Chapter 217: The Slaughter Array

For a moment, the atmosphere was somewhat oppressive.

The Demon Lord slightly closed his eyes. If David had really intended to withdraw from the trial just now, he was prepared to forcibly initiate the trial, encompassing everyone within it.

After all, having decided to form a good relationship with the God of War and Violence, it had to be done thoroughly. Hesitation and ambiguity would yield nothing.

"If this player named David dies, find a few followers to mourn him," the Demon Lord thought silently. After all, David had helped him significantly--

With such poor spatial aptitude, knowing that the new trial rules were set to assist Fred, he still chose to stay and participate. This way, the Demon Lord didn't have to forcibly retain everyone, allowing other players to leave the trial.

For him, as a mentor, this could preserve a lot of his reputation. Otherwise, deliberately getting a large number of students killed just to obtain an item would surely reduce the number of future players participating in the Array Instruction. Consequently, the Demon Lord would receive fewer resources from the Hall of Valor.

Not getting the Ethereal Crystal would be a significant loss!

Thus, the Demon Lord patiently waited for a few seconds. Those who wanted to leave had nearly all gone. He then couldn't wait any longer and activated his Divine Power.

"The trial begins!"

In an instant, the mist-shrouded mountain scenery before all the players abruptly changed! They were first enveloped by layers of fog. When it dissipated, they found themselves at the base of a mountain, surrounded by a forest.

Around them, they could hear the rustling of leaves in the wind and smell the stench left by various wild beasts. Despite knowing it was likely an illusion, people still felt as though they were truly there.

Sterl was originally standing not far from Fred. Fred sneered, mouthing the words "You're dead." Then, under the effect of the array, he was teleported away. Although all players were initially close to each other, in the newly generated slaughter array, due to the expanded space and random teleportation, they were now distanced from each other.

Players did not know where they were, nor could they ally to face the array together.

Outside the array, the Demon Lord saw that the array had formed and breathed a slight sigh of relief. He was restricted by the rules and couldn't offer Fred too much help. On the surface, this slaughter array was fair.

But for someone with excellent spatial aptitude, they could naturally break through the nodes of the array quickly. Once unaffected by the array, finding others would be a piece of cake.

Fred's superior aptitude was enough to let him quickly understand the principles of the array and find David to kill him!

However...

The Demon Lord's expression turned dark. Tricking an ant was one thing, but the feeling of being coerced by the God of War and Violence made him deeply resentful.

At that moment, a semi-transparent, silver-white mirror appeared beside him. Although the mirror seemed small, it contained the Law Power of Space, capable of displaying the images of nearly a hundred players currently participating in the trial.

Suddenly, the Demon Lord's face changed slightly. He noticed that the space he occupied was abruptly invaded by various forces.

"Gloria, why are you here??" The God of Space's expression suddenly became unpleasant, a mixture of anxiety akin to being caught in the act.

"Why can't I be here?" Gloria responded, somewhat speechless. "I'm just here to see if any new, promising Array Masters have appeared."

It was then that the Demon Lord realized there were three other figures besides Gloria.

Two female gods:

- The God of Jungle and Hunting, Cora, who had long, silver-white hair, and a face as pure and beautiful as a maiden.

- The God of Healing and Protection, Candice, who wore a green gauze dress with a strikingly curvaceous figure and a compassionate expression.

She didn't expect that her "old friend" from back then would hold such a grudge. She had already seen through Felicia's little maneuvers several times, only for Felicia to throw herself into the arms of another god. The fact that Felicia ultimately chose Candice, that "little bitch," only made it worse...

Gloria narrowed her eyes slightly, her expression darkening.

The other two gods, the God of Jungle and Hunting, Cora, and the God of Forging and Flames, Alan, wore similarly sarcastic expressions.

"Yeah, you can't hog all the good stuff for yourself."

"We need to share the wealth."

Candice nodded in agreement. "That's true. However, the heroes who enter the Hall of Valor have the potential to become gods themselves. They're not ants we can just crush at will; it depends on their own choices."

Her words were clear: while the others might be right, attracting this genius would ultimately depend on each god's own efforts.

"Alright! Alright!"

"No problem!"

"Fine then!"

The other three gods sneered.

Meanwhile, the Demon Lord watched the drama unfold from the sidelines, feeling a bit better. The gods within the Hall of Valor often banded together for mutual benefit, but each had their own hidden agendas.

These four gods had a private alliance: if one was attacked, the others would come to their aid, which is why they often acted together. However, whenever they encountered a potential benefit, they would start bickering like this...

Watching this was amusing to the Demon Lord.

"Don't even think about it. This Fred is a devout follower of the God of War and Violence; you won't be able to win him over," the God of Space helpfully pointed out.

As expected, the four gods' expressions soured, showing their disappointment. Then--

"What a pity. Gloria, you already lack an Array Master on the front lines."

"The God of War and Violence gains another strong ally; you're going to have a tough time. Do you want me to send a few demigods to help?"

"We're all on the same side. Just say the word if you need anything."

Seeing no advantage to be gained, they immediately reverted to a more amicable demeanor, though their smiles were clearly insincere.

At that moment, Gloria noticed David's figure. Her expression changed subtly.

The other gods, all extremely perceptive, immediately sensed something was amiss and also turned their attention to David. God of Space furrowed his brow slightly and then spoke up, "This player's test results indicate only inferior aptitude. Is he one of your followers?"

The Demon Lord looked at Gloria, who appeared slightly surprised.

David, in this trial?

Gloria was not overly concerned about David's safety in the trial, given that this talented compatriot had many hidden cards to play. She hesitated for a moment before shaking her head. "He can't be considered my follower, just a player I have high hopes for. He hails from my dominion."

"Oh, I see..."

Among the gods present, unless they consciously chose to hide it, it was easy to discern whether someone was lying.