A few minutes before the events unfolded, Alm and Bruno were going over their plans one last time.
Everything seemed meticulously thought out, with a high likelihood of success. Their goal was to draw the heroes’ attention by creating three flashy distractions at once.
Ruri would take control of the formation of the sealed world, while Almin would seize the central infernal rune. At the same time, Rivine would make a bold move, acting as if she were fleeing under pressure.
To ensure this happened without leaving any trace, Maelik, Runula, and Calirer worked in perfect sync, subtly manipulating the demons. Maelik used his skill as a Mara to weaken the demons’ defenses, while Runula, with her power inherited from an ancient dragon, affected their souls and minds. Calirer provided direct support to Runula.
This combination of abilities caused the demons to see a distorted reality, their perceptions manipulated to show them random illusions born from their own minds.
This strategy was only possible due to the uniqueness of a Mara’s power, which worked exclusively on demons. When paired with Runula’s ancestral heritage, it became a terrifyingly effective weapon.
As for those from other sects in this sealed world, they were far from the core of the infernal laws. Rivine struck precisely in that area, using all her wind laws to obscure their vision—only those from the Shadow God Sect could recognize her identity. After these initial actions, the heroes would have limited options, and Alm and Bruno were confident in this maneuver.
Their objective was to draw attention, then deploy the poison—or their other secret weapon. They planned to catch the heroes off guard, eliminate some of them, scare the rest, and sow chaos.
Meanwhile, Almin and Lyra, with Ruri manipulating the formation to hide their movements, would secure full control of the cauldron. Lyra, who possessed the other half of the cauldron, would assist and accelerate the process.
The instigator of all this would ultimately be a young figure born from the laws of the earth, who Alm and Bruno would discard once his purpose was fulfilled.
Of course, the two didn’t believe they could eliminate all the heroes. But after creating chaos and with Almin securing the cauldron, he and Lyra could easily blend into the crowd, avoiding solid suspicion.
This chapt𝒆r is updated by frёewebηovel.cѳm.
Their justification for being there was solid: Almin could demonstrate his mastery of infernal laws to explain how he infiltrated. Besides, it was a war, and infiltrating the enemy’s exclusive event was plausible.
With trillions of people present in the sealed world, investigating everyone’s memories was impractical—or at least very time-consuming. Even if the heroes or the queen attempted something, Alm and Bruno would already be gone and ready with a countermeasure if necessary.
’Doesn’t seem like there’s any major flaw…’ Bruno murmured. But both he and Alm were tense. They instinctively felt something was happening beyond their plans.
It wasn’t an immediate danger to them but seemed related to someone else. This kind of feeling was something they had only recently begun to develop, so it wasn’t clear to them yet. They had first noticed it when they returned to the planet Pristine after escaping to the underworld, sensing the danger surrounding Ruri.
’Ruri is safe. Lyra, Almin, Runula, Calirer, and Maelik will be with us. Only Rivine will be on her own. Better to be sure.’ Alm reflected coldly before turning to the young harpy, who waited patiently for the right moment.
"Take this," he said, handing her a spatial ring containing all the pills Almin had crafted using the Basilisk’s Celestial Poison, obtained recently.
The pills had originally been made for a plan involving Vrix, but since that had failed, they were adapted for the new scheme.
"Stay alert. If things spiral out of control, spread everything and retreat to our side immediately," Alm ordered firmly, and Rivine nodded.
With her wind laws, she could disperse the poison efficiently. The enemies, due to the high grade of the pills, would only notice the deadly poison when it was too late.
Minutes passed quickly. Everyone took their positions. Alm and Bruno drew the Eraser hammer and took deep breaths.
It was all or nothing. In a decisive move, they activated the spatial force capable of tearing reality itself, aiming at the horizon. At the same time, Rivine took flight, her wings creating a storm of wind around her.
The disturbance was immediate. Everyone in the sealed world was alarmed. Among the demons of the Shadow God sect, almost imperceptibly, Maelik—a half-Mara—and the two half-Soul Eaters used their abilities to the fullest.
The demons’ bloodlines were subtly affected. Maelik was no longer an inexperienced youth; he was like an ancient tree weathered by countless trials. He had fully mastered his abilities shortly after returning from the main mission. With precise help from Runula and Calirer, they destabilized the enemies’ souls and minds.
"What? A winged Demoness?" a demon exclaimed, pointing to the sky.
"What are you talking about? That’s a demonic beast," another retorted, confused.
"Are you all crazy? It’s an elf using wind laws!" a third said.
Every demon saw something entirely different. Even the High Elders and the sect leader were perplexed, murmuring amongst themselves. Despite this, one thing was common in all their visions: an immense, supreme aura.
"The cultivation level of that figure is minimal. This shouldn’t be possible… That’s the Heaven-Defier!" the demonic leader roared.
In mere seconds, space on the horizon cracked open, creating a void. Immediately, the "unknown figure" shot off, fleeing at full speed.
