Chapter 153: The Great One's Trial
--- Chapter 153 ---
"I felt dizzy." Huo Yuhao breathed in, using his mental energy to clear everything clouding his mind.
After talking to Titania for three hours in her realm, Huo Yuhao gained enough information about the altar in the Hormes' Mountain. And that place is more a graveyard than a hunting ground, according to her.
It was "actually." created to store one of the worldly artifacts, Fairy King's Canvas. A scroll with a clean golden beast's skin cover tied with silver silk rope.
Titania refuses to tell him about the Artifact's power, which is somewhat troublesome. She hid something, but he couldn't do anything about it.
"What's she planning?"
"Titania... Ancient Ink Devil."
Huo Yuhao sighed and jumped from his bed, grabbing a coat because the weather began to get colder these days. He used Universal Breathing Technique to keep his body warm and sensed a powerful presence approaching the Black Pearl Castle.
'Oh, another bitch is coming to the trap.' Huo Yuhao couldn't help but smile sinisterly. He could get a chance to communicate with the homeworld after enslaving five of them.
He literally killed two birds with one stone, avenging Theomars and fulfilling his desire.
...
...
Mercy hummed in her room and stared at the night sky with a dull gaze, yawning out of boredom. Feeling the heat on her cheeks, She wanted to get punished for some reason.
Huo Yuhao prohibited Mercy from pleasuring herself, so she could only imagine wild things in her mind. It could only push her to the edge, but never enough for her to be satisfied.
Still, Mercy followed his order happily.
"Ahn... So wet." She mumbled while feeling a familiar presence in the atmosphere. This gale of winds, it must be Clara.
Peeking through the window, Mercy sees a beautiful young woman with long pink hair and ruby-like eyes. She wore a black battledress and slick white pants wrapped around her thighs perfectly. Black robe draped on her shoulder, flowing gently because of the breeze.
'You will be a fine slave like me, Clara.' Mercy hungrily thought.
She walked to the veranda and welcomed Clara von Admante with her "Mercedes." persona. "Evening, sister. You must have been tired after the long journey. Why don't we have tea time first." She said calmly.
Clara smiled and replied, "Sure. This place is further than I expected."
As Clara entered Mercy's room, she looked around for a person and frowned because he wasn't there. She wanted to ask her sister about this, but the monster nest's matter was more important.
She could have fun later.
It's been one year, so waiting for a day to meet her little brother isn't that much of a difference. Clara couldn't help but lick her lips in excitement.
Sitting on the chair, Clara watched her older sister Mercedes von Admante pouring tea into a cup. The warm yet relaxing aroma tickled her nose.
"Here..." Mercy handed her the cup.
"It's one of my newest brews. I named it spring's dream."
"What a name," Clara commented while sipping the tea, feeling her mouth overwhelmed with a pleasant aroma. She finished the cup in 3 seconds and asked her sister for more.
Mercy poured the tea again and sat opposite Clara, smiling in expectation because this foolish woman had drunk drugged tea. It was a colorless, tasteless, scentless drug Huo Yuhao created and used on her two months ago.
"Oh yeah, about Theo-!"
Clara smashed her face on the table and was "suddenly." knocked out cold as the drug's effect was flowing so fast in her nervous system.
"Hmm..." Mercy poked Clara's face a few times. "It worked too well."
Huo Yuhao casually entered the room and looked at Clara, grinning indifferently. Theomars' sisters fell into his trap, one after another. He couldn't wait to break all of them and get the Quest's reward.
[Name: Clara von Admante]
[Age: 22]
[Race: Impure Ink Devil(High)]
[Cultivation: 9th Class Devil Warrior(Mid)]
[Description: 3rd Young Lady of Admante Family. Likes "Pegging her brother." and "Humiliating other people."]
"Bring Clara to the basement and lock her with Energy-Dampening Chains." Huo Yuhao ordered Mercy.
"Fed her with the more sensitivity-enhancing drug. I'll be back after checking the Hormes's Mountain."
