [Skill: Pure Lightning] simultaneously. He also added the power he had absorbed from the Demon Kings.
The Demons were startled by the sudden surge of power from Clyde. Then, fire and lightning erupted from his body and mercilessly struck them, hurling them away.
The fire and lightning also immediately burned away the chains and hooks that had bound him. There was something different about Clyde's fire and lightning now. They were a reddish color, like blood.
This was the first time Clyde had used the power he gained from the Celestial Cradle, and he had to admit that it felt incredibly potent.
He lunged at one of the Demons, grabbed his neck, and slammed him to the ground. Clyde channeled both fire and lightning into the Demon, causing him to scream in pain.
Another Demon came to aid his friend. Clyde, who had noticed his approach, simply waited. As the Demon swung his hammer, Clyde raised one hand to catch it.
The Demon was shocked. Clyde then channeled both fire and lightning through the hammer and directly into the Demon. Now, his fate was no different from his friend's.
~~~
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