Ember Dragon

Chapter 692: Bravely Entering the Bronze Fortress
The fortress is made of bronze smelted from the depths of Hell, its surface covered with spikes, demonic reliefs, and burning runes, glowing dark green under the blood-red sky of Avernus.

The city walls towered into the clouds, with hundreds of arrow towers, hellfire cannons and sentry cages for imprisoning low-level demons built on top. Countless little demons and gargoyles holding steel forks flapped their wings in the air.

Even the city walls themselves are endowed with a powerful anti-magic force field, making it difficult even for legendary wizards to break in.

Outside the wall was an extremely wide river, with hot, boiling lava surging on the riverbed. White smoke with a sulfur smell filled the air, distorting the air.

The suspension bridges across the lava river were the only way for outsiders to enter the bronze fortress. The devils crowded on the bridge, cursing. From time to time, some inferior devils slipped and fell into the river, uttering shrill wails and causing lava to splash.

The city gates were guarded by fully-armed chain demons. They had hideous faces and were tall and burly. The iron chains wrapped around their bodies collided with each other, making crisp sounds.

"Whoosh-"

The Chain Demon grabbed the little devil who was hiding in the truck, held him by the scruff of the neck and yelled, "Damn bastard! Who let you get in? Are you trying to disobey Lord Zariel's military order? How dare you not pay the toll!"

The little devil was trembling all over, but still smiled flatteringly: "Sir, I, the owner of this caravan paid a silver coin for me."

The Chain Demon said firmly: "This is charged per person!"

The little devil cried and begged for mercy: "Sir, I really have no money, please let me go, I really have no other choice, I lost everything in the Modin Casino, all my belongings are gone."

Hearing that the other party was a pauper, the Chain Demon's face became even colder, "This is not a reason!"

He hugged the Chain Demon's sturdy arms and begged bitterly, "Just give me three days. I will immediately collect one, no, ten silver coins in the city for you!"

The Chain Demon suddenly swung his hand and grabbed the little devil above the lava river, and shouted: "Ten? How can a weak little devil, a gambler who owes debts, raise so much money?"

"The little devil flapped his wings and screamed, "No, no, don't throw me down! My lord, I have many friends in the outer city. I know everything there! They will lend me money!"

The Chain Demon smiled grimly, almost breaking the little devil's neck: "Do you think I look easy to deceive?

And - who would believe a little devil? Who would pay ten silver coins for a vile thing like you? What a joke! "

"It's just a little devil. It's ridiculous!"

"Throw him down quickly, don't waste time here!"

"Hahaha, guess how miserable this guy will scream when he falls?"

The devils crowded on the suspension bridge were noisy and cursed the little devil with the most vicious words, wishing to see him die immediately.

"Let him go. I'll pay for him."

A seductive female voice came from the bridge.

"Someone is actually willing to pay his ransom? For a little devil?"

"What the hell!"

"Lucky guy, I hope he gets thrown directly into the lava next time!"

The devils looked towards the source of the sound in surprise, only to see a plump woman appear in front of them. She had a beautiful face, seductive eyes, and two huge black wings behind her.

——That is a lust demon, a high-level devil, a fallen celestial being.

In the eyes of lower-level demons such as the Chain Demon and the Beard Demon, the Lust Demon, who is a higher-level demon, is already a very important figure.

"Ding--"

Ten silver coins fell at the Chain Demon's feet, making a crisp sound.

Seeing this, the Chain Demon quickly let go of his hand, picked up the silver coin on the ground, and said politely: "Lord Lust Demon, this little devil has a long history of bad deeds and openly disobeyed Lord Zariel's orders. It is really not worth your help."

The lust demon lowered his head and played with his slender fingers, glancing at him with contempt: "Do I need you to teach me what to do?"

"I'm sorry, sir." The Chain Demon actually bent down deeply, his voice nervous, without any trace of his previous arrogance.

This is hell, a place with strict hierarchy. Every devil is attached to this complex order, and the hierarchy is extremely clear.

High-ranking devils always live in fear of being demoted, and they often vent their fear on their subordinates, who in turn intimidate and bully even lower-ranking ones, and so on.

Seeing the Devil coming to his aid, the little devil immediately flapped his wings and flew forward, kneeling on the ground, crying, "My Lord, you finally came to save me!"

