Ragellon walked forward a few steps and chanted some words in the demonic tongue. Moments later, a portal, similar to the one Dreu took to escape the capital, appeared. Ragellon and the demonic children walked through it leaving Dreu and his companions slightly bewildered. Dreu and his companions stared at one another before they entered the portal. Once they were through, they found themselves atop a tall hill overlooking a metropolis that easily matched Xante in size. Normally, a metropolis would be teeming with life with the denizens going about their day. However, this metropolis appeared empty and completely devoid of life. In fact, the young man felt the whole place was empty, like no one had inhabited the region for a long time.

“Welcome to Isonron, the artificial demonic city.”

“Artificial city?” muttered Dreu.

“This city was created by my father and numerous other powerful demons. As long as no one inhabits the city, this place can last indefinitely. Once we live in it, the city will remain for five years before it vanishes from existence.”

“Why create such a city?”

“My grandparents’ generation foresaw the need for it. They weren’t confident they could win on the Chilsor Plains. Being paranoid, they created this city which we will take advantage of.”

“What is there to take advantage of?”

Dreu studied the city and saw nothing significant about it. The buildings were no different from Gujash. Now that he had a better look, the young man could almost see similarities between the artificial city and the former demon capital. Yet, nothing jumped out as out of place or powerful to him. He was also aware that, as a human, he might not sense demonic energy. He turned to his companions but they too weren’t impressed with the scene. Zog, who seemed accustomed to sensing danger, appeared extremely calm.

“The time in this realm works differently from the outside world. Five years here is the equivalent to five months out there. My grandparents and parents made this the ideal training ground for the future generations as a way to protect them and give them a chance to grow strong enough to fight whatever wanted them dead.”

In other words, the fanatic followers of Xemir.

Knowing the existence of these artificial cities, Dreu could see how the demons grew so powerful. Five years of training compressed into five months could greatly aid the growth of anyone. While five years didn’t guarantee full mastery of anything, the proficiency one gained could be the difference between winning and dying. Next, a question surfaced in his mind.

“About that barrier you spoke of?”

“It surrounds the city right at this moment.” Ragellon’s hands drew the outline of the city in the air. “We are generally safe inside the city. Once we step out, we will encounter demonic creatures. The barrier also serves to hide the city so, except for demonic creatures, all other creatures and beings would only see a mountain.”

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“I thought this was supposed to be a safe location?”

“How will you get stronger without demonic creatures to fight?”

“You have a point.”

Dreu stopped asking questions as he had plenty to digest. The demonic child then led the way to the city. Dreu followed and wondered about this interesting place. He briefly glanced at his companions thinking about the growth they could experience. Distracted by his thoughts, the young man tripped over something.

“That thing on the ground is a lesser demonic crystal.”

Dreu looked between Ragellon and the unremarkable rock in the dirt. He picked it up but he couldn’t differentiate it from a random rock. He raised it up towards the single light source in the ceiling. It wasn’t a moon or star he was familiar with. From where he knelt, the light source seemed to be a large crystal in the ceiling. When he held the rock between him and the light, nothing happened.

Ready, Zog?

Before he finished his question, Zog already flew near his hand and gently tapped the lesser demonic crystal. Upon making contact, light shone brightly from the crystal blinding Dreu. The young man used his other arm to shield himself from the light. After several seconds, the light vanished as quickly as it appeared. Zog, in his new form, rested on Dreu’s hand that held the crystal a moment ago. The crystal vanished without a trace but Dreu was captivated by Zog's appearance. During mid-evolution, Zog was merely a demon worm with wings sprouting out from his back. With his evolution complete, the former demon worm became a majestic butterfly.

The new two antennas on Zog’s head moved independently through the air. Dreu’s attention was quickly drawn to the new compound eyes which had a slight sparkle. The stubby legs that carried the demon worm were replaced by thin legs that seemed far too fragile. Dreu’s eyes then turned to the wings. During mid-evolution, the wings had a black outline and dark green interior. Now, the black outline remained but black swirling lines populated the wing interior, turning the wings into dark green whirlpools.

< Demon Worm (Zog) has evolved into Demon Butterfly (Zog). >

Dreu quickly checked the info on Zog’s new evolution.

< Lv 1 Demon Butterfly (Zog):

Description: This butterfly-like creature is the evolved form of demon worms. Through evolution, the demon butterfly gains wings for more maneuverability, compound eyes for better capacity to detect moving targets and two spells to add to its arsenal. While combat experience as a demon worm doesn’t translate well directly to a demon butterfly, the experience can still come in handy, though a demon butterfly will need time to adjust to its new body and abilities. Demon butterflies are far better suited for combat than their pre-evolution form.

Recommendations:

-Stay in the air against ground targets

-Avoid close combat encounters

Evolution:

-???

Skill:

-Chaos Flames (Lvl 1): Active. Shoots chaos flame projectiles at enemies. Unlimited uses but the ability has a low cost of mana per use.

-Barrier (Lvl 1): Active. Grants the user or ally a barrier to reduce damage taken from physical attacks. Limited to 10 uses per day.

Status:

+15% attack and defense from veterency.

+20% movement from wings.>