Rise of The Demon General

The battle in Venal Virtuous City was over. There was never a doubt about who the winner would be from the start. The cryanids’ number was overwhelming. Even when Mo Wang’s poison wiped out a large portion outside the city, the ones inside were more than enough for the job.

When Amon and Yao Ai entered the city, the Cryanids and altered Hyanids were combing it for human survivors. Most of the city had fallen into ruins. No building was intact. Corpses were everywhere, both humans and Cryanids.

Contrary to what the townspeople believed, the Cryanids didn’t slaughter everyone. Those who stopped resisting were herded to open plazas spread around the city. They were grouped there and guarded by the Cryanids.

While the citizens were confused about what these Cryanids intended to do with them, Amon was not. They were to be turned into the altered Hyanids, to become the Hyanid brood’s loyal and expendable soldiers.

When the captured humans saw Yao Ai flying above, they immediately shouted to her.

”Domain lord! Save us...!!”

Yao Ai might not be their domain lord, but everyone in the lower world knew what all three domain lords looked like. Certainly, the lord of the Mercy Domain would save them even if they were not her subjects. These insects were the enemies of humanity, after all.

The groups in the neighboring plazas that heard joined in on the pleading. Their voice soon turned into a chant. However, no matter how they begged, Yao Ai continued as if she didn’t hear them.

Eventually, the pleading citizens had no choice but to accept the unbelievable truth. The lord of the Mercy Domain was colluding with these Cryanids!

”Why are they keeping live humans?” Yao Ai asked Amon. Even though she didn’t care for those humans below, she still felt terrible. How would her subjects in the Mercy Domain view her if the news reached them? He would have preferred these Cryanids to slaughter all the humans and leave no survivors.

”It’s their spoil of war,” Amon answered.

”For what? Food?”

Amon didn’t bother to give her another answer.

They landed on the field in front of the ruins of Hai Di’s castle. A group of captive humans was also held there, but it was obvious from a glance that they were not common citizens. The group here comprised Hai Di’s family and the higher-ups of the Devotion Faction.

Amon spotted Hai Xuang, Xin Lie, and Li Jing among the group. There were also Hai Di’s other children, whom he knew but never met, as well as Devotion Faction’s warlords and top specialists whom he had only read about from reports.

Xin Lie and Li Jing shouted to them when they saw him. ”Lady Yao Ai! Amon! Help us!”

However, their pleading expression soon turned to disbelief when they realized that the Cryanids showed no hostility to the two.

”You... You can’t be! You are conniving with these insects?!”

Both Amon and Yao Ai ignored the accusation.

Krassazh was there, conveying commands to the Cryanids and altered Hyanids using his clicking language. He turned to Amon and Yao Ai when they landed. He glanced at the captive humans who continued shouting at the two humans. He told them, ”Let’s talk somewhere quiet.”

Amon and Yao Ai followed him under the angry eyes of many. They entered the ruins of Hai Di’s castle. Despite the destruction, there were still a few rooms where the walls and floor had not yet been destroyed. They entered one of these rooms. The ceiling was no more, but the walls remained intact.

Krassazh began, ”As agreed, all humans in the Northern half of this world are to migrate to the Southern half. The Northern half will become the Hyanid’s territory. I will give the humans one month to migrate. Anyone who fails to do so will be captured and treated as I please.”

”No,” Amon uttered.

”Excuse me?” Krassazh asked.

”The territory division in the lower world will remain the same. You will take the Devotion Domain. Yao Ai here will continue to be in charge of the Mercy Domain, and I will rule the Commitment Domain.”

Yao Ai showed a surprised expression. She didn’t expect Amon to let her remain a ruler.

Krassazh was also surprised by Amon’s words, but his surprise resulted in a scowl. He asked Amon, ”Are you going back on your words?”

”I do not. I promised to help the Hyanids claim a territory on the mainland. I deliver on that promise. You are free to rule over the Devotion Domain.”

