Chapter 918: Demon Arrival Kidnapping Syndicate
When Ling Zhan pulled the trigger for the ninth time, the bullet fired out of the chamber—
And with it, the final death of the Crimson Phoenix Demon Lord was confirmed.
As for his desperate plea for mercy before dying, it held absolutely no meaning before Ling Zhan.
Every member of the Demon-Slaying Legion present, as well as the remaining Demon Clan on the ground yet to be fully exterminated, clearly saw the final moment of the Crimson Phoenix Demon Lord's head being blasted apart.
To the Demon-Slaying Legion members—
The Crimson Phoenix Demon Lord had always been an invincible, terrifying existence.
Over the years, he had become a nightmare for all national legions.
This wasn't an exaggeration at all.
Lemorris Fortress had always been a roadblock in front of the national legions, preventing them from launching the final extermination operation against the Demon Clan.
But now…
This overwhelmingly powerful nightmare had been utterly slain by the non-specialist before them.
How could the Demon-Slaying Legion not feel shocked?
Of course…
Beyond the shock, they felt joy and excitement.
Lemorris Fortress, which had withstood all attempts for years, was finally conquered today!
Every member of the Demon-Slaying Legion would be rewarded with endless glory and merit!
Promotions, titles, and prosperity were guaranteed!
The military merit of taking Lemorris Fortress was monumental!
It carried massive historical significance!
Not only did it sound the horn of counterattack for the national legions, but it also established a springboard to assault the Demon Abyss!
Hmm…
No doubt, those who had previously quit the Demon-Slaying Legion must now be regretting it deeply.
And the great noble families would be banging their heads against the wall.
Their descendants had missed out on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for glory and strength!
How satisfying!
As for the surviving Demon Clan, they had completely given up trying to flee.
After watching their Demon Lord effortlessly killed by that non-specialist, they stopped struggling altogether.
They knew no matter what they did, there was no escaping the Five Gods Imprisoning Heaven Formation.
So they collapsed to the ground, waiting to die.
Naturally, Ling Zhan had no intention of sparing these Demon Clan members.
There were simply too many.
And they were difficult to control.
So Ling Zhan had already given the order for all Demon-Slaying Legion members to lead the remaining zombie puppets and soul puppets to slaughter the Demon Clan.
They were instructed to preserve the enemies' soul cores and avoid completely destroying the corpses.
This would allow Ling Zhan to use Corpse Control and Spirit Control to turn them into new puppets.
Only puppets could be 100% obedient.
Additionally…
These puppets could be stationed at various camps, towers, and fortresses around Lemorris Fortress.
The Demon-Slaying Legion members promptly obeyed the order.
Thus, the battle officially came to an end.
...…
...…
The leading Crimson Phoenix Demon Lord had died just like that.
Died in despair.
Died in humiliation.
In retrospect, it was clear this Demon Lord—whose power was just a step below a world-class being—had every move predicted by Ling Zhan.
The demonic energy surrounding Lemorris Fortress was finally dispersed once Ling Zhan took control and became its new master.
The massive fortress would now need cleaning and reconstruction.
The flesh fortress had to go.
A flesh fortress was simply inhumane.
To construct one, it required feeding it with living flesh.
And if one used livestock bred for meat, the resulting flesh fortress would be weak and easily destroyed by enemies.
Lemorris Fortress was so powerful because it had been continually fed high-quality, fresh flesh for years.
What counted as "high-quality flesh"?
Naturally, it meant the flesh of Professionals.
With their stats enhanced by their four main attributes, Professionals were delicious nourishment for flesh fortresses.
Only by using their flesh could a fortress grow this terrifying.
So for Ling Zhan, keeping it was not an option—it would be completely destroyed.
Additionally…
While inspecting the fortress—
They discovered a massive number of hostages in the underground energy chamber.
A rough estimate put the number at several tens of millions!
These hostages came from all major races.
They had been intended by the Crimson Phoenix Demon Lord as backup energy for Lemorris Fortress.
In other words, they were stockpiled as backup feed for the flesh fortress.
After questioning, it was found that most had been kidnapped by the Demon Arrival Organization.
The key detail was that these Professionals were high level!
Most were around level 150!
Some even ranged between level 160–180.
They were brought here because they believed the lies of the Demon Arrival remnants.
The remnants had told them they'd make money or acquire precious resources together.
And this was the result.
"Instructor Ling, the Demon Arrival remnants disguised themselves as small adventure teams. They completed high-difficulty missions for exposure on livestreams or in adventurer guilds, and after gaining a reputation, they started promoting themselves."
"Their message was mostly the same…"
"They claimed to take other Professionals to frontier fortresses to level up."
"Desperate to level up quickly, many Professionals followed them. Once at the border, they joined them on missions. Then they were stabbed in the back."
"When they woke up from unconsciousness, they found themselves in Lemorris Fortress."
One Demon-Slaying Legion adjutant quickly pieced the whole story together from the hostages.
Ling Zhan's expression didn't change—he simply nodded.
Hmm…
This method…
Was just like the kidnapping and scamming rings he'd seen in his past life.
The methods and operations were extremely similar.
He had to admit, the Demon Arrival remnants were clever.
They sent strong members to livestream, building fame by completing difficult missions in adventurer guilds.
Once they had a reputation, they executed their plan.
They offered to act as bodyguards at low prices, claiming they could escort their clients safely while they farmed monsters.
Promising to boost their clients from level 120 to 170 with ease.
They even had people in their organization act as fake clients.
Playing along, they fooled countless adventurers.
For solo adventurers watching these streams, tempted by the low prices—it was impossible not to fall for it.