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The battle raged on day and night for three whole days.

The clash of the two Ascendants completely overturned the surrounding area. The majestic Demon King’s Castle was also caught up in the destruction, barely maintaining its shape. However, about 90% of the destruction was the Demon King’s doing.

The Demon King is a wizard specialized in large-scale destruction. His physical body is strong as well, but most of his techniques are area-of-effect exterminations. If he unleashes his full power carelessly, everything around him is a great disaster.

In fact, the Demon King never intended to go this far. It was his painstakingly crafted Demon King’s Castle, so it would be a shame to destroy it. He only meant to break a room in the throne chamber or so. Yet, every time he unleashed a technique and saw his opponent enduring without a care, he found himself caught up in the excitement, thinking, “He can take this too? Then how about this one?”

Just like that, he unleashed a hellfire that surpassed the Dragon Legion Commander’s breath, yet that mere human stood firm. The spear had the ability to sever magic, and the man’s skill in dispersing the blazing fire pouring from it without a single flame touching him was purely his own.

Demons mainly use magic powered by their formidable physical abilities or the vast magical power accumulated through their long lifespans.

So, the Demon King couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration, realizing that humans could move their bodies so impressively.

Of course, without that bright red spear, he would have died long ago.

“That’s quite an extraordinary weapon you have! Where did you get such a thing?”

Again, there was no response from the man. He just continued to swing the spear, aiming for the Demon King’s life.

In the face of that indifferent attitude, the Demon King felt a mix of anger and an odd stubbornness of wondering how long the man would keep silent. However, even contemplating this made the Demon King feel strange.

It was as if he had become a woman clinging to an indifferent man.

“Ha!”

The Demon King let out a light snort at his own ridiculous thoughts and began to prepare a large-scale earthquake magic.

“Can you really tear apart my magic? If so, what could you possibly do if I just bury you deep underground?”

At that moment, the already barely standing Demon King’s Castle was destined to completely collapse, but to the Demon King, that was of no consequence.

The ground suddenly cracked with a rumbling sound, as if a massive monster were yawning. From between the split earth, the ground surged violently to form a giant cliff, beneath which lay only an abyss. The man fell into that deep chasm.

As the Demon King clenched his fist, the ground snapped shut, as if alive. It was a situation where he would soon be crushed. The tremendous physical pressure from the tectonic shift, reaching tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of tons, was a significant threat to the man’s life as well.

“—!!”

However, even in the face of such a natural disaster, he leaped forward without a hint of hesitation. He climbed up the cliff, stepping on the falling rubble, moving swiftly and leaving afterimages behind, and then he bent backward in midair like sliding before soaring into the sky like an arrow.

The man soared through the air, escaping the cliff. Finally, just as the ground began to close, a loud thud echoed, and leaving behind a cloud of dust, he landed cleanly on the ground.

“What in the…?”

The Demon King then realized he was gaping in disbelief. How on earth could a human’s body move like that? He had no idea that this was a technique known as “Eastbound Transformation.”

But now the Demon King was convinced. Even after flying and leaping around for three days and nights without rest, the man still hadn’t tired out. At first, he’d thought it was just his imagination, but now he understood.

A pure human couldn’t fight like that. This wasn’t underestimating the man’s martial arts, but no matter how good one’s stamina or skills, a human has inherent limits. If one wielded a spear without eating or sleeping, one’s body would reach its limits before the mental fortitude. This was the fundamental difference between humans and demons. It’s why long battles were disadvantageous for humans against demons.

Moreover, just as humans draw strength from lands rich in magic, demons gain their power from the dark magic that flows from magic stones. The difference is that the absorption capacity of demons is incomparable. While a human might only feel the air being clearer in the lands filled with magic, demons have their bodies activated simply by being on the magical continent, constantly recovering stamina and magical power.

“…You, your body is already closer to that of a demon than a human.”