"Yes, Master~!" Mercy saluted, dragging Clara from her legs.
Huo Yuhao covered himself in the Eternal Shadow and used "Shadow Exchange." to reach the Hormes Family. He arrived at the highest point of the mountain range and checked the area with his Observation Haki.
"Arise." He called his shadow army.
"You guys will go to the monster nest and close every entrance with sturdy rocks."
"Your wish is our command, my liege." The army responded while moving through the darkness. Once the caves were closed, Huo Yuhao would flood the cave with Death Energy and kill every monster quickly.
Since they couldn't escape, none of them could survive this ambush.
Huo Yuhao proceeded to the altar on the hunting ground and used All-Transforming Ink into a longbow. He didn't want to attract attention, so he covered the arrows with advanced armament haki.
SWOOSH!
Several arrows flew past the darkness and reached the altar at an alarming pace, piercing through the 8th Class Monster. Huo Yuhao teleported there and watched the corpse getting drowned in the eternal shadow realm.
"Not bad." Huo Yuhao commented on his archery ability. He could improve it more with "ripple enforcement." from the Gathering of Ten Thousand Waves Technique, piercing the enemy effortlessly.
However, this was a sufficient stage for now.
Walking to the altar, Huo Yuhao pricked his finger and dropped his black blood on the unique-shaped contraption. He sensed a movement and felt the altar shaking violently.
Titania's cheeky smile flashed in his mind.
"Fuck, Titania, you devil-!" Huo Yuhao cursed and disappeared with a blinking blue light.
Opening his eyes slowly, Huo Yuhao saw a white path with two flowing ink-like water on each side. The water comes from the white quartz walls, giving him an eerie feeling.
Far from Huo Yuhao's position, a pagoda made of pure gold stood brilliantly.
"The Great One's Trial. Walk past the path of agony without using inner energy." An ancient voice echoed in this place.
Huo Yuhao's mouth twitched in annoyance as Titania tricked him into taking this trial. He sighed in defeat, walking forward without using inner energy.
A bubble appeared on the ink-like water, making Huo Yuhao frown slightly.
SPLASH!
It was a small creature with a goblin-like appearance. No, it's a group of goblins, but their skin is bronze instead of the usual green.
Huo Yuhao used the All-Transforming Ink because it didn't consume inner energy and began to kill the bronze goblin, finding them quite agile and skillful in team coordination.
Yet, they are weak.
After killing the goblin, Huo Yuhao discovered they were "literally." created from ink. No, this isn't like Sai's drawing in Naruto World, but something more realistic, like a living creature.
Birthing lives from ink.
Ancient Ink Devil is indeed more outrageous in potential than Nox Emperor.
Huo Yuhao kept walking and faced a different enemy with increasing difficulty. At first, it was just a group of bronze goblins.
Then, Hobgoblin.
And currently, a Goblin King.
Huo Yuhao dodged a massive club and swung his ink-transformed halberd at the Goblin King. He frowned because this guy has 8th Class Monster's strength and defense.
ROAR!
The Goblin King roared and lunged forward, launching a flurry of punches at Huo Yuhao. These punches were enough to flatten a small mountain, but Huo Yuhao evaded them at a hair-thin distance.
He observed the bronze-skinned creature with his red eyes and was fascinated by-laws applied to such a thing. This thing isn't just alive but able to make its own decision. A conscious being Huo Yuhao failed to create when making Artificial Intelligent: Giana.
He had to copy his consciousness when creating that adorable bratty AI, but Goblin King is different.
BOOM!
The club smashed the white concrete floor and created a crack, causing debris to fly everywhere. Huo Yuhao changed his weapon into a dagger and disappeared from Goblin King's vision.
Goblin King turned around and felt someone grabbing his neck.
ROAR!
"Die." Huo Yuhao coated the dagger with advanced armament haki, stabbing the Goblin King's neck. The inner destruction pulverized Goblin King from the inside.
