"Who the hell are you? Where’s my toy?" Chief Malakar stared into the carriage, his thick brow furrowing. The arrogant lustful smirk that had been plastered across his face completely vanished.

I stepped forward. "I’m the man who’s about to ruin your day by sending you to your ancestors. Now, be a good demon and ready your neck."

Malakar blinked. He stared at me for a long moment like looking at some idiot. "A human," Malakar said, pointing a thick clawed finger at my chest. He looked back over his shoulder at his vanguard captain, highly amused. "They sent a human. So it seems that village has colluded with our mortal enemies. That’s great actually, I don’t need to explain to the higher ups after I slaughter that village."

The surrounding Blood-Iron warriors erupted into cruel laughter.

"Now back to the point. Where is the widow?" Malakar demanded, turning his burning red eyes back to me. His voice grew colder. "Bring her to me this instant."

"Lyra is at home," I said. "She might be putting her daughter to sleep as of this moment."

Malakar’s jaw clenched. "I gave them an order and they dare defy it."

"You wanted a tribute. Here I am." I replied mockingly.

"You are food human!" Malakar roared, his voice echoing off the canyon walls. The laughter of his men instantly died. "I asked for the woman! I ordered her to be brought to me on her knees. Do you have any idea what you’ve done? By standing in this carriage, you haven’t saved her. You’ve just condemned every single person in that mud-hole to a slow, agonizing death. I will personally torture them now."

’When will Korin and his men begin the attack? I can’t buy too much time for them to prepare.’ I thought. "You’re just a coward Malakar." I said.

"A coward?" Malakar repeated, taking a heavy step toward me. His unrestrained A-Rank aura flared, pressing down on the entire canyon with a suffocating, oppressive pressure. "I am an A-Rank warlord. I am a god on this mountain. And you call me a coward!."

"You’re a bully who just got a promotion," I mocked, completely ignoring the pressure he released. "If you were a real god, you wouldn’t have sent a letter. You wouldn’t have asked for a delivery. You would have marched down to Elderglen and taken her yourself."

Malakar’s eyes twitched.

"But you didn’t," I said, taking a step closer to the edge of the carriage, closing the distance between us. "Because even after you reached A rank you didn’t do it. It must mean you are scared. You are scared even after being stronger than the entire village."

"Shut your mouth, human," the vanguard captain snarled, stepping forward with his spiked maul raised.

"Let him speak," Malakar commanded, holding up a hand. The sheer disrespect was making his blood boil, but his pride demanded he hear me out. "I want to hear the last words of a dead man. Tell me, human. Did you really think you could walk into my camp and insult me without consequences?"

"I didn’t come here to insult you," I said flatly. "I came here to kill you."

Malakar let out another booming laugh, but this time, it lacked any real amusement. It was filled with pure malice.

"You? Kill me?" Malakar spread his massive arms, showcasing his dark ashen skin. "My skin is harder than tempered steel. My strength can shatter mountains. I am going to rip that vulgar mouth of yours off, human. I am going to beat you to a bloody pulp, and then I am going to drag your broken body down to that village. I will make you watch as I take the widow in front of you. I will make you watch as I feed her brat to my hounds."

A translucent blue screen flickered in my vision as I activated Nine Heavens Eyes.

[Analyzing Target...]

[Name: Malakar]

[Race: Demon (Blood-Iron Tribe)]

[Rank: A-Rank]

[Aspect: Strength]

[Threat Level: High]

I read the text in a fraction of a second. Just a bit strong but still weaker than the fallen I faced. "You talk too much for someone who’s going to die," I said.

Malakar sneered. He turned his back on me, looking at his captain. "Tear his legs off. But keep him conscious. I want him awake for the journey down the mountain."

The captain grinned, hoisting his spiked maul. "With pleasure, Chief."

WHISTLE!

A sharp, piercing note cut through the canyon, it was Korin’s signal. Before the vanguard captain could even take a single step toward me, an iron arrow tore straight through his neck.

The captain’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief at what had happened. He dropped his maul and his hands flew to his throat, desperately trying to stem the sudden geyser of blood. He made a gurgling sound and collapsed heavily into the ground.

Malakar spun around, his red eyes wide. "What?"

Another sharp whistle tore through the air. Then a dozen more. The canyon instantly erupted into absolute chaos. A relentless, synchronized barrage of poisoned iron rained down upon the camp.

"IT’S AN AMBUSH!" a demon from the Blood-Iron Tribe screamed, stumbling backward into a bonfire with an arrow lodged in his shoulder.

"Shields up! Get the shields!" another roared.

"They’re on the ridges!" a warrior yelled, pointing up at the dark cliffs before an arrow caught him perfectly in the chest which instantly killed him. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Panic ripped through the ranks of the Blood-Iron Tribe. The arrogant warriors, who just moments ago were laughing, drinking and mocking the Elderglen village, were now scrambling desperately through the dust. They tripped over each other, trying to raise their shields against an enemy they couldn’t reach.

"Kill them!" Malakar’s voice thundered, his voice echoing over the screams of his men. He looked up at the cliffs and clenched his fists in absolute fury. He was distracted now and that was all I needed.

BOOM!

I didn’t draw my sword slowly. I channeled my Qi entirely into my legs and exploded forward. I crossed the distance between the carriage and Malakar in an absolute blur, reaching him before he could even turn his head back around.

Eclipse left its sheath. The blade hissed a deadly note that sliced cleanly through the chaotic noise of the battlefield.

"You—!" Malakar roared, snapping his attention back to me.

I used Heaven Severing Sword Art but not the full power. I needed to test his foundation first. I swung Eclipse in a horizontal arc, aiming directly for his chest.

Driven entirely by primal survival instincts, Malakar didn’t try to dodge. He braced his legs, crossed his massive, iron-vambraced arms over his chest, and took the hit head on.

CLANG!

The impact sounded like a cannon blast. Sparks violently exploded into the sky as my Qi met his demonic black-iron. The sheer force of the collision was astronomical.

Malakar was instantly lifted off his feet. The massive A-Rank demon was sent hurtling backward. He slammed his boots into the ground, desperately trying to anchor himself, but the momentum was simply too great. His heels carved twin trenches into the earth, throwing up geysers of stone as he violently slid for twenty feet after which he finally came to a halt.

"Impossible..." one of the Blood-Iron warriors whispered, his voice trembling.

"He pushed the Chief back?" another muttered.

Chief Malakar had actually been pushed back. The dust slowly settled over the battlefield. Malakar stood there, his chest heaving and his eyes wide with shock. Malakr slowly lowered his arms. The black-iron vambraces he had used to block were completely shattered. Slowly, he looked down at his chest.

A straight, shallow cut had bypassed the armor entirely. Blood slowly dripped down his massive chest, falling onto the earth with a soft patter. For the first time in years, someone had drawn his blood. He touched the red blood with trembling fingertips. He stared at it, his brain refusing to process the impossible.

Then, he slowly looked up at me. I was casually resting Eclipse against my shoulder. To be honest I was bored. This guy was weak for an A rank.

"You said your skin was harder than tempered steel," I said. "I guess you were lying. It was like paper."

The shock in Malakar’s eyes completely vanished. "I am going to tear your spine out," Malakar promised, his face contorting into a mask of pure, world-ending rage.