Chapter 1151 Feeding <TOC> Chapter 1153 Miniature Statue
Translator: SumTLMan
Unfazed by what was happening outside the door, Angel was wholeheartedly occupied with feeding the demon.
In these fleeting moments, Angel had used an array of toxins, from biological to neurotoxins, even incorporating powerful elixirs that could corrupt energy.
But the demon before him absorbed it all without falter. It devoured all sorts of toxins, not only remaining unscathed, but rather, Angel discerned that it seemed to particularly relish some energy-laden toxic elixirs. In fact, when Angel brought out such elixirs, the demon would snatch them eagerly.
As Angel pondered whether the demon’s stomach was some sort of furnace, unafraid of any food — even toxins, an unexpected twist occurred. It seemed that even this demon could be finicky about what it ate.
Given the demon’s rapid consumption, the growth of magic meat needed time. In the interim, Angel made do with other foods. The demon was indifferent to the changing menu, even showing great enthusiasm for certain items.
However, when Angel tossed it a pitch-black item…
The demon swallowed it as usual. Yet the next second, its eyes bulged out, turning its head to retch loudly, shaking the heavens!
Initially, Angel’s heart swelled with joy, thinking a toxin had finally taken effect. However, the demon continued to retch for what seemed like forever, only to vomit out a chunk of matter that had rotted away partially, still black as night.
This chunk hit the ground, hissing with ominous vapor.
Not only did it reek of the demon’s putrid saliva, but it was also accompanied by the smell of an old, fermented sock.
Angel gazed at the almost shapeless object, speechless.
If his memory served him right, the black chunk should be… a magic bread, one that he’d previously created himself.
He’d used all kinds of toxins before, but the demon had shown no reaction. Yet, the magic bread that he’d casually tossed in had elicited such a violent regurgitation.
Angel’s emotions were in turmoil. Hadn’t the demon shown no interest in the taste of food before?
Even if his magic bread tasted horrendous, it wouldn’t warrant vomiting, would it? At worst, its scent was a bit off, but even while holding one’s nose, it was still edible!
While Angel looked on with an uncomfortable expression, the demon finished its retching. When it turned its head back, it glared at Angel with a look of resentment.
Even though it was in a delirious state and couldn’t express its thoughts coherently, Angel understood its rage:
——How dare you poison me!
“I did not! I wouldn’t! You’re mistaken!” Angel wanted to yell in protest, but he had indeed tried to poison the demon before. However, the demon showed no reaction to those attempts. It was the “non-toxic” magic bread that had prompted such an exaggerated response!
The demon glared fiercely at Angel, its eyes full of malice.
As the demon bore its savage countenance, Angel instinctively drew forth magic meat, flinging them its way. However, the demon made no move, persisting with its terrifying, furious gaze upon Angel. The food landed and was disdainfully trodden underfoot by the demon.
The inferno of rage, ignited by the insinuation of poisoning, eclipsed the demon’s hunger at this moment.
In the remnant vestiges of its sanity, it appeared to understand that the figure before it bore a variety of delicacies. However, the fellow had attempted to poison it. Thus, it concluded that by slaying him, all the tasty morsels would belong to itself!
The demon picked up speed a notch, launching itself towards Angel again. Cursing under his breath, Angel quickly turned and fled.
Their situation had seemingly regressed to its earlier state. The demon pursued, while Angel continuously evaded.
Their figures darted around like illusions in the mist-filled underground hall. Throughout this process, Angel continued to throw food. However, the demon’s fixation was solely upon Angel, with food seemingly ineffective now… Yet one could not entirely conclude so; it would not miss any items rich in energy.
However, the more energy-rich items Angel discarded, the more the demon’s power increased. It was a vicious cycle. In a bid to buy time, it had become a case of his loss feeding The Demon’s Transformation. The longer it dragged on, the stronger the demon would recover, while Angel would find himself growing weak.
Aside from this, the demon ceaselessly drooled. The poisonous mist birthed from its saliva filled the hall with a miasma. The area where Angel could tread was steadily shrinking, occasionally compelling him to preemptively use ‘Expel Toxin’, lest he be poisoned halfway through his escape.
Danger drew ever closer, yet Angel had yet to find a way out of this predicament.
Even though he tried to lure the demon into attacking the light runes on the walls, the demon lacked the strength to breach them.
Hence, within this nearly sealed underground hall, the only thing Angel could do was to bide his time.
Yet the longer he dragged it out, the more disadvantageous circumstances he found himself in.
Sweat saturated Angel’s entire body. In yet another close encounter, he instinctively chose the right path due to the white toxic mist looming ahead. However, at that moment, the demon abruptly switched its position, effectively blocking his route.
With no other choice, Angel threw out an energy-rich item, hoping to distract the demon.
However, this time the demon did not pursue the energy item that landed elsewhere. Instead, it launched a direct attack on Angel.
With such close quarters, it was too late to evade solely based on his own speed.
