I am the Archmage

Chapter 139 crisis 2

The small black dragon capable of breathing such powerful *Dragon Flame* infused with pure dark energy was none other than one of the Light and Dark Holy Dragons—the *Dark Mad Dragon*. After enduring Rovi’s relentless training and torment, Puxi’s mental power finally reached the level needed to hatch the *Dark Dragon Egg*, successfully bringing the *Dark Mad Dragon*, also known as *Black King*, into the world.

Unlike the talkative, meddlesome personality of *Nini*, the *Light Holy Dragon*, *Black King* was the epitome of a "cool dragon." For the first three days after its birth, it maintained an aloof demeanor, ignoring even Puxi, its own master, and refusing to utter a single sound. Puxi even suspected that it might be a mute dragon.

Puxi adored *Black King* to the extreme, holding it in his arms constantly and refusing to part with it for even a moment. Since *Black King* was newly hatched and unable to directly absorb dark energy yet, Puxi asked a blacksmith to modify his armor, making the chest plate into a hinged section that could be opened. This clever design allowed him to carry his beloved *Black King* close to his heart even during battle and easily let it in or out. At critical moments, *Black King* could be used for surprise attacks on opponents. As it turned out, this design proved highly effective—it not only saved Puxi’s life at a crucial moment but also dealt a heavy blow to his enemy.

Taking advantage of the angel warrior lying on the ground in agony from the invasion of dark energy, Puxi raised his lance above his head and began spinning it like a wheel. As the lance spun faster and faster, it transformed into a shimmering shield of light. With a loud shout, Puxi threw the spinning lance toward the incapacitated angel warrior.

*"Dark Spear Art: Demon Slayer Whirlwind Break."*

The knight’s lance, spinning at high speed, hit the angel warrior with perfect precision. Unable to resist, the angel let out a final scream as the tremendous force of the attack shattered his chest, leaving his bones crushed and flesh torn apart.

Success!

Puxi let out an excited cheer and flashed a triumphant hand signal toward his sister, who was engaged in aerial combat.

The *Mad Dragon Rider*’s first battle was a resounding success—boundless potential lay ahead!

The demon army pressed forward relentlessly, and the already battered and defeated celestial forces finally collapsed across the entire front, retreating back into the heavens. Following Wu Lai’s plan from that fateful day, Yu Yi and her allies launched a counterattack, taking the battle into the celestial realm. The beautiful lands of the heavens were now ablaze with the fires of war.

A powerful dragon flapped its wings and descended from the sky. Gurney, clad in her Battle God Armor, nimbly leaped off the dragon’s back. Close behind her was her constant companion, the Light Holy Dragon, Nini. With Yu Yi’s assistance, Nini had grown to over three meters in length, almost large enough to be ridden.

A golden flash signaled as Gurney dismissed her Battle God Armor into her personal extra-dimensional space. Turning toward a nearby soldier, she asked, “Where are Yu Yi and the others now?”

The soldier saluted her and replied, “Reporting to Miss Gurney: Miss Yu Yi and Miss Olina are currently in the medical camp treating the wounded. As for the whereabouts of the other ladies, I am not sure.”

Gurney nodded, thanked the soldier, and headed directly toward the medical camp.

Although Gurney’s strength could not compare to that of Yu Yi or Bing Qingying, when it came to commanding troops and managing battlefield strategies, she was in no way inferior—in fact, she even surpassed them. This made her the natural choice for frontline combat command. She often rode her dragon to inspect and direct the forces at the front lines, while Yu Yi remained at the main camp, overseeing the broader strategy.

Due to the demon warriors typically relying on numbers to overwhelm their enemies, their individual combat strength was generally weaker than that of the celestial warriors. As a result, every large-scale battle left behind a significant number of wounded. According to the original demon army’s practices, only the most severely injured soldiers would receive rudimentary medical treatment; the rest had to rely on their natural recovery abilities. While the demons’ regenerative capabilities were incredibly strong—ensuring that most who weren’t killed outright could recover—this method left them with recovery times much longer than celestial warriors, who benefited from healing spells using holy light magic.

Yu Yi’s presence, however, changed this practice. With her immense power as an eight-winged angel, she could easily use holy light magic to simultaneously heal hundreds, if not thousands, of wounded soldiers with remarkable efficiency. This was one of the main reasons the morale of the demon army had been soaring recently, and their warriors were fighting with unparalleled bravery.

Though Olina’s power was nowhere near Yu Yi’s, as a practitioner of holy light magic, she did everything in her power to contribute, aiding in the healing efforts as much as possible.

Gurney quickly arrived at the medical camp, finding the entire area bathed in soft, gentle white light—clearly, Yu Yi was performing a large-scale healing spell.

As the light faded, the camp erupted into joyful cheers and shouts of gratitude and admiration for Yu Yi, creating a lively commotion.

“Gurney, is that you? Come in quickly!”

Despite being surrounded by the noisy, bustling injured soldiers, Yu Yi sensed Gurney’s arrival (to be precise, she sensed the presence of Light Holy Dragon Nini, who stood out like a torch in the night amidst the dark energy of the demon warriors). Using her magic, Yu Yi compressed her voice into a direct transmission to Gurney, who was still outside the camp.

When Gurney entered the medical camp, the demon warriors tactfully made way for her, allowing her to quickly reach Yu Yi and Olina.