”Don’t feign ignorance! I know you remember our deal. The deal is that we divide this lower world in half. Each of us will rule one-half. Half! Not one-third! The Hyanids should get more land than the current Devotion Domain!”

Amon shook his head. ”Supreme leader Krassazh. I respect you. You have been there since the birth of your kind. Your tenacity is no doubt the main reason that the Hyanids have survived till now. Someone like you should know that uninhibited greed is the downfall of most. If you occupy half of this lower world, I can guarantee that you won’t be able to keep it for long.”

”Are you threatening me?” Krassazh asked. ”If you think that the woman behind you can protect you from me. You’d better think again. We are right in the middle of my army. You won’t get out of here alive without my say-so.”

”I didn’t threaten you, but I also don’t fear you. To prove my point, I will show you this.”

Amon flew up through the open ceiling. He aimed his hand upward. Suddenly, the sky above was filled with a massive horde of battle puppets and altered beasts. The sight took everyone in the city aback.

”You... You have a hidden army?” Krassazh asked.

”I always have them with me.” Amon touched one of the nearest battle puppets. All the battle puppets and altered beasts touched one another. They vanished as abruptly as when they appeared.

Amon flew back down and told Krassazh, ”The ones I showed you are only those that can fly. I have more troops, which are ground-based. So, I’m not bluffing when I said I don’t fear your army. Now that I have established that fact, let us resume our talks.”

”I don’t fear you,” Krassazh said defiantly. ”If you think you can push us around and dishonor our deal, you have another thing coming. You will learn the hard way how resilient we Hyanids are.”

”It is not my intention to push you or deceive you. As I said, I decided for the Hyanids to take only the Devotion Domain because it provides the best outcome for everyone involved. May I explain the reasons?”

Krassazh remained pissed, but he saw that Amon wasn’t intentionally picking a fight, so he nodded.

”First of all, I have seen your population. You don’t need half the land of this world. It is too large for you. You won’t even make use of half the land of this Devotion Domain in a thousand years to come. Secondly, there are way more humans than the Hyanids. If we force all the humans in this world into the Southern half, there will be overpopulation. Even if we order everyone to respect the border, they won’t obey. Combine the two reasons, and you will have humans constantly trespassing into a territory too large for you to defend.”

”Hmph! All those trespassers will become food for the Cryanids,” Krassazh said. ”Enough humans being made an example, and it will deter the others from doing the same.”

”Therein lies the problem,” Amon stated. ”Your solution revolves around taking humans’ lives, but you will not stop the confrontation. You will make it worse. The more you make examples out of the trespassers, the more humans will resent your race. Eventually, the hatred will be so strong that we will not be able to control the populace and will have no choice but to give in to their demand to go to war with you.

”I don’t wish for that to happen. You are my ally. I respect you and wish for our cooperation to flourish. I don’t want us to kill each other, but if you insist on taking half of the world, that will happen. Take a step back, for the sake of peace. I will make it up to you. Your kind is used to build a city underground, but not on it. I will spare builders to help you build your first city. I will also provide specialists to show you how to grow food on this mainland. Once your people settle in, I believe we can even open trades between our territories.

”I believe this condition gives the best chance for the Hyanids to prosper on the mainland. At least I think it is better than the constant warfare that will surely happen if you insist on taking half of this lower world. Don’t you think so?”

Krassazh gritted his teeth. Though Amon’s reasoning sounded sensible, he knew the true reason was that Amon wanted more power. He knew Yao Ai was under Amon’s control, which meant Amon effectively ruled two-thirds of the lower world. Nevertheless, he didn’t wish to go to war with the entire lower world. The Cryanids and altered Hyanids provided him with a considerable force, but they would still not be enough against the combined forces of all the humans in this lower world.

After taking a deep breath, he reluctantly told Amon, ”Very well. The Hyanids will take the Devotion Domain.”