Chapter 719 - Cultivating By The Gate
Inside the vast s.p.a.ce of the second trial, the two remaining demon groups led by Balthagan and Rathadas of the Nine Great Demon Clans continued to fend off the endless onslaught of wood-like creatures.
Their sizes were small like human infants, and their appearances varied from humanoid trees to tree-like beasts and demons.
Nevertheless, most of them took on the form of spiders as if mimicking the h.e.l.lbiter"s appearance, albeit not precisely due to their distinctive wooden trait.
"Argh! These accursed creatures are endless! Kill a hundred, and a thousand shall take their place. Kill a thousand, and tens of thousands more will sp.a.w.n! There"s no end to them!"
"If you have the extra energy to complain, then put it into killing instead! Otherwise, we will be overwhelmed!"
The minor Greater Demons complained as the two demon groups worked together to survive, forming a circle that allowed them to cover each other"s blind spots while fending off the endless waves of tree spiders and the like.
"If you have any solution, now would be the time to mention it, Balthagan. At this rate, we will be exhausted to death before we can clear the second trial."
Red-horned Rathadas diverted some of his attention and sought Evil-Eyed Balthagan"s wisdom while defending his side of the demon circle.
Nevertheless, Balthagan could only give a disappointing response with a frown.
"We knew the Abyssal Wood Demon King"s trial would be difficult, but the first trial clearance still made us complacent. We should have done some preparation before entering the second trial."
"I don"t want to hear what we could or could not have done differently! It"s already too late for that!" Red-horned Rathadas stated before demanding a solution from the Evil Eye Greater Demon, "Do you have a solution or not?!"
"Unfortunately, I do not." Balthagan shook his head disappointingly and said, "A power source should be hidden somewhere, fueling the production of these creatures. However, my evil eye cannot locate it."
"G.o.ddammit! I am unwilling to die here! I still have many things to accomplis.h.!.+ My ambition can"t possibly end here—!"
At that moment, the tightly-sealed gates leading back to the first trial ground in the distance suddenly reopened.
The Red-Horned Greater Demon and Evil Eye Greater Demon"s eyes brightened instantly.
"The first trial ground! Great, someone else is coming! Whether they are a friend or foe, we must quickly retreat back to the first trial ground before the gate shuts tight again!" Balthagan quickly barked.
The demons saw hope on the other end of the gate.
However, an entire army of hostile creatures that continued to grow in numbers with every pa.s.sing moment stood between them and the gate to the first trial ground.
No matter how hard the demons tried to push through the army"s lines, the overwhelming numbers kept them in place.
"Lord Balthagan, it"s no good! There are too many of them!"
"We"ve been completely pinned on the spot! Neither advancing nor retreating is possible, Lord Balthagan!"
Several Lesser Demons cried as the task at hand was exceedingly challenging to accomplish.
On the other end of the gate, Leon and the others quickly noticed the demons" precarious situation deep inside the second trial ground before they backed away from the entrance.
At the same time, Leon noticed another detail.
"Seems like these creatures won"t attack us so long as we do not enter the second trial," Leon narrowed his eyes and mentioned, "They are completely focused on the demons."
It was apparent to everyone, even without Leon mentioning it to the group.
"It also seems like these creatures will be sp.a.w.ning endlessly until all the trial undertakers inside are killed," Chief Baskara mentioned with a surprised look, "However, it"s the first time I"ve seen something like this."
"Same here. I didn"t think something like this was possible…" a Battle Master of the Crimsonfog Tribe added.
Naturally, they were referring to the tree-like creatures" rapid production that could be observed along the walls inside the second trial ground, where numerous transparent glowing sacs continuously spat out seeds like pea shooters.
These seeds, in turn, quickly germinate and grow into tree-like spiders.
However, over time, the group noticed the green-glowing transparent sacs sp.a.w.ning fewer tree-like spiders as the newborn creatures took on demon forms instead.
Not only were they bigger in size, but they were also stronger in power.
Chief Baskara and the others could not fathom nor comprehend how the second trial could generate such strange lifeforms at incredible rates.
Not only was it unfathomable, but it was also alarming.
"This… We better refrain from entering the second trial ground and observe the situation for now… Those demons are done for," Chief Baskara stated.
"Agreed."
The One-Eyed Venerable Shaman and the rest of the Crimsonfog Tribe"s Battle Masters quickly reached a consensus.
They will not enter the second trial ground unless they understand the nature of the second trial and figure out the way to clear it.
Otherwise, it would just be suicide.
While everyone was preoccupied with observing the changes inside the second trial ground, Leon took out the demon corpses he collected earlier.
"I"m going to refine the demon blood and cultivate for a bit. If I can advance to the next stage in the Everlasting Blood Mantra, our chances of survival, in general, will rise."
With that said, Leon did not hesitate to commence the demon blood extraction immediately.
It wasn"t difficult to understand that the stronger a person was, the higher their survivability was. As such, no one had complaints about Leon"s choice to cultivate at that moment.
Furthermore, they would be receiving the demon corpses and their Demon Cores after Leon completed his blood refinement.
Knowing what the Crimsonfog Tribe"s Battle Masters wanted, Leon extracted all the untainted demon blood essence from the 30-odd demon corpses in one go.
Shortly after, a red sphere of demon blood hung above Leon"s head as he commenced with the next step and refined the demon blood essence into origin blood, paying no heed to anything else around him.
Most of the Crimsonfog Tribe"s Battle Masters took that chance to also commence their own cultivation session after receiving their share of the Demon Cores from the demon corpses.
Only Darlene, Aria, the One-Eyed Venerable Shaman, Chief Baskara, and a few others chose to remain by the gate to continue their observation of the second trial"s situation.