With one precise hammer throw, Reyn finished off Trevichi. He exhaled in relief: finally, this fallen one was destroyed.
He was about to approach and retrieve his warhammer when he heard Pollock's shout:
"Reyn!"
Reyn turned and saw Frida in her silver armor flying back from the Lava Devil Dog's strike. She crashed heavily to the ground, dropping her longsword. Her armor was deformed, and after several attempts to rise, she couldn't.
The massive body of the Lava Devil Dog pinned Kenji's mechanical armor. The demon tore at it viciously with its fangs, already ripping a large hole and exposing the internals.
Pollock desperately attacked the Lava Devil Dog.
He had long run out of ammo, tossed his spirit rifle who-knows-where, and was left with only a flexible sword in hand. With it, he inflicted wound after wound on the demon but couldn't deal a fatal blow instantly.
On the contrary, he suffered from the flames surrounding the Lava Devil Dog. His skin was burned and blistered, and he had to dodge the demon's sharp claws.
Rangers are known for their agility and speed, but their own defense is weak. If the Lava Devil Dog grabbed him, he might not die but would suffer severe injuries.
The situation was critical.
Reyn had no time to pick up the hammer; he charged forward immediately.
His figure blurred with incredible speed. The Lava Devil Dog tormenting Kenji didn't expect the attack and flew sideways, crashing seven or eight meters away and tumbling across the ground.
It wasn't easy for Reyn either.
The Lava Devil Dog weighed over two thousand pounds, its hide tough and thick, ablaze with fire. Reyn felt like he'd slammed into a burning brick wall; the recoil shot through his body, causing dull pain.
"R-r-roar..."
The Lava Devil Dog leaped to its feet and fixed its gaze on Reyn. Lava-like blood dripped from its maw, hissing into clouds of black smoke on the ground. The flames on its body flared even fiercer, as if doused in oil, the heat surging rapidly.
The Abyss Gates were closed, no way back. It was the last demon left, but there was no fear in its eyes—only greater madness.
Reyn was on high alert, knowing this demon was ready to fight to the death.
"Without a weapon, it'll be tough."
He glanced at his warhammer "Icebreaker," lying in the corner of the warehouse—too far.
"Take my sword," said Kenji, lying on the ground just in time. His massive sword lay nearby, almost at Reyn's feet.
But the Lava Devil Dog gave Reyn no time to pick it up and charged with a roar.
Its heavy body bulldozed demon corpses in its path, barreling like a full-steam locomotive wreathed in flames and heat, as if intent on perishing with Reyn.
Reyn's mind raced; he decided against a head-on clash.
He raised his left hand, spiritual power flowed through it, and a multicolored spark flickered between his fingers.
In an instant, the Lava Devil Dog was upon him. It spewed a stream of flame mixed with lava that engulfed Reyn completely.
Reyn remained calm, focusing on the spell, letting the flames scorch him.
When the Lava Devil Dog was less than two meters away, he finally completed it. A rainbow beam lanced out, piercing the flames and striking the demon squarely between the eyes.
"A-a-arggh..."
The Lava Devil Dog howled; a hole formed in its massive head. The unbearable pain and blinding flash left only white light in its vision.
But its body didn't stop and kept charging.
At the last moment, Reyn rolled aside, dodging the strike, scooped up the massive sword from the ground, and sprang to his feet in a flash.
Just then, the blinded Lava Devil Dog thundered past, unable to see its enemy.
Reyn hefted the hundred-pound sword and brought it down with full force.
The blade flashed—and vanished.
The Lava Devil Dog's head flew off. The strike was clean and precise, the cut perfectly even. The massive body hurtled forward another ten meters by momentum before losing balance and collapsing.
Hot demonic blood gushed from the neck, quickly flooding a large area of ground.
Silence fell over the warehouse.
Pollock, covered in severe burns, could no longer hold on and collapsed, breathing heavily. Kenji couldn't rise immediately either.
For a moment, Reyn was the only one standing. He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He stood silently, massive sword in hand.
The charge indicator on his phone interface rose rapidly. Absorbing Trevichi's and the Lava Devil Dog's souls—one a fifth-level mechanic, the other a mid-level demon—the nearly depleted second battery bar refilled segment by segment until it exceeded eighty percent!
"One more mid-level soul, and I can reach the third level," Reyn thought with regret.
"Ha-ha-ha, khh..." Pollock, lying on the ground, suddenly laughed, but it aggravated his wounds, and he coughed up blood. Ignoring it, he said joyfully, "Didn't expect us all to survive."
Reyn tossed the sword aside and rushed to Pollock to check his wounds.
