Demon King: Hero, don’t run away!

At the foot of Ice Moon Snow Peak Mountain.

”Damn! This is too strong!”

A Demon Clan member with horns and crimson skin panted heavily, one arm holding the other, with a blood-stained weapon at his feet.

All around him, countless Demon Clan corpses lay strewn about, blood flowing like a river.

They had followed orders from their Family Head to assist Gao Yuanyi, delaying the Demon King’s troops.

But barely ten minutes after the battle plan began, they were nearly wiped out.

In front of him was a giant iron wolf constructed of steel. The iron wolf slowly deconstructed into countless metal fragments, revealing a man with dark skin and a unique metallic sheen in the center.

The man was approximately 1.67 meters tall, rather short among the Demon Clan, with an appearance akin to a shut-in with dark circles from sitting in front of a computer all day.

Despite his disheveled appearance, he was the mastermind behind the current situation, one of the Four Heavenly Kings under the Demon King, known as the ”Strongest Shield,” Iron Steel Dragon, Black Diamond Lorne.

The Iron Steel Dragon, Black Diamond Lorne, comes from an extremely rare race, the Steel Clan.

The Steel Clan, true to its name, not only possesses exceptionally high defensive power but can also control steel fragments born from their bodies to create various steel artifacts for attack and defense.

The red-skinned, horned Demon Clan never expected that the Steel Clan, renowned for defense, could also be so powerful in attack.

Perhaps he was just too weak.

Countless metal fragments circled the Iron Steel Dragon, slowly merging back into the Iron Steel Dragon’s body and disappearing without a trace. Eventually, only a small knife-sized steel fragment remained, held in the Iron Steel Dragon’s hand.

The Iron Steel Dragon gazed at the last survivor, his displeasure evident,

”Who instructed you from behind the scenes? Tell me, and I might spare your life.”

The red-skinned, horned Demon Clan member sneered: ”Do you really think I’d believe your lies? We came here ready to die. There’s no point in talking; do your worst.”

”As you wish.” The Iron Steel Dragon’s face remained impassive as he threw the steel fragment, effortlessly piercing through the Demon Clan member’s forehead.

The fragment circled in the air, flicking off the blood before returning to the Iron Steel Dragon’s hand, merging into his palm.

The red-skinned, horned Demon Clan member fell lifelessly onto the snow, blood staining the ground red.

Suddenly, a giant rumble sounded a few kilometers away from the Iron Steel Dragon, with crimson flames shooting into the sky, and waves of heat rolling forth.

Even several kilometers from the blazing inferno, the Iron Steel Dragon could sense the excitement and joy mixed in the heat wave,

”That guy... with his strength, he should resolve it faster than me.

He wouldn’t be adhering to that foolish dueling spirit again, fighting those people one-on-one, would he?

Battle maniacs are troublesome.

Although he hasn’t fought with all his might for a long time, now isn’t the time to indulge in battle cravings.

This might just be a diversion, with someone laying an ambush on the Demon King’s journey to the ritual for his wife.”

Despite thinking that no amount of people could handle the Demon King, the Iron Steel Dragon doesn’t want to take chances.

After contemplating for a moment, the Iron Steel Dragon decided to check on the Demon King’s situation at the Snow Mountain.

Just then, a large box flew from the sky and landed straight into the Iron Steel Dragon’s hands.

The Demon King’s voice echoed beside the Iron Steel Dragon’s ear, explaining the entire situation.

The Iron Steel Dragon’s step halted and he no longer headed for Ice Moon Snow Peak.

He opened the box, revealing a peculiarly shaped mechanical arm inside, with six compartments on the interior forming two blue strips, and the remaining four compartments being green.

Upon seeing her new master, the blonde girl Laplace, sitting at the weapon’s core, said nothing, merely recalling everything that had just occurred.

She had done all she could; whether they survived in the end depended on that person’s luck and fate.

...

...

Trent Republic.

After running around for over half a month, Yang Yu and his companions finally completed all necessary tasks in the Trent Republic, arriving at the S-Class adventure group Stronghold, Corpse Collection Coffin.

After the ship docked, Yang Yu and his group rushed to the Slime Kingdom, returning all surviving Slimes as well as paying the agreed reward.

During their stay in the Slime Kingdom, Yang Yu spoke several times with Helot and the Slime King, inviting them to join forces to confront the impending Demon King, only to be firmly rejected by the Slime King.

Sending the Slimes out this time was already a highly risky endeavor, and the Slime King would not allow a second occurrence unless Yang Yu agreed to supply a hundred-years’ worth of Clovers, with five years’ worth upfront.

Faced with the Slime King’s exorbitant demands, Yang Yu had no choice but to try persuasion, but ultimately he couldn’t sway the stubborn Slime King.

As before, there might be ways to entice Slime citizens into participating in war using Clovers, but Yang Yu didn’t want to worsen relations with the Slime Kingdom.

Ultimately, Yang Yu and the Slime King only agreed that if nearby villages were attacked, the Slimes would step in and help the local people evacuate.

After spending one night at home, Yang Yu once again bid farewell to his parents.

On the road, Yang Yu and his companions gathered information from a nearby adventurer guild about the Dragon God’s Might’s resistance against the Evil Dragon’s offspring, and also contacted the Goddess Sect’s main church, learning the location of Serti’s church.

The Teleportation Array in the Goddess Sect’s churches are generally not open to the public, but considering Yang Yu and his group’s prior contributions and their defeat of Count Blood, they were given special permission.

Additionally, Ussiger gave Yang Yu a condition: if he and his group could promise to support the main cathedral when threatened, most Teleportation Arrays owned by the Goddess Sect would be open to them.

Such a good deal, Yang Yu naturally did not refuse.

A notification appeared on his System panel, indicating a temporary alliance with the Goddess Sect. Now, he could see the distribution of Goddess Sect churches on the map and know where he could go.

This made it easier for Yang Yu to travel in the future; if any dangerous situations arise, he could reach the scene immediately using the Goddess Sect’s Teleportation Array.

Yang Yu originally planned to negotiate with the All Things Library about using their Teleportation Array. But now, with the more widely distributed arrays of the Goddess Sect, he saved himself the effort of asking.