127. Super Ancient Civilization (1)
More than half of the world was covered in swamps and towering jungle trees, a strange world where it was so hot and humid that it was hard for the average human to even breathe.
Seemingly a vast expanse of Earth’s Amazon, this region has now become a wild battlefield in the midst of a massive battle between demonic invaders and native races.
A lizard with thick scales and cold green blood.
These are the Lizardman, a native race of the region who are showing off their formidable potential against the demons that attack them.
Born with large, strong bodies to survive in harsh environments, this race of lizards has demonstrated an astonishing ability to withstand demonic fire.
The demons who struggled on the battlefield looked at each other and gritted their teeth.
“Damn, these cubs don’t have a fire.”
“What are all these monsters?”
“Any further orders from the commander?”
“not yet.”
“Ha, that’s going crazy.”
The commander’s demons, heavily armed with cool black light-emitting armor and various weapons, couldn’t hide their bewilderment against these monsters standing in their way.
Just as the devil’s henchmen sent by the Lord of Destruction were helplessly burned the moment they met legion mammoths or snow crabs, whose fires of hell do not work properly, the demon commander’s subordinates lost confidence when they met opponents whose greatest firepower, the flames, did not work properly. will be.
If this happens, you will eventually have to come close and pick up a weapon and engage in a hand-to-hand combat, but even this method was not easy to choose.
Once in a swamp where they can never easily get out of their feet, the demons who fell after being hit by the Lizardman’s weapon, and their limbs were torn in an instant by their supernatural power, created a very horrific scene.
To make matters worse, there were other targets besides the monstrous lizard that were not properly consumed by the fire of hell.
“These trees are also strange.”
“What tree is it? Why is our fire not lighting properly?”
The whole environment in this area, including that huge tree that reminds me of buildings on Earth, was a problem.
Neither the attack that turned all the materials in the world into ashes, nor the bombs containing the energy of darkness, could properly burn the plants in this area that held some strange power.
“Enemy javelin—!!!”
“Avoid everyone!!!”
The Lizardman troops, who hid themselves in camouflage under the trees in the jungle, were throwing crude weapons such as spears and arrows at the demon army flying in the sky based on the power of their bodies.
Faaat-!!!
What the hell did those lizards eat to live on, so they were born with such strong bodies?
The sharp sound of flying thrown weapons tearing the air shook the air everywhere with the force of a bomb exploding.
“Ahhh-!!!”
Surprisingly, the accuracy of this Lizardman’s terrifying throwing attack was also very surprising, and it resulted in many of the demons seeking opportunities in the air to fall to the ground.
After a while, the crudely made shield of the Lizardman and the spear of the fallen demon army collided with each other, and a bloody roar shook the jungle.
But the outburst only buys a moment of time.
The fate of the demons who fell into the swamp was only to return to the flame from which they were born.
Against the Lizardmen, the devil’s most powerful weapon, Hellfire, is not working properly, and even the strength of the body is so different that it is difficult to engage in close combat.
Against such ignorant bastards, a demon that fell after being hit by a thrown weapon had never risen again since the battle began.
“Whoa, Balak is such a troublesome bastard. Where the hell did you get these lizard monsters from?”
The demonic commander, who was looking around the battlefield from a powerful fortress high in the sky, frowned upon realizing that the war situation was not going well.
“aide. You must not fail in your mission. Find an appropriate solution.”
“I am looking for it now.”
“Hurry before more damage accumulates.”
The Demon Commander recently betrayed the Lord of Doom and decided to cooperate with the Lord of the Legion, who gave him permission to fight.
The first mission given to him after changing his master like this was the operation he was executing right now, ‘capturing or killing Balak who escaped alive’.
“You can’t escape from a struggle with something like Balak.”
Balak, who tried to turn the tide of battle by stealing the legion’s dragon, failed. Using the mobility of the small dragon he usually rode, he quickly fled to the edge of the star group to which the empire belonged.
However, pursuing the target given to the Demon Commander itself was not that difficult, no matter how far away it was.
