In front of them was a silver-haired demon with huge jet-black wings.

On one hand, Lucifer looked wild, like a proper demon, yet he also possessed a dignified side, like an archangel.

“I watched you defeat Cruella and Harpes from the depths of the abyss, Rafael,” Lucifer said to Woohyuk while staring with his sharp red eyes.

Since he saw and experienced the end of his two old companions, Lucifer understood that he must remain vigilant during his battle with Woohyuk.

He wouldn’t tolerate any self-inflicted mistakes, as he had waited almost an eternity for this moment.

“You, like them, will be defeated by me, Lucifer. He who has lost his original intention and corrupted his own heart shall perish upon this earth,” Woohyuk stated.

“I’ve lost my original intention… I think you’ve changed completely. Well, since you reincarnated as a human and accepted the demonic powers of the previous Demon Lord, you’re probably not the Rafael I know. Your memory will also be incomplete.”

Lucifer didn’t recognize Woohyuk as a former colleague.

Archangel Rafael was dead, so what stood in front of him was only Rafael’s shadow.

However, if it wasn’t for Rafael, Lucifer would not have survived, so he maintained a basic degree of courtesy.

“I intend to regain my memory through the G.o.ddesses of Urdarbrunn. Furthermore, even if I have to sit on the Demon Lord throne, I will make sure to successfully complete the Odyssey Plan,” Woohyuk replied.

“You’re still talking about that foolish plan. I admit that the irregular code you entered into the system was a big blow to the Creator. But it was not enough to get him out. At that time, you should have ended the celestial world by obtaining the demonic powers,” Lucifer retorted.

“If you are interested in ruining the world, go to Aleister or Lilith. I will continue to stick with my existing plan,” answered Woohyuk.

With the help of Etheria Rodinus, he believed that he’d be able to fix the system and move it in the right direction.

As Woohyuk maintained his position, Lucifer sighed,

“Hah… even though you’ve been reincarnated as a human, you’re still too stubborn and overly positive. If you’re so intent on remaining stubborn, I’ll have to be the one who denies you and opens your eyes to the reality of this world!”

Go-Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh!

As Lucifer spread his wings, the heavens and earth turned black, and a black vortex swirled from the ground.

At the same time, deep crevices and cracks started to spread in all directions.

Woohyuk and his party lowered themselves closer to the ground in the wake of the natural disaster.

‘He’ll probably take over the surroundings with his absolute s.p.a.ce soon.’

Having fought Harpes before, Woohyuk roughly understood the pattern of attack.

Woohyuk acted first by extending Asura’s demonic powers throughout the s.p.a.ce.

Hwi-Ah!

Verserios cried fiercely and emitted a pitch-black flash.

Lucifer, who saw Woohyuk’s actions and the appearance of Verserios, laughed out loud as if he was watching something funny,

“Do you think that a human body can completely bring out the darkness of the abyss? The current me and the current you possess different vessels, and thus, different potential. No matter how many times you’ve crossed your limits, I’ve started from a point that you’ll never reach.”

Blue flames poured out like rain from the darkened sky.

After that, the blue flame covered half the s.p.a.ce…

SaHa!

Asura’s pitch-black demonic powers began to fight against the blue flames.

“Keuk!”

Woohyuk grit his teeth at the pressure that seemingly came from everywhere.

As Lucifer said, he was stuck in a situation where there was a marked difference of power usage and competence.

Since he was a fallen angel who fully accepted the magic of the abyss, Lucifer was powerful enough to easily subdue the Demon Kings Woohyuk had gathered. He was also overwhelming Woohyuk.

“Uh, what should we do, Asura,” a Demon King cried out.

“I think it would be better to take the lead before it gets more disadvantageous…” another one added on with a whimper.

The Demon Kings, who were floating in the air to avoid the blue flame, asked Woohyuk to make a decision.

Woohyuk nodded his head and replied with a firm expression,

“From now on, we will perform a total attack. Let’s coordinate our movements as we discussed before.”

Those who specialize in disturbance techniques were placed at the medium range while those who specialize in melee attacks were placed at a closer range to Lucifer.

Those who specialized in magic attacks were to engage from long distance.

Their interconnection and security were achieved by maximizing each individual’s characteristics, abilities, and technologies.

When Roan and Lisa were put into battle, Helena, who was next to Woohyuk, strengthened her defensive barrier.

Flas.h.!.+

Helena’s defensive barrier was necessary once Woohyuk was defeated in the momentum fight. It would have to protect both Woohyuk and Arhen.

“Look for another way. Just like you did when you defeated Cruella and Harpes,” urged Helena through gritted teeth.

“There’s something I wanted to try. I’m just looking for the right opportunity,” Woohyuk quietly answered.

Lilith’s Unholy Grail.

It greatly amplified the magic of the Abyss, but it could only be handled from a limited range.

Additionally, he had the Absorber Trigger, an artifact that allowed him to bind targets who used demonic magic/powers.

Both were Woohyuk’s hidden cards. Unfortunately, Lucifer knew his hand.

‘There’s a need for me to change the pattern of my attack…’

While the Demon Kings and the two Homunculus were buying him some time, Woohyuk had to identify Lucifer’s weaknesses and openings.

Woohyuk calmed his roaring demonic energy down, which seemed to want to run mad, and watched Lucifer carefully.

He was currently flying back and forth and dealing with his enemies’ attacks. He had on an annoyed expression.

KwKwKwKwKwKw.a.n.g! 

Rumble! 

SaHa! 

Puff-Puff-Puff-Puff-Puff!

Lucifer comfortably blocked various types of exclusive skill, weapon, and ability attacks as if he was swatting flies.

“The 72 Demon Kings… I once considered taking you all under my control. However, the existence of Lemegeton made that decision moot,” Lucifer calmly commented.

