“I need to speed up. My leveling progress is too slow.”
Ace’s sudden declaration caught Cedric off guard. “Why are you in such a hurry to level up?”
By all accounts, Ace was on a steady path. As long as he followed the proper steps, he was destined to become an Ultimate Lord. Rushing things could lead to mistakes, and Ace knew that better than anyone.
“What are you guys planning now?” Cedric’s brow furrowed, his tone carrying a hint of disapproval.
Among their generation of powerful beings, Calderon had always been the most reckless, constantly leaving behind messes for others to clean up. Cedric had tolerated Calderon’s fake death and his plan to take down an Archdemon in a suicidal exchange, but only because Calderon’s self-imposed exile in a coffin had been beneficial for everyone.
But if Calderon had more schemes in the works, Cedric needed to know where the line was.
“Relax,” Ace said after a moment of thought, offering a firm reassurance. “Morpheus knows about this.”
“That’s for the best,” Cedric replied, leaving it at that. With a casual flick of his wrist, he tossed Ace into the Eighth Abyss.
As for Cedric, he continued walking through the void like a true god.
…
After parting ways with Cedric, Maxen quickly entered the Eighth Abyss.
Thor’s voice echoed in Maxen’s ear, filled with nostalgia. “Ah, I remember the last time I was here. The Eighth Demon God was still alive.”
Maxen: …
*You’re the one who killed him, remember?*
The entire Abyss was shrouded in a thick pink mist, so dense that you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. Compared to the chaos that had reigned before, the Eighth Abyss was now eerily quiet. There were no more deafening battle cries or sounds of slaughter.
With the death of the Eighth Demon God, the Abyss had become a land without a ruler. After the initial wave of chaos, all the powerful demon creatures had retreated to consolidate their gains, each vying for the Abyssal Source in hopes of becoming the new Eighth Demon God. As they ventured deeper into the Abyss, Maxen asked, “What’s our first move?” “Find Poseidon,” Mike replied firmly.
Since he had signed a contract with Poseidon, Mike intended to honor it. The first step was to locate Poseidon and then plan their next move.
The main goal of this trip was to help Poseidon become the new Eighth Demon God-a demon god that could be controlled by the human race.
Following the clues Poseidon had provided earlier, Maxen soon found Poseidon’s hiding place and prepared to pay him a visit.
“Hold on,” Mike said suddenly. “There’s a group of demonized ghosts nearby. I’m going to collect some ghost race soul fragments.”
“Aren’t we supposed to meet Poseidon?” Maxen asked, confused by the sudden change of plans.
“You go ahead and meet him first,” Mike said seriously. “Find an excuse to beat him up.” In the Eighth Abyss, the biggest threat to Mike wasn’t anyone else-it was Poseidon himself! From both a strategic standpoint for the human race and a personal safety perspective, weakening Poseidon first was a sound decision.
Maxen quickly understood the logic and agreed with a grin.
As Thor left to gather soul fragments, Maxen began to ponder. “What excuse should I use to beat up Poseidon?”
As he walked, Maxen mulled over various possibilities.
*Wearing red underwear? Stepping out with the left foot first? Burping after drinking water?
*
These reasons could work, but Maxen was no longer a man of low-level pursuits. After witnessing Thor’s many schemes to squeeze profits, Maxen had a bold idea: *Why not squeeze some profit out of Poseidon?*
The thought of profiting from Poseidon filled Maxen with joy, and he quickened his pace.
“Bro Poseidon, guess who’s here to see you!” Maxen called out, releasing his aura. Soon, a figure appeared in the mist-a middle-aged man with a trident mark on his forehead and long, flowing blue hair. He exuded an aura of divine authority.
Just from his appearance alone, Poseidon was already leagues ahead of other demon creatures.
“Maxen? You came alone?” Poseidon asked, surprised. Where was Thor? The message he had received said that Thor and Maxen would be coming together.
“I’m here to discuss a mutually beneficial deal with you…” Maxen began, but Poseidon immediately frowned and interrupted.
“Thor, why bother disguising yourself as Maxen to mess with me?”
Maxen was taken aback. “Wait, I really am Maxen!”
Poseidon hesitated. “Then… how can you prove it?”
