CHAPTER 107 - DEMON ANU

Niu Fang ran through every possible strategy in her mind but found no way to defeat Han Wu. His Spectral Dash was too fast for her to follow, and her body was too weak to withstand his attacks. Reluctantly, she had no choice but to surrender.

She muttered, biting back frustration, “Fine, you win. The Flamion in the cave is yours.”

Han Wu sheathed his black greatsword and asked, “Why would I want the Flamion? It’s just a Lord life form. It won’t give me much Warfront Essence even if I kill it.”

Niu Fang blinked, confused. “But the Flamion is a favored beast, born from fire, and a Lord from birth!”

“That doesn’t concern me,” Han Wu replied coolly.

She stared at him, still puzzled. She genuinely had no idea what his goal was. “So... if you don’t want it, does that mean I can have it?”

Han Wu nodded. “Sure, but the Fire Stones in the cave are mine.”

Niu Fang agreed without hesitation. She hadn’t wanted the Fire Stone mine in the first place. It wasn’t because she didn’t need them, but because she lacked the manpower to mine them.

After entering the Rune Civilization, she had spent her Warfront Essence to unlock her own strength rather than summon units. That left her short-handed, unable to reach a point where she could manage mining on her own.

Without another word, she picked up her horn and stepped into the tunnel to capture the Flamion. Since neither of them had conflicting interests, she no longer sought trouble with Han Wu.

Han Wu ordered his skeletons into the tunnel to start mining. Though they worked slowly, wielding weapons rather than proper tools, their sheer numbers and tireless nature more than compensated. They didn’t need rest or food, so over time the mine’s output would surge dramatically. Han Wu estimated he could strip the entire site bare within a month.

Meanwhile, Niu Fang spent three more days battling the Flamion before finally subduing it as her mount. The sight of a flaming cow girl astride a Flamion was striking. After taming it, she sent Han Wu an invitation to form a party, proposing that they travel together and split their rewards evenly.

Han Wu rejected her outright. With his skeleton army, he was confident in securing treasures alone. On the other hand, Niu Fang had only herself and still wanted an equal share? The proposal was ridiculous.

Niu Fang pouted, convinced her strength justified the offer. She assumed Han Wu looked down on her. But since they couldn’t reach an agreement, she turned her Flamion around and left the cave, heading south to continue her exploration alone.

Just as she was about to leave, an ominous aura suddenly engulfed the area. A bizarre, rust-colored demonic aura formed a barrier that sealed them in and blocked any chance of escape. Intense pressure followed, threatening to crush everything within its bounds.

Han Wu and Niu Fang spun around just in time to see a powerful demon step out from the demonic aura, gripping the skull of a Heroic Blood Skeleton. The demon caught Han Wu’s familiar scent, and its eyes flared black-red. Rust flakes swirled violently around it and corroded the Blood Skeleton’s skull to dust.

Han Wu frowned. The demon was powerful enough to slay a Blood Skeleton, so he couldn’t afford to lower his guard.

“This is the scent of my nemesis! Anu will bathe in your blood!” the demon bellowed, unleashing a massive cloud of rust that surged toward them.

Han Wu quickly used the Plant Fusion Technique. The Gold Dragon Grass’ two heads exhaled searing breaths that effortlessly sliced through the rust flakes and struck the demon. To Han Wu’s surprise, more rust flakes erupted from the demon’s wounds to attack them.

Han Wu flapped his wings and darted through the air to avoid the rust flakes. Niu Fang faced the assault as well but was having an easier time. She unleashed powerful flames that melted the rust flakes into molten iron droplets.

Anu grew more furious as its rust flakes were countered and decided to eliminate Niu Fang first.

Niu Fang met the challenge head-on. She slapped the Flamion, and together they unleashed a blast of intense heat and fire. The flames enveloped them, and they transformed into a miniature sun.

Anu halted its advance due to the high heat and started backing away. Although its rust flakes were formidable, they offered no defense against fire. Anu snapped its head toward Han Wu, ready to unleash its fury on him.

Han Wu unleashed Spectral Dash, slashing into the demon again and again. In mere seconds, Anu was hacked into countless pieces, but it still didn’t die. It used its own power to transform its shattered body into rust flakes before reassembling itself.

At the same time, Han Wu’s black greatsword started to rust on contact with Anu’s blood. Forced to discard the weapon, he moved quickly to keep the spreading rust from contaminating his body. Now, he was angry as well. Not only had he lost a Blood Skeleton but also a valuable weapon! He swore to avenge his loss against Anu himself.

However, he wasn’t sure he could defeat Anu. None of his attacks had worked, and Anu was already recovering from the wounds he’d managed to inflict. Still, he’d noted Anu’s weakness to heat and fire. Banking everything on that, he poured the last of his Warfront Essence into summoning his strongest fire unit, Divine Hammer.

A sudden wave of intense heat rippled through the area as Divine Hammer appeared. Though only 1.5 meters tall, his presence loomed like a giant. His cherished weapon, Hellforge, blazed with flames that flickered and writhed like the Nine-headed Hell Snake.

“Divine Hammer, destroy that demon. Reduce it to scrap metal,” Han Wu instructed.

Divine Hammer bowed respectfully. “I obey your command, glorious God.”

His magma-like blood flared through his veins as he unleashed his full power. Hellforge also started radiating an intense heat, flames coalescing into the Nine-headed Hell Snake, which spewed intense fire to burn Anu.

Divine Hammer wasn’t as powerful as Anu, but his flames allowed him to completely suppress his opponent. He struck Anu so relentlessly that the demon accidentally muttered regret over leaving the jar.

Divine Hammer ignored this and continued to obey his God’s orders. Each blow disoriented Anu while slowly reshaping its body. After thousands of strikes, Anu’s form had transformed into a piece of metal.

Although it had been reduced to a lump of metal, Han Wu could still sense Anu’s soul trapped inside. It was still alive and would likely rise again for revenge one day. The thought infuriated him. He wasn’t concerned about Anu causing him harm; he just couldn’t stand the idea of someone bearing an undeserved grudge against him.

“Osteomancer, Skeleton Reanimator, do either of you know how to destroy its soul?” he asked.

Both responded telepathically, spiritual fire flickering in their hollow eye sockets. They informed him that they could devour Anu’s soul to strengthen their own, but they worried the little skeleton wouldn’t permit it.

Han Wu frowned. The little skeleton ruled like a tyrant, forbidding its underlings from growing stronger to prevent any challenge to its authority. This stifled the development of the entire skeleton race. Han Wu resolved to speak with it about this once he had time after returning.

Anu, now just a lump of metal, quivered at the thought of Han Wu feeding its soul to the skeletons. It did not fear being sealed again as it could break free in the future. What terrified it was the prospect of its soul being devoured. That would mean true death, with no hope of reincarnation.

Anu smothered the rage in its heart and quickly begged for mercy. “Anu yields and is willing to become your slave. I beg you, please spare my soul.”

Han Wu didn’t believe a word of it, but that hardly mattered. A contract would bind the demon either way. Since Anu was offering servitude, he was more than willing to give the demon a chance. He quickly drafted a contract that was stacked heavily against Anu and forced it to sign.

Curious, Niu Fang peeked at the contract, and her jaw dropped. The terms would make capitalists weep, drive lawyers mad, and even make slave traders think that they were merciful. If Anu signed, it would be bound to Han Wu forever, with no hope of escape.

Unfortunately, Anu had no choice: it was death or a lifetime of servitude. It chose to live and signed the contract.

The contract transformed into two orbs of light and embedded itself into the souls of Han Wu and Anu. From that moment on, Anu became Han Wu’s eternal slave.