The 72 Demon Kings originated from the abyss, but they indirectly belonged to the system’s control.

In that sense, they were fated to never become complete demons.

Therefore, Lilith, who wanted the advent of the true demon, had patiently waited for a long time in the demon world.

She awaited one person… someone who was once an archangel but reincarnated to become a human being… someone who was completely free from all system constraints.

‘In order to increase the odds of success of the Odyssey Plan, Rafael injected an irregular code into his own soul,’ Woohyuk thought to himself.

Although it was only a prototype, the irregular code fundamentally changed Archangel Rafael and destroyed the system limitations that the Creator secretly encoded on his followers.

Therefore, Rafael could be said to be the true vessel of the Demon Lord.

However, he was now a human who had lost much of his original ideal traits.

It was difficult to expect success in re-implementing the Odyssey Plan with such a body.

‘Rather than waiting for an uncertain future to unfold, I will overturn everything,’ Lucifer thought at the same time.

As a result of spending almost an eternity in the abyss, he was completely free from the influence of the Creator.

He would use brute force and be reborn as a transcendent person, gradually eroding the world the Creator created.

He would trample and destroy everything that was in his way.

While thinking of exacting this tumultuous plan, Lucifer stared at the incoming Roan.

He then lifted his finger,

Kw.a.n.g!

With a sudden explosion, Roan was engulfed in gray dust.

After that, Roan fell to the ground while foaming at the mouth.

Lisa, who was behind him, moved her small body downward to save him.

“Homunculus… they are bothersome beings created by the G.o.ds. You two shall disappear together.”

Lisa, who was holding Roan, was instantly covered in cold flames.

In no time, the two Homunculus became covered in ice and buried themselves into the ground like icebergs.

Koo-Oong!

The Demon Kings who saw this scene looked at each other with tense expressions.

“That guy, he uses the same abilities as dragons.”

“We need to be extra careful when approaching him.”

Lucifer, the ancient devil, was unfathomably strong.

Compared to him, the fallen angel Cruella was like a puppy barking in front of a lion.

Cruella was only corrupted. However, Lucifer had evolved into a monster of the abyss.

‘… The situation looks bad.’

Woohyuk stared at the point where Roan and Lisa had fallen with a frustrated expression.

It was time for him to move.

While holding Verserios with both hands, Woohyuk asked Helena,

“Helena, can you damage that guy with the Holy Grail you have?”

“It’s possible. However, the Holy Grail is not in perfect condition, so I don’t know how powerful it can be against such an ent.i.ty.”

If the Ark of Knowledge was not rebuilt, the Holy Grail was significantly limited in its function.

Woohyuk nodded and pulled Lilith’s Unholy Grail out of his pocket.

“Then, use this one. This one should suit your taste better.”

When Woohyuk finished speaking, 

Swah~

Lilith’s Unholy Grail sucked in Woohyuk’s magic and created a pitch-black orb wrapped in a spiral vortex.

“Are you going to attack with that?” Helena asked.

“For now, yes,” Woohyuk answered.

Woohyuk threw the pitch-black orb.

After seeing the attack coming towards him, Lucifer summoned his Great Flamesword and cut the orb in half with a single blow.

Slice!

The counterattack amounted to nothing. However, Woohyuk didn’t give up and activated the Absorber Trigger.

Ji-Ji-Ji-Ji-Ji-Ji-Ji!

A spherical barrier covered Lucifer, causing a black current to revolve around him.

Then, Woohyuk activated Lilith’s Unholy Grail once again…

As the black orb pieces were absorbed by the spherical barrier, the black current inside the barrier began to amplify.

KwJi-Ji!

It was the method Woohyuk used when he dealt with Aleister in the past.

Lucifer frowned as demonic mana quickly escaped from his body.

“I saw it before and thought it wasn’t a big deal. However, after confronting it head-on, it’s quite a nuisance. However, that’s all it is… a nuisance.”

Slice!

When Lucifer swung his Flamesword, the spherical barrier was cut in half at once.

In theory, Woohyuk’s plan worked, but his power was too weak to keep Lucifer locked up.

“That didn’t work either,” murmured Woohyuk.

“You’d better stop playing around like this, Rafael. The more time that pa.s.ses, the worse the situation will become for you.”

The blue flames on the ground were gradually rising higher.

Lucifer’s absolute s.p.a.ce was the Sea of Ice.

The blue flame turned everything that it touched into a ma.s.s of ice, and the ice ma.s.ses sublimated into gas after a certain period of time.

‘Has it come to the point where a face-to-face confrontation is unavoidable?’

Suddenly, he remembered those who were at Arcane’s Tower.

Leifina.

His sudden feelings of wanting to meet her filled his heart in this dire situation.

‘I will go back. I will be with Leifina for the remaining days to come.’

For that to happen, he had to fight against this dark reality.

Woohyuk flew towards the waiting Lucifer and swung Verserios with one hand.

One collision.

KRang!

Verserios emitted black smoke as it collided with the Great Flamesword. A fissure formed for an instant, a crack in s.p.a.ce-time.

KwJi-Ji!

At the same time, Woohyuk felt a shock as if all the bones in his body were shattered.

“Keuk!”

Dark red blood spilled from his mouth, and the aftershock vibrations seemed to continue without end within his body.

‘I might really die if I exchange blows again.’

He felt as though his internal organs were ruptured. He also felt that his blood was flowing backward, causing excruciating waves of pain. 

He felt something similar when fighting Harpes, but this was more powerful and difficult to bear.

Woohyuk opened his eyes and stared at the thousands of black tentacles protruding from Lucifer.

Hwi-Eek!

It was time for him to step back and look for another opening.

At that time, a black gap appeared in the air, and an ent.i.ty appeared.

It was Baal, the 1st ranked Demon King.