The Chain Demon lowered his head and said cautiously, "Lord Lust Demon, I didn't know this was your slave. I am sorry for my impoliteness!

However, Lord Zariel has issued an order to strictly check the identities of those entering the city. I hope you can forgive me."

The Chain Demon raised his head and saw that behind the Lust Demon there was a nearly four-meter-tall and extremely strong stone giant. In the stone giant's hand was an iron cage with two huge vampire bats in it.

The Devil's face darkened, and he said impatiently, "Can't I bring a golem servant and a few pet bats into the city?"

The Chain Demon waved his hands and replied, "Of course, I was overthinking it. How could a high-profile upper-level devil like you be an intruder?"

"That's pretty much it."

The Lust Demon smiled charmingly, casually threw a few silver coins at the feet of the Chain Demon, and then entered the city with her "servants and pets".

The little devil followed behind the lust demon, flapping its wings, and smugly made a face at the chain demon and the devils who were watching the fun, which made the devils so angry that they wanted to eat it alive.

Entering the city, there are hell residents everywhere walking in a hurry. Most of them are lower-level devils such as little devils, thorn devils, and whisker devils, but there are also higher-level devils.

The thorn demons flapped their wings and patrolled in the air, while on the streets, an army of hedgehog demons and beard demons were marching urgently to the portal and heading to the bloody battlefield.

The streets are lined with taverns, shops, pawnshops and even brothels, which are somewhat similar to the cities in the material world, except that here, there is only one best hard currency - mortal souls.

In this bustling city, the succubus and her servants seemed less prominent.

The little devil followed the demon into the dark alley. He rubbed his hands and said flatteringly, "Master Demon, my name is Dick. Thank you for saving me from that rude guy."

"I heard that you are familiar with this district?"

"Of course, I have been in the outer city for many years and have been everywhere. Whatever you want to know, I will tell you everything I know. I just hope you can help me pay it back."

The lust demon did not answer, but took the other iron cage from the golem and showed an extremely beautiful smile.

"etc."

"You, what do you want to do?"

The little devil suddenly felt something was wrong. He flapped his wings and tried to leave, but the iron cage suddenly opened and a strong attraction appeared inside the cage, sucking him in.

"Bang!" The cage door closed, and the little devil grabbed the railings, shaking them wildly, trying to get out. However, the runes outside the iron cage flashed, and the iron railings became red hot, and the little devil screamed from the burns.

The Devil crossed his arms and said coldly, "Don't struggle fearlessly, this is a special iron cage, specially used to imprison demons.

And if I don't stop the magic circle, you will be burned to charcoal in less than ten minutes."

He quickly realized the situation, knelt in the cage, slapped himself and said, "My lord, my lord, I dare not run away. I am bewitched and I deserve to die!"

The Lust Demon nodded in satisfaction, then paused the magic circle and warned: "Be careful, this little devil is the most cunning, you must not let it get away."

The "golem" wiped his bald head and sighed, "This is the Bronze Fortress. It is indeed a high-risk mission. I feel many powerful and unfamiliar auras."

The "vampire bat" that was also locked in an iron cage flapped its wings and yelled, "Let me out now! You stinky transvestite, who the hell is your pet!"

The lust demon's expression suddenly changed. He changed his elegant posture and cursed with disgust: "Do you think I want to maintain this form? If it weren't for me, would you have been able to sneak into the city?"

"Tsk tsk, I think you just want to take this opportunity to satisfy your own perverted fetish."

"You bastard, have you forgotten the time when you were almost beaten up by the old vampire? I am at most a woman dressed as a woman, but you are the most perverted one!"

"What the hell -"

A human-like expression of anger appeared on the vampire bat's face.

The golem walked forward expressionlessly and separated them: "Stop arguing, be careful not to be discovered by the Thorn Demon patrol."

The other vampire bat stared blankly into the air, as if he could see something, and said, "Look, there are so many tasks, destroying the portal to August, stealing the blueprints of the Hellfire Cannon, killing Zariel's confidant.
Oh my god, there's also the chance to sneak into Zariel's chambers? The reward is 25,000 gold coins, just thinking about it is exciting."

