The Devil’s Cage

As though time stopped.

Calamity Dragon’s enormous body floated in mid-air, trembling for a bit before it arched its back, wailing in pain in its one-of-a-kind voice.

“Aaaaargh!”

Amid its agonizing wail, Calamity Dragon tumbled uncontrollably, and because its body was stuck in the void breach, the tumble, or struggle, brought violent friction upon its body.

Crack Crack!

The broken scales fell off, one after another, like a fish’s scales scrapped off on the chopping board.

It wasn’t just bloody and gruesome, it was despair, the plainest and deepest despair that could ever happen to a single being.

Kieran, on the other hand was filled with surprise. The moment Gluttony landed a bit on the body, Devil, Cardinal Sins, Plague, Dawn, and Saint Thorn surged like never before!

Each time he breathed, it felt like he had eaten 10 plus Proper Meal class food!

Qualitative change happened after a dozen breath’s time.

The surging 5 Origin Force finally caused Fusion Heart to change!

[Devil, Cardinal Sins, Dawn, Plague, Saint Thorns were nourished!]

[Constitution, Spirit, Origin Force authentication are exempted!]

[Name: Fusion Heart IV]

[Type: Organ]

[Rarity: IV]

[Attributes: 1. Transform Devil IV, 2. Desire Summon IV , 3. Saint Thorns IV]

[Effects: 1. Fiery Sulphur IV, 2. Eye of Evil IV, 3. Body of Evil IV, 4. Touch of the Cardinal Sins IiV

[Prerequisite: Kieran (Host)]

[Remark: This is a fusion organ between a heart of a human, the heart of a demon lord, and the core of the Creature of Desire. With the energy from the Devourer, it has evolved once again and become a unique existence. It has truly fused with you and of course that isn’t the limit yet!]

……

[Transform Devil IV: Your heart granted you the power. When activated, you will take the form of the Devil Overlord, 4 minute duration, 1 time per day]

[Desire Summon IV: Your heart granted you the control. When activated, you can summon the Creature of Desire, 4 minute duration, 2 time per day]

[Saint Thorn IV:If you did not choose to activate Transform Devil III or Desire Summon III, you will resist 75% of the damage when you come across holy energy. When you receive damage (regardless of holy damage), of Average, Strong, Powerful, Extreme, I, II, III, IV level, you can activate a “Halo of Thorns” with different level, to reflect the damage you receive by 10%, 15%, 30%, 50%, 65%, 70%, 75% (Including rank IV damage) respectively. You will also be healed with Light, Medium, Heavily, Lethal (Including rank IV damage) wounded state respectively. When you choose to activate Transform Devil IV or Desire Summon IV, Saint Thorn will not go off but its effect is halved 40%]

…….

[Fiery Sulphur IV: Burning flames will follow the lineage of the devil like shadow. When casting Fire element spells, +1 elemental damage, extra Sulphuric Poison IV added on the spell (Any target that gets burn will have to go through a Constitution authentication with the caster. If failed, target will suffer rank II damage every second, last 5 second) The requirements such as the gesture, incantations materials of Fire element spells are decreased by 85%, even if the skill failed to cast, you will only suffer a 1/7 of the magic repulsion]

[Eye of Evil IV: The conviction of Desire was rooted deep inside your heart. Summon Evil Eye (Secondary Eye level. You can determine the size at will; the smallest is the size of a human eye, the biggest is not larger than the size of Creature of Desire) formed by the conviction of Desire to fight for you. Duration depends on the size of the Evil Eye, the smallest last 24 hours, the biggest last 10 minutes, 3 times per day. When 1 Evil Eye are summoned, you will gain a special sight that can penetrate through supernatural darkness and invisible force field; When 2 Evil Eye are summoned, your special sight will gain a certain level of increment.]

[Body of Evil IV: The combination of the devil and desire, chaos and sins but with a dash of light. Granted 800 extra HP, Stamina, acquire Advance Tensile Skin II (absorb rank II damage or below), Overlord Devil Skin (absorb rank II damage or below, extra defense point against Fire and Explosions); When facing against Holy element attack, you will receive 110% damage, special counter items will deal extra damage to you (included but not limited to blessed objects, holy objects etc.)]

