Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

Bai E was originally meditating on his bed in his campsite, cultivating Spiritual Energy.

Having learned a plethora of skills regarding Spiritual Energy with Yue Ying tonight, he needed serene reflection to consolidate them, assisting himself in becoming more familiar with those techniques.

Of course... the cultivation of Spiritual Energy itself was also essential.

Beyond the awakening, subsequent practice did not present images of a sky full of stars or the primordial cosmos as grand visions beyond time and space.

Bai E's Spiritual Energy merely undulated faintly within his body; occasionally, some mischievous energy would leap out from the life magnetic field designated by his body, briefly "peeking" at the outside world.

Spiritual Energy was never a constrained or rigid theorem; it followed the heart's intentions, the human will, the occasional whimsical ideas... and occasionally, the dark thoughts from deep within, born of impulse, wandering freely in this world.

As of now, Bai E's spiritual power of level 10 was insufficient to support him in extended external observation of the "world."

However, at the moment the signal shot into the sky, Bai E, who had given the order, felt as if he witnessed the entire journey of the flare from dark corners to the heavens.

Because it was "related" to him, was the energy able to capture it the moment it appeared?

Realizing this, Bai E harbored even more fascination towards the existence of Spiritual Energy, and the sudden surprise in his thoughts caused a momentary surge within it.

The rapid expansion and contraction were akin to a "desire" of the Spiritual Energy to grow; had he calmed his mind to meditate quietly at that moment, perhaps his Spiritual Energy would joyfully increase by +1.

However, Bai E didn't have the luxury to delve deeper.

Trouble had struck!

He and Gilder had stressed the importance of the signal flare, and he trusted the old man knew what he was doing.

If it weren't for something significant, he would never have fired the signal flare to summon Bai E.

Since the signal was launched, it meant something had happened that was related to his own "foundation" and was urgent and inescapable.

It had to be resolved immediately!

What could it be?

The secret underground warehouse discovered?

The rat people found by the Arbitration Place?

Or something else?

But the direction the signal came from was... Black Street.

The faint trail of light in the sky was still visible, allowing one to discern the direction from which the signal had originated.

Produced by the military, Bai E had taken the opportunity to exchange military merits for it and had given it to Gilder; its quality was, of course, reliable.

So what had happened on Black Street?

After leaving the camp, Bai E sprinted through the dim starlight at breakneck speed.

Black Street was the nearest human settlement outside the military camp, but it was still at a considerable distance from the camp itself.

...

The basement.

The demon revealed its true form.

With a distorted face, its muscles were skinless and bulged as though countless tangled sinews had gathered together; shiny fascia wrapped around the body like a layer of bloody sausage casing, and its abscessed head was covered with eyes.

Those eyes focused simultaneously in different directions on every person present, roving around and emanating palpable malice to everyone under their gaze.

In fact, there were not many people left...

Aside from five players and two enforcers from Arbitration Place, everyone else in the basement—whether they were being whipped or the thugs delivering the beatings—had collapsed limply to the ground the moment the demon manifested.

The force that targeted their souls was not something those who muddled through Black Street without any central beliefs could resist.

Among the multitude of eyes on the swollen mass, some seemed puzzled by the situation, looking around aimlessly.

"Thank goodness it's not an original demon!" One of the enforcers on high alert relaxed slightly upon seeing the demon's true form.

The souls that were being drained had not been sent directly to a higher-dimensional space to become wandering spirits in that bizarre realm, suffering eternal torment, but were temporarily imprisoned within the demon's body.

This opened up the possibility of rescuing them... or rather, the possibility of granting them release.

"Are you afraid?" The enforcer of average height took a step back, standing shoulder to shoulder with his partner.

The standard team of two enforcers could usually only guarantee an advantage over demon Believers, provided the group wasn't too large.

But facing the demon's true form head-on... he wasn't very confident.

The recordings of similar events in the office usually required several or even more than ten teams working together to achieve victory.

Of course... the scale of demon Believers capable of summoning the true form of a demon was often immense; those Believers were troublesome on their own, and the summoned demon's strength would increase with the number of summoners, so difficulty was expected.

The current situation, where a singular Believer summoned the demon to possess and descend... was unheard of.

The tall, skinny enforcer pulled a bottle filled with Exorcism Essential Oil from his chest, "pop" went the sound as he opened the stopper, pouring the slightly viscous liquid onto the crossed blades in his hands.

Watching the massive, terrifying figure shaped like a mountain of flesh, the tall, skinny man's body trembled with excitement, "This is the very demon we've been hunting!"