Balak, the ruler of the reptiles, and Halfas, the demon commander, were both called ‘kings’ or ‘princes’ among demons and belonged to pure bloodlines.
It was very difficult for these high-ranking demons to hide each other’s location because of the unique scent of blood flowing through their bodies and the strong aura.
“I didn’t think it was a big deal for someone who didn’t have a dragon… … .”
The Demon Commander, who had easily figured out Balak’s escape route and where he was hiding, thought he was just a rat in a poison.
Although the target was a powerful demon who had a great record in the past, the source of its power came from the now extinct race of dragons.
“Balak, there was a trick hidden from you.”
A dragon trainer who couldn’t handle dragons had to be just an incompetent ordinary devil, and since they disappeared from the world, other variables shouldn’t have existed.
However, the guy who thought so, when he found it, he was enduring it by countering his attacks like this, with a large group of strange lizard species who he didn’t know where he got it from.
“Commander, it looks like we’ve found the cause. The largest tree in the area radiates a very alien force all around.”
“An alien force?”
“That’s right. It consumes not only the flames of Hell, but also the forces of darkness and chaos.”
After diligently analyzing the strange aura that covered the entire area, the adjutant finally succeeded in finding the source of this terrifying power that chews on the devil’s ability.
“That tree hidden in the thick fog seems to be the culprit. Dozens of soldiers sacrificed to find that tree. By the way, Commander. I think that tree… … .”
“… … Damn it.”
The commander and adjutant looked at each other with serious expressions as they looked at the tree their men had found while risking their lives.
“Isn’t that tree a sapling of the damned ‘Yggdrasil’?”
“Yes, I think the same.”
A source that exerts influence throughout the region, fending off the flames of hell and making the native races so powerful that even demons can easily slice through them.
It was one of the descendants of the world tree, the tree of the creator god, which is supposed to exert the most lethal power against demons.
“Balak you crazy bastard. Even if it’s a reptile, you’ve taken possession of a race under the aura of the World Tree?”
The Demon Commander felt a pull in his backbone.
The trump card hidden by ‘Balak, which is nothing without a dragon’, whom he secretly underestimated, was quite bitter.
That tree that had dominion over this area was, of course, the devil’s natural enemy, and if that tree wasn’t removed, the outcome of future battles would only be defeat.
“Commander, what will you do? I think… … It seems difficult to dominate the world ruled by the World Tree with only our own power… … .”
The lieutenant hinted that it would be better to enlist the help of the Legion when things went wrong, but the Demon Commander shook his head.
“aide.”
“Yes.”
“As long as you can try, you should try everything. Borrowing the power of the Legion is yet to come.”
A demonic commander who had already been defeated by the Legion and experienced submission for the first time in his life, but he thought it was because the Legion and its rulers were too strong.
Being defeated again against the same demon lord was something that his pride, who was called an undefeated commander, could never tolerate.
“Adjutant, from now on we plan a plan to burn down that damn tree. Select volunteers who are not afraid of death and resurrection, and prepare all of ‘the baptized weapons’ supported by mankind. If that’s the case, that tree should be enough to burn down.”
“… … But Commander.”
“Something? Say what you want to say.”
The adjutant said with a worried expression.
“Aren’t we allied with the Legion to fight the Lord of Doom?”
“Yes.”
“And the descendants of the World Tree are the nemesis of all demons.”
“That too.”
“Then, will the ruler of the Legion and the Apostle of the Earth Goddess allow us alone to burn that tree, which would be a good weapon?”
Actually, this was the biggest problem.
That tree was a very precious tree, rare to find in the whole universe, and the most powerful weapon to pose a threat against the Lord of Ruin.
Burning a precious tree just to catch a runaway demon lord was sure to disapprove of the tactic of a Legion obsessed with collecting useful things.
However, the Demon Commander had already made up his mind to capture and kill Balak on his own without the help of the Legion.
“We can’t handle it, but they can handle that tree well enough. The first thing to do is to report to them… … .”
“… … aide.”
“Yes.”