[Touch of Cardinal Sins IV: The Cardinal Sins of desire flowed in your blood. At will, you can summon Pride, Sloth, or Gluttony to help. When either Pride or Sloth is summoned, Lust, Wrath, Envy and Greed will provide you total control over them and gain many buffs; When Gluttony is summoned, +3 Terror to Lust, Wrath, Envy and Greed, able to force them to do things out of their will]

[Note: When target is in panic, chaos, fear or has extreme desire for something, they will be devoured by the respective embodiment of sins. (No drops!)]

Dong Dong Dong!

His heart beat loudly and vigorously, as thunderous as war drums.

Devil Kieran grew in size. From 6 meters tall to 8 meters in an instant, as if he was a bloating balloon.

The attributes of his Devil form were also enhanced.

[Transform Devil IV

[All attributes + rank I]

[All attributes + rank I, Strength, Constitution extra +3]

[Acquired Perfect Devil Lord Constitution II ( Devil Armor, defense automatically set above rank IIV, able to mitigate 40% of energy damage) ; Acquired Devil Body, extra +9 Strength; Every attack is added with rank III and above burn damage and has a certain percentage to trigger Fire Splash and Exploding Flame with a 15 meter radius range; Fire Splash damage is ranked at rank I and Exploding Flames is ranked at rank III and above; When receive damage, attacker will suffer rank II burn damage from Scorch Rebound; Secondary Elemental Damage Resist + rank I, HP +2500, Stamina +2500]

[Acquired Grand Flame Blast II: By flapping your flame wings, form a 150°, 150 meter blast range before you. Rank IV and above flames, rank IV and above blast wave, 3 times per transformation]

[Acquired Ruthless Beheader Flaming Sword II: Summon greatsword of flames, rank IV fire damage and rank IV and above sharpness, 3 minute duration, 1 time per transformation]

[Acquired Venomous Blaspheme Whisper II: Any target you kill will resurrect temporarily and fight for you with extra buffs. Resurrected target will possess ability to utilize fire, 3 minute duration, 1 time per transformation]

[Acquired Sulphuric Blaze II: Overlord level flames will not just burn your enemies, their breathing will be tested like never before. Any targets will undergo a -4 Constitution authentication to yours; if failed, target will suffer extra Powerful poison damage each time they breath and each breath will further weaken the target’s Strength and Constitution.]

[Acquired Light of Fear II: As the Devil Overlord, your dignity is unchallenged. Any living target that sees you will have to undergo a not lower than S+ rank Spirit authentication, if fail, induce Fear debuff]

[Devil Libra II: The true promotion of your bloodline allows you to gain the true gifts of the Devil Overlord. You can choose any stats at will and add them onto other stats with a 1:1.4 ratio. Added stats should not be lower than A rank and the added stats will not exceed the limit of Spirit level +3. Duration 3 minutes, 1 per transformation.]

……

The flaming beheader sword in his hand grew bigger In size too.

The flames swirled around the edge and glared sharply.

The biggest change was his Strength!

Kieran acquired even more Strength buffs, swinging the beheader sword without hesitation and slashing it down on Calamity Dragon!

Bang!

Beheader sword was infused with absolute strength, it slashed hard on the eyelid of Calamity Dragon, like an iron hammer smashing an egg.

The eyelid shook, like water splashing, but the slash did not leave a scar on it, only causing some sparks, Calamity Dragon wailing in pain. The beheader sword, which had sharpness above rank IV, still couldn’t truly damage the monster but the power contained in it was something that it could not endure comfortably.

Especially when the absolute strength landed on its eyelid, the pain grinded its heart painfully.

Eyes were weak spots for any living being, Calamity Dragon included. However, it’s absurd level of defense caused its enemies to naturally neglect the weak spot most of the time and Calamity Dragon’s weak spot had suffered a never before felt fatal blow.