Once again, Angel had an out-of-body experience, utilizing Gravity Lines to swiftly move to the other side of the field.
The previous situation was extremely perilous, but thankfully, it turned from a dangerous situation into a safe one in the end… drip, drip… As Angel was thinking this, he suddenly heard the sound of droplets near his ear.
Lowering his gaze, he saw an injury on his left shoulder. Crimson blood was slowly seeping from the bloody wound.
Meanwhile, on the other side, within the ethereal white mist, the gaunt starved frame of the demon turned around.
The demon’s savage countenance was now in full view to Angel, its mouth agape in a horrendous yawn. A tongue, roughly a meter long, lolled from its gaping jaws, its tip dripping fresh blood. Witnessing this spectacle, Angel could almost confirm — the perpetrator behind the wound on its shoulder was indeed this fearsome tongue.
This demon’s tongue continued to elongate — from one meter, to two meters, to three… The long tongue drooped into the fog, and soon an elliptical energy crystal was coiled up from the mist and swallowed. This energy crystal was the very one previously cast away by Angel. Initially, the demon didn’t bother picking it up, but now it hooked it back with its tongue.
Witnessing this, Angel’s heart jolted. This demon was initially mindless, rampant, and solely fixated on chasing Angel, using brute physical force. At this stage, it was easy to deal with; a mere morsel was enough to lure it away.
However, the subsequent changes in the demon’s behavior were distinctly noticeable. It started refusing regular food, only accepting energy items, and began hunting Angel proactively. Upon weighing the choice between the energy items and Angel, it temporarily forsook the former, resolving to kill Angel first.
Even more disturbingly, it began employing other techniques — such as its tongue. Throughout this series of events, the transformation of the demon was palpable. Though it may still be deranged, it started showing conscious strategic combat decisions, as it began to “pursue benefit and avoid harm”.
Confronting a demon this powerful, Angel would undoubtedly be outmatched should its combat awareness fully awaken. Currently, it’s only using its tongue, but there’s a chance that next time it might employ even more methods, such as energy attacks, or worse, intimidation.
When that time comes, Angel’s fate will be sealed. After applying a healing spell to stop his bleeding wounds, Angel faced the demon with heightened vigilance.
As Angel predicted, the demon’s arsenal became increasingly diverse over time. Angel had to use Gravity Lines multiple times just to narrowly evade. Even so, numerous wounds had appeared all over his body.
After a while, Angel felt his face flush with heat, his eyes blurry from the evaporating sweat. Although his wounds weren’t fatal, the excessive blood loss made him start showing signs of fainting.
Contrarily, the demon seemed to become more alert and faster. Angel knew he couldn’t hold out much longer.
Drip, drip — Angel couldn’t tell if that was the sound of his own blood falling or the drool from the demon’s mouth.
Looking up, the demon was already in front of him. Angel gritted his teeth, gathered his strength for another roll, and threw out a few more energy items, hoping to buy more time.
He could feel the ground starting to tremble, signaling the imminent demise of La Sutherland. Perhaps, if he could drag it out a little longer, changes in the ground’s structure might provide an opportunity for escape.
However, his hopes were dashed. This time, the demon didn’t even spare a glance at the energy items and lunged straight at Angel——
“Will you consent to be my Devotee?”
At this juncture, Angel was teetering on the brink of exhaustion, scarcely able to evade the demon’s onslaught. Yet, in this moment, time seemed to come to a standstill. Angel could see the demon’s protruding tongue from its maw, frozen mid-air.
Although Angel’s body was immobilized, his thoughts remained unaffected.
“Will you consent to be my Devotee?” This inquiry echoed for the second time within the confines of Angel’s mind.
His gaze shifted towards the heart of the hall, there was no one else who would pose such a question besides the Cruel Scholar.
A cold sneer resonated deep within Angel’s soul. As expected, this demon’s awakening and their entrapment in the hall were all schemes conjured by the Cruel Scholar… Choosing to ask this question at such a time was to capitalize on the belief that he wouldn’t refuse.
Should he refuse, the likely outcome would be meeting his end at the hands of the demon.
His mind was in a constant state of deliberation. To survive, it seemed like the only option was to become a Devotee of the Cruel Scholar. Yet, once a Devotee, his future would be virtually controlled by the Demon God, even his soul might belong to this entity.
Reason counseled Angel that he should choose submission. However, a rebellious fervor was surging relentlessly within him.
In fact, the rebellious sentiments prompted recollections of the Twilight Auction. If he could recreate that scenario, if he could summon the creatures from the Nightmare Plane… if he possessed the ability to upset the order…
The Cruel Scholar was observing Angel’s thought process intently.
When Angel thought of the Nightmare Plane’s Queen, the Cruel Scholar’s heart gave a sudden jolt, sensing an obscure feeling of danger.
At that point, the Cruel Scholar dared not probe further into Angel’s inner thoughts.
Watching Angel’s prolonged silence, after weighing his options for a moment, the Cruel Scholar finally spoke——