Jiang Lin silently noted this information.
“Under the ‘Frostbone’ Demon Lord, Mordekaiser is also at the 5th-rank peak, but he follows an ice-attribute path. His defense is incredibly strong, and he is said to be the hardest of the four to kill.”
Jiang Lin’s brow twitched slightly.
Ice-attribute...
That was somewhat similar to his own path.
“Under the ‘Shadow’ Demon Lord is Zephys. She doesn’t fight head-on; instead, she focuses on assassination and control. No one has seen her true face. It’s said she can travel through shadows and kill invisibly.”
“Under the ‘Molten’ Demon Lord is Grom. He has the strongest frontal combat power among the four geniuses, also at the 5th-rank peak. It’s said he has a berserker constitution and an extremely fierce fighting style.”
Jiang Lin noted each piece of information before asking, “Besides the subordinates of the four great Demon Lords, are there any other noteworthy participants?”
“Yes,” the demon’s tone grew even more solemn. “The ‘loners,’ powerful individuals who don’t belong to any faction. Three of them are particularly dangerous.”
“The first is the ‘Demon Sword’ Lilith. She’s a demon woman. She works alone and never forms alliances, but her combat power is not inferior to the four great geniuses. Her swordsmanship has reportedly attained the minor success stage of sword intent, allowing her to take a life within ten steps.”
Jiang Lin’s heart stirred.
Minor success in sword intent...
He had actually encountered another genius who mastered sword intent.
“The second is the ‘Soul Devourer.’ No one knows his name or what he looks like.
“He wears a mask and never speaks. Every time he appears, he takes the lives of several participants.
“His method of absorbing Demon Lord Seeds is very special; he doesn’t need to kill his opponent. He can drain the seed’s energy just by getting close.
“It’s said he has already absorbed at least thirty seeds, making him the most dangerous presence of all.”
“The third...” the demon’s voice dropped lower, “is the ‘Holy Son.’ The Holy Son of the secret cult.”
Jiang Lin was somewhat surprised.
“The secret cult?” he asked. “People from the secret cult can also participate in the Demon Lord Trial?”
“He’s said to be an exception,” the demon explained. “Supposedly, he’s a defector who was once an apostle of god—a genius of the Temple who fell to the secret cult for some reason. His combat power is not inferior to the four geniuses, and because of his unique status, many demons are both wary and curious about him.”
Jiang Lin fell silent for a moment, organizing this information in his mind.
The four great geniuses: Karthus, Mordekaiser, Zephys, and Grom.
The three loners: the “Demon Sword” Lilith, the “Soul Devourer,” and the “Holy Son.”
Plus hundreds of ordinary participants.
These were his opponents for this trial.
Jiang Lin pulled his thoughts back, his gaze falling on the two injured participants.
“One last question.”
He raised his right hand, pressing his index and middle fingers together as a wisp of deep blue sword intent condensed at his fingertips.
“How do you want to die?”
The faces of the demon and the beastkin turned deathly pale at the same time.
The beastkin struggled to stand, but the wound on his left leg caused him to slump back to the ground.
The demon gritted his teeth, holding his broken blade in front of him, his dark red eyes filled with despair.
“We gave you the information!”
“I know,” Jiang Lin interrupted. “That’s why I’ll give you a quick death.”
Sword Intent Condensation.
Two streaks of deep blue sword light shot from his fingertips. Fast as lightning, they precisely pierced the foreheads of the two men.
The bodies of the demon and the beastkin froze instantly, the light in their eyes rapidly fading.
Their bodies began to freeze starting from their foreheads, as deep blue frost quickly spread to cover their entire frames.
In just a breath, two ice statues stood in the center of the hall.
Jiang Lin stepped forward and placed his hand on the demon’s ice statue.
Sinking his consciousness into it, he could clearly feel a dark red seed pulsing slowly inside the ice.
A Demon Lord Seed.
He guided the seed, drawing it out from the ice statue.
The moment the seed touched his hand, a surge of warm energy flowed up his arm and into his body, resonating with the long-dormant Demon Lord Seed at his heart.
Thump!
Jiang Lin’s heart gave a violent throb.
He could clearly feel his seed slowly expanding, the internal patterns becoming more intricate.
However, the change was very slight, like a single drop of ink falling into a lake; after the ripples spread, everything returned to calm.
“Still not enough.”
He let go, and the demon’s ice statue crumbled into countless crystalline shards.
Turning around, he also extracted and absorbed the beastkin’s seed.
