Although Damien wanted to celebrate his successful escape, he was well aware that leaving the barrier didn't guarantee his safety.
As if to prove his assessment, two divine senses swept over his position before the gap in the barrier could fully close.
"Boy, don't think that we are your most powerful enemy here. Your true enemy is waiting for you out there."
"I didn't expect to be able to see such a fun show in this lifetime. Since you've given us some quality entertainment for the first time in 10,000 years, me and Old Eden here didn't interfere when you fought that witch. However, next time we meet we'll likely be enemies. Let's see if you can show me another good thing at that time."
The first voice was effeminate yet not womanly, making Damien unsure of the individual's gender. As for the second, it was the husky voice of a man.
'Demon Kings Granheim and Eden.'
Damien was sure of their identities, leaving the Demon Queen he had just escaped from as Demon King Eliza. According to what he learned from Elitra, she was more powerful than both Granheim and Lucius, while being less powerful than Eden, but Damien didn't think so.
'Her mental magic is truly fierce. If it wasn't for the Mind Prison, no matter how much willpower I have, I wouldn't be able to resist. What about others?'
Damien realized why the assessment was such. Her mental magic was indeed powerful. Damien also realized that Eliza might not have used the full potential of her mental magic in their bout just now.
'Luckily I riled her up a ton before the fight actually started. If she was thinking straight, I don't know how I would've been able to continue casting with ease.'
Her mental state was already a mess after he brought her to climax through humiliation, and it became even more messed as she faced even more humiliation from not being able to catch him.
The best way to deal with someone who used mental attacks was to disrupt their mind. Damien had figured this out at the moment.
'But those two divine senses…'
They were far more powerful than Damien could fathom. If they had chosen to interfere in today's matter, he might not have been able to escape as he had done.
While he was thinking, Damien never stopped moving forward, rushing through the outskirts of the mountain's fourth layer to escape. Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan were on his right and left, following not far behind him.
"There are probably going to be Apostles blocking our exit. Be prepared to fight." Damien mentioned to the other two.
"Isn't that obvious? Don't get in the habit of telling me what to do." Feng Qing'er scoffed.
"More fun~!" Meanwhile, Qing Tan was just excited to be taking part in the current chaos.
The three ran for a few more minutes before they met with the inevitable obstruction. Rather than just sending three Apostles as they had done before, all 7 of the remaining Apostles were blocking the path ahead.
Damien abruptly halted in his steps. "Damn, you guys really went all out this time."
His gaze was focused on the old man that stood in the middle. Even disregarding his position, the way the other Apostles showed subconscious deference to him made his position obvious.
"Little brat, you've truly gone out of your way to make our lives hard in these past few months, haven't you?" The old man said, ignoring Damien's previous comment.
"Hm? What could you possibly be talking about?" Damien responded.
"Well, it's not like it matters. Our plans aren't something a measly child like you can interfere with. Perhaps soon you'll understand how futile your efforts have been, and at that time, maybe you'll regret not becoming a part of such a grand revolution."
Damien's brow twitched when the old man kept talking while ignoring him. Even his eyes were foggy as if he wasn't actually looking at Damien at all.
"Sigh, enough of all this talking. You came to fight us, so let's fight. Look, those six behind you look like they're itching to be taught a lesson."
As Damien said, the other six Apostles were glaring daggers at the group of three as if their families had just been slaughtered in front of them.
"What's with the hatred~? I've never met any of you before." Qing Tan asked lightly. Even Damien and Feng Qing'er were curious about this point.
The Apostles continued silently glaring while the old man smiled. "Forgive them. You see, the ten of them share a connection similar to siblings considering our positions and inheritance. If three of your siblings were killed, wouldn't you also bear intense hatred for their killers?"
"But you, old man, don't seem to bear any hatred at all. Could it be that you're the type to backstab friends and family for profit? To be honest, it's not surprising at all."
The old man continued smiling as if Damien's words didn't affect him at all. "You don't have to try and sow discord between us. They can understand my motives just as clearly as I can understand theirs. Nothing is hidden between us."
"Tch."
Damien's sharp gaze panned the surroundings as his awareness stayed spread through the area.
'There's no way the three of us can fight the seven of them on equal footing.'
Since they had encountered the group of Apostles, Damien's goal had always been to escape. He never once entertained the thought of fighting. But there was definitely a certain thought hovering in his mind.
'Looking at how they all defer to that old man, if I can just take him out, then their morale will take a huge hit.'
Damien had been wondering how to attract the Apostles for his assassination plan for a while, but he couldn't find a way to provoke them into moving. He didn't know enough about them to do so.
Previously, they had come because he was interfering with their plans too much, but after three of them had been killed, it would be much harder to use the same method to draw them out. They were undoubtedly wary, proven by the fact that they mobilized together instead of sending a small number.
'But, even with numbers, they can't combat Void Essence.'
Damien's awareness became focused as he sent a mental message to Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan.
'Can the two of you hold them off for a while?'
Feng Qing'er furrowed her brows. 'Do you have a plan?'
'I do, but I need absolute concentration to pull it off. If any of them manage to interrupt me, it won't work.'
'Hmm, there's seven of them and two of us. It's almost impossible for us to win this battle.' Qing Tan added.
'Right, I don't plan to kill them all. Just buy me five minutes, and then escape with everything you have. Even if I don't act after five minutes, you should still escape.'
'Understood. Five minutes, right? Even if you wanted five hours, I could easily buy that much time!' Feng Qing'er proudly thumped her chest and proclaimed.
Damien grinned at her confidence. 'Good! As expected of the future Matriarch of the Fire Phoenix Clan! Well then, let's begin!'
On his cue, a sea of flaming runic patterns and a swamp of darkness filled the surrounding area. Soon enough, a massive battle abruptly began.
