It wasn't just Sirzechs and the others; even Katereia, Vali's own ally, looked at him with a strange, conflicted expression.
Vali was bewildered. He turned to the dark-skinned beauty. "What is it, Leviathan?"
"Lucifer..." Katereia started diplomatically. "While the current Red Dragon Emperor was a commoner until recently, he is a freakish genius. He's been cultivating for less than a year and already defeated the former Governor-General of the Fallen Angels, Azazel."
"I know that. He only did it by forcing a five-second Juggernaut Drive that nearly killed him," Vali said dismissively. "I, on the other hand, can fully control the Juggernaut Drive. As long as I don't overstay, the only cost is a bit of lifespan—no other side effects."
As a fellow descendant of the Original Satans, Katereia offered one more piece of advice. "The Red Dragon Emperor has a... unique special ability. Our mission today isn't just to break the peace treaty; we are also supposed to recruit him."
Ethan had intended to ignore Vali—the muscle-brained idiot—but Katereia's words forced him to speak. He looked at the black beauty and shrugged. "Sorry, but I'm not really into your type."
Ethan wasn't just being mean. Katereia was tall, slender, with massive tits and a heavy ass, but her skin was far too dark, and her tropical makeup and hairstyle just didn't do it for him. He appreciated beauties from both the East and the West, but the "tropical dark" aesthetic wasn't his thing. He'd tried dark-skinned "Gyaru" girls before, but Katereia's vibe was too extreme for his taste.
Being rejected as a woman is an insult to any female, let alone someone as radical as Katereia.
"Is that so? Hehehe..." Her eyes turned predatory. "It doesn't matter if you're interested now. I'll make sure you become interested."
If recruitment failed, she'd use force. Once she dragged him back to the Khaos Brigade, she had plenty of ways to make Ethan "perform." Whether it was using his dual-cultivation to boost their female members' combat power or using his genes to repopulate the Leviathan clan, he was a valuable asset.
Great... Ethan scratched his head. The leaders of the three most powerful races were right here, yet everyone was staring at him like he was a prize ham.
Setting aside the danger, purely from a cultivation standpoint, a session with a Satan-class like Katereia wouldn't be a loss. If he was lucky, he might even hit a breakthrough right then and there. But the price—joining the Khaos Brigade—was a hard pass. Ethan knew his limits; if he ran into Ophis, the Infinite Dragon God, he wouldn't stand a chance. Ophis was two whole realms above the God-class. Like the Primary Gods, the Dragon God stayed hidden within the Three Realms, but if she ever decided to move, no one could stop her.
Despite the aggressive posture of the two Brigade members, Ethan wasn't panicking. His side had double the Satan-class powerhouses. There was no way they'd let him be kidnapped.
Sensing Ethan's confidence, Vali spoke up again. "Katereia, where are the other two?"
"They'll be here shortly."
Katereia wasn't in a rush. The Khaos Brigade had prepared for a frontal assault, and even she knew she couldn't take on two Satans at once. For a moment, the scene fell into a tense stalemate.
Technically, this was becoming a Devil civil war. The descendants of the Original Satans—the "Old Faction"—were coming for the heads of the "New Faction" leaders who had usurped their titles. Seeing this, Michael and Shemhaza were in no hurry to help. Peace treaty or not, they were perfectly happy to let the Devils weaken themselves in an internal feud.
Sirzechs and Serafall felt a pang of guilt. They had betrayed the original bloodlines for the survival of the race, and now those bloodlines had returned, fueled by the abyss of the Khaos Brigade.
As the mass-produced clones outside began to thin out, the silence in the ruins of the villa became deafening. Everyone's eyes drifted to Ethan. Only the Red Dragon Emperor seemed capable of breaking this atmospheric deadlock.
Seriously? Six Satan-classes here and you're all looking at me? Ethan thought. If it were six SSS-ranks, I'd already be balls-deep in the fight. But these guys are on a different level.
Suddenly, two magic circles—one green and one yellow—materialized in the air.
The expressions of Shemhaza and Michael shifted instantly. The "spectators" had just realized the fire had spread to their own houses.
From the yellow circle stepped a pale, hideous middle-aged man with six pairs of jet-black wings: a Satan-class Fallen Angel. From the green circle stepped a blue-and-white humanoid covered in mechanical augmentations. He radiated an intense holy aura, but he looked more like a cyborg monster than a divine being.
"Ornis, Kokabiel... you're late," Vali said, his battle-lust rising.
"Heh, it took some time to slip past the sensors," Kokabiel sneered, licking his lips as he looked at Shemhaza. "Lord Shemhaza, you look surprised. Is it because I'm here, or because I've reached the level of a Satan? Hehehe!"
Shemhaza's face was grim. Kokabiel was a notorious warmonger among the Fallen. He had always been weaker than Azazel, but now that the moderate leader was gone, Kokabiel had somehow broken through to the twelve-winged level. If Shemhaza fell here today, the Fallen Angels would descend into total chaos.
Michael's face was even grimmer. It was the first time Ethan had seen the gentle Seraph look truly murderous as he stared at the mechanical monstrosity, Ornis.