The devil's eyes gleamed as his gaze shifted from the defensive barrier to the battle occurring on the horizon.
The ongoing conflict for the law fragment was his main objective.
He had made many concessions and deals with his 'co-workers' to secure this opportunity; utilizing political maneuvering, promises of future favors, and strategic compromises that had cost him dearly.
There was no way he would lose track of that prize, no way he would let the fragment slip through his fingers after all the effort he had invested.
Still.
The nexus being so close to the battle, and being a nexus that their intelligence had failed to take a note of, was a mystery that had caught his attention.
To say he wasn't curious would be a lie.
In hell, unknown factors were either opportunities or threats; and he intended to find out which.
His blue tail swayed casually as he pondered; its slow, deliberate movements raising clouds of dust with each lazy slap against the scorched ground. The tail grazed the earth, leaving meter-long trenches in its wake. A testament to the unconscious power of his body.
He was a peak-tier lesser devil; his presence alone was enough to make lesser demons tremble.
A massive force of tens of thousands of demons silently awaited their lords command.
After a moment of contemplation, he turned around to a trusted subordinate.
His slender body's muscles moved like high-strung tension wires as he twisted his waist in fluid and precise movements.
"Take a portion of our force and begin laying siege to that nexus. I want a constant barrage of attacks." He ordered, his gaze fixed on the shimmering barrier in the distance.
Although he didn't understand completely what was going on with the nexus, the fact that Lord Gorael's long-lasting lack of management had allowed such a structure to appear unnoticed, combined with the newly appeared law fragment; it was enough for him to make an educated guess.
This part of Hell was about to have its management reshuffled!
The old order was crumbling, and new powers were rising.
And if he was going to survive and thrive in the chaos, he needed to plant his lords banner early.
Therefore, he might as well kill two birds with one stone: go for the law fragment, while also planting his flag in the region early.
The nexus, if it could be captured, would be a valuable asset: a fortress and base of operations, while also being a symbol of his growing influence within his faction.
And if it could not be captured, it could at least be destroyed; removing a potential rival from the board.
Another devil at the peak-tier, although not as old nor as well-equipped as his superior, grunted in response.
He was a loyal subordinate, a devil who had risen through the ranks through sheer determination and a willingness to follow orders.
He took over a legion of twenty thousand demons, his voice roaring across the ranks as he commanded them to march.
The army moved forward like a massive tide of the sea, as the majority was bipedal goat-like demons with blue-tinted skin.
They were a fearsome sight, their forms ranging from small, ferocious imps to lumbering giant, troll-like goat demons that stood at six meters tall.
Their strength was pushed to the limits of their realm, their muscles bulging with barely restrained power; their speed and reaction times sacrificed for raw, brute force.
Many weapons of war were tugged along by these massive brutes: siege engines, battering rams, and trains of materials that would allow them to build fortifications on the fly.
This was how true forces worked in hell.
Massive armies, strict discipline, and tons of cold hard steel.
With the near-perpetual combat capabilities of fiends, building fortresses on the fly was a common skill among them.
They needed a place to recover from near-fatal wounds, or a fortress where their souls could reform their bodies once more.
In places where demonic mana and arts weren't restricted, there were even greater uses for these fortresses; expediting the wait for re-entry into battle…
The devil led this massive army, his presence stiffing the surrounding demons.
Although this demon and the army commander were both peak-tier devils, their age was not the same, so there was still a gap in their strength, not even mentioning the equipment difference.
Yet, the real reason why the hierarchy was followed was because they were both weaker than those devils that commanded them from beyond this playground.
Order was enforced through promises and threats.
Although this subordinate in charge of the 20,000 legion also wanted the law fragment, in such a situation there was no possibility of claiming it for himself.
They knew this deeply.
All they could do was wait for their turn of being in charge and hope to receive such an opportunity.
Order was strictly maintained, but by following it, they could secure themselves a stable future under their lord's leadership.
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
Quickly, the army positioned itself just as Kaelgor's, Malgrim's, and Vorlag's had not long ago.
They formed a semicircle around the basin, their siege engines rolling into position, their demons bracing for the assault.
Beyond the barrier, Adam noticed the army solemnly.
Such a massive force shook the very ground where they stood, their footsteps a coursing thunder that vibrated through the earth.
His hand paused over the rune he was engraving, his brow furrowing as he gazed at the approaching threat.
"Vroom!"
"Bang!"
But before he could even think of what to do, demonic magical strikes hit his barrier like a thunderclap.
The siege was quickly ordered and set up, and the demonic mana blasts hit the barrier with a barrage of explosions that sent shockwaves rippling through the air.
Everything was done quickly, systematically, and without pause.
Like a perfect machine moving in place.
Thankfully, the barrier held, its surface rippling and shimmering under the assault.
"Vroom!" "Vroom!" "Vroom!"
"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"
But the attacks didn't stop.
They came in relentless waves, constantly barraging the barrier, showing no signs of letting up.
Everyone was forced to stop engraving their runes, as doing so in such a state was very difficult.
The vibrations, the explosions, the constant, jarring impacts made the delicate precision needed for engraving the runes impossible!
Adam's brow furrowed, his gaze piercing through the miasma and dust, locking onto the nonchalant, bored even, face of the devil who commanded the demons.
The devil was watching, his expression one of indifference; as if the siege was a minor inconvenience rather than a full-scale assault.
But to the devil, it was.
There was nothing to win or lose here: he was just following his superiors orders.
Adam's senses tingled at the situation; something was telling him that there was something wrong.
He looked back at the nexus, his mind racing, trying to find the source of his discomfort.
His mind and heart seemed to connect to the nexus in that same magical state once more. It's rhythmic heartbeat in sync with his. The powerful energy resonating with his entire being.
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
It was only after a long period of intense focus that he finally noticed the slightest of changes.
'The nexus had gotten… hotter?'
The temperature was rising subtly, but undeniably.
That was enough to tell Adam that something was wrong!
He was smart enough to quickly deduce what was going on.
He knew of the nexus as a treasure from his hell's inheritance, but how to use it, or more importantly, how to defend against it!
That was something he had to learn and discover on his own.
Because his first encounters with Kamir and Kaelgor had been when he was a weakling, they had first sought to bring down the barrier with brute force; quickly outpacing the demonic mana input since they didn't believe that a low-tier devil could properly manage the nexus.
Not to mention that they didn't expect Adam to have the attack rune back then...
Because of that, Adam never got to see how devils in hell dealt with nexus fortresses.
But now that he saw the army outside besieging him with constant attacks, not even bothering to try to outpace the nexus's output, Adam understood the method.
It was like overheating the nexus by forcing constant high-output use.
Given enough time, the nexus would automatically falter from demonic mana fatigue.
The nexus, powerful as it was, could not operate infinitely.
It was a muscle, and like any muscle, it could be exhausted if put under too much strain.
And if it were to be exhausted, then the defenses would fall.