Ashen Dragon

Somewhere inside the Bronze Fortress, amidst the distortion of space, a shimmer flickered, and four players and two devils appeared out of thin air.

Their hearts were pounding, gasping for breath, faces full of the joy of surviving a disaster, while the lower-leveled devils Yulier and Dick felt it was truly incredible.

They miraculously escaped right under the nose of a Deep Prison Demon Refiner! That was a Legion Commander under Zariel, powerful enough to occupy a tiny Material Plane on its own!

The Wolf of the Dark Night patted his chest, breathing heavily out of habit despite not needing to breathe as a Vampire: "Huff, huff, boss, that was close..."

The Europe King gazed at the distant flames and smoke rising to the sky, feeling the intense spatial fluctuation, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, the Mechanical God Cult are quite the maniacs, this power is too ridiculous, almost swallowed us whole!"

The Swashbuckler asked nervously, "War Maniac Bro, did you get the experience prompt?"

The Natural War Maniac maintained his frenzy state, his whole body reddened, steam arising, yet still retaining clarity: "No... no, that guy—he's not dead yet!"

"What?"

Everyone raised their heads simultaneously, seeing the Deep Prison Demon Refiner with tattered wings breaking through the thick smoke, appearing in mid-air over the Bronze Fortress.

At this moment, he was in a sorry state, looking sinister, his eyes bursting with blazing fury as he turned his head, roaring madly, "Mortals! You are courting death!"

The terrifying presence of the Deep Prison Demon Refiner swept over like a tsunami, weighing upon every devil's heart nearby.

Yulier stood frozen in place, full of fear, saying in panic, "It's over, he… he found us!"

"We're doomed, doomed! Let me out!" shouted the little devil imprisoned in the cage.

Yet the Swashbuckler donned the Stealth Cloak and stood in place, muttering to himself, "No, not yet, it's not over.

The treasure I painstakingly stole from the Mechanical God Cult… it's not that simple."

"Legion Commander!"

"Who is it! Which fool dares to invade the Bronze Fortress!"

Dozens of devils armed with steel forks and clad in armor took to the sky, flapping their bat-like wings, flying towards Valerius' Molten Lava Castle.

But at this moment, the critical point of the spatial collapse was reached.

Suddenly, all color was drained from the universe, leaving only pure black, as a deep vortex appeared at the explosion's center, erupting with immense gravitational pull.

Everything around—broken sculptures, shattered rocks, or the devil's remains, was violently dragged towards the vortex's center by that terrifying gravity.

The devil soldiers at the forefront were pressed like tin foil by invisible giant hands, and their Hell Iron armor shattered under the enormous gravitational pull.

Witnessing this scene, Valerius flapped his wings wildly, trying to break free from that force but was as immobile as a beast bound by countless ropes.

"No—"

"I am the great Deep Prison Demon Refiner! Lord Zariel's confidant, you cannot kill me!!"

Ultimately, the Deep Prison Demon Refiner's roar was drowned in the shrill scream of rending space-time, and his massive torso was torn into elementary particles by the space-time storm.

Watching the catastrophic scene, the Natural War Maniac marveled at the bomb's horrifying power and said softly, "He… he really did die, my panel shows the prompt."

[You killed [Deep Prison Demon Refiner-Valerius (Challenge Level: 16)], gaining 150,000 experience points]

The Swashbuckler rubbed his hands excitedly, "Damn? This is a Hell Legion Commander! 150,000 experience points, twenty-five thousand gold coins, we're really rich!"

Yet the Wolf of the Dark Night showed no sign of relaxation and instead looked up at the sky, appearing somewhat worried, "What's that thing?"

The entire sky was groaning under unbearable strain, clouds torn open by some mighty force, forming crimson rifts that looked like a god's dissected abdomen, from which boiling lava waterfalls flowed.

"Look at the sky!" Dick's voice trembled.

The red liquid did not fall but burst into frenzied Hellfire, coalescing into a massive phantom in the air.

—It was a fallen Angel, with jet-black wings and eternally burning eyes of wrath, surrounded by sulfur and ash, her tear-streaked face exuding madness and distortion.

She extended her right hand, numerous burning chains emerged from cracks in the ground, sealing the entire space, amidst harrowing wails, the overwhelming Power of the Soul began to mend the fractured space.

[Master of Avernus-Zariel (Challenge Level: ???)]

The Swashbuckler raised his head, his eyes reflecting new information.

He stood there somewhat dazed, muttering, "It seems... we've overplayed our hand this time."

The Natural War Maniac looked at that monstrous presence, sighing, "Is this the final boss of the Avernus Dungeon? How exhilarating it would be to fight her head-on!"

The Europe King also sighed, "We're doomed now... if only I had such luck opening chests."

Meanwhile, Dick and Yulier were already kneeling on the ground, trembling all over, ruled by their hellish instincts, "The Lord of Nine Prisons... it really is Lord Zariel..."

The other devils within the Bronze Fortress were also filled with fear and reverence.

The Swashbuckler muttered quietly, "Do you think… there's any chance she hasn't noticed us?"