Sovereign of the Ashes

While a fierce battle raged in Purgatory, Sein was brought before one of the demon kings.

It was the Razorclaw King—a formidable Rank Five demon, towering tens of meters tall, his body covered in razor-sharp spikes.

In Faeloria, such a creature held power equivalent to an intermediate deity.

By comparison, the Bone Lord that had attacked Sein when he first arrived in Faeloria was far weaker than the Razorclaw King before him.

The sheer destructive power of this demon king was evident just from his form alone.

Sein had encountered many Rank Five beings before, yet in the Razorclaw King’s presence, he did not even dare to breathe loudly.

At that moment, it was obvious that the Razorclaw King was irritated.

The early arrival of the Avatar Crisis had severely impacted Rank Five demons like him, especially with three Tablets of Fate fragments activating in this cycle.

For intermediate deities as powerful as the Razorclaw King, their probability of being cast out of their divine nation was dangerously high.

Unlike other deities, the Purgatory demons did not exist in separate, personal divine nations.

Instead, they pooled their domain power to sustain the three-level Purgatory in the far west of Faeloria.

Simply put, the three-level Purgatory was actually a shared divine nation for more than two hundred demon kings.

Because of this, the Tablets of Fate’s influence would not directly expel these demons from Purgatory, but it would restrict their movement.

For the next several decades or even centuries, many of these demon kings would be trapped on the outskirts of Purgatory.

Worse still, their strength would plummet—many could be reduced to peak Rank Three, in their avatar form.

This was one of Faeloria’s unique laws.

Even in a universe as vast and enigmatic as the Astral Realm, Sein had never encountered a downgrading phenomenon like this in any of the planes he had visited.

One thing was certain—this downgrading of power was only temporary.

Once the Avatar Crisis ended, the demons and deities who had been knocked from their altars would regain their former strength and return to their divine nations.

The relentless suppression of Faeloria’s laws and the ongoing loss of power had left Razorclaw King’s temper dangerously short.

If Sein had been anything less than a pureblooded demon, he might have already been devoured on the spot, becoming a sacrificial outlet for the king’s frustration.

The Razorclaw King held little goodwill toward pureblooded demons because he was not a pureblood himself.

While he envied the pureblooded demons, there was also a lingering urge to destroy them.

“There’s something peculiar about your aura. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered your kind before. Which level are you from?”

The Razorclaw King extended his massive claws, reaching for Sein.

Seeing the sharp claws inch closer, Sein could not help but worry that this demon king might lose control of his own strength and crush him on the spot.

After all, the Razorclaw King was a Rank Five demon, leagues above the demigod-level Skeleton Lord Sein had just encountered earlier.

The Razorclaw King could sense the uniqueness in Sein’s bloodline.

Sein looked like a pureblooded demon, but somehow his scent also triggered a hunger deep within the Razorclaw King.

This was a scent he had only ever detected on humans in Faeloria.

Taking a deep breath, Sein puffed out his chest and held the demon king’s gaze.

“I am Sein, a Rank Three mage from the Magus World. I demand an audience with the Bloodwar Monarch, Levon Thorstein. I have a proposition for him.”

His voice was calm, unwavering.

Even though the Razorclaw King’s oppressive aura loomed over him, Sein refused to back down—he was here as a representative of Magus World.

“Magus World? Never heard of it.”

A blood-red glint flickered in the Razorclaw King’s eyes. Just as his claws began to close, ready to crush and devour Sein whole...

“Don’t you want to leave this prison?! How is it that the mighty demon clan of Hell now cowers in a corner of this world?!”

Sein’s voice rang out, sharp and defiant.

The Razorclaw King’s massive hand froze mid-motion.

His claws trembled slightly, as though he were struggling to contain himself.

“You... come from beyond the Prime Materia Plane? I can’t believe you know that we originate from Hell...” he murmured.

Although he had long accepted that Faeloria was the Prime Materia Plane, he had spent over a hundred thousand years listening to the veteran demons—those who still spoke of the foreign worlds beyond and the Astral Realm.

He had never fully believed that Faeloria was the only world.

Among the new generation of demon kings, the Razorclaw King was known as one of the most radical.

To charge into Faeloria and slaughter freely had been his long-cherished dream, but that did not mean he was foolish enough to act on impulse.

Considering Sein’s pureblooded demon lineage and the bold words he had just spoken, the Razorclaw King hesitated for a moment before finally agreeing to escort him to Bloodwar Hall, located in the deepest layer of Purgatory.

Levon Thorstein the Bloodwar Monarch, was undeniably the strongest demon within Purgatory.

If the Razorclaw King were to kill this Rank Three outsider, shattering the demon clan’s hope of escaping this world... There was no doubt that the Bloodwar Monarch would tear him apart on the spot.

No one dared to test Thorstein’s temper.

The Razorclaw King knew just how much the Bloodwar Monarch and the other veteran demons longed to leave this world.

Levon Thorstein, possessing the strength of a supreme deity...

Twisted Blood Eye and War Axe Molten Demon, both of greater deity strength...

And the demon kings with the strength of intermediate deities, beings even more powerful and older than the Razorclaw King himself...

All of them were determined to break free from Faeloria.

Unless the Razorclaw King could one day surpass them all and become the strongest demon in Purgatory, he had no choice but to obey them.

After all, the demon clan was a race built on absolute hierarchy.

***

Escorted by a group of demons, Sein—still maintaining his Flame Demon true form—continued his descent toward the bottom of Purgatory.

Technically, he could have returned to his human form, but something told him it was wiser to remain as he was.

Blending in as a demon was simply the safer option.

The landscape of Purgatory stretched before him, offering a sight unlike any he had seen before.

At some point, a recording crystal orb appeared in his demonic claws.

During his time in Sky City, Sein had once read a brief introduction to Hell’s nature.

Although Purgatory was not exactly Hell, it shared many similarities with the historical accounts of it.

He also saw countless lesser demons and realized that not all demons were formidable creatures.

As he delved deeper into Purgatory, he passed through a blood-colored tunnel, its walls contracting and pulsating like a digestive tract.

From a whisper within the Silver Spider Ring, the Spider Queen told him that this tunnel was something called an “Abyssal Gut”.

After what felt like a long journey, Sein finally arrived at the lowest level of Purgatory.