Imp to Demon King: A Journey of Conquest

Like a tide, his readiness for combat washed his inner doubts. His posture straightened, occasional orange flames burst through his muscles' crevices, and a fiery glow pulsed around his eye as he stepped into the ruined city.

The scent of rust and rotting stones saturated the air as if the darkened rubble sprawling the streets had once been pieces of precious metals. Here and there, he passed by crumbled palaces, their styles whispering tales of forgotten grandeur.

But nothing matched the extravagant architecture of the circular building he had just entered. Shattered signs littered the barren gardens surrounding it. Inside, the maze of rooms made him imagine one of those in-game casinos with walls plated in gold that welcomed flushed players around betting tables.

Unfortunately, time had ravaged anything that could link this place to his mental image. The wood had rotted to oblivion, and his steps echoed against eroded stones as he walked to the golden flame visible from the outside.

He emerged from a corridor on ancient bleachers a moment later and observed the dust-laden racetrack carved into the ground. On the central platform, the flames blazed in a brazier similar to the last one he had found.

And since it was similar...

RUMBLE

Drawn by the noise of rubble hitting the ground, he snapped his head to a large balcony. Something stirred inside. Another horror?

His eye narrowed to the rising creature, an abomination as disgusting as the first.

Dark featherless wings, the bones rotten and shattered, unfurled. Four hands stretched their blade-like fingers toward him, each taller than he was. He frowned at their appearance. It was as though the skin was golden tendrils melded together in a protective layer.

His gaze trailed to the shoulders, taking in the round emerald gemstone encased in the same tendrils before noticing many more. He didn't know if they acted like eyes or power sources, but a soft shudder ran down his spine.

Finally, his nose scrunched at the elongated face, crowned with rubies, diamonds, and lapis lazuli. The open mouth, large enough to fit a building, revealed pointed teeth so sharp that they seemed to cut the wind each time the eldritch inhaled.

Then its voice, an infernal grumble that made him roll his eye, echoed.

"The casino's doors closed eons ago. Leave..." Its voice twisted, a blend of guttural malice and ancient greed as the golden flames in its eyes erupted into searing infernos. "You dare stand before me, reeking of Baal Peor's ember, a thief in my domain! I despise thieves above all! Your greed will be your end!"

Adam lunged aside as the creature shot at him without warning. He spun mid-air, his hand blazing as he hurled a barrage of fiery spears in retaliation.

They whistled with incredible speed. But that made him frown. Why were they so fast?

Observing the impact on the tendrils, he cursed. They vanished through the gaps and the giant trembled slightly as if something had absorbed them.

'Did it just grow a few centimeters?'

His mind raced with theories as he landed on the track and gripped his blade.

'His flesh's ability or...' He glanced at the brazier. 'Is it the ability granted by this flame?'

An ominous feeling clawed at his heart. He had to ensure how it worked or forget about using his demonic essence to avoid bad surprises.

Determined to figure things out he dodged the creature's descending arms by leaping beside the brazier.

He bombarded it with different flames before a muffled curse escaped his lips as they disappeared inside, and the crackling intensified.

"No. They're strengthening it!"

Simultaneously, two clawed hands cleaved at him from both sides, forcing him out of his analysis.

"Don't approach my flame, thief!"

Despite the creature's roar and looming death, he smirked.

"You seem to value it a lot." He stepped behind the brazier, shadows dancing on his face. "Careful not to destroy it, then."

Still ready to dodge, he watched the hands halt dead cold before they collided with the brazier. Using this opportunity, he lashed his blade in an upward slash.

CLANG

Spark flaw as the strike collided with the wrist. The blade trembled, the reverberations travelling through his arm and jolting his shoulder. It really felt like swinging at a steel wall.

'Though bastard.' He gritted his teeth and lunged under the trembling wrist—just as the creature growled in rage, its sharp fingers piercing through the flames to impale his head.

The wind pressure sent his hair flying as his mind churned. This battle would be much tougher than the last. Using his flame would strengthen the creature, so they had to be sealed, leaving him only melee combat. But against this moving wall?

As he thought, he slid under the creature's broad legs, his eye scanning the pattern-like gaps in the tendrils. They were too small, like chain mail, but what if he widened them?

Meanwhile, the eldritch's other two arms plunged at him, forcing him to click his tongue. Dealing with four arms would be problematic, too. But it was fine... It would just boil down to a competition of pure violence. Would he hack its armor first, or would the creature obliterate him?

The thought made his blood boil as his feet dug into the ground beneath the creature, halting his momentum.

WHOOSH

Sharp fingers sliced through the rocks like butter, plunging down for dozens of centimeters right in front of him. Dust blasted against his face, pushing his hair back and revealing his empty left eye. But his right one locked on something else: the emerald gem on its shoulder.

Without hesitation, he launched himself upward, his nails using the gaps for support and his feet firmly planted on the tendrils. Eager to see if it was a weakness, he swung at maximum strength.
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CRACK

The gem exploded into a shower of green particles before his constricted pupils.

Stunned by its frailty compared to the unbreachable golden tendrils, he kicked the shoulder, back flipping away as two hands slammed from above while one came from below.

"Pitiful demon." The creature roared. "I'll savour every last bit of your flesh and turn your core into a new gem. I'll hang your soul over the fire for eons and watch it burn until it collapses on itself!"

However, Adam sneered at the threats.

"That's what your little friend, Baal Peor, said. I'll let you ask him in person how our battle ended." His eye lingered on the arm still planted in the ground as he added. "Bingo."