Chapter 100: Survivors

The path outside the Necis Forest was rough, winding through cliffs under a gray sky. We walked at a slow pace to keep guard. The dark fog of the deep woods was gone. The mountain air felt fresh, but the threat of the demons still hung over the hills.

I held Qing Yan’s hand tightly as we walked down the rocky trail. Every few steps, the long slit of her new red dress would part, showing her bare leg as she walked over the stones. Her long gold earrings swayed against her neck with every movement.

“You’re holding on pretty tight,” I joked, squeezing her fingers a little. “Are you worried I’ll disappear, or are you just using me as a shield, Fire Empress?”

Qing Yan froze and turned her head toward me, her face turning pink. She tried to pull her hand back, but I held on firmly. “I am a powerful expert, Barry! I do not need a shield. And what kind of ridiculous, high-sounding name is that? Don’t ever call me that again! I was only making sure you didn’t trip over your own massive ego.”

“Oh, come on, it suits you perfectly,” I laughed, giving her a playful nudge. “You’ve got the attitude, the fire, and the dress. From now on, that’s your name. Get used to it, Fire Empress.”

“Stop it!” she squeaked, looking away to hide her blushing face. “You are utterly infuriating. If anyone hears you calling me that, I will personally roast your ears off.”

“I’d like to see you try, Fire Empress,” I grinned.

Our bickering cut short when the loud clashing and desperate shouts voice comes from the gorge ahead. I held up my hand, dropping the smile instantly. We crept toward the edge of a large rock and looked down into a wide basin.

A brutal fight was already happening below. A small group of human cultivators—their robes torn, bloody, and covered in dirt—were backed against a high cliff wall. They were surrounded by a squad of elite demon enforcers.

“Hold the line!” the leader of the survivors shouted. He had a deep cut across his forehead, and his breath came in ragged gasps as he swung a glowing blue sword. “If we fall now, the injured behind us are dead!”

He swung his sword, sending a crescent wave of blue energy into an oncoming monster. It cracked the demon’s armor, but three more elite enforcers instantly rushed forward to take its place.

Right next to him, a female cultivator used the last of her energy to form a barrier. “Earth Wall!” she cried. A wall of jagged rock shot out of the ground, blocking a shower of black arrows. But a massive demon lieutenant wearing black platemail stepped forward. With one swing of his giant, spiked iron mace, he smashed the stone wall into dust.

“Weak human cattle!” the lieutenant roared, his voice thick with a dark aura. “Your sects are destroyed! Your people are broken! Give up, and I might kill you quickly!”

The survivors were completely out of energy, their hands and swords trembling as the demons closed in.

“Hey, goat-face!” I called out, my voice cutting the noise of the battlefield with total arrogance.

Every single human and demon snapped their heads up to look at the ridge. I stood there casually, completely unbothered by the dozens of enemies below.

“You talk a lot for a guy who looks like a mutated farm animal,” I shouted down, smiling widely. “And honestly, that spiked mace looks terrible. Are you using it to hide the fact that you can’t actually fight?”

The demon lieutenant’s face turned a deep, furious purple. “Insolent pest! Kill him! Tear him to pieces!”

Four elite demon scouts instantly broke away from the main group, leaping up the rocks toward us with their jagged blades raised. They moved with surprising speed, snarling as they closed the distance.

“Barry, this is no time to be an idiot!” Qing Yan tell me, her hands lighting up with dangerous fire.

“Relax, Fire Empress. Watch how a real master does it,” I said .

Using the speed I completely vanished from her side. To the jumping scouts, I simply disappeared into thin air. I reappeared right in front of them in mid-air, blocking their path. Without even drawing a weapon, I balled my right hand into a fist, covering it in a solid layer of glowing golden aura.

CRACK!

I swung my arm in a fast blur. The shockwave of the punch didn’t just shatter their swords—it blasted all four elite scouts backward, sending them crashing hard into the ground below. They were knocked out cold before they even hit the ground, their armor dented from the sheer force.

I landed smoothly on my feet right between the shocked human survivors and the giant demon lieutenant. I looked over my shoulder at the giant monster and shrugged. “See? Your scouts are trash. You really need to find a better army.”

The demon lieutenant stood completely frozen, his eyes wide with sudden fear as he felt the heavy, crushing pressure coming from my body .

Behind me, Qing Yan came down from the ridge like a streak of red light, landing right next to me. Her hands were glowing with a large, roaring circle of fire that scorched the grass around her heels.

“You are the most ridiculous man alive,” she muttered under her breath. But as she looked at the lieutenant’s completely confused, angry face reacting to my teasing, her serious look completely vanished. A soft chuckle escaped her lips. She quickly clapped her hand over her mouth, trying and completely failing to hide the small laugh that broke through her shyness.

“Hey, laughing looks way better on you than being angry,” I laughed, completely ignoring the demon army in front of us. I shook out my shoulders, the golden light crackling tightly around my arms. “Now, Fire Empress, let’s clean up this valley together. Don’t let them ruin your new dress.”

Qing Yan dropped her hand from her mouth, her eyes instantly turning back into a blazing, lethal red as she faced the crowd of monsters. “I told you not to call me that! But… I will gladly burn this trash to ashes.”