“Are you asking me, an undefeated commander, to borrow the strength of the Legion against a lowly bastard like Balak?”
“… … Commander.”
“I have all operational authority, and my choice is the best right now.”
The fact that he couldn’t mess with his first mission under his new lord was the main reason why the Demon Commander persisted in not asking for help from the Legion.
“First action, I will report the candidate.”
“… … All right.”
After a while, the devil’s resources for the hidden World Tree arson operation ran out.
“Commander, all preparations are complete.”
“Let’s go.”
When the demon commander left his room, the demons who had applied for the World Tree bombing operation were gathered in the clearing of the fortress with heavy backpacks on their backs that gave off a very unusual atmosphere.
“Comrades. listen carefully. The damn world tree that exists in this area, the damn tree that makes those lizards invincible, will burn down after this time.”
The devil commander, who stopped talking with a firm expression, spread his wings that he had folded and spoke to his subordinates.
“Follow me.”
As the commander jumped out of the fort first, the demons followed him with a roaring roar that shook the air.
Flash-!!!
In a secret area hidden in thick fog, a series of gigantic explosions began to heat the ground.
* * *
After a brief violent conversation with the Pantheon’s Apostle, I expanded the Hive consciousness to see how the Demon Commander, the first to go into action, was doing it.
The Hive consciousness, which spread out into the distant space where the creatures of the Legion had spread, reached the Demon Commander’s stronghold after a long time.
The manager, who was watching this scene from the side, stuck out his tongue as if admiring it.
“… … You look kind of great.”
“I basically don’t believe in demons.”
“No way, does that have a self-destruct function?”
“Sure.”
The ‘Legion roundworm’ planted in the body secretly by the demons borrowed their nerves and sent various audio-visual data in real time, and thanks to that, I can receive all the information without sending jellyfish or clones there.
The roundworms of the Legion boasted a great ability in collecting information, and even more so, at the moment when there was a sign of betrayal, they could hatch eggs laid inside and take away the entire body.
“The demon who ran away is leading a strange lizard race? It’s the first time I’ve seen such kids.”
“Senior, I’m watching too. uh… … Are you a little taller than you think? How many do I have to capture and bring back?”
“… … I was very determined to open a zoo.”
What we figured out by using these roundworm-infected demons was that Balak was rebelling very hard with a race that strongly stimulated my desire to collect.
As it is a race that can block Hellfire with its bare body and tear apart well-armed demons with brute force, it was well worth researching after obtaining a sample.
“Well… … . Let’s dispatch one clone. Arachne. Ready to send the kids… … yes?”
As I watched this, the situation at the scene was becoming more and more strange.
“Well? What is that bastard doing now? What is that big beautiful firewood?”
“Ah, yes. I can see why those lizards are so strong. There is a world tree on that star. It’s not common.”
“Well? World demand?”
“Jiwoo, but things are going a little strangely? It seems to me that that bastard is blowing up a nuclear backpack on the World Tree?”
world tree
It seems like a tree I’ve heard a lot about… … .
“Old man. Is that world tree really helpful in war?”
“yes. right. Even if you make a wooden sword out of it, you can beat a demon very easily. But why is that bastard using nuclear weapons on that precious World Tree without telling us?”
“Ha, if this is the case, then again I have to go and see… … .”
After all, devils were untrustworthy bastards.
I am going to change my plan and move directly with my troops to the scene where the Demon Commander is doing random accidents.
It was just when I was trying to connect the portal.
“uh… … Wait, what are they?”
“Well?”
“Hey, can’t you see that?”
“… … ah?”
On the scene, people with very strange appearances that we had never met before began to appear one by one.
And these unknown people began to attack very bloodily, not covering the demon commander and his subordinates who were attacking the World Tree, as well as the Lizardmen who had flocked to stop them.
Suddenly, the eyes of the manager and I, who were looking at those who broke into the scene and acted unexpectedly, met each other.
And, the same words flowed out of our mouths as if we had squeezed them together.
“… … alien?”
“alien?”