Time passed swiftly.
The speed at which the Myriad Devils Armor and the System absorbed the Devils' essence was amazing, and in the blink of an eye, eighty percent of it was gone.
But with its disappearance, Liora now faced a new problem.
Glancing down at the thin exoskeleton that covered her body and the crimson veins pulsing at an increasingly astonishing speed, like a heartbeat, she realized something.
She could sense that both the physical and soul defenses of the Myriad Devils Armor had greatly improved.
In its current state, even she, activating Shadow Claws and Soul Tear, would find it difficult to leave a mark behind, much less truly penetrate the armor.
However, this also meant one more thing—
"The Myriad Devils Armor has reached its upper limit...", Liora muttered.
Though disappointing, this was to be expected.
Since obtaining this ability, Liora had used the blood and flesh of hundreds of Devils to forge this armor. By now, it had reached the limit of its Young Devil potential.
If she wished to improve it any further, she would have to consume Evolution Points to unlock its potential.
Subconsciously, Liora couldn't help but take a look at the number of Evolution Points she currently owned.
She noticed that, just like the Myriad Devils Armor, her Evolution Points had also undergone a dramatic increase.
"5,000...", she stared at this number with a serious expression.
Her first reaction was not joy or satisfaction, but contemplation—she pondered how to spend them.
After all, the trembling ceiling told her that the battle above was still raging and that she didn't have much time.
"Enhance my base stats, strengthen my existing abilities, or create new ones."
Liora hesitated.
With the amount of points she currently possessed, any of these three options was actually valid.
For example, she could always create an ability that allowed her to escape from this dangerous situation.
After a few seconds of thought, she glanced at the remaining black droplets within the six-pointed star, as well as this underground space, and had an idea in mind.
Without hesitation, she poured every last Evolution Point into upgrading the Myriad Devils Armor.
Instantly, the crimson veins pulsing on the armor's surface quickened and throbbed with greater intensity, while the color of the exoskeleton became even darker, as if forged from the darkest material of the Demon World.
The sound of something breaking echoed in Liora's ears, and then, the barrier that had been hindering her from further improving her defense shattered.
Instinctively, she waved her hand, and the black droplets flew in her palm, which she subsequently divided into two before placing the red half on her chest.
The Myriad Devils Armor seemed to possess a will of its own, and a large mouth formed there, which pounced on the droplets like a gluttonous beast.
As the essence dissolved into energy and merged with the armor, Liora felt her defense soaring rapidly.
At the same time, changes began taking place in the description of the ability.
...
[Myriad Devils Armor]
[Effects:]
[1. Gluttony: Absorbs the blood and flesh of slain Devils to improve its structure and enhance physical and soul defense. The armor can evolve over time, depending on the material it consumes.]
[2. Blood Resonance: When the wearer's blood is spilled, the armor will automatically absorb it. Part of it will be converted into energy to heal wounds, while the other will temporarily improve strength.]
[Evolution:]
[As a result of having devoured the blood and flesh of a large number of flame-based Devils, you've gained a small amount of immunity to Fire damage.]
[Current Potential: Lesser Devil (Further upgrades require Evolution Points)]
...
Liora looked at these changes, especially the new Blood Resonance effect, and felt the urge to rush back to the surface and smash the Soul Devil to pieces.
However, she quickly regained her senses and forced herself to calm down.
By her estimates, her current strength should be that of a Devil with a streak of 600 or 700 victories.
This might have originally given her the confidence to kill the Soul Devil, but not anymore.
Judging from the Soul Devil's meticulous planning and the various extraordinary abilities she showcased, it was hard for Liora to believe that she didn't have any remaining backup or trump cards.
"If I want to get rid of her, I must give her no chance to react. I must kill her in one strike."
Thinking of this, and recalling the previous plan she had hatched up, Liora stared silently at the floor beneath her, a calculating light flashing in her eyes.
--
While Liora was busy making plans, the battle in the room was still going on, although it was slowly drawing to an end.
At the center of the room, the Soul Devil was frantically attacking the Horse-Faced Devil, who struggled to defend against the barrage of blows.
She constantly waved her hands, drawing Devil Runes in the air, which fell to the ground and transformed into formations.
These formations had all kinds of effects and purposes, including firing fireballs, creating walls of earth, or forming an arsenal of different weapons.
Unfortunately, no matter how impressive the Horse-Faced Devil's achievements in formations were, her efforts proved to be meaningless.
The many enslaved Devils had already finished dealing with the other Devils and were now attacking the Spider Devil and the Slime Devil, wanting to break the formation.
Before long, the shrieking of the Spider Devil was heard, and the demonic energy pouring into the Horse-Faced Devil's body waned.
"Die! Die! Die!"
Countless lights flashed as the Soul Devil seized the opportunity and unleashed relentless physical and soul-based attacks, overwhelming the Horse-Faced Devil.
Moments later, the cries of the Slime Devil, followed by those of the Horse-Faced Devil, came as their bodies collapsed to the ground.
The Soul Devil, whose spotless appearance stood out amid the scene of carnage, glanced at the slaves and gave an order:
"Go out and eliminate the few remaining bugs.", she said and waved her hand, opening a gap in the formation and allowing the slaves to leave.
"Yes.", Eshara and the rest of the Devils nodded obediently, and as if they had received amnesty, they hurriedly left the room.
Soon, only the Soul Devil remained.
Staring at the sea of blood and the pile of corpses, a feverish glint flickered in her silver eyes.
She knew that once she devoured all the Devils who entered the underground room, she'd advance—finally becoming a Lesser Devil.
She could already imagine her dream of leaving the Crucible and entering the real Demon World coming true.
Excited, she manipulated the array to open a gap on the floor and was about to descend underground to assess her spoils.
However, just as her foot hovered above the gap, a hand shot out from the darkness below and clamped around her ankle.
Under the Soul Devil's stunned expression, the hand pulled her down into the depths.