BOOM! SPLAT!
The Goblin King exploded into black ink, splashing everywhere.
Huo Yuhao wiped his face and commented, "Well, Giana is better, I assume. She's more intelligent than this guy."
He stretched his body a little because that was a good warm-up. He walked forward and noticed there was a 10 meters distance between him and the pagoda.
Huo Yuhao's Observation Haki was alerted because a black flash suddenly split his body into two. He couldn't do anything and watched his leg still standing on the ground.
That's 3 seconds in the future.
BOOM!
Huo Yuhao stepped back instinctively and watched a towering giant before him. "Holy shit..." He mumbled in disbelief.
An Ogre has appeared.
If Goblin King is considered enormous, this Ogre is a literal giant.
However, this is not just any Ogre. But Ogre King himself.
Huo Yuhao has received compiled information about the Devil and Monster of this world from Mercy. A powerful devil given the title of the Great Ogre King founded the Karuta Empire's Neighbour, Kamine Empire.
The record rumored that Ogre King was a giant-like being with red copper skin, bulging yet lean muscle, and terrifying pupil-less black eyes. He possessed insane power and dominion over steel and fire.
A mountain around the size of Hormes's mountain vanished when the Ogre King swung his fist once. Just Once!
He's a transcendent devil who reached the rumored 10th Class Devil Warrior Realm.
Mercy's former Devil Force is only half of Ogre King's Devil Force. And it is still powerful enough to put her among 9th Class Devil Warriors.
"Can we talk?" Huo Yuhao put on a weak smile.
SWOOSH!
A massive steel greatsword flew at him.
"Yeah, I think so too." Huo Yuhao stepped aside and dodged the greatsword, turning his ink dagger into a halberd.
Ogre King released a battle cry and shook the whole place, making dust drop from the ceiling. Huo Yuhao was unfazed because his will was not weak enough to be pressured by such intimidation.
After all, He has fought Gods and Devils in the past.
"Come here, boy." Huo Yuhao released his Conqueror's Haki. "Let's see who is stronger here."
BAM!
BOOM!
The whole realm is shaking because of the clash between Huo Yuhao and the Ogre King. They exchanged blows and injured each other gravely with their weapons.
Huo Yuhao grinned and felt his whole body cracking under Ogre King's attacks. He waved his halberd wildly and slashed through the red copper-skinned being's Achilles tendon, severing the movement speed.
He grabbed the flying greatsword and threw it back at the Ogre King's head.
CLANK!
The Ogre King scowled as the greatsword created a spark when touching his skin. He tried to move but hadn't fully recovered his Achilles tendon yet.
Huo Yuhao took this chance and blew Ogre King's legs.
GRAAA!
Several steel weapons appeared out of thin air and burned with fiery yellow flames.
Huo Yuhao breathed in, focusing all his energy on one point. He coated his leg with armament haki and stomped the quartz floor, breaking them into pieces.
He kicked the debris to the Ogre King's steel weapons and made them fly everywhere. His red eyes shone in the cloud of dust, eyeing the giant prey.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The steel weapon struck the walls, ceiling, and ground.
Huo Yuhao appeared below Ogre King's abdomen and struck the giant's pressure points with his fist. Usually, it would be hard because pressure points need precision to be applied.
And when your enemy is 100 times the size of a human, applying force to pressure points is effortless.
'This guy...' Huo Yuhao frowned because a heat suddenly came from Ogre King's body. His fist is slightly charred because of it.
"Do you think a little burn will stop me?"
"Don't make me laugh..." He dug his feet into the floor and landed a decisive blow on Ogre King's stomach, leaving a dent.
BOOM!
The Ogre King's body lifted from the ground for a moment.
And a shockwave washed the whole realm.
Huo Yuhao slammed his hand into Ogre King's stomach and pierced it with All-Transforming Ink. He flowed it through, clenching his hand to create countless spikes coated with advanced armament haki.
CRACK!
