The Red Dragon Just Wants To Do As It Pleases

"What on earth does he think he's doing?"

An extremely absurd and unimaginable sense of unease suddenly gripped Dagos: Could that Red Dragon actually be thinking of digging through the Styx River?!

This sounded like an utter fantasy, yet it seemed to be the only way the Red Dragon could retaliate against his will and find a chance of survival amidst the chaos. Considering the Red Dragon's previous display of almost single-handedly carving through this Blood War battlefield with brute force, this seemingly impossible plan actually appeared to have a sliver of a chance of success!

It was nothing more than carving through the battlefield again.

Nothing more? Heh, was that even possible?

Yet, should the Red Dragon succeed, heaven only knew what uncontrollable and unforeseen catastrophic consequences it would bring to the Blood War battlefield.

This was something that any lawful Devil would normally never even consider; even Demons would actively avoid it.

For the waters of the Styx River were not just a physical threat to mortals; they also carried potent negative energy and destructive power. Furthermore, the waters of the Styx were even more lethal to residents of the Lower Planes like Demons and Devils. These waters could not only rapidly erode their physical forms but also corrupt their souls and wills, even capable of erasing their memories and individuality.

For any creature from the Lower Planes, this was an extreme and utterly unacceptable terror.

Their souls and individuality were the very essence of their existence. If they lost these, they would completely lose any possibility of revival.

How dare that dragon do such a thing!

It was also difficult to comprehend how the enemy had managed it.

It was well known that on the complex and myriad Blood War battlefields, any error in decision-making or delay in reaction could result in immediate death and destruction. Even a seasoned Devil commander like him couldn't ensure everything went his way or achieve invincibility. The slightest misstep could lead to him being replaced on the spot by a newly selected Devil.

Yet, that Red Dragon not only possessed an absurd amount of magic, but every time it seemed on the verge of a disastrous crash, it would invariably manage to narrowly evade fatal blows, as if it possessed some form of Foresight. He had even witnessed with his own eyes the Soul Train, controlled by that dragon, drill straight under the crotch of a Balor Demon wreathed in flames, thereby avoiding the toxic clouds spewed by a swarm of pursuing Flomo.

What's more, a large group of unlucky Flomo had crashed headlong into the Balor Demon's groin and thighs, instantly becoming roasted chickens that plummeted from the sky, only to be snatched up and devoured by the Demons following behind.

If this had happened only a few times, it could have been attributed to luck. But for it to occur repeatedly, enabling the dragon to leverage such an ability to carve through the Blood War battlefield twice in succession, seemed utterly preposterous.

There could only be one explanation: this Red Dragon truly possessed an ability akin to Foresight! And damn it all, it seemed to be continuously active! This was beyond the capabilities of any ordinary creature, perhaps even most Chromatic Dragons. Could it be? Was this dragon truly a favored of the Chromatic Dragon Queen?

But without orders from the Lord of the Nine Hells, why would those Chromatic Dragons, who never lift a claw without promise of gain, suddenly interfere?

"Kamoth Sakas! You get back here!"

Damn it! Damned chaotic fools! A bunch of muscle-brained idiots!

But amidst the cacophony of the battlefield, David, already speeding away without hesitation, couldn't hear what Dagos was shouting. Even if he had, he would have dismissed it with contempt.

Sometimes, reality was just that absurd. A moment ago, he had wanted to use the Devils' defensive line to escape, and they had refused. Now, seeing him poised to overturn this entire section of the Blood War battlefield, they were suddenly willing to let him breach their lines for refuge.

However, just as Dagos spread his Pit Fiend wings, intending to pursue the Soul Train that was rampaging across the Blood War battlefield, he, a Devil commander, was immediately swarmed and intercepted by a host of high-ranking Demons, including a Demon Lord.

Compared to a few young Dragons, their desire to kill a Devil commander on the spot was evidently stronger. Such a feat would undoubtedly attract the attention and favor of the Mother of the Abyss. It might even lead to a direct promotion to a new Demon Lord by the Will of the Abyss.

Dagos, cut off mid-flight, could only watch helplessly as the Red Dragon piloted the Soul Train—that monstrous Iron Beast of the Prison—spewing an exhaust of black soul-dregs, as it gradually vanished behind layers of intercepting Demon figures.

In that instant, Dagos found himself actually hoping that these eternal adversaries of his could somehow stop that mad Red Dragon.

「Half a month later,」

Contrary to the Devil commander Dagos's hopes, David and his companions, having almost torn through this Blood War battlefield for a second time, still hadn't halted their relentless charge. However, compared to its state half a month ago, the Soul Train was now on the verge of disintegration.

At the same time, a new, grim necklace adorned David's neck—a string of heads. They all belonged to his retainers.

The carefree young Red Dragon, Lizrite, was the first to fall.

An axe from a Demon commander whistled down. David evaded it, but Lizrite, the young Red Dragon just behind him, was cleaved in two on the spot. Just as the Demon was about to snatch her upper body as a trophy, David's tail whipped out and pulled it back onto the train in the nick of time.

The Red Dragon's powerful vitality meant Lizrite didn't die instantly, but she was on the verge of death. Her gaze fixed deeply on David, who was fighting fiercely, drenched in blood. She wanted to express her gratitude for his taking her in all those years ago, and to confess the love she had hidden in her heart for so long. However, David's almost raspy voice cut her off,

"Pledge your faith to the God of Strength, Pafila! Believe in Her with all your heart!"

"And I," David declared, "will personally send you on your way!"

Lizrite's eyes, which had held a look of desolate resolve, suddenly widened in astonishment.