“I’ll kill you! I’LL KILL YOU!”

Frustrated, rage got the best of Calamity Dragon, robbing it of its sanity.

It didn’t care about its weakened soul anymore. It shook its body, releasing hundreds of thousands of spirits, ghosts and evil spirits that it kept in its scales, throwing them at Kieran.

The myriads of spirits shrieked at Kieran.

These spirits that Calamity Dragon released were unlike the common ones, they were much stronger. In short, they weren’t any John Doe before they died, they were truly powerhouses.

Some were knights that opposed Calamity Dragon in the past; some were Calamity Dragon’s followers.

Regardless of who they were before, they ended up as meals in Calamity Dragon’s stomach, only their souls were retained and transformed into these special kinds of spirits.

The spirits had arrows embedded on their armor, wielding molted swords and broken spears. Their skeleton bodies were engulfed in soul fire, striking fear into people at first glance.

When the scene happened, the Knight and Weapon Master gasped out of fear.

“Dragon Catastrophe!” the two elderly superheroes said in one voice, talking about the legend hidden in history.

Their gasps instantly attracted people’s attention.

“What’s Dragon Catastrophe?” Kat Lady asked out of curiosity.

“Calamity Dragon got its name not just because of its ruthlessness and control over the plague, it was also known for creating this Dragon’s Spirit itself! Unlike common spirits, or ghosts, these Dragon’s Spirits weren’t just strong, they retained their sanity and wisdom from their past life! Meaning, each one of them was as powerful and as experienced as when they were alive, except for… their memories and compassion!” The Knight looked at the monitors in worry.

“They are very strong… meow meow meow?”

Before Kat Lady could finish, she meowed in shock because she sensed an aura no weaker than her own from those wailing Dragon’s Spirits. A lot of them were on par with Drexton too and some even surpassed her imagination. They reminded her of Kieran’s power!

How could he fight all these alone?

Whether in terms of numbers or strength, he was at an absolute disadvantage.

Kat Lady was anxious, her ears shaking.

“Whenever Calamity Dragon appeared, it created Dragon’s Spirit from its victim! It’s picky though, it only chose the strongest of each era that it stumbled upon and as time went one, a few more arrivals on our world later, it finally gathered enough to form its own ‘Dragon Catastrophe Legion’!”

The Knight’s voice sounded rough and dry as he explained, because fear had gotten the best of him. He had no idea what he should do against a myriad of powerful spirits, a legion of Extraordinary individuals, likewise Weapon Master.

At first, when Calamity Dragon was arriving above the city, both the Knight and Weapon Master planned to use Sacrificial Force and sacrifice themselves to expel Calamity Dragon before it could react to the situation.

According to records passed down from the previous generations, it stated that Calamity Dragon wasn’t that smart.

However, Kieran’s appearance interrupted their plan.

They were joyous at first but now…

Both elderly didn’t have the intention to blame him, trying their best so figure out a solution.

Why not expel Calamity Dragon now?

Their Sacrifice Force was a single-targeted move. In short, even if they managed to expel Calamity Dragon, the Dragon’s Spirits would remain and without something to hold them back, they would go out of control!

The hatred of the dead for the living would bring total destruction to the city.

The Dragon Catastrophe Legion had the ability to engage a battle on their own, otherwise they wouldn’t be known as the legion.

After understanding the situation and the Dragon’s Spirits, everyone went quiet.

The civilians grew anxious and more panicked as they watched the Dragon Catastrophe Legion wail through the monitors. Drexton even clenched his fist.

He was thinking about making this fight his last.

Run away?

Of course, but definitely not him.

The civilians should run, he will stay back and secure an escape. He ought to fight side by side with his friend before the Calamity Dragon.

As for death? It will come as promised, but he’d enjoy it like bitter malt.

Drexton glanced over the terrified civilians who were in prayers, also glancing over his anxious comrades. He took a deep breath and picked up the walkie-talkie beside him.

“Herzker?”

“Yes?” Herzker’s voice came from the other side of the walkie-talkie.

