Chapter 255: Establishing Territory

On the fifth kilometer, the massive demon stopped again and observed Angelo from a distance.

Suddenly, the massive demon grinned, stunning Angelo.

As quick as lightning, the massive demon grabbed hold of the flag and planted it into the ground.

The moment the black flag touched the earth, a powerful wave of demonic mana spread out from its base.

Max’s expression changed.

The ground beneath his feet began to tremble as black veins of demonic mana rapidly spread across the ground, moving in every direction.

At the same time, the twelve obelisks hidden throughout the Southern Frontier suddenly lit up.

Until that moment, they had been completely concealed by groups of demons standing around them, their massive bodies hiding the obelisks from sight.

One after another, the obelisks released pillars of dark light.

The twelve pillars of light connected with the black flag through streams of demonic mana that spread beneath the ground.

Five kilometers of the Southern Frontier toward the Southern Border suddenly became connected.

The black flag pulsed once and then again.

With every pulse, the demonic mana covering the ground became denser.

The air itself began to change.

The mana of the Southern Frontier, which had been dominated by the Authority of Salvation, began to be contaminated by the spreading demonic mana.

Max immediately felt it.

Something was pushing the Authority of Salvation back.

The sacred presence that had always protected the Empire was still there, but its presence within five kilometers of the Southern Frontier was rapidly weakening.

The twelve obelisks continued to glow as the formation expanded.

A dark boundary slowly spread across the fifth kilometer, connecting the twelve obelisks into a single massive formation.

The black flag stood at the center of it all.

Then, a notification appeared before Max’s eyes.

[Abyssal Conquest Formation by the demon forces has been activated.

Demonic Mana Saturation: 41%

Territorial Formation has been established.

The Authority of Salvation is being repelled from the designated territory.]

Max’s eyes widened.

The demons had not simply planted a flag.

They had changed the battlefield itself.

Max quickly reacted and was about to order Angelo to destroy the flag when Angelo said to him,

"It’s too late."

Max glanced toward the black flag and saw the Authority of Salvation receding toward them at a rapid speed.

At the same time, a tall, four-armed demon with dark-purple skin and glowing blue eyes appeared in front of the black flag. Numerous spatial cracks constantly appeared around his body as he stared at Angelo with a hostile gaze.

Then, the four-armed demon turned around and took a step to the side, disappearing and reappearing in front of an obelisk.

What replaced him as the guard of the black flag was a 4.2-meter-tall demon wearing heavy armor.

He had charcoal-black skin with thick crimson lines resembling molten cracks across his body, four large horns arranged in a crown-like formation, and six glowing orange eyes.

His long black hair resembled smoke, framing a large, muscular body that featured two pairs of arms ending in black metallic claws, all while a dense demonic aura constantly surrounded him.

A massive Calamity two-handed greatsword was strapped to his back, its edge surrounded by a thin red glow.

The Demon Lord stared intently at him, and as the Authority of Salvation receded, it was replaced by a murky haze that slowly enveloped the territory they had established through the Abyssal Conquest Flag.

As the darkness covered the Demon Lord, the latter suddenly smirked at Max, seemingly mocking him.

At that moment, the demons had successfully expanded their territory and conquered five kilometers of the Southern Frontier.

The whole Southern Frontier of the southwestern province had been conquered in a single night.

Of course, given that there was a limit to the Abyssal Conquest Flag, the Western Province and Southern Province could not be affected. However, five kilometers from their Southern Border could now perceive an unfamiliar environment that could not be inhabited by humans.

In other words, the Ashen Expanse had arrived in the Empire’s territory.

The Imperial Family would not sit idly by just because of this.

Max already believed he would be heavily criticized by the Empire.

"Malveris..." Angelo mumbled.

Max glanced at him and saw that he was staring in the direction where one of the obelisks had appeared.

It appeared that Malveris had also become a commander of the Demon Lord of Wrath.

Wait. Malveris is a Demon Lord?

Max was utterly shocked.

In his past life, Malveris had never become a Demon Lord, much less a commander of the Demon Lord of Wrath.

He had remained a peak Greater Demon, wishing to use the Empire as his own stepping stone to become a Demon Lord.

Yet, in this timeline, Malveris had become a Demon Lord.

Max gritted his teeth.

Once again, Max’s current timeline was vastly different from his past life.

He clenched his fists, but when he realized he was getting stressed out, he slowly loosened his grip and relaxed.

No need to fuss over it. What happened had already happened.

Max silently shook his head.

He was not overly worried.

Enzo, his younger brother, was an inheritor of an SS-rank legacy.

Lewis and Aaron were surprisingly trying to keep up with him.

In fact, if they were compared to their versions from his past life, they were far stronger than they had been back then.

In other words, the demons were not the only ones changing the timeline. The humans were changing it as well.

As long as they could keep up and were able to finish the storyline from his past life, Max did not need to worry.

Max now returned his focus to the Demon Lord guarding the black flag.

It was certainly the supreme commander—the right hand of the Demon Lord.

His strength was far greater than Varkhaz’s.

Max had already admitted defeat before he could even fight him.

He doubted that if they fought right now, the supreme commander demon would even need to swing his massive greatsword.

Max furrowed his eyebrows.

Tonight was a complete act of carelessness on his part.

The demons had won tonight.

By a large margin...