It wasn’t Poseidon’s fault for being overly cautious. Maxen’s behavior was just too much like Thor’s. From Poseidon’s perspective, Maxen was acting suspiciously.
Maxen was fuming. “How about I smash your head in with my weapon? Will that prove it?”
“That won’t work,” Poseidon replied seriously. “If Thor has mastered some new technique that lets him kill a nine-star Lord in one hit, that would be perfectly normal.” Maxen thought for a moment and offered another suggestion. “What about the IOU?” Poseidon shook his head again. “How do I know the human race didn’t tell Thor about that?”
Maxen finally pulled out his trump card. “I’ll swear on my Second Godfather’s name. How about that?”
This time, Poseidon finally nodded. “Alright, you’re definitely Maxen.”
Even Thor wouldn’t dare impersonate the Ares.
With his identity confirmed, Maxen proposed a win-win deal: he would help Poseidon, and in return, Poseidon would pay him a small fee of 200,000 Lord merits.
Hearing the familiar phrasing, Poseidon hesitated for a moment before tentatively asking, “Could you knock off 20,000 Lord merits?”
He wanted to experience the thrill of haggling.
Maxen: …
After a moment of silence, Maxen exploded.
“Thor squeezed you for five million Lord merits, and you didn’t complain!”
“Thor beat you to a pulp, and you didn’t even blink!”
“I’m helping you become the Eighth Demon God, and I’m only asking for 200,000, and you want me to give you a discount?!”
Maxen slammed his fist down in fury, sending Poseidon flying like a kite with a broken string.
Poseidon, after being knocked back, calmly walked back over and said coldly, “If you wanted to beat me up, you didn’t need to go through all this trouble.”
Maxen chuckled awkwardly. “Was it that obvious?”
Poseidon nodded. “Very obvious.”
If Thor’s profit-squeezing techniques were at the level of a Supreme Being, Maxen’s were
barely at the level of a soldier.
Despite his rough exterior, Maxen had one redeeming quality: he wasn’t afraid to ask for
advice.
“So, in your opinion, how could I make it more natural next time?” Maxen asked earnestly.
Poseidon:…
*The best way to improve would be to not do it at all!*
The most infuriating part was that not only was Maxen determined to do it, but he was also asking the victim for tips on how to improve his technique.
Poseidon let out a cold laugh. “Honestly… with your strength and status, you could just take
what you want.”
“I’ve tried that. It’s not as fun,” Maxen admitted. “Besides, my godfather has strict rules. He
doesn’t let me rob demon gods.”
Poseidon was left speechless once again.
Fortunately, their awkward conversation didn’t last long. Soon, a figure appeared on the other
side of the mist.
Having finished collecting soul fragments from the ghost race, Thor returned.
“Well, well, long time no see. Looks like you’ve already started building the Demon Emperor’s Hall?” Mike remarked, glancing at Poseidon. Though Poseidon was injured, it was mostly superficial. Maxen hadn’t gone all out, and Poseidon had hidden himself well. Clearly, Poseidon, who had escaped from the Temple of Truth, wasn’t as simple as he seemed.
According to the information Mike had gathered, the first batch of Abyssal demon gods, with the exception of the Exiled Demon God, were all gods who had defected from the Temple of
Truth.
Though they were a bunch of unlucky fools, some of them, like Poseidon, had old
connections.
In other words, after arriving in the Eighth Abyss, Poseidon wasn’t just a representative of the
human race — he had also made deals with the demon gods of the Abyss.
He was playing both sides! Realizing this, Mike’s steps slowed, and a hint of killing intent flashed in his eyes.
The human race didn’t need a demon god who was too powerful.
A divided Abyss was the best kind of Abyss.
Sensing the shift in Mike’s demeanor, Poseidon quickly spoke up, “It’s the Fifth Demon God!”
Before Mike could even ask, Poseidon had already sold out his ally.
“The Fifth Demon God found out about my deal with the human race and sent me a batch of resources to help me recover. I’ve already reported everything to the human race!”
“Huh?”
Even Mike was a bit surprised by Poseidon’s quick thinking.
Poseidon’s willingness to cooperate had defused Mike’s killing intent.
The Fifth Demon God had been itching to die for a long time. He always knew how to get
under people’s skin, and he never missed an opportunity to do so.