In a low voice, Gurney said, “Yu Yi, I’ve gotten some information from a prisoner on the front lines that might be related to Lai. Let’s find somewhere private to discuss it.”

Hearing that there might be news of her master, Yu Yi’s expression instantly lit up with joy and excitement. Without hesitation, she grabbed Gurney and Olina by the hands, and in a flash, used spatial transference to leave the medical camp.

“Quick, tell me! What’s the news? Have they discovered the master’s whereabouts?”

Back in the command tent, Yu Yi bombarded Gurney with a flurry of questions, her eagerness palpable. Olina was just as anxious but couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

Gurney quickly responded, “Calm down and let me explain. I’m not sure if this information is related to Lai, but here’s what I learned from a soldier we just captured. He claimed he was a garrison soldier in Princess Linsa’s Ethereal City. Recently, when Linsa returned from the demon realm, she brought back four bodyguards with very weak powers. This caused quite a bit of confusion among the angels in the city.”

Olina’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “It’s Lai! It must be Lai and Shannon! They’ve successfully infiltrated the celestial realm!”

Since Wu Lai’s departure from the demon realm, there had been no word from him. Now, hearing a clue about his possible whereabouts, Olina couldn’t contain her joy.

Though Yu Yi was also overjoyed, she couldn’t ignore the trace of worry lingering on Gurney’s beautiful face. Her heart sank as she asked, “Gurney, is there something you’re not telling us?”

Gurney sighed and said, “You really can’t hide anything from Yu Yi. The soldier also mentioned that a few days ago, Princess Linsa went to the Imperial Shrine to meet with the God-King on his orders, and those four inept bodyguards went with her. However, when she returned, it was only Linsa and the God-King. Those four bodyguards had disappeared without a trace and haven’t been seen since.”

Yu Yi and Olina’s delicate expressions immediately tensed, and Olina said in disbelief, “Could something have happened to Lai? No, that’s impossible! With Lai’s strength, plus Shannon and Rahalt, even if the assassination failed, escaping shouldn’t have been an issue. Isn’t that right, Sister Yu Yi?”

Yu Yi also believed that, aside from the God-King, there was no one in the Celestial Realm capable of posing a real threat to Wu Lai. Even if he couldn’t defeat the God-King, escaping alive should have been well within his capabilities. Nodding in agreement with Olina’s words, she said, “You’re right. It shouldn’t be anything serious.”

Just then, a clear and pleasant voice suddenly rang out near them, “What are you girls chatting about? Are you talking about that stubborn son-in-law of mine who never listens? Hey, where exactly has Wu Lai run off to?”

Yu Yi, Gurney, and Olina were all taken aback. Someone had managed to infiltrate their command tent right under their noses without them noticing. Yu Yi, especially, felt a jolt of alarm in her heart. She immediately turned toward the voice, ready to attack, but when she saw who had arrived, she froze.

“Lord Lucifer? It’s you?”

The visitor was none other than Wu Lai’s direct superior, the Demon King Lucifer. Among the three realms, only Lucifer, the God-King, and Wu Lai had the capability to bypass Yu Yi’s extraordinary spiritual perception and silently enter the command tent.

Yu Yi, Gurney, and Olina quickly greeted Lucifer with respect, even moving chairs to invite him to sit.

Lucifer smiled elegantly, enjoying the service of the three peerless beauties. Once seated, he tapped the armrest of the chair with his slender finger and said, “Am I not allowed to check in on you? Now, answer my question—where has my dear son-in-law gone?”

Gurney and Olina hesitated, unsure if they should reveal the truth to Lucifer. They both turned to Yu Yi for guidance.

After a moment of deliberation, Yu Yi decided to tell Lucifer everything. If something had truly happened to Wu Lai, Lucifer was likely the only one who could help him. She carefully recounted Wu Lai’s plan and actions in full detail.

After listening to Yu Yi’s explanation, a rare trace of anxiety appeared on Lucifer’s flawless, handsome face—a sight so unusual it bordered on incredible.

Yu Yi, who had served Lucifer for many years, noticed this unusual expression immediately. Alarmed, she asked, “My lord, is there a danger to Master’s mission?”

Lucifer suddenly stood up, and the chair beneath him shattered into fragments under the energy he inadvertently released.

Frowning, his brows knitted tightly, he muttered to himself, “That Wu Lai is truly audacious. Does he think his little tricks can fool the God-King? His power may be strong, but it’s still immature. How could he possibly be a match for the God-King? And he even dared to use Soul Capture on Linsa. A beauty like her in the hands of a scoundrel like Wu Lai… Who knows what might have happened… No, I must go check on him!”

With that, Lucifer vanished from the tent in a flash.

Sensing that something might indeed be amiss, Yu Yi hurriedly turned to Gurney and said, “I’ll follow Lord Lucifer to investigate Master’s situation. Everything here is in your hands and Qingying’s now.”

Before she even finished speaking, she rushed out of the tent, unfurling her eight wings and flying after Lucifer, who had already become a tiny black dot in the distance.

The thought that Wu Lai might be in danger filled Gurney with a deep sorrow. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she turned to look at Olina, only to find that Olina’s beautiful eyes were brimming with the same crystalline tears. The two women couldn’t hold back any longer, embracing each other as they wept softly.