"Valor Supreme..." Adrian had heard of them before; it wasn't a major faction.Sameer continued, "As you can see, our faction isn't large and our strength isn't comparable to yours, but we have our reasons for being here.""Oh?" Adrian was intrigued.Sameer explained, "Our leader came here three months ago searching for an ancient treasure. However, once he got here, he disappeared without a trace. So, our purpose in coming here is to hopefully find him. Of course, if we can't, we'll have to give up.""In that case, let's travel together for a while. It so happens that we’re also here searching for something," Adrian suggested.Sameer was slightly surprised and looked cautious.Adrian quickly reassured him, "Don't worry, I'm not interested in the treasures here. What I'm looking for is something else.""That's good to hear." Sameer sighed in relief.Adrian found these warriors quite interesting. Clearly, their strength was insufficient, yet they were still so proud and competit
Sameer and the others didn't seem concerned. "That's fine. Even if Dragoria declines, its heritage isn’t something we can compare to. But these are all future matters; everything depends on finding our leader first.""That's true. After all, such decisions should be made by the leader," Adrian agreed as they continued walking deeper into the ruins.After about fifteen kilometers, they spotted a large shadow up ahead. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be an ancient palace.Observing the palace, Zector whispered, "I never expected such a place to exist here. It's of a very ancient style.""After all, the battle between humans and demons happened a long time ago. It's reasonable for there to be an ancient palace here," Adrian replied.As they spoke, they entered the palace. Earlier, because of the dim light outside, they hadn’t been able to see the interior clearly. Now that they were inside, they saw several extremely large statues before them. Upon closer inspection, these f
"You may fool others, but you aren’t fooling me. Besides, we’re close friends. Whatever it is, I won't tell." Adrian patted his chest.Zector chuckled dryly. "Mr. Adrian, it's not that I'm unwilling to tell you but it's not the right time yet. Don’t worry, you'll know the truth soon." He teased Adrian with a hint of mystery.Adrian felt speechless and could only shake his head helplessly. Zector was really good at keeping secrets. No matter how he asked, Adrian couldn't get a straight answer out of him. But since Zector said they would understand soon, Adrian did not press the matter.They then arrived at a vast network of halls. There were outer halls, inner halls, and plenty of side halls. After a few more minutes of walking, they finally reached the inner hall. Inside lay a single towering demonic deity statue, enormous and majestic. Everyone inhaled sharply, the statue giving them an overwhelming sense of oppression."Who is this deity? And this statue is enormous!" Everyone ma
Sameer and the others were scared witless, their faces pale as they trembled uncontrollably, thinking, ‘The…The statue is alive?!’Meanwhile, Adrian remained remarkably composed. He watched the statue before him, his eyes narrowed.Swish...After a moment, a faint golden light emanated from the eyes of the statue. In front of everyone, it slowly formed into a human-sized, humanoid figure. A long, white-haired man clad in dark golden armor and exuding an extraordinary aura appeared, and Adrian observed him closely. He sensed that this man's aura was unlike that of most warriors. He recognized it as the aura of a demon, not a human warrior. But despite being a demon, the man looked very much like a human.Before this man, Zector appeared extremely humble. He said politely, "Father."With just one word, everyone present was shocked. Even Adrian could not help exclaiming, "Oh my, so he's your father!"The originally solemn atmosphere in the hall was instantly disrupted by Adrian's wo
Sameer suddenly shouted aggressively, "Mr. Adrian, why waste words with him?! He’s a demon! Let's just kill him!"However, the man shot Sameer a fierce gaze, instantly rendering Sameer’s group witless. The Valor Supremes dared not meet the man’s gaze, but the man did not move against them either. His presence alone was enough to intimidate them into silence.At this tense moment, Zector addressed the man, "Father, now that you have awakened, please return to the demon realm. There should be a spatial rift here. With your abilities, it should be easy for you to go back.""Oh? Are you that eager for me to be gone?" The man raised an eyebrow. He stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at Zector.Zector replied calmly, "The Golden Creed cannot be without a king."The man paused, considering Zector's words. "Hmm, you shall come back with me then. You've spent enough time wandering in this mortal realm. It's time to return and fulfill your duty."With a wave of his hand, the
The man frowned and looked toward Adrian. Despite his scrutiny, Adrian appeared unremarkable to him, and he couldn't comprehend how Adrian had demonstrated such formidable combat prowess."Are you defending him?" the man asked.Adrian chuckled and replied, "Absolutely. Attacking someone who can't fight back proves nothing. It only makes you look small.""In all my years ruling the universe, I, the Gilded Tyrant, have never been called small. You're quite interesting, kid! Since you're so confident, let's change the terms.” Gilded Tyrant sneered."Go on," Adrian said calmly."We’ll settle this with a fight. If you can withstand three of my attacks, I won't take Zector away. If you fail, no one interferes," declared the Gilded Tyrant.Zector hurried to Adrian’s side and whispered, "Sir, this is between my father and me. You shouldn't interfere.""No, I wouldn't have intervened if not for earlier. Now, I want to see how strong this Demon Lord is," Adrian replied."My strength far
Adrian understood that confronting the blade energy head-on would be futile. Activating the Ancient Life Text, he searched for a way to navigate through the attack. While completely neutralizing it seemed beyond his current capabilities, finding an escape route remained feasible.Boom!A deafening roar filled the air as the Gilded Tyrant's assault enveloped Adrian."Mr. Adrian!" gasped Sameer’s group in disbelief.Dust and smoke shrouded the scene, obscuring Adrian's condition. As the haze settled, they discerned a figure still standing—it was Adrian.Coughing twice, Adrian faced the Gilded Tyrant and remarked, "Impressive strength, but if you think that level of power can defeat me, you're sorely mistaken."The Gilded Tyrant found Adrian increasingly intriguing. Despite his unassuming demeanor, he consistently defied expectations. "Boy, enduring my Sky-Splitting Slash is commendable, but you should brace yourself for what comes next," he warned.With those words, an even more p
"Excellent, very impressive!" The Gilded Tyrant chuckled as he regarded Adrian. "Your strength is commendable. Given that, let's call it quits for today. But next time, I won't go easy on you."With that, the Gilded Tyrant flickered and vanished from sight, leaving the others visibly stunned. They hadn't expected the battle to end so abruptly, leaving them speechless.Adrian turned to them and said, "The Gilded Tyrant has acknowledged my strength and showed caution. In a way, he kept his word. Now that he's gone, let's gather whatever we can find."Finally snapping out of their daze, the Valor Supremes realized this place, brimming with its treasures, was theirs to claim. Excitement filled the air as they quickly gathered their newfound riches and departed from this secret realm.When they got out, Adrian and Zector bid farewell to them and left to continue their journey. In the vast northern continent, they sought to uncover more truths, eventually arriving at the grand city of Aq