"Captain, you still holding on?"
Pollock looked horrific. Almost no unburned skin remained; over half his body was charred. First, fireballs from small imps singed him, then sulfur hound bites on his shoulder, and finally the Lava Devil Dog's flames.
He favored leather clothing, which had melted from the heat and fused to his skin, exposing bloody pulp. It was a sight for the strong-stomached.
And that was with "Dragon Force Art" boosting his Magic Resistance. Without it, the wounds would have been worse.
Pollock sat up, each movement bringing pain that made him wince.
"I'm fine, won't die. Reyn, check on Frida quick."
Reyn saw his life wasn't in danger and left him for now.
In one leap, he was at Frida's side. Through the helmet slit, he saw her eyes open—she was conscious, but her gaze was full of pain, and she couldn't move.
"I'm pinned," Frida said with effort.
Her armor was badly deformed. What was meant for protection had become a death trap: one plate under her ribs had pierced her body, blood flowing nonstop.
If the armor wasn't removed soon, she'd bleed out.
Reyn first helped her remove the helmet, then quickly assessed her, gripped the armor's edge carefully, and with even force, bent the plate armor barehanded, freeing her.
Frida groaned dully, her face paling like paper.
By then, Kenji had recovered. The front of his mechanical armor opened; he climbed out, staggered to Frida, pulled a potion vial, and held it to her lips, helping her drink.
Besides the potion, a scroll appeared in Kenji's hand, which he unrolled.
The scroll glowed white, enveloping Frida. The bleeding from her rib wound stopped, and it began healing rapidly.
"Thanks," Reyn said gratefully to Kenji. Those two items were perfect.
Such healing scrolls could only be made by priests wielding divine magic. Each was worth half a life, cost a fortune, and was nearly impossible for ordinary people to obtain.
Kenji just shook his head. Protected by his mechanical armor, he was unscathed—even his clothes intact—though he looked a bit tired. He went to Pollock, produced another healing scroll, and helped him.
Reyn saw both comrades' wounds closing and finally relaxed.
He retrieved his "Icebreaker."
The warhammer had endured the brutal battle unscathed. No wonder—it was a custom enchanted weapon, and it fit his hand perfectly.
"But now it's too light."
As Reyn pondered, a large group burst into the warehouse.
Leading was a tall knight in heavy armor, sword in one hand, shield in the other. His steps thumped heavily; he looked imposing—the supreme captain of the Demon Extermination Squad, Davenlak.
Davenlak ran ahead, followed by over a dozen superhumans: Hargrove, Milton, and others, plus fighters from two other demon extermination squads.
Reyn saw them and realized reinforcements had arrived.
His communicator was lost in the fight; he didn't know how long the battle lasted, but probably no more than five minutes. Davenlak arriving so fast with a squad was impressively quick.
The Demon Extermination Squad fighters who stormed in first looked around in confusion, then shock.
They could hardly believe the horrific scene. The warehouse was piled with Abyss demon corpses, blood flowing like rivers, remains everywhere—a true hell on earth.
Several superhumans with weak psyches paled at the blood stench and vomited.
"So many demons!"
"At least three hundred! Small imps, sulfur hounds, Fire Demons... Goddess, there's even a fire demon warlord and a Lava Devil Dog..."
"They're all dead."
The squad fighters gasped in amazement.
En route, they didn't know what was happening in the warehouse—just that it was an emergency with a fallen superhuman detected.
At the docks, they saw mountains of demon corpses outside and braced for the worst.
Unexpectedly, inside were only demon corpses.
The battle was over!
Davenlak couldn't believe his eyes either. Amid the corpse pile, he spotted survivors: Pollock and Frida among them. He hurried over.
"Supreme captain," Reyn addressed him first.
Davenlak halted, staring puzzled at the tall, blood-soaked man before him. He held a warhammer, upper body bare, pants in tatters, body caked in blood, face and head too—almost unrecognizable. Quite intimidating.
Most importantly, he sensed the powerful aura from this bloodied man.
Most demons on the ground were killed brutally and crudely: bodies torn apart, heads smashed, limbs ripped off—results of overwhelming force.
It wasn't hard to guess this man's handiwork!
Reyn noticed Davenlak's wariness, glanced down, and realized his appearance was frightening.
All demonic blood.
He hadn't noticed during the fight, but now it felt unpleasantly sticky.
He flexed his hand, activating the hammer's enchantments. A wave of cold enveloped him, freezing the blood.
Then he shook lightly, and the icy crust with blood flaked off, revealing clean skin.
"Reyn!"
Davenlak recognized him instantly, his bewilderment deepening. How could Reyn be this strong?