The change was equally slight.
Two seeds had only caused his Demon Lord Seed to grow by a tiny fraction.
“It seems I’ll need many more.”
Jiang Lin walked out of the hall and leaped onto the top of the ruins, his gaze scanning the surroundings.
Under the dark purple sky, countless crimson claw-wings were silently circling.
Their vision streamed back into his consciousness through the mental link.
Within a hundred-li radius, there were at least three areas with battle fluctuations.
To the southeast, fire and frost intertwined, and the aftershocks of magic essence spread like a tide.
To the southwest, life signatures were moving rapidly, appearing to be in a pursuit.
Due north, deep within the rift valley, that heartbeat-like energy fluctuation was still pulsing.
“Start with the closest.”
With a thought, Jiang Lin’s figure moved like lightning, heading toward the southeast.
Dozens of crimson claw-wings followed closely behind, trailing long, blood-colored streaks through the dark purple sky.
The battle to the southeast was even more intense than he had anticipated.
By the time Jiang Lin arrived, the battlefield had turned into scorched earth.
The ground was cracked and pitted, covered everywhere with marks of fire burns and frost freezing.
The air was thick with the pungent smell of sulfur and blood.
Two figures were fighting among the ruins.
One was a demon, over two and a half meters tall, covered in dark red scales with horns curved like a ram’s.
He held a massive battle-axe, its blade burning with dark red flames, each swing sending sparks flying everywhere.
The other was a beastkin, even more heavily built and covered in gray-black fur, his arms tattooed with complex totemic patterns.
He had no weapon and used only his fists, but each punch carried a thunderous roar that sent ripples through the air.
“Both are 4th-rank peak.”
Jiang Lin stood on a distant hill, his golden eyes fixed on the battlefield.
He didn't rush to intervene. Instead, he had the crimson claw-wings disperse to block all paths of retreat.
In the center of the battlefield, the fight between the demon and the beastkin had reached a fever pitch.
The demon roared, raising his battle-axe high. The dark red flames on the blade suddenly surged, transforming into a thick pillar of fire that cleaved straight toward the beastkin.
The beastkin didn't retreat; he lunged forward, his fists colliding with a dull metallic clang.
The totemic patterns on his arms suddenly lit up, exploding with blinding golden light.
Boom!!!
The fire pillar and golden light collided, and the resulting shockwave sent the surrounding ruins flying.
As the dust settled, two figures were sent flying back simultaneously.
The demon crashed into a ruined wall, which collapsed and buried him under rubble.
The beastkin plowed a long trench into the ground, stopping only when he hit a massive rock.
He struggled to stand, but the totemic patterns on his arms had dimmed completely, clearly indicating a massive expenditure of energy.
“Now.”
Jiang Lin leaped down from the hill, his figure moving like a streak of light as he lunged toward the battlefield.
The demon had just crawled out from the rubble when he saw a golden figure rapidly approaching.
His pupils shrank, and he instinctively raised his battle-axe to parry.
Clang!!!
A deafening metallic crash echoed through the ruins.
Jiang Lin’s Eight Extremities Holy Sword collided with the battle-axe. Sparks flew everywhere.
The demon felt an indescribable force travel through the axe handle, numbing his arms and splitting the skin between his thumbs and index fingers.
He stumbled back, his dark red eyes filled with disbelief.
“You... you’re human?!”
Jiang Lin didn't answer, raising his sword once more.
First Style · Frost Condensation.
The sword moved without a shadow, and only a tiny, deep blue frost flower quietly appeared on the demon’s forehead.
His body froze in place, the light in his dark red eyes rapidly vanishing.
Frost spread from his forehead, covering his entire body.
A breath later, an ice statue stood among the ruins.
Jiang Lin raised his hand and extracted the Demon Lord Seed.
Upon absorption, there was the same slight change.
He turned and walked toward the still-struggling beastkin.
The beastkin leaned against the massive rock, his gray-black fur soaked in blood, the totemic patterns on his arms completely dark.
He looked up, his clouded eyes watching Jiang Lin, his mouth twisting into a bitter smile.
“Human... you are strong.”
“Yes.”
Jiang Lin raised his hand, and sword intent condensed.
A deep blue sword light sank into the beastkin’s forehead.
The second seed was absorbed.
The change remained subtle, but Jiang Lin could feel the seed at his heart growing slowly and steadily.
He sheathed the Eight Extremities Holy Sword and looked toward the southwest.