The little devil next to him was stunned. He knelt in the cage blankly, and his whole body began to tremble.

Why are the stone golems and vampire bats talking? Why is this "Sex Demon Lord" behaving strangely?
The little devil pointed at the "Devil" with his slender claws, and said in a voice rolling: "Are you outsiders?"

He remembered the military order of Lord Zariel circulating in the city, which stated that if anyone was found to be colluding with outsiders, he would be punished with the most cruel punishment and be tortured in endless purgatory for two hundred years.

Thinking of this, the little devil's voice trembled and the wings behind him became stiff.

The Devil of Lust, or rather the Emperor of Europe, patted the cage lightly and said with a grim smile, "Dick, face the reality. You have already boarded our pirate ship. Hand over all the information quickly."

"Yes, yes, sir."

The little devil looked as pale as death and could only nod weakly. He thought he had met a noble person, but found himself jumping into another deep pit. This was the greatest despair in the world.

The European Emperor interrogated: "Where is the portal to August?"

"Um, it seems to be the fourth ring?"

"Where are the blueprints for the Hellfire Cannon?"

"It should be the Third Ring. There are the craftsmen that Lady Zariel trusts the most. That one Pit Fiend and two hundred Dragon Devils are working day and night to build cannons for her."

"Where is Zariel's trusted general, Alex Reeves?"

"It seems to be in the hell briefing I saw last time. Hmm. General Alex should live in the second ring. He has a luxurious mansion made of obsidian there. There are thousands of petitioners in it. It's really enviable."

Tiansheng Zhan Kuang glared at the little creature in the cage and asked in a deep voice: "Aren't you a know-it-all? Why is the information you are talking about so vague?"

Dick wanted to cry but had no tears: "Sir, you have wronged me. I am just a little devil who was driven out of the twelfth ring. How could I know the information about those big shots in the inner ring?"

Langli Baitiao pondered for a moment and asked, "So, you know a lot about the situation of the Twelve Rings?"

Dick nodded rapidly, "I know it all."

"So - how do we get from the outer ring to the inner ring? I see that the entrances to those passages are heavily guarded."

"Yes, sir. Lord Zariel seems to be planning something big recently. The Bronze Fortress is heavily guarded. Everyone who enters and leaves must undergo a high-level spell review. Not even a purgatory bat can fly in."

Dick carefully glanced at the vampire bat and said in a panic, "Of course, sir, I'm not talking about you, but those ordinary..."

The white shark raised his right bat wing: "Okay, I'm asking you - is there any way to sneak into the inner ring?"

The little devil was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up, he clapped his paws suddenly, and muttered to himself: "It seems... it really exists."

Twelve Rings, Burning Heart Casino.

The darkness was intertwined with the eerie firelight, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of sulfur, which was intertwined with the mixed smell of cigarettes, alcohol, and unknown fuels, forming a suffocating and unique atmosphere.

The gamblers here are of various types, some are powerful people who have committed many evil deeds in their lives, some are mortals who have lost themselves due to greed, and even many devils have fallen into it.

Some of them were dressed in gorgeous clothes, while others were in rags, but their eyes were filled with the desire for victory and the fear of failure.

"I, I lost again!"

"impossible!"

"Hahahaha! I win. This time your eyes, heart, and thighs are all mine!"

"Don't be too happy too soon, I will win sooner or later! I will win, I will win everything back."

"So what, poor poor fellow, you have no more chips!"

"No, no, no, I still have one last chip, I still have - my soul! I want to bet it!"

"Good! This is fun!"

"Hahahaha! Losing everything you own, this is a truly joyful game!"

The gamblers' laughter, cursing, cheers and wails intertwined together, heart-wrenching and forming a mournful symphony of hell.

And deep inside the casino, in a secret room, a devil in luxurious clothes was lazily lying on a human leather chair, carefully playing with the vase in his hand that imprisoned a mortal soul.

"Oh, Dick, what are you going to use to pay your debt?"

The devil put down the vase in his hand, turned around, and looked at the little devil kneeling in front of him with greedy eyes: "Or are you ready to give up your soul?"

Dick raised his head, and a flattering smile appeared on his wrinkled face: "You will know when you go and see. What I have to offer you is absolutely unexpected."

(End of this chapter)