The end of our battle was inevitable, yet also sudden. Still, it did come to an end.
Mo Ning stopped releasing those fiery bursts and began falling to the ground. As she plummeted, those Vengeful Flamesouls and my Shadow Demon Guardian continued following downwards, maintaining that tight encirclement even as she landed.
Even though she had never experienced the power of my Nether Flames before, her instincts told her that this wasn’t something she could handle. That meant she had no way of breaking through the encirclement, especially not with that pesky Shadow Demon Guardian keeping a close watch on her.
Yet she did not surrender right away. She merely stood there silently, as if she was pondering whether or not to embark on that last hurrah. As for me, I had no intention of recalling my Vengeful Flamesouls until I had confirmation that she had lost. Either way, this victory was mine, so even if she chose to persist, I could just slam those Vengeful Flamesouls right into her. In the worst case scenario, I could just recall my Vengeful Flamesouls right before she died. As for whether or not that would permanently cripple her… well… since one was one the battlefield, they should have the required self-awareness as well!
This moment of hesitation only lasted two seconds before Mo Ning showed a change. Her gaze had hardened -seems like she wanted to fight it out then. Yet just as she was about to make her move, the voice of that shadowy Nightmare Steed boomed from above. “That’s enough. This battle is over.”
“She actually won… now that’s an interesting turn of events.” Crouched safely away from our battlefield, the Overlord cat licked his paws before tossing the Hellhounds’ clan head a nonchalant look. “That little fellow actually has three Original Sins.”
“I told you so. Even if I’m old, I’m not senile enough to make a mistake like that.” Having said that, the Hellhounds’ clan head suddenly asked, “So what’s your plan?”
The Overlord cat shrugged his shoulders. “Even our clan’s Cat King was helped up to the throne by her, what else can I do?”
The Hellhounds’ clan head knowingly nodded at that. “Speaking of which, it seems like a couple of our younger generation Hellhounds are on good terms with her as well.”
“Then let’s just leave it at that for now.”
“True.”
Because the shadowy Nightmare Steed willingly admitted defeat for their clan, Mo Ning had no reason to risk that encirclement any longer. Instead, she coldly lowered her head and muttered, “I’ve lost.”
With the outcome decided, I finally recalled my Vengeful Flamesouls and my Shadow Demon Guardian. At the same time, the shadowy Nightmare Steed descended from the skies and landed between the both of us.
“A loss is a loss, since you’ve won this fight, then we will grant you the right to recruit any of our clan’s brave warriors to fight for you. The Nightmare Steed Horn will be sent to you shortly as well.” The shadowy Nightmare Steed eyed the other Overlord Purgatory Warhorse at that point. That horse then left the scene; probably to go fetch the horn. “Other than the Nightmare Steed’s horn, do you have any other request?”
“With regards to recruiting your clan’s warriors… I have no need of that right now, but I will in the future. Should your clan ever encounter any new Devils in the future, I hope that you would do your best to capture them alive, then send them over to me.”
To be perfectly honest, while I was only given the right to recruit their warriors right now, I could consider this as having conquered their clan. After all, allowing me to recruit their warriors was a form of recognition. For the time being however, I had no need for a massive army yet. I had no enemies in Sable Radiance, so the most pressing issue now was to repair the Exchange Array, and subdue more Devils.
“So you want them as captives.”
“That’s right. Best don’t harm them as well, they are going to be my important soldiers in the future.”
“Alright, we’ll settle on this deal then.” Even though this was an oral agreement, I wasn’t too worried. These horses seemed like a principled lot who wouldn’t go back on their words easily. Besides, capturing some lone Devil and sending him my way wasn’t all that difficult for them.
Just as we finished ironing out that deal, the Overlord Warhorse came back with a foot long black horn in his mouth.
I reached out and gingerly took it from him, cradling it in my arms like it was some precious jewel.
‘So this is the horn of a Nightmare Steed, doesn’t seem all that special to me though. Still, at least it means I finally have one of the items required for repairing the array… Geez… it felt like a really long journey just to get this blasted thing. I swear I’ve aged a few years in the process.’
“Because each and every Nightmare Steed Horn is able to aid a Purgatory Warhorse in his evolution towards a Nightmare Steed, they are all regarded as treasures in our clan…”
‘Is he trying to tell me indirectly that he just did me a big favor? Please, I earned it fair and square, and you’re not getting it back either.’
For the time being, that was all the business I had with the Purgatory Warhorses. It was time to resume my journey to find the rest of the ingredients. However, I still needed a representative from their clan to accompany me. And I would much rather Mo Ning.
With that in mind, I openly broached this subject with the shadowy Nightmare Steed. “I still have other matters to attend to right now so I’ll be leaving. Before that, I hope your clan is able to spare a representative to accompany me. I just so happen to lack a mount as well.”
“Alright, I’ll let you have your pick of some of our finests young horses.”
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