Chapter 3: Valley of Kings
Golden Wizard Tower Dungeon, Demon Continent, Not Earth Y5822
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'No, no, no, no! That won't work at all! This is so fucking stupid!'
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'Maybe? No, no, no. I need to read up some more on this bit right here.'
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'Fuck! How many electrons are even in mithril? How is there no documentation on this? Ten thousand seems like a lot for a single atom... But why does it look like my math is wrong? I'm never wrong!'
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'Carry the one, and... Five hundred. Okay, five hundred is a much better number than ten thousand...'
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'Ah! I see. It has ten thousand electrons in a vacuum! But where does it get so many electrons from?'
'...Fuck it, who cares. I can work with this! Creation!'
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'What the fuck? Why are there only nine slimes in the tower?'
'...'
'Can something that fragile survive a fall from this height? It's like a thirty-meter drop...'
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'Ah ha ha! It works! This dungeon is officially open for business, baby!'
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Valley of Kings, Demon Continent, Not Earth Y5823
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To understand the differences between good and evil factions, you should know how each of these factions uses the worldly energy known as mana.
The good factions have it easy! They are Heaven's chosen and have been blessed with the innate power to wield mana in their surroundings as they wish. They are limited only by how much mana is around them, and how unwavering their heart and mind is. Training their mind and heart to be as firm as a rock is their true path to power!
But not everyone is favored by the Heavens! Beasts are without sentience and complex thought, and yet, despite this setback, still strive onwards! When a beast is exposed to enough ambient mana, they can achieve enlightenment, awakening their mind and soul.
Thus, a demon is born!
At its most fundamental form, there is no visual difference between beasts and demons. A cow is a cow regardless whether it suddenly becomes able to think and reason. But slowly, by retaining the mana inside their bodies, demons can begin the arduous path of cultivation. In an unending fight against the will of the heavens, demons attempt to take a form of humans, to gain heaven's favor. Ancient rumors state that at the beginning of the world, only humans were favored by the gods. It was the elves, dwarves, demi-humans, and earth dragons who each had a representative cultivate into a fully human form, blessing their entire race for all eternity!
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But this fight is not an easy one at all! The farther a demon travels on the road of cultivation, the harder it becomes to continue. It requires continuous enlightenment and immense luck! To distinguish how powerful a demon is, one can simply see how close it resembles a human.
This power ranking is most noticeable in the final stages of a demon's cultivation. Lesser Demon Kings will be entirely human with exception to their head! These demons can cast spells as powerful as human Archmages, yet have a bodily strength countless times greater than humans. An Archmage fighting against a Lesser Demon King will almost always be at a disadvantage because of this.
Greater Demon Kings are the next step in a demon's cultivation, yet have not made an appearance in a hundred years! A Greater Demon King can single handily match a hundred Archmages alone! Each time a Greater Demon King appears, calamity follows!
It is not hard to understand the feud between demons and humans. Which human society doesn't live off the farming of beasts? Which human can honestly say that a goat or a donkey's life is just as important as theirs? If a cow were to complete its cultivation, and their entire species ascends, would cows forgive humans for steak and cheese?
No! See one demon, kill one demon! See two demons, kill two!
And this feeling is mutual!
Not all demons can cultivate to the end, but all demons can slaughter in the four directions! Humans, wash your necks!
. . .
As Xxam looked across the Valley of Kings, he was washed by a wave of melancholy. It had been a year since he began building a city around the ancient tower, and yet... It was no longer his.
When news of Xxam's new city reached the Demon King, commands so unexpected came back that Xxam doubted the authenticity of the letters. The Demon King called off the war! After ten years, the Demon King had slaughtered his way to the walls of the Southern Capital, yet now he was returning empty handed. Everyone cursed the Demon King silently in their hearts, but Xxam could understand the reason behind the King's choice.
As powerful as he was, the Demon King's condition was not looking good. A year ago, his cultivation had reached a bottleneck at greater demon second level. Continuing the fight with just that paltry amount of strength is just courting death. The first earth dragon to wake up this century will be delighted to see such a tasty meal.
So the command came down upon the entire Demon Race like thunder! All Lesser Demon Kings will leave their cities to cultivate in the Valley of Kings! Nobody is allowed to leave the valley for the next ten years! All other matters will be put aside!
Xxam sighed. In the last six months, a heroic manifesto spread across the entire continent. Every demon who ever once dreamed of making a name for himself moved his family to the Valley of Kings. The reason behind the name was simple. Just breathing in the valley can increase cultivation! In such an environment, it would be more embarrasing not to become a lesser demon king.
Individual talent was no longer significant. Within ten years, every one of the five million inhabitants of the valley would be as powerful as a human archmage, and there was even a good chance that the Demon King could reach ascension! When that time comes, just forget about humans fighting back. Three hundred archmages against five million? Good luck!
For discovering such an amazing valley, the Demon King rewarded Xxam richly. He was allowed a residence directly adjacent to the walls built around the ancient tower, and given the honor to protect these walls. While the other seventy-two demon lords had to take turns cultivating outside the tower, he lived right on top of it, one step behind the King. Nothing gives Xxam as much joy these days as basking in the jealous gazes of his compatriots.
On this particular day, Xxam was staring idly out his window at the tower. His eyes attempted to pierce the thick gauze of the tower's window but to no avail. To this day, no one had been able to see through this window, and no one dared climb through it.
As Xxam was staring onwards blankly, his eyes suddenly focused and his pupils constricted in shock. A single purple blotch, about half the size of a palm, had tumbled onto the window's edge. As it glittered in the sunlight, Xxam felt a wave of terrified silence enrapture the valley.
Before the keen eyes of over half a million demons, the tiny slime dropped from the top of the tower. When it hit the ground, an earthquake-like rumble shook the city.
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Emperors Fortress in the Southern Capital, Human Continent, Not Earth Y5823
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Three hundred men and women were seated in the grand hall, surrounding a massive round table. Some of them looked ancient, some wore the uniform of the Holy Triumvirate, and most had a crown and scepter at their side. The atmosphere in the room would be powerful enough to kill a weak-willed man instantly. In this grand reception hall, nearly thirty seats were left empty.
After five minutes of such terse silence, a king finally lost his patience. "Why don't we hurry this meeting up."
Three hundred pairs of eyes fell on this king, who immediately shut up in fear.
"I agree, there is no need to wait for everyone. They are late, so we will leave them behind." A booming voice echoed in everyone's mind. The speaker looked to be thirty and wore clothing so regal that it would blind you in the sunlight. "Demons would rather die than admit a loss. Why did the Demon King retreat?"
While each person in the room was powerful enough to stand at the forefront of humanity, there were still clear divisions between them. Even among kings, very few were qualified to respond to this youth.
"The Church's spies have returned from the demon continent."
Everyone's heads swiveled to look at the new speaker. It was a priestly man in white and gold robes.
"The demons have congregated in a single valley. I was told that the magic there is so thick, that if a regular human were to breathe the air, they would immediately die."
The priest continued, "This valley is located a hundred kilometers above the Grand River Delta, and a single golden wizard tower dwarfs the surrounding city. That is all we were able to figure out."
Silence once more took over the room as this information sank in. Eventually, one terrified speaker attracted everyone's attention. "Is-is-is-does this wizard tower fly a red banner from a window?"
The speaker was an older man wearing a silver crown. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his clothing showed visable signs of age.
The priest contemplated for a moment. "Yes. Who are you?"
"Heuk!" The old man swallowed in fright. "L-Low first order Archmage Zion! I-I-I think I know who that tower belongs to- heuk!"
Frenzied stares seemed to pierce through Zion's soul.