At that moment, a sound burst forth from the man’s armor, splitting it apart around the chest piece. It wasn’t that he had done anything extraordinary; even if the quality was good, it was just ordinary armor. There was no way it could withstand such fierce combat. The exposed man’s body was stained black, clearly the result of being eroded by dark magic.

“The armor was to hide your mutated body. Were you so hungry that you felt compelled to munch on any magic stones nearby? You really managed to stay alive.”

“…Not exactly; it’s not like I ate out of hunger.”

The tone implied that he admitted to eating something. For the Demon King, hearing his voice after three days came with a hint of self-mockery.

Demons do not consume magic stones. Those who are suffused with dark magic like him gain no benefit from consuming them. The awakening effects of magic stones only applied to younger demons who were not fully transformed yet – or to humans.

The Demon King wasn’t aware and didn’t wish to know the fact that magic stones were presently being highly valued among the Human Alliance as awakening agents. While only the excellent awakening effects on the human body were known, long-term side effects had neither been revealed nor considered, as humanity had a lot at stake in the war.

However, it all depended on the dosage. Even the demon shards made from pulverizing low-grade bloodstones found on the outskirts of the demon realm, diluted to a hundredth of its strength, could make a single soldier fly all day. So what would happen if one ingested a high concentration magic stone found at the heart of the demon realm all at once?

It goes without saying; they’d die instantly. The human body cannot withstand that level of dark magic. There are even unverified reports of those who consumed magic stones during unregulated periods, turning into heaps of blooddrenched remains.

So then, what was the man standing before the Demon King?

His appearance could no longer be called human, yet he had all the characteristics of a demon drawing power from dark magic. Despite that, the spear he wielded still resonated with green magical power.

He was neither fully human nor a complete demon, one might say he was a half-demon. It seemed only a matter of time before he fully transformed into a complete demon.

“What a curious human. Was there really a reason to go that far?”

Half in admiration, half with a look of disbelief, the Demon King gazed at the man.

“You already know, don’t you? Even if you were to kill me here, you couldn’t go back to your former self. In that imperfect state, you’d not last long.”

“Even if you miraculously return to life, ultimately, you have only two choices. You could go back to the human realm in this hideous form and live a short life, or become a complete demon and spend your life in the demon realm.”

“Therefore, your efforts will never be rewarded. Why then do you fight alone?”

The man fell silent for a long moment.

He had never doubted it, so it was something so obvious that he hadn’t thought to articulate it, as if he hadn’t deeply considered such things.

Struggling to express his emotions concretely, the man raised his spear instead. As if that would serve as his answer.

“Mu-kyung—”

As the swirling magical energy concentrated into the spear, a singular mental image appeared before the Demon King’s eyes.

Flames ignited.

With intense heat, the fire consumed everything. All that he loved and cherished turned to ashes, leaving behind only the trace that they once existed.

What is precious always breaks easily. Those things he desperately wished to hold onto slipped through his fingers like sand.

Only rage remained.

Overcome by emotions he could not control, he vented his frustrations, not knowing who or what he should be angry at. The only thing he knew was to entrust everything to the fire that burned within him.

He walked forward, eyes fixed ahead, not once looking back. Behind his steps, bodies piled like mountains.

So strong, yet he hadn’t been able to grasp a single thing he truly desired.

Had he stopped there, even the Demon King might have clicked his tongue, thinking, “What a foolish and pitiful life he leads.”

But once again, the man’s mental image began to change.

Suddenly, the flames flickered out.

There is no eternal flame. Likewise, there are no unchanging emotions.

The burning logs quickly turned to char, leaving only embers. Although the previously raging flames were now just embers, the man did not stop. Now that the fire had extinguished, he could see the surroundings he had missed before. It was the things he had overlooked and passed by until now. Still, he did not look back, but he certainly recognized and moved forward.

Why? For what reason is he undertaking this arduous path? The Demon King asked, and the man answered.

Because it is the only righteous thing left for me.

“—Ultimate Nirvana.”

Having been heated to a fervor and then cooled, it was akin to tempering.

Similarly, the image of steel, forged hard, struck straight toward the Demon King.

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