BOOM!
A thunderous roar erupted as the fireball exploded, sending a shower of flames raining down everywhere.
"What is this?"
Allen stared down at the falling fire, his expression shocked.
He had cast a Fireball, a Forbidden Spell. Even if his power wasn't fully formed yet, it should have been more than enough to destroy a Stage 2 powerhouse. There must be a reason it wasn't working.
It was this strange pattern formed by the bonfires.
"Archer, shoot them out of the sky!" the Goblin King roared angrily, spotting the giant silhouette looming overhead.
A squad of goblin archers quickly assembled. Bows trembled, and a storm of arrows whistled toward them.
"Up, fast! Get higher!" Allen shouted urgently.
He had an Earth Shield to block arrows, but it could only protect his own body.
It wouldn't save Lilia. Her wings were strong, but while flying, she couldn't deflect this many arrows.
Whoosh!
The wind howled past his ears as Lilia shot upward instantly.
Sharp arrows whizzed right past them.
"Allen, I can't hold this for much longer!" Lilia gasped, her voice weak.
She had just awakened her vampire form. Flying alone was fine, but carrying a person drained her energy way too fast.
"Hang in there. I'll destroy these bonfires first!" Allen locked his gaze on the burning fires below. He raised his hand, and a massive Wind Blade whooshed through the night, slicing straight for one of the piles.
"Block it! Stop that now!"
The Goblin King spotted the wind blade and screamed in fury.
A few goblins near the fire didn't hesitate. They charged forward, using their bodies to block the blade.
Thwack, thwack...
The bonfires flickered as blood sprayed everywhere. Shredded meat flew through the air. Dozens of goblins were instantly torn apart by the powerful wind blade.
These bonfires must be incredibly important, otherwise, why would these goblins risk their lives to protect them?
"Allen, get on my back. It'll save me some energy if you ride with me," Lilia gritted her teeth, finally giving in.
"Okay!"
Allen agreed immediately. He grabbed her arm, climbed up lightly, and settled on her soft, slender waist.
"Scum! I'm warning you, don't touch me weirdly! And this is the first and last time!" Lilia felt the strange sensation of being held and was both embarrassed and furious.
"Got it. Fly steady; I'm going to attack," Allen interrupted impatiently. Magic elements swirled around him. The wind howled, and fire danced. He cast Wind Blades and Fireballs non-stop, targeting the bonfires below.
"Despicable creatures! How dare you obstruct the arrival of our Demon King! Spare no effort! Stop them!" The Goblin King roared repeatedly, firing arrows, but they posed zero threat to Allen and Lilia up high.
"A Demon King? They're trying to summon leftover demons!" Lilia's expression darkened.
Demons were powerful and fierce. Even the weakest demonic soldier was at least Stage 5. If they actually summoned any demons, the two of them definitely wouldn't stand a chance.
Allen realized how serious this was, his face turning grim. "Lilia, fly a bit closer, but watch your safety."
"Okay."
Lilia didn't hesitate. She dodged the whistling arrows with agility and dove down quickly.
Allen seized the chance, spamming Forbidden Spells and bombarding the bonfires below.
Boom, boom...
Thunderous explosions rocked the area. Powerful energy raged as goblins screamed in agony.
[Killed Stage 1, Level 7 goblin archer. Experience +70.]
[Killed Stage 1, Level 9 goblin elite. Experience +90.]
...
[Level Up! You reached Stage 1, Level 10. Major Stats +30, Free Points +4.]
[New Advanced Quest Triggered: Kill 10 Stage 2 or higher monsters to advance to Stage 2.]
The notification flashed on his screen.
Allen smoothly reached Stage 1, Level 10 and triggered the advanced quest.
"Wait, I need to kill 10 Stage 2 monsters? That's insane!" he thought in surprise. Usually, for a class user, an advancement quest only required killing one monster a full Stage above themselves. He, however, had to kill ten.
And until he completed this quest, he wouldn't be able to gain any more experience points.
"Lilia, party up!" Allen shouted, sending a party invite directly to her.
There were still thousands of goblins down there. He couldn't waste this experience.
"Good idea!" Lilia was thrilled and joined the party instantly.
Allen's attack never stopped. He went berserk with Forbidden Spells, acting like he didn't care about his own life, raining destruction down on the bonfires.
Huge numbers of goblins died, but the bonfires refused to go out.