Breaking sounds echoed in the room.
The Ogre King's body is pierced by thousand black spikes from inside, having several pokes through his skin.
"Inner Destruction..." Huo Yuhao pulled the All-Transforming Ink.
BOOM!!
A large portion of Ogre King's body evaporated, causing dripping ink to land on the white floor.
The Ogre King spewed out a mouthful of ink and kneeled on the ground with a small smile. "W-Well done... Devil..."
"Warrior."
Huo Yuhao wanted to extract Ogre King's Shadow, but the trial would be over when he used Inner Energy. And sadly, he wouldn't be able to because this guy doesn't have a soul.
"Canva..." The Ogre King raised his finger and pointed at the pagoda before melting into ink.
Huo Yuhao looked down at the ink and mumbled, "What a waste."
"Still, good fight." He gave the Ogre King an honorable salute, walking to the pagoda with a relaxed expression.
Huo Yuhao wiped the blood from his lips and smirked because he had learned many things from this fight. He could apply them to Eternal Shadow later.
And the All-Transforming Ink might be able to mimic these beings.
He stepped on the stairs and looked at the pagoda, which was much taller from close. He shook his head and touched the pagoda, hearing a glass-breaking noise from inside it.
The pagoda crumbled and revealed a treasure box made of an unknown metal. It opened itself and showed Huo Yuhao several items.
A scroll.
A copper-colored gem.
And a hammer. Blacksmith Hammer.
[Fairy King's Canvas]
[Ogre King's Heart]
[Ogre King's Hammer]
"..." Huo Yuhao.
"Okay..."
"I'll take them." Huo Yuhao threw Ogre King's items into the inventory.
Upon touching the Fairy King's Canvas, Huo Yuhao arrived at a new place and saw a familiar-looking young woman.
"Crown Princess?"
Huo Yuhao approached her but didn't sense any sign of life. There are also several injuries across her body.
"She failed the trial and died." Titania suddenly appeared.
"Teresa and her followers got ambushed by the monster race 14 months ago, falling to the Hormes Mountain. Since their enemies are 8th Class Monsters, they couldn't fight back."
"She entered the Great One's Trial. Unfortunately, she was barely a 7th Class Devil Warrior and perished when facing the Goblin King."
"This place is called Inkless Land... It preserves her corpse and soul."
Huo Yuhao stared at Teressa and commented, "Too bad. You told me to survive but die sooner instead."
"You can revive Teressa when reaching 10th Class, you know." Titania hummed playfully. "It's such a waste to leave a beautiful fiancee of yours to die, no?"
Huo Yuhao flicked Titania's forehead and said, "I don't even care about her. And I'm still mad at your trick, Titania."
"Hmph, then what do you want to do with her?" Titania crossed her slender arms.
"About that..." Huo Yuhao closed his eyes.
"Arise..."
...
...
Huo Yuhao returned to the outside world and was "immediately." greeted by an altar's sight. He called for his elite shadows and learned they had executed his order perfectly.
In a great mood, Huo Yuhao followed Iris to the nearest cave entrance and saw a massive yet sturdy rock. He grabbed the rock and tried to sense every monster inside this place, finding Crown Princess's followers in the deepest part.
They aren't in the state of living anymore, becoming a glob of meat to produce a monster.
"Kill me..."
"Kill Us!" Huo Yuhao's Voice of all Things heard some words.
He shook his head wryly and said, "Rest in peace."
Death Energy escaped Huo Yuhao's palm and flooded the cave with dread, killing every monster inside quickly. Millions of them dropped on the ground cold.
[You have killed 36.990.234 Monster Race] Evo was notified shortly after.
"Shadow Army... Start moving those corpses to the Jungle Dungeon. I'll do intense refining with Nightmare Demon Pot after this." Huo Yuhao used Shadow Exchange, returning to the Black Pearl Castle instantly.
He stretched his body and continued, "Just one last thing before I finish this day."
"Let's break Clara into submission."
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