Herzker was in the shelter beneath Alkender Charity Hospital, looking at Ellen, who was comforting other civilians despite the desperate situation. He curled up his lips.

He pulled out a bottle of alcohol he hid in his coat, uncorked it, and drank a bit.

The alcoholic taste was quickly discovered by Ellen.

“Mark! You are drinking again aren’t you!” the chief nurse glared at Herzker, the Wine Barrel.

“Hehehe, this is the last time, I promise you!” Herzker smiled awkwardly while scratching his head.

“How many times has it been the last time? You promised me many times before! Make this your last or I will!” Ellen sighed helplessly.

“I promise!” Herzker widened his bright smile.

He watched Ellen go back to the civilians, doing what she could for the helpless souls. He drained every last drop of alcohol in his bottle and turned around to the tunnel that only he knew off, walking into the darkness.

Bomber Maniac, Renner followed quietly.

“Go back!” Herzker yelled.

“I can’t.”

Renner looked at the young nurse, Rosy, with an unwilling gaze. He really wanted to tell her how he felt about her but he was also grateful for not doing so.

This would be the best for him, at least he didn’t have to burden her and she would forget about him soon enough.

Renner shrugged and looked at Herzker.

“Let’s go,” he said.

“Are you sure about this?” Herzker asked softly to make sure.

“Of course. I’ve never risked my life for anyone before my whole life. Rosy is the first and last,” Renner said softly.

Herzker didn’t ask anymore, tapping Renner’s shoulder and opening the secret door quietly, allowing both of them to vanish beyond the door.

After the secret door was closed, Rosy hugged herself and started sobbing, covering her mouth to soften the sobs, stopping her crying from affecting other people.

Ellen’s eyes were red and teary also, she couldn’t even speak properly as sobs choked her.

Herzker went off, Drexton was also preparing to leave but when he turned around, he realized the Knight, Weapon Master, Willis, Fortress, Silencer, Machinist, and Kat Lady were behind him, waiting in a line.

“You guys…”

“Boss, I think I should go with you as your eyes. Without me, you can’t see the battlefield properly,” Willis shrugged.

“Death is a mere stepping stone in carrying out duty.”

The Knight and Weapon Master showed decisive resolution.

“As the shield, I should stand and lead the charge in the front line,” Fortress tapped his chest.

“Without my Fire Net, you guys won’t last till everyone is evacuated,” Machinist said seriously.

“I’ll follow,” Silencer said.

“Meow really don’t want to go with you guys, but meow is bored out of my mind here. I want to have a look up there,” Kat Lady looked up proudly.

Drexton scanned over his comrades, from left to right and then left again.

Ultimately, he smiled.

“Let’s go then,” said Drexton.

He turned around and led the group to the secret door but Ferris and Odork beat them to it.

The group was stunned before reacting, hastening their steps immediately.

Everyone else in the shelter saw the superheroes go off, knowing exactly what the superheroes wanted to do.

Prayers sounded again, the civilians praying for the safe return of the heroes.

Emma Eddie was among the crowd and was the most devoted of them all.

Goran stood up and walked to the electrical appliance in the shelter. His ability wasn’t combat ready but that didn’t mean he couldn’t participate in the battle.

He raised his hand and placed it on one of the machines.

Pudder saw Drexton and co. leave the shelter through the monitors.

He also knew what they were going to do.

He took a cigarette out from his pocket, lit it up, and walked to the director.

“Keys,” he said.

“What are you trying to do? You are not a kid anymore, do you think you are qualified to participate in a battle of this caliber?” Director Steve yelled at him.

“That is why I need the keys,” Pudder said after a deep puff.

“This is suicide for you!” yelled Steve.

“It’s suicide for them too,” Pudder pointed the monitors, at the group that went off to battle. He then pointed at the badge at his chest. “They are a bunch of volunteer cops, while I am the legitimate.”

“But…” BANG!

Director Steve tried to dissuade Pudder but he was replied with a punch in the stomach. Pudder the grabbed the keys to the weapon vault from the director’s pocket.

