Time really flies and in the blink of an eye seven days passed since the third apocalypse broke out.
During the seven days that passed, the war among all races did not stop getting more and more intense to the point where the outside of every human city practically turned into a slaughterhouse and the forests became butcheries where mutant beasts fought each other or other enemies that dared in their paths.
The smell of blood could be breathed into the air by anyone who went out into the streets even if they did not go near the walls of the cities in which they lived.
Three days ago, news that shook the entire human race spread throughout Eventide World.
One of the western kingdoms of the world, the Cirian Kingdom which had a long history of over 6,000 years, had fallen.
When the news that one of the 49 kingdoms that sustained the human race was destroyed, each and every human felt as if the ground they were standing on was shaking harder than ever.
Unable to believe such news, the kings of the bordering kingdoms sent two scouts each, all of whom possessed strength that had already broken beyond level 50. However, to the terror of these four kings, the news that these scouts brought back to their kingdoms after 48 hours was chilling.
The five cities of the Cirian Kingdom had been bathed in blood and the more than nine smaller towns were leveled to the ground. No survivors were found at all and the heads of countless humans were seen hanging on tree branches, their wide-open eyes filled with fear had been eternally etched on those lifeless skulls.
With something this huge happening, it was simply impossible for the other kingdoms to stand still, especially considering that whoever had done such a thing was definitely not an unintelligent creature. All of the closest kingdoms, including the Pralan Kingdom, sent at least one general above level 90 to scout around and discover something that could lead them to the culprit(s).
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In the middle of the Forest of the Ancients.
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!...
As the mana tornadoes spun ferociously linking the skies and the earth, the explosions coming from within the forest were joined by the constant blasts of purple lightning flashing through the mana-laden clouds.
[You have received the Soul Power of First Order Hundred-Foot Bloodsucker level 46.....]
[You have received the Soul Power of First Order Flaming Hawk level 48.....]
[You have received the Soul Power of First Order Disintegrator Acid Snake level 49.....]
...
After killing the last enemy around him, Bai Zemin retrieved the whip he had been using as a weapon for the past seven days, and looking at the bloody mess around him he couldn't help but sigh.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})"I thought that by switching weapons I would be being more delicate with my attacks but it seems that it's impossible after all." Muttered Bai Zemin under his breath as he squatted down to make a deep cut on the First Order snake's head and determine whether or not there was any Soul Stone inside.
"Little brother Zemin, haven't you heard the saying? It doesn't matter if the monkey wears silk, at the end of the day, it will still be a monkey." Lilith let out a giggle as she looked at everything while sitting on the thick branch of a tree, swinging her little feet back and forth innocently.
"Yes, I've also heard the saying that no matter how much a 100-year-old succubus evolves, at the end of the day, it will still be an old granny." Bai Zemin muttered without looking back.
"..." Lilith's left eyelid twitched several times, he always brought up the topic of age which was somehow her weak point. Lilith tried to remain calm as she said with a proud smile, "Is that so? Well, you wish you could hug a certain 100-year-old succubus. Too bad you can't do it because you're too weak!"
Bai Zemin was not shaken by Lilith's words at all, at the end of the day, the truth was not offensive to him. While cleaning the small dark green Soul Stone, he calmly said, "Little Lilith, haven't you ever heard this saying? Old cow who wants to eat young grass. It's quite interesting, don't you think?"
"Ugh..." This time Lilith's right eyelid joined the left one, twitching fiercely. Frustrated at not being able to beat him in a joke she started, Lilith snorted and said in a casual voice, "Then wouldn't it be good if we sent the old cow to meet with old bulls? I'm sure there will definitely be many bulls who will want to eat the cow!"
Bai Zemin's movements stopped for a second and a flash of anger shone in his eyes but he quickly calmed down and continued wiping away the encephalic matter that was stuck to the sides of the Soul Stone.
"Mm, looks like the idea of having a royal harem doesn't sound so bad anymore for some reason." He said in a low voice but clear enough for the succubus in the tree to hear. "Mom said she wanted a lot of grandchildren, we'll need plenty of cows for them to have my calves."
"You!" Lilith's eyes widened and without thinking she leaped off the tree towards him as she angrily said, "I'll bite you to death, you insolent brat!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"You! Let go of me- Stop biting me!"
"I'll teach you to respect me and not to think about women anymore!"
"Wasn't it you who started all this?! Stop biting me, I'm telling you!"
"Ay! Why do you always slap my butt so hard?! You'll leave marks on my skin, you brute!"
"And why are you always biting me?! My mother found out about the bites back at the Sky Destroyer! Besides, I'll be sure to mark your skin so no old bull dares to look at my old cow!"
"Now you're not only calling me old but also calling me fat?! Surnamed Bai, this lady shall rip your skin off!"
For several minutes, the pair engaged in what seemed to be a deadly battle.
The sound of smacks was followed by cries of surprise from the female while the male's growls grew louder and louder as he was bitten by her.
Several trees were shattered as Bai Zemin ran off like a runaway horse trying to disengage from the rider on his back named Lilith who clung to him with her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.
More than a few wild beasts met with the unfortunate fate of bursting into bloody mist after being struck by Bai Zemin as he ran uncontrollably all over the place in an unsuccessful attempt to free himself from the succubus' bites.
...
About 20 minutes later, in the middle of a clearing with dozens of shattered trees around, two seemingly lifeless bodies lay motionless on the ground.
