The Devil Does Not Need to Be Defeated

Demon Realm, Moon Demon Territory, Central City.

On the top floor of the Supreme Castle, Sara strolled leisurely.

She wasn’t in her office dealing with the endless paperwork, nor did she seem to be making any arrangements for the upcoming Tripartite Conference. She simply walked towards her destination with a clear purpose, arriving at a vast hall.

The spacious hall was as grand as a temple, but it lacked the sacred atmosphere unique to temples.

However, in the center of this vast hall stood a massive door.

It was a door as smooth and crystalline as water or a mirror, looking as if it led to a dreamland.

Around the door were various facilities: railings, walls, magic devices, barriers, and even platforms for sentries, clearly indicating that many people would guard this place.

There were also registration counters, identification tools for scanning personal status, and other such setups, giving it the feel of border entry and inspection.

However, this place, usually bustling with demon officials and warriors, was completely empty at this moment.

“Click.”

Sara’s footsteps echoed clearly in the deserted hall as she looked at the door before her.

It was the Gate of Worlds.

As the name suggested, it was a gate that led to different worlds.

Generally, to enter the Demon Realm, one had to pass through the bottom of one of the large magic power sources that had existed for over a thousand years in the Human Realm, and with a special token made by the Demon Race, could one open a passage between the two worlds.

But there were exceptions to every rule.

For diplomatic convenience, in the Supreme Castle, which served as the administrative center of the Demon Realm, there was another gate for traversing worlds.

This gate usually stood in this hall, guarded and managed by the Central City’s Demon Guard. Anyone who came to the Demon Realm’s Supreme Castle through this gate would be monitored by the Demon Guard and had to complete identity registration and other procedures here. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to leave.

Because of the importance of the Supreme Castle, there would usually be an executive secretly watching over this place.

That’s right, one of the three Limit Level existences under Sara’s command.

In other words, this place was usually not only guarded by the Demon Guard but also secretly supervised by a Limit Level demon expert.

However, today, Sara had dismissed all the staff and her subordinate executive.

The reason was simple.

A rather troublesome figure was about to arrive in the Demon Realm.

“Hum.”

At a certain moment, the Gate of Worlds suddenly trembled, the mirror-like surface rippling like water.

“Have they arrived?”

Sara, as if she had long anticipated this, remained calm and simply watched quietly.