With introductions made and explanations given, the remaining middle-layer lamias didn't hesitate. They chose to join William's side without much deliberation. After what the queen had done in the inner circle, their hearts had gone cold toward the old regime anyway.
A headcount was taken. Combining the outer circle and middle layer, they had five hundred lamias total. Two hundred from the middle layer, specifically. But before disaster struck, the middle layer alone had boasted nearly a thousand residents.
The sky was beginning to lighten, approaching early morning with that gray pre-dawn glow.
Just as everyone was prepared to advance toward the inner layer, a figure stepped into their path.
The moment they saw who it was, expressions changed drastically across both middle-layer lamias and Serena's group alike. Standing before them was the black shadow they'd defeated back on the outer perimeter, their former companion.
William frowned at the obstacle blocking their way. "Serena, you stay with me for the rear guard. Everyone else, move immediately toward the inner layer. I'll hold this thing back."
As he spoke, several fist-sized nether spear materialized around him. Over the past day, his mastery of magic had stabilized considerably compared to yesterday.
Serena channeled her fighting spirit into both the blade in her hand and the shoes on her feet. Her entire body launched forward like a missile, accompanied by a series of sonic booms that cracked through the air.
In the blink of an eye, Serena appeared before the black shadow. William's prepared nether spears' magic spell struck first, hitting it square in what passed for a face. Serena's slash followed immediately after.
BOOM!
The explosion's sound echoed as the black shadow fell heavily.
"Did we get it?" Serena glanced back over her shoulder.
But William's voice cut through immediately. "Serena, pull back now! It's not finished!"
The black shadow's form trembled, its smoke-like body convulsing before slowly beginning to coalesce once more. William's eyes narrowed as he observed the creature pulling itself together, reassembling from the dispersed dark matter as if the explosion had barely slowed it down.
"It's regenerating," William muttered, his hand already conjuring a fresh barrage of nether spears. "And faster than before. Come on!"
Serena attacked without hesitation, her shoes igniting with blue light as she launched another assault. This time, William coordinated the attack more carefully, while Serena engaged the shadow's front. He wove nether spears in a complex spiral pattern, trying to compress the shadow from all angles simultaneously.
The creature shrieked, an unearthly sound that made the very air vibrate. It lashed out in desperation, tendrils of black energy striking back at both of them. William blocked with condensed nether barriers, each one crackling with barely contained power.
"It can't be killed!" Serena shouted, her breathing heavy as she continued her relentless strikes. Every slash seemed to damage it, every hit sent fragments of shadow scattering, but none of it stuck. The shadow simply reformed, reassembled, and came back stronger.
William pressed forward, unleashing wave after wave of nether spears. He shifted their forms, razor-thin needles, heavy javelins, piercing bursts, testing every variation he knew. Some of these attacks had torn through powerful foes before, yet now they couldn't even leave a lasting mark.
Five minutes passed.
Sweat beaded on William's forehead. His magic reserves were holding up thanks to his 'daily training' accumulation, but he could feel the inefficiency. He was burning through power without making real progress. The shadow adapted to each new attack pattern, as if learning from every strike they threw at it.
"Master, we need another approach!" Serena called out, her blade still moving with deadly precision despite the fatigue creeping into her movements.
"I know!" William shouted back, even as he conjured more spears. He tried containing it, tried crushing it, tried saturating the area with nether spear until nothing could exist in that space. Each time, the shadow slipped through, reformed, or simply pushed back harder.
The creature was learning. Evolving. With each exchange, it seemed to understand their tactics better, anticipate their movements more accurately.
"It's impossible," William muttered under his breath, desperately weaving spears into an intricate cage formation. The black shadow tore through it like it was paper. "We can't—"
That's when realization struck him. This wasn't something his nether spear magic alone could overcome. Not with his current power level. The shadow had already adapted once to their fighting style. Continuing to hammer away would only give it more time to adjust further.
William made a split-second decision. While Serena kept the shadow occupied, buying him precious seconds, he reached inward to the Great Sage system.
Even as combat raged around him, time moved differently within the system interface. One second externally, but an eternity inside.
William was already accessing the Great Sage system's Legacy Inheritance function. Time inside the system interface passed differently from the outside world. The Great Sage could complete its entire analysis and manifestation process in just one second externally.
With the addition of the outer circle lamia girl, middle-layer lamia girl, and the fox girls back at the territory, he could now earn massive Sovereign Points. The system settled points every morning at precisely 5:00 a.m.
«Notice: Current balance: 600 SP.»
«Host has sufficient points for multiple Legacy Inheritance attempts. Recommend immediate utilization given an active combat situation.»
William didn't hesitate. "Great Sage, perform six Legacy Inheritance attempts immediately."
«Acknowledged. Initiating Legacy Inheritance Protocol...»
«Cost: 600 SP. Remaining balance after transaction: 0 SP»
«Accessing Demon King Database...»
Six ancient magic circles materialized in rapid succession before William's eyes, each one shimmering with different colored light representing the tier of legacy being accessed. White, white, gray, blue, blue, and green. Crystals formed at their centers, pulsing with accumulated power from previous demon kings.
The crystals shattered simultaneously in a cascade of light.
«Legacy Inheritance complete. Six items acquired from Demon King Database:»
«White tier: Pink String Underwear. Origin: 23rd Demon King's personal collection. Note: The Previous demon king had peculiar tastes in subordinate attire.»
«White tier: Bag of Ramie Seeds. Origin: 74th Demon King's agricultural development program. Contains 500 high-yield ramie seeds suitable for textile production.»
«Gray tier: Demon Blood Vial. Origin: 15th Demon King. Blood extracted during the 15th Demon King's prime, containing condensed demonic essence and malevolent power. Currently sealed with divine-grade restriction chains to prevent corruption. Warning: Unsealing requires specific ritual and sufficient mental resistance.»
«Blue tier: Infernal Hellfire Fruit. Origin: 74th Demon King's enhanced magic potion. Concentrated demonic essence crystallized with hellfire properties. Upon consumption, it increases all attributes by 65 points. Additionally grants minor resistance to fire and dark energy. No adverse effects for demon king bloodline.»
«Blue tier: Five Thunder Talismans. Origin: 52nd Demon King's Eastern Continent campaign. Mystical talismans created using captured Eastern Continent magic techniques. Possesses special effectiveness against evil entities, shadow manifestations, and corrupted beings. Single-use consumable. Note: Ironically effective against demonic forces despite demonic origin.»
«Green tier: Famous Sword. Origin: 48th Demon King's legendary weapon collection. High-quality enchanted blade forged by a master craftsman. Grants wielder enhanced cutting power and minor magic resistance. Durability: Exceptional.»