Lilith and Bai Zemin looked up at the chaotic sky while holding hands. His neck had clear bite marks that were impossible to hide while she occasionally grimaced slightly as she felt burning from the lower back of her body.
After an unknown period of time during which the only three sounds that could be heard were the roaring of some creatures inside the forest or the constant explosions coming from the distance along with the blast of lightning in the sky, Bai Zemin opened his mouth first.
"Lilith, how do you think my whip training is going?"
"... It's been seven days since you started training for real. Even though seven days is short, you spent over 14 hours a day learning how to swing, cut, or twist a whip." She said in a low, melodious voice. "Thanks to your Super Warrior skill, your speed of learning and adapting is simply monstrous, but if we add your immeasurable talent to the equation, then the result is reaching the beginner level in just a week."
"Beginner..." Bai Zemin repeated with a frown. "So low..."
Bai Zemin believed that he was pretty good with the whip right now, at least good enough to be able to fight a level 100 soul evolver without any problems even if he didn't activate any powerful skills. However, Lilith's words proved to him that he was wrong.
"Zemin, if those existences that spent centuries to learn how to use a whip properly heard your words they would definitely do their best to hunt you down." Lilith forced a smile and pointed out, "To reach the beginner level in mastering a weapon you never used in just a week is insane. If you could spend one or two more years training like this you would master the whip completely, and in five years at most you should be able to use... those attacks..."
Bai Zemin gently tightened his grip on her hand and said softly, "Thank you."
She returned the slight squeeze silently, as if to tell him with actions that she was there for him even if she really couldn't interfere too much with his actions and destiny.
Lilith felt it was truly ironic all she was experiencing and how much she had changed.
She had come to Earth with the intention of making use of Bai Zemin's power, she never planned to get romantically involved with him or anyone else on the planet, and while Lilith didn't plan to hurt Bai Zemin, she also didn't really care if he lived or died after he paid his debt for the help she gave him.
However, in a matter of months of living together and spending every second of the 24 hours of the day together, the thoughts and feelings of the Higher Existence known as Lilith or Bloody Succubus, the only female capable of rivaling Uriel in terms of beauty, began to subtly change without her realizing it.
Before she became aware of it, Lilith began to feel pain when he was wounded in combat, she began to worry every time he was struck down by a higher-level soul evolver and in her heart she practically began to pray hoping that he would get back on his feet to continue fighting.
Now, Lilith not only didn't care as much as before about the target she had been pursuing for so many years but somehow hoped that he wouldn't help her since that way Bai Zemin wouldn't have to fall into such a dangerous situation.
However, Lilith knew the kind of man the little guy next to her was; Bai Zemin would definitely force her to tell him everything in order to help her when he became strong enough, Bai Zemin would definitely not be happy if he knew that she could never be truly happy unless she completed what she had already started.
If someone ever asked Lillith the reason why she fell in love with Bai Zemin, she would have no difficulty in answering.
She fell for his perseverance. Every time he suffered wounds capable of making even the proudest Higher Existence bow down in pain, Bai Zemin gritted his teeth and continued to fight bravely even if he knew that every second that passed only worsened his condition and reduced his chances of survival.
She fell for his kindness and decisiveness. Bai Zemin was not only a cruel monster as many made him look like. Lilith had been there for almost every one of his most important moments so she knew that deep inside that indifferent and cold exterior was a very gentle guy who had locked himself away because life had forced him to. The number of good-hearted living beings that Bai Zemin had helped with his actions either directly or indirectly was undoubtedly gigantic but he still knew when he needed to be firm in his decisions even though he knew that the outcome would still not leave him satisfied despite being the best.
She fell for his values. Nowadays and for evolved beings, words were worth less than the mana that could be found everywhere. Lilith knew countless living beings, even the so-called angels that many existences worshipped as righteous and free of impurities, but she would have trouble pointing out even one that had not broken its word once. However, at least during the time she had been by his side since the beginning of his evolutive path, Lilith had yet to find an event in which Bai Zemin had not kept his word no matter how difficult his promise was to keep.
There were so many reasons she had to say regarding how she fell in love with him that if Lilith's life was a light novel of the kind Bai Zemin loved so much it would probably take a whole chapter and the author would surely be cursed by its readers.
"Let's go back to the castle." Bai Zemin said after several minutes of silence.
"Mm." Lilith nodded obediently like a little wife and followed him closely on the way out of the forest in a southerly direction.
When Bai Zemin arrived at the castle, he was immediately stopped by a pretty young maid with reddish hair.
"Lord Zemin, His Majesty Philip requested that when you return to the castle to inform you that he will be waiting for you in the throne room. Besides, this is just a personal thought but it seemed to be something urgent judging by the angry expression on His Majesty's face." Said the young maid as she looked at Bai Zemin with eyes full of admiration.
Bai Zemin's feats had already become known throughout the world. He had gone from being an unknown nobody to a living legend after ending the life of the much feared Shadow Killer and from the point of view of many citizens his importance to the kingdom was even higher than that of the king himself, making Bai Zemin one of the most important cornerstones for Gales.
Just as men sought out beauties, beauties sought out heroes, and Bai Zemin was not only a handsome young man but also had enough power to guarantee a safe and luxurious life to any woman who was fortunate enough to be his chosen partner. Therefore, the number of females in the kingdom and the world at large who were waiting for the perfect opportunity to win his favor at any cost was not small.
Bai Zemin nodded and thanked the young girl before heading straight for the throne room. He was now familiar enough with the structure of the giant castle to not get lost.
* * * * * * *