Unease swelled in Lilia's heart. She noticed the Goblin King at the center still holding his staff, muttering his incantation.
"Allen, we have to take out that Goblin King first!" Lilia warned.
"Leave it to me." Allen noticed it too. He stopped targeting the fires. Instead, Wind Blades and Fireballs flew past, heading straight for the Goblin King.
"Spare no effort! Block it!"
The Goblin King roared in fury, raising his staff high.
These goblins went absolutely berserk. They ignored death, throwing their bodies in front of Allen's attacks.
A mist of blood filled the air. The ground around the Goblin King was littered with mangled limbs and dismembered corpses of dead goblins.
Seeing such a bloody scene, even Allen felt a pang of reluctance.
But his attacks never ceased. Fireballs and wind blades kept raining down.
By now, not a single goblin remained alive around the Goblin King. He was fully exposed to Allen's barrage. Wind Blades and fireballs swept toward him.
The Goblin King's face twisted into a grimace, looking like a madman. He didn't dodge. Instead, he slammed his staff deep into the ground and roared hoarsely:
"Gates of Hell, open!"
BOOM...
At that very moment, Allen's barrage of Forbidden Spells rained down. The Goblin King didn't even have time to let out a single scream before he was blown to pieces.
[Killed Stage 2, Level 3 Goblin King. Advanced Quest Progress: 1/10]
The notification flashed, but Allen didn't relax for a second.
Whoosh!
The bonfires below surged upward, merging into one massive sheet of fire.
"Roar... roar..."
Deep growls echoed from the flames as a dark silhouette began to emerge.
"This is the altar for the Gates of Hell! Allen, destroy it immediately!" Lilia shouted in terror. She had reached her absolute limit; her body was swaying and she was barely holding on.
Before her words even finished, Allen moved.
Two giant fireballs and a sharp Wind Blade whistled through the air, striking the bonfires surrounding the summoning site.
This time, no goblins tried to block them.
Boom, boom, boom!
Explosions rocked the ground. Three bonfires shattered instantly, sending huge flames into the sky. Then, a furious roar from a monster echoed, and the sea of fire seemed to be swallowed up, vanishing in seconds.
The Gates of Hell closed just as fast as they had opened.
But before that, one shadow had already descended.
It was a massive, bulky monster. It stood on two legs, standing over three meters tall, with thick muscles covered in dense, black scales. A pair of devil horns protruded from its head, and its crimson eyes stared fixedly at Lilia and Allen high in the air.
"A vampire and a weak human... what an interesting combo!" the monster spoke slowly. Its voice was raspy, tinged with amusement.
"Demonic soldier!" Lilia recognized the monster immediately. Her face went pale, and she began to fall further, her voice trembling. "Allen, what do we do? I can't hold on!"
She was completely exhausted and couldn't steady her wings anymore.
"Easy. We kill him!" Allen said coldly.
He leaped down, landing in front of Lilia to shield her. He stared at the monster with intense alertness.
A demonic soldier might be the weakest of the demons, but it was still a Stage 5 powerhouse. Even with his recent power-up, Allen knew he didn't have absolute confidence in winning this.
"Hmph, big words for such a weakling!" The demonic soldier sneered in disdain. He raised his arm and clenched his fist into the air. Black energy swirled around him, instantly forming a massive long blade.
"Slash!"
He shouted loudly. The blade swung down, and a huge, razor-sharp slash of wind flew toward them in an instant.
So fast!
Allen flinched, instinctively summoning an Earth Shield.
Boom!
The sound of the impact was deafening. The earth shield shattered instantly. A terrifying wave of force crashed into them, leaving Allen and Lilia with no chance to fight back. They were launched backward, slamming hard into the ground.
"This guy is too strong! We can't beat him!" Lilia struggled to her feet, a trickle of blood running from the corner of her mouth.
Allen wasn't faring any better either. He glared coldly at the approaching demonic soldier and said, "Fly into the air. I'll handle him."
"Do you think you can do it?" Lilia was worried. She could barely fly on her own right now, let alone carry Allen to escape.
"Just don't hold me back." Allen's fighting spirit surged. He spread his arms, and two massive fireballs formed in his hands, flickering with intense heat.
"Hmph, I don't care!" Lilia scoffed. Without another word, she spread her wings and soared into the sky.
With his back clear of danger, Allen flung the two huge fireballs forward, smashing them directly at the demonic soldier.