Setting aside the Fifth Demon God for now, Mike continued walking through the mist, with Poseidon and Maxen following behind.
“So, you’ve already started laying the foundation for the Demon Emperor’s Hall?” Mike asked
as they reached the construction site. “Why not give the contract to the human race? We’ll make sure to build you a Demon Emperor’s Hall that’s easy to attack and hard to defend.”
Poseidon could only grit his teeth and nod. “Fine, I’ll place an order with the Mystic Market when I get back.”
Mike didn’t push too hard. He had already secured the contract, and if he kept squeezing, Poseidon might snap.
The Mystic Market was Poseidon’s bottom line.
Watching Thor effortlessly squeeze profits, Maxen couldn’t help but feel a sense of
satisfaction. But he also wondered, *Why is it that when Thor squeezes profits, it seems so effortless, but when I try, everything goes wrong?*
The answer was simple: Thor was a master of the art, far ahead of his time.
As they ventured deeper into the Abyss, they approached the heart of the Demon Emperor’s
Hall construction site.
For a demon god, the construction of the Demon Emperor’s Hall was of utmost importance. It
not only established the structure of the Abyss but also determined the future potential of the
demon god who ruled it.
For Poseidon, he could accept being weaker than his peers in terms of raw power, but he couldn’t accept having his potential limited.
After all the effort he had put in, Poseidon’s ultimate goal was to reach level 1000 and ascend
to the Heavenly Realm.
Both Mike and Poseidon understood this.
However, with the Mystic Market overseeing the construction, everything would be fair.
In the past, Poseidon had scoffed at the Mystic Market. He was a god, one of the most
powerful beings in existence. Why should he have to engage in fair trade with humans? What a joke!
But then Thor had come along, and Poseidon had realized that he was the joke, and the Mystic
Market was his lifeline.
Life was full of surprises.
At the deepest part of the Demon Emperor’s Hall construction site, a dilapidated throne came
into view.
This was the Demon Emperor’s Throne of the previous Eighth Demon God, which Poseidon
had fought hard to reclaim from the demon creatures.
“Interesting,” Mike said, examining the throne. It was covered in carvings of skulls and strange, chaotic symbols that lacked any sense of artistry or beauty.
But as soon as Mike laid eyes on it, a raspy, ancient voice filled with temptation echoed in his
mind.
“Come, come…”
“Sit on the throne. This Abyss is my gift to you. You can ascend to the Heavenly Realm at any time…”
“Sit on the throne, and you will have everything you desire…”
“Do you want money? Do you want Nathan to be resurrected? Do you want Shadow Nine to
live again? I can make it all happen…”
The moment the voice appeared, countless red warning messages flooded Mike’s vision,
blocking out the throne and trying to shield him from its influence.
[Warning! Warning!]
[It’s him!]
[Do not respond!]
The raspy voice belonged to the Supreme Demon God, who was using the throne left behind
by the Eighth Demon God to exert his influence over Thor.
Beneath his mask, Mike’s face turned red, his eyes bloodshot, and veins bulged on his neck as
he struggled to resist the Supreme Demon God’s temptation. Fighting against the Supreme Demon God’s influence was no easy task.
And Mike couldn’t rely on any external help-he had to do it on his own!
Even his most powerful trump card, his SSS-grade talent, was useless in this situation.
But this wasn’t Mike’s first time facing such a challenge.
A bolt of lightning flashed before his eyes, and in an instant, he regained his composure.
Thor’s sudden recovery was as abrupt as his initial struggle.
Before Poseidon could even react, a sudden gust of wind sent him flying.
*Boom!*
With a deafening crash, cracks spread out from the Demon Emperor’s Throne, tearing the
ground apart.
The half-built Demon Emperor’s Hall collapsed completely!
The entire Eighth Abyss shook violently. Dust and debris filled the air, and rubble littered the ground. “Whew-” Maxen let out a long breath, retracting his blood-red Flail. His entire body was drenched in sweat, as if he had just opened a floodgate.
Just moments earlier, while Thor was breaking free from the Supreme Demon God’s influence, Maxen had seized the fleeting opportunity to deliver a full-force blow to the Demon Emperor’s Throne, completely destroying it.