"Equal strength? Impossible. The average level of the LanYa Wolf is far higher than Garrison's Guard. The LanYa Wolf King has even reached the terrifying eighth rank middle grade. How could it be undamaged after a fierce battle?"
"There is a mysterious strong person in the team who fought with the wolf king and won a chance for the caravan to escape. Preliminary judgment is also an [extraordinary eighth rank]."
"Really?"
Nicholas Gates was originally Richard Gates' illegitimate son, the current head of the Gates family in Changfeng City. He had the same father but different mother as Aaron and Brandon, twin brothers. However, because his mother was a lowly civilian, Nicholas Gates not only couldn't get any resources from his family, but he also couldn't acknowledge his biological father.
He had to rely on himself to get everything he wanted.
As they say, the outcome of war is already determined before it begins.
When he wasn't even born yet, Nicholas Gates was destined to be abandoned by his family.
The Double Dragon Logistics company managed by the Gates family mainly conducted bulk goods distribution between Changfeng City and Linyang City. The main selling point of Double Dragon Logistics was safety. How could they emphasize safety? The method was simple: make other logistics caravans unsafe.
Nicholas Gates was one of the secret weapons deployed by the Gates family between two cities.
He pulled together a small group of bandits called Crimson Standard Gang who specialized in robbing caravans passing through Sentinel Mountain Pass. Naturally, only Double Dragon Logistics' caravans were exempt from this harassment by bandits.
Other caravans were harassed by bandits and were either delayed or lost items. They always suffered some kind of loophole or another. In contrast, Double Dragon Logistics provided very high-quality services that earned them their reputation despite their high prices. It's said that three major delivery companies aren't false; on surface it seemed like Aaron and Brandon's governance skills led to success, but behind-the-scenes Nicholas Gate's contributions were quite significant.
A few days ago, he received news that a military officer from Changfeng City wanted to escort goods back to the capital city.
Nicholas didn't plan on getting involved with special orders like these at first because who knows what background military supplies have?
However, Aaron Gate's orders were very strict and non-negotiable; this team included enemies of his brother and they must be eliminated at all costs.
There was no way around it anymore; if reason doesn't work then there's nothing he can do about it even if there are risks involved..
After careful planning, Nicholas thought everything out well enough until Cole Garrison fell for his trap too easily unexpectedly during execution.
Then things suddenly changed midway while they saw their duck nearly cooked
After pondering for half an hour Nicholas figured out a solution
"This way."
He took off a pendant with a ruby embedded inside from around his neck
This is something his father left him as a gift for his mother which served as proof when wanting to confirm their relationship
Inside contained forbidden magic [Devil King Horn]of ninth rank
As long as you crush it open sound will echo with Devil King power causing chaos among all objects below ninth rank (except Devil King profession) within its spell range for short periods of time This item was originally meant as self-defense tool against stronger opponents but suddenly another use came into mind for Nicholas Gate.
"Tell our people that from now on, the troops will split into two groups," Nicholas Gates ordered his subordinates. "The large troop will secretly cross the thorn forest and head to the exit, preparing for ambush according to the original plan. The small troop will stay put and prepare to set up the Xuan Yin Formation."
The Xuan Yin Formation was a simple formation, which amplified any sound by ten times. His black magic apprentices were skilled in this area.
"When their vehicles have entered deep into the thorn forest and reach a critical point where they can neither advance nor retreat, we will immediately crush Devil King Horn and wake up all of the demons through the Xuan Yin Formation. Today, I don't believe that the LanYa Wolf tribe's surprise attack wouldn't end up going wrong. Can Cole Garrison's group still escape from being surrounded by high-level demons like petrified lizards, jade frog men, and abyssal demon fish?"
With everything planned out perfectly, Nicholas Gates finally regained his confidence.
"At that time, even if someone manages to escape with their goods, they'll probably be battered and exhausted. Our ambushers can easily capture them." He folded his arms and looked at his subordinates.
His subordinates nodded repeatedly while slightly bowing: "Impressive. Truly impressive."
...
On the other side, Lyra Nightfang's subordinates followed Connor's orders to pretend to pursue and actually protect them, leading Garrison's Guard deep into the heart of the thorn forest.
The LanYa Wolf tribe was truly the king of the thorn forest. Even without any opposition, no demon dared to openly oppose Lyra Nightfang's words. They all hid in their own nests, turning their heads towards the outside but not daring to come out en masse. However, private discussions were still inevitable.
"Is he really Nexus Overlord? Why does he look so ordinary?"
"You can't just say that thoughtlessly. Haven't you seen Lyra leading him in front?"
"People say that Devil Kings emit an aura of superhuman strength. Do you feel it?"
"Err...it comes and goes, sometimes it's there and sometimes it's not."
"So is it there or not?"
"It's hard to tell if it's real or not. We dare not ask more questions if even the wolf king doesn't mention it."
"In any case, we just have to complete the process and send them off."
The demons rarely gathered together like this out of curiosity for a Devil King appearing. The result was disappointing because he looked no different from an ordinary human. Connor had already traveled halfway when discussions became louder.
As they reached deeper into the heart of the thorn forest, suddenly a howl sounded from Nexus Overlord's horn. All demons felt as if their souls had been captured by that sound which grew closer and louder with time.
Connor did not speak a word but his voice seemed to come from everywhere at once, scaring everyone around him including his entourage who hugged themselves tightly on the ground.
However, Connor was unaffected by all this chaos as he turned around and said to Cole Garrison: "There may be an ambush ahead, Mr. Garrison please wait here while I scout ahead and come back quickly."
"Please be careful!"
When Connor walked alone with a dark face towards them,
those who had doubts about his identity as Devil King immediately felt chills down their spines - Nexus Overlord could easily kill them all but didn't take action which meant they were given another chance at life.
"Nexus Overlord's power is truly terrifying."
"Yes, even though he did nothing, such an anomaly occurred."
"As soon as the horn sounded, I had ringing in my ears, dizziness, nausea and couldn't cough or swallow."
"Haha. We warned you not to speak recklessly. Perhaps certain people's rumors have already reached the ears of the Devil King. You'll have to handle it yourselves now."
Some demons were filled with fear and immediately prostrated themselves towards Connor's direction. Others followed suit even if they weren't guilty.
The leaders of various demon tribes were especially frightened, fearing that if Nexus Overlord became angry, he would eradicate their whole tribe.
"The Petrified Lizard King is willing to offer loyalty to Nexus Overlord!"
"The Jade Frogman King is willing to offer loyalty to Nexus Overlord!"
"The Abyssal Demon Fish King is willing to offer loyalty to Nexus Overlord!"
Faced with several elite monsters suddenly kneeling in front of him, Connor thought it was Lyra Nightfang's command and casually nodded his head around at them.
Lyra Nightfang who was far behind understood the psychology of these demons and knew that it was a good opportunity to establish her authority as queen. She stepped forward and added: "As we all know, Nexus Overlord has been in seclusion for a hundred years and his strength has greatly improved. Now he can hide his aura without releasing any magical power waves. He looks completely human which shows that Devil Kings can return back true nature!"
"I see! Congratulations Your Highness! Congratulations Your Highness!" The demons realized what was happening.
Their voices rose one after another echoing throughout the forest.