Several life signatures were moving rapidly in that direction.
“Hunt.”
Dozens of crimson claw-wings turned simultaneously, racing toward the southwest.
Jiang Lin followed closely behind, his figure leaping through the ruins before disappearing into the dark purple twilight.
On the third day in the Abyss Corridor, Jiang Lin encountered his first organized group of opponents.
It was a squad of five demons, all around the 4th-rank, led by a 4th-rank peak warrior.
They were moving through the ruins, seemingly searching for something.
When Jiang Lin appeared before them, the lead warrior was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter.
“A human? A human dares to participate in the Demon Lord Trial?”
The four demons behind him also laughed, as if they had seen something hilarious.
“Brothers, surround him. Don’t let him run; this one is a rare find.”
The five demons spread out, flanking Jiang Lin in a fan formation.
Their coordination was seamless, clearly indicating they were not first-time partners.
Jiang Lin stood his ground, his long golden hair fluttering in the wind, his expression as calm as water.
“Five. That should be enough.”
He raised his right hand, pressing his index and middle fingers together.
Sword Intent Condensation.
Five streaks of deep blue sword light shot from his fingertips, striking toward the five demons simultaneously.
The lead warrior reacted fastest. He roared, a dark red shield appearing on his body as he tried to block the attack.
But the sword light was not physical; it ignored the shield and sank directly into his forehead.
His body froze in place, the smile hardening on his face.
Frost spread.
The other four demons didn't even have time to react before they were hit by the sword lights in succession.
Five ice statues now stood among the ruins.
Jiang Lin stepped forward, extracting their Demon Lord Seeds one by one and absorbing them.
With five seeds entering his body, the seed at his heart finally showed a significant change.
It had grown about ten percent in size, and the patterns on its surface were more complex, with a faint dark red light flowing within.
Jiang Lin closed his eyes, carefully sensing the change.
It wasn't the abrupt, forced improvement brought by system rewards.
Instead, it was a gentler, more natural growth.
Like a seed sprouting in the soil, or a sapling growing under the sun.
This was power that belonged to him.
“More.”
He opened his eyes, light swirling in his golden gaze.
Over the following days, Jiang Lin roamed throughout the Abyss Corridor.
He avoided areas with strong energy fluctuations, specifically hunting lone targets or small groups.
Every time he encountered a participant, he ended the battle as quickly as possible, absorbed the seed, and continued searching for the next.
On the first day, he dealt with seven.
On the second, twelve.
On the third, nineteen.
By the seventh day, he had absorbed over fifty Demon Lord Seeds.
The seed at his heart was now nearly twice its original size. The surface was densely covered in patterns, and a dark red light flowed through it like an extension of his own heart.
But Jiang Lin could feel that he was still far from a qualitative change.
“Fifty seeds aren't enough. I need at least a hundred.”
He stood on a black hill, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings.
The sky was still dark purple and the earth was still cracked, but he had already cleared the nearby ruins.
“I need to go deeper.”
He looked toward the north, at that rift valley.
Deep within the rift, the heartbeat-like energy fluctuation was still pulsing, clearer than it had been days ago.
“There should be more participants there.”
Jiang Lin leaped down from the hill and sped toward the rift valley.
Shortly after he left, a figure silently appeared where he had just been standing.
It was a demon woman.
She wore tight-fitting black leather armor that highlighted her tall, curvaceous figure.
Long silver-white hair draped over her shoulders, the tips slightly curled, shimmering with a cold luster under the dark red sky.
Her face was exquisite and cold, her features as if carved from ice and jade, without a single flaw.
Most striking were her eyes.
They were pale purple with vertical pupils like a snake's. When her gaze shifted, tiny specks of light flickered within them.
A slender sword hung at her waist, its scabbard pitch-black and devoid of any decoration.
“A human... and his sword intent is not weak.”
She whispered to herself, her pale purple eyes looking in the direction where Jiang Lin had disappeared.
With a flash, she vanished from the spot.
Meanwhile, deep within the rift valley.
A figure sat cross-legged on a black rock.
He wore a mask—a pure white one with no expression, only two black-hole-like eye sockets.
Faint black mist swirled around him, and within the mist, countless tiny, living tentacles could be seen writhing.
The “Soul Devourer.”
He suddenly looked up, his eye sockets peering toward the upper reaches of the rift valley.
“A new aura... and a strong one.”
He stood up, the black mist condensing beneath his feet to lift him slowly into the air.
“Time to go meet him.”
...
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