The Paladin in the Abyss

Chapter 405: Chapter 419 Portal

In people’s general impression, Demons are either corrupters lurking in the dark, spreading decay and chaos everywhere, or they are mad and frenzied destroyers, bringing slaughter and destruction wherever they go. For the latter, these supernatural beasts never flee from battle but fight to death until the last moment, spitting at their opponents even when their limbs are severed and their teeth plucked out.

But that is not the true nature of demons. Scholars had long understood that Fiends, when killed outside their native plane, do not truly die; instead, they are reborn in the plane where they were born. This includes both the Tanari Demons of the Bottomless Abyss and the Yugros Demons of Scorched Flame Hell, as well as the Bartez Demons of Nine Hells. This means that these members of the Demon Race do not have any concerns when fighting outside their native planes.

Most areas of the Bottomless Abyss are not suitable for living, even for Demons. Most Demons are permanently imprisoned in this plane, suffering from the harsh conditions of the Abyss and often enslaved and tortured by more powerful demons, constantly at risk of being sent on dangerous missions or becoming the vent for their “master’s” capricious moods.

The only consolation for these Demons is the torment of other “people” — whether weaker inferior Demons or those “Adventurers” who intrude into the Abyss.

The premise above holds unless they find a way to leave the Abyss.

For those lowly, miserable Demons, traveling to other planes is like going to a carnival, and mortals’ impressions of Demons are based on those who run wild on the Prime Material Plane. Not all demons possess the ability to leave the Abyssal Plane. This requires profound magic knowledge and great power, or a cultist calling their names on the material plane; ordinary Demons clearly cannot possess either.

Ironically, Demons who want to leave cannot escape, while those who can rarely have the motivation to do so — these powerful demons are among the ruling classes of the Abyss and usually focus their energies on maintaining and enhancing their power to compete with rivals, rather than causing trouble on the Prime Material Plane.

Therefore, seeing that the number of enemies, whose origins were unknown, was increasing, and their combat power clearly surpassed their own, the two most distant Seducer Demons did not hesitate to flee.

The remaining four Seducer Demons were quickly killed under the siege of the crowd. Lancelot did not try to pursue the fleeing Demons; given his current condition, even if he caught up to them, a quick kill would be difficult, and with the portal framed with skeletal remains just in sight, returning to Androlina was the top priority.

“Is that Lamborado Lake?” The Great Elder Quirion stepped beside Lancelot and pointed at the blurry scene in the center of the portal, “Which means, the other end of the portal is on Mother Mountain…”

“You think so too?” Lancelot shrugged, “I’ve heard that there’s a palace of Cang Ye on Mother Mountain…”

“Indeed.” Kaladray also approached, “Our scouts have seen that huge palace from afar but never really entered it.”

“I guess it should be easier to get out from inside.” Bruto raised his hammer, “So what are we waiting for?”

“Hold on, Dwarf.” Quirion pointed behind him, where three Radiant Cloud Angels were struggling to squeeze through a narrow exit, “Let them go first.”

“The outlet on the other side of the portal might not necessarily be on solid ground.” Kalalin explained to Bruto, “You might step out of that portal and find nothing beneath your feet, with the ground several hundred feet below; or it might be in some poison-filled swamp, an environment only suitable for Demons…”

“Alright then, letting them scout ahead isn’t a bad idea,” the Dwarf muttered as he set down his hammer.

The group wasted no time, and after exchanging a few brief instructions, three Radiant Cloud Angels successively entered the enormous Portal, while the rest awaited anxiously in place. Since there were guards on this side of the Portal, it was likely the same on the other side. Their advantage lay in the fact that the guards would never expect enemies to emerge from this Portal, and the powerful Radiant Cloud Angels would surely catch them off guard.

As time ticked by, there was still no sign of the Radiant Cloud Angels reappearing through the Portal, silently spreading tension among the crowd. If there hadn’t been any mishaps, someone should have already returned to report that everything was normal.

Just then, Lancelot furrowed his brow and turned his head toward the direction where the two seductive demons had fled.

“What’s wrong?” Acheron immediately asked with concern, well aware of the human knight’s perception ability and the significance behind Lancelot’s actions.

“There are enemies.” The Human Knight kicked his Great Sword from the ground onto his shoulder, “It seems those two who fled have brought reinforcements…”

“How do you know?” Kaladray also noted their exchange but quickly realized it wasn’t the time to delve into that question, and instead directly asked what truly mattered, “How many?”

“Endless,” Lancelot grimly answered. “Get your men ready.”

“Prepare for battle!” Kaladray shouted immediately, “Defensive formation!”

A murmur stirred among the crowd, but they quickly sprung into action. The Guardians’ defensive formation was uncomplicated: warriors armed for melee formed a dense line at the front, while archers took to various elevated positions behind them. Lancelot and his companions easily found their places within the formation.

Before everyone had fully formed up, a swarm of Coward Devils burst in through the great doors of the Throne Hall. Archers immediately shot arrows, and these lesser demons couldn’t advance more than a couple of steps before collapsing to the ground, their bodies resembling dead hedgehogs bristling with arrows.

But this was no good sign, as the lack of coordinated command became apparent when a large group of Berserk Demons charged in behind the Coward Devils. The incoming fire was noticeably scantier, and these Berserk Demons were not ordinary foes; clad in various armors and wielding heavy shields, their sheer weight could scatter the Guardians’ line if they smashed through.

Lancelot no longer had True Yuan to summon vines; he gripped his Great Sword tightly. Others might not withstand the heavy demons’ charge, but he was determined not to let the enemy breakthrough his defense from the front!

But he almost forgot, there were still spellcasters on his side. Kalalin quickly unfurled a scroll and activated the spell inscribed within in an instant. He loudly called out the trigger words, which were also the spell’s name:

“Web!”

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