Chapter 1945. The Valley of Ukher-mur

1945 Chapter 1945. The Valley of Ukher-mur

In the sky above Hydrurond, Lucifer was tussling with Pride. The Devil God was laughing as he exchanged punches with Pride. They were like two common brawlers scuffling in a bar fight. Despite the simplicity of the battle, each of the impacts from their punches sent shockwaves that caused tremors to the land below.

Lucifer was enjoying every moment of the brawl. His laughter became louder with each punch until he abruptly stopped. A powerful blast erupted from him when that happened. Pride was shoved away from him.

Lucifer turned to the West. His expression was solemn. "So, you were not lying when you said you were lying in wait for me. Which God is there who tries to break my seal? Courage? Joy?"

"The six here are the remaining Gods of the upperworld," Pride answered. "The one who we sent to destroy your portal is Volgroth."

"Volgroth...? Hope's pet?" Lucifer muttered. No ordinary being of this world could undo his seal. But if it was Volgroth, it was possible.

"Hmph!" Lucifer harrumphed. He was about to warp away to rush back to the main underworld portal when the area around him suddenly became heavier.

He looked up and saw Greed, Wrath, and Fear projecting their energies onto him. Because of the turbulent energies they produced, he couldn't warp. His movements were restricted.

"You are not leaving this place! Not until the main underworld portal is destroyed!" Pride exclaimed. He returned with a brighter glow shrouding his armored body.

Pride requested Serenity and Love to increase their energy output. The two Goddesses were holding back because they worried they might hurt Pride. Pride assured them not to. They couldn't hold back if they were to have a chance against Lucifer.

While the energies from the good Gods were suitable for buffing effects because they came from positive feelings, the energies from the bad Gods were more suitable for debuffing effects. That's why Greed, Wrath, and Fear didn't channel their energies into Pride. Instead, they combined their power to create an inhibiting environment around Lucifer, causing him difficulties in fighting back.

"Good coordination," Lucifer praised. His expression wasn't as cheery as before.

Lucifer blocked a punch from Pride. He staggered back from the punch. Pride was stronger than before, while he was weaker.

"You insolent Gods! I will make you all suffer for this!"

A colorful aura exploded from Lucifer's body. The restricting energies from the three bad Gods struggled to oppose this aura. Lucifer's punch left a rainbow trail as it struck Pride's chest. The impact caused a dent in Pride's armor, but Pride refused to back away. The light on him glowed brighter.

"I will take as many punishments as needed!" Pride exclaimed, "But I swear on my pride, you shall not leave!!!"

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A few hours before the three devils met their demise, John was standing atop a cliff overseeing a steep valley. He and the retreating army from the Hydrurond Northern Front had arrived in this place several hours ago. This valley was the coordinates he had given Janus. The name of the valley was Ukher-mur.

"Luckily, I have prepared this. All players! Come with me using this field teleportation diagram. Trinity, you stay close to me!"

He activated the rune diagram and disappeared. Jet, Trinity, and the others followed suit, including the top players from different guilds who had assembled there.

John reappeared at the top of a cliff not far from the valley's entrance. He ventured forward while staying low. He soon reached the cliff overseeing the entrance. As he expected, the underworld force had mostly entered the valley. He could see their rear moving away. However, a considerable number of demons stayed outside. Beelzebub was among that group.

'Careful bastard,' John cursed in his mind.

Jet, Giant Steve, Fierce Flame, Purple Mist, and Trinity Dawn crawled to where he was. The others who had teleported stayed behind and waited for instructions.

"What now?" Jet sent a message in the party chat.

"The operation has already commenced. We can't alter it anymore. We will take him on like this," John answered.

"Many demons are protecting him. They look strong," Steve said.

"Don't worry. I will call for reinforcement," John said.

He moved away before casting Call Monster Horde. After that, he sent a message to Telebinge, another member of Inquisition. "Hey. Is that beast in its lair?"

"Yes. Why again did you ask me to shadow this monster when we have a war to fight?" Telebinge asked.

"Because I want to make sure that thing is in the range when I cast my spell. Okay, you can leave now and come to join the war you are so eager to fight."

John ended the communication and cast Summon Apex Monster.

The layout of Ukher-mur Valley was one reason John chose this location for the decisive battle, but another reason was the abundance of strong monsters in the vicinity. The first two spells of Monster Overlord heavily depended on location. If he was in a region where the average monsters were weak, his spells would underperform.

In this place, he was sure he could get a formidable horde of monsters using the Call Monster Horde. It was more so for Summon Apex Monster. He knew about the existence of one powerful monster in the Khan region. His guild members had an unfortunate encounter with this monster when they roamed this place. They ended up getting wiped out. After that, Everlasting Heavenly Legends marked the area near the monster's lair as a restricted zone, at least until most of their members reached level 90.

John was glad those poor members had the unfortunate encounter. They gained valuable intel in exchange for losing their levels.