With the leader’s warning, all the High Elders surged forward, unleashing every drop of their power to stop the escape. The leader stayed behind, but the priority was clear: capture that figure at all costs.
At that moment, the sealed world trembled. Its sustaining formation was completely overtaken by an external force, and almost simultaneously, the core of the infernal laws gained a new master.
Meanwhile, Rivine crossed through the exit, escaping the sealed world. But as she emerged, her eyes widened in shock.
The universe wasn’t enveloped in darkness or the void of space. Instead, everything was bathed in an intense golden light. Every inch was woven into a golden web, creating an absolute confinement where not even an insect could escape.
"We’re... trapped..." Rivine murmured, pale. The plan had clearly failed. She then turned to her surroundings.
Hundreds of auras materialized around her, quickly growing to thousands. Emerging through the same path she had taken, demons at the peak of divine cultivation completed the encirclement, their eyes full of bloodlust.
"Fuck you all!"
She roared, and before they could suppress her cultivation, she launched thousands of pills in all directions.
At first, the cultivators felt nothing from the pills, but soon realized something shocking: every single one was of extremely high quality.
"Treasured pills?" one of them murmured, stunned, recognizing their value. Everyone noticed the ten seals on each pill, their eyes gleaming with greed.
Such high-grade pills were rare and incredibly valuable. For a split second, no one moved. The sight of those pills seemed both safe and irresistible.
But with a gesture, Rivine unleashed wind needles formed by her laws, causing the pills to explode and release a dense medicinal mist.
"AAAAH!" Screams of despair echoed instantly.
"Poison...!" someone managed to gasp before succumbing; it was their final breath.
This wasn’t just any poison—it was derived from an immortal Basilisk. Survival was utterly impossible.
Rivine flapped her wings, pushing her wind laws to the limit. Not to escape—such a thing was impossible within that golden cage. After creating some distance from the poisonous mist, she immediately returned to the sealed world, following her orders.
Inside the sealed world, the heroes received the leader demon’s messages with surprise.
First, the attempted escape. Then, the altered formation. Finally, the infernal laws changed masters. Three distinct events happening simultaneously. The conclusion came quickly to their minds.
"What...? Multiple Heaven-Defiers!?" exclaimed the Demoness, excitedly voicing what everyone was thinking.
The hero receiving the demon leader’s messages reported, "The fugitive killed everyone with some kind of poison and returned."
"Do they plan to hide here?" the Demoness said before bursting into laughter. "Hahaha, this sealed world isn’t even a hundredth the size of that other one! Now this is fun. Not even that abnormal power will let them escape this time."
"We need to find them quickly. Don’t underestimate the Heaven-Defiers. Split into four groups. One to the formation core, another to the infernal laws core, a third to track the fugitive, and the last to guard the cauldron. We must inform the Sacred Goddess immediately."
With the demon hero’s orders, hundreds of immortals divided in seconds. Soon, three groups departed in different directions.
Far away, Alm and Bruno moved quickly. They caught Rivine, who fell from the sky like a meteor towards them.
"Sir, everything’s sealed. We’re trapped," Rivine reported, pale, after exhausting her strength to return safely.
Alm and Bruno nodded and placed her into the inventory, hiding her presence. Then, they observed two distant points, sensing the heroes’ movements.
’Master! The heroes split into four groups. One remains at the seal,’ Ruri communicated through the soul fragment in the inventory. ’Almin is very close but hasn’t been noticed yet.’
Bruno responded quickly: ’Move Almin and Lyra away from the area and place them among the others there. They mustn’t be connected to anything. Then gather the other three and do the same. I’ll act alone.’
Alm and Bruno sighed, realizing that staying hidden would only get them discovered. The only option was to act while the heroes were still confused.
’They don’t know about our Celestial soul and believe there are other missionaries here. Their cage won’t hold us. But it’s like having only one bullet, and we have multiple targets...’ Bruno muttered.
Alm nodded in agreement. They needed to draw as much attention as possible, eliminate as many enemies as they could, and escape before other heroes or the queen arrived. Everything depended on the single celestial resurrection miracle they had. However, the feeling of mortal danger hadn’t arisen yet, indicating they still had a chance to escape.
Within two minutes, the events exploded. After Rivine’s return, they moved. At the same moment, Ruri pulled Almin and Lyra away, using the formation to obscure them.
The two found themselves in a forest near the cauldron, a densely populated area that raised no suspicion. Quickly, they pretended to be as panicked as everyone around them.
That’s when a group of heroes’ senses swept through the forest, searching for something... until... Almin froze as their gaze locked onto him.
"Well, well... An innocent child lost in the forest?"
The Demoness hero’s voice echoed as she landed before him. A dozen heroes surrounded the pair. Almin wore a tense, confused expression as he met her eyes.
She observed his expression and laughed mockingly. "What? Still pretending? Thought your genius alchemist disguise was perfect? Fool. After everything that’s happened around you, did you really think we wouldn’t notice? Hahaha."