Unlike the other shelters, the shelter underneath the police station was the only one equipped with a weapon vault; the director held the key to the weapon vault.

After getting the keys, Pudder strode to the weapon vault.

The other police officers watched his back and stayed quiet.

It was at this time, the young assistant, Michael, jumped out and gave chase to his superior.

He was done with the torturing! Now, he would follow his heart instead!

He didn’t do this for anyone or anything, he did it because he wanted to be worthy of his badge and stay true to the vows of being a police.

“Pudder is gone. Michael is gone. If I stay, I might not have the face to live another day! I am a police officer after all!”

A bloated middle-age inspector also walked out from the others.

More and more police officers followed, every single one heading to the weapon vault.

Only some female officers in charge of civil service stayed, together with the director on the floor and… Cymilaide.

Cymilaide felt torturing the gazes from the others who followed their heart, felt the sneers and mocks at him.

“I’ll stay back to take care of Director Steve!”

“I don’t need you touching me!”

Director Steve pushed Cymilaide’s hand away, getting back on his feet and wobbling his way to the weapon vault too.

“Do you ladies need some care?” Cymilaide looked at the female officers.

What he got in reply was more sneers and white eyes.

Even more so when several female officers strode to the weapon vault, the anxiety in Cymilaide rising to an all time high because he was left alone in the shelter.

“Idiots! Following your heart is an idiotic move! Don’t be so impulsive! You won’t know what kills you out there! Do you know what death is?”

Cymilaide scolded loudly at the leaving officers, but no one replied to him.

The armed police officers then headed towards the passage leading to the surface.

Cymilaide’s mouth was left open, no words coming out from him anymore.

And then… he too ran to the weapon vault.

He didn’t have a suicidal intent, all he wanted was a weapon to protect himself, but when the female officers, who were picking their weapons, saw Cymilaide, they smiled.

“You may be full of complaints, but you are still a man!” said one of them.

“I…”

“Let’s go!”

The officers stopped Cymilaide by giving him an assault rifle, then dragging him to the passage to the surface.

After they entered the passage, the door to the shelter was shut, no chances left for Cymilaide to regret anything.

Cymilaide’s face was full of despair as he was dragged along the dark passage.

What threw him deeper into despair was the admiration and the relief after the surprised look from the female officers. He had no idea how to explain himself anymore, especially when the female officers looked at him differently now. Cymilaide really couldn’t say things like ‘I want to go back’ anymore.

‘This is the end! This is the end! I’m going to die here!’

Falling deeper into despair, Cymilaide tried his utmost not show his true thoughts on his face. He followed the group to the police cruisers, got in with the female officers, and sprinted off to the battlefield.

Devil Kieran was instantly captivated by the myriads of ferocious Dragon’s Spirits who possessed different levels of power, but were definitely powerful.

So this is your trump card?

Devil Kieran flapped his wings for he sensed three extremely powerful presences among the sea of Dragon’s Spirits.

He ought to kill the three of them first before taking out the others, but before Devil Kieran could make a move, his Intuition sensed something going on at the surface, hence why he looked down.

Drexton, Knight, Weapon Master, Willis, Fortress, Silencer, Machinist, Kat Lady, Ferris, and Odork came out from the shelter.

Further away, Wine Barrel Herzker and Bomber Maniac were joining them.

Farther away, a group of police cruisers were sprinting towards the scene.

“2567, we are here to help! Let us fight by your side!” Drexton shouted.

“Don’t get in my way.” Devil Kieran replied blankly.

“Of course not!” Drexton laughed loudly.

The sudden scene happening on the surface attracted Calamity Dragon’s attention, “A bunch of vermins! What a joke! I’ll teach you what pain is!” it mocked.

“Hoho? Pain? Gluttony, bite it!” Kieran said in his heart.

Gluttony was trying his best to digest his almost full stomach, but after he got the order from his elder brother, he bit the special piece of flesh again.

Kak!

Another clear noise sounded.

The mocking Calamity Dragon wailed in pain and it arched its body again.