Demons in their true forms rarely appear in the human world for two main reasons. First, the conditions supporting their arrival in this realm are extremely harsh, and under the relentless pursuit of the Arbitration Place's full corps of executioners, it is rare for believers who worship demons to amass a sufficiently large scale and sacrifice enough to summon a demon's true body.

Moreover, aside from those demons of the primeval source and above, other demons stand a chance of being slain once they come into the real world.

Purifying even one is undoubtedly a great contribution to the whole of human society.

The emotional thoughts and sentiments drifting in higher-dimensional space would not normally harm people in the real world, but it is these "demons," formed and with a will from the entanglement of countless emotions, that pose the greatest threat to human society.

They instinctively manipulate emotions to accelerate the corrosion of human minds.

External threats like insects and beastmen might also be severe disasters to humankind, but it is often the erosion from within that is more worthy of vigilance and more capable of completely subverting everything humans have.

"Do you want our help?" A voice suddenly came from the corner.

It was Dai Lian's.

This game was not like the conventional ones they used to play; the players could not just stand by holding the camera.

Perhaps, they too could do something?

The medium-sized executioner glanced over the five players, his expression revealing complex emotions—

It was these children of demons that turned normal humans into believers capable of summoning demons on their own, yet now they were willing to fight side by side with him and his partner...

Perhaps... they could not be labeled as "children of demons"?

That title might not be quite fair to them.

The fleeting thought passed, and the executioner gently pushed bullets soaked in Exorcism Essential Oil into the chamber of his shotgun.

With an explosive blaze bursting from the barrel, the elongated and sharp projectiles were the first to sound the horn of attack against the descending demon.

"Fire!"

The dual-bladed executioner dashed forward with agile steps, as complementary coordination was a must for a two-person fighting team.

While his partner was skilled with a gun, infusing bullets with his will to create piercing power strong enough to penetrate metal and stone, he naturally had to be able to entangle the opponent at close quarters, giving his partner enough opportunity to find vulnerabilities and deliver fatal damage.

What met the dual blades was a hand hammer resembling a flesh tumor encrusted with metal spikes. Despite the executioner's agile figure, the hammer acted like a lethal magnet, attracting his blades and forcing him into a contest of strength where he was at a disadvantage.

The true form of the demon was bizarre, vaguely resembling a humanoid shape, but otherwise, it bore no relation to humankind.

Where hands should be, there were only two massive lumps of flesh throbbing as if they were breathing.

In the instant when the blades filled with Spiritual Energy made contact with the hammer, an astonishing suction force transmitted from the hammer to the blades.

The Spiritual Energy adhering to the blades was instantly torn apart like fluid ripped by a giant gravitational source, pulled into the depths of the hammer.

Spiritual Energy is a part of the spirit.

The abnormal effects acting on Spiritual Energy are often felt as if they were one's own, and the lean executioner instinctively combated this deadly suction.

Naturally, he found himself overpowered in terms of strength as he focused all his effort on fighting the abnormal attraction.

In an instant, his lean body was hurled into the air, smashing towards the concrete ceiling above.

The seasoned executioner was not simply defeated; his immediate decision to use the force of his foe to escape the danger zone saved him. The moment he touched the ceiling, he used all four limbs to spring away lightly.

However, the foe was clearly unwilling to let him go.

The seemingly cumbersome legs burst forth with incredible speed, their acceleration ability in a straight line comparable to the executioner's agile evasions.

And the underground space was only so large, severely limiting the humans skilled in agile combat.

"Ding!"

"Ding!"

The dual blades resisted with difficulty, while the bullets searched for a chance to penetrate the defenses.

But the longer the fight went on, the paler the two executioners' faces became.

They could clearly sense that their Spiritual Energy was rapidly weakening!

Or rather, not weakening... but being absorbed!

Being absorbed by this coreless demon!

A demon capable of absorbing the Spiritual Energy of its opponents for its own use!

This was troublesome!

"Boom!"

A massive battle-ax crashed down on the demon wielding the heavy hammer. Kuang Xin, who was not quick, finally caught up with the brief pause in the "two-person" battle.

Kuang Xin, who specialized solely in strength, was no less capable in terms of strength than the executioners empowered by Spiritual Energy, and his use of heavy weapons also granted him an additional advantage from the weapon itself.
Enjoy new tales from empire

"RUA!"

"Bang!"

The next moment, the fleshy hammer ferociously slammed against the ax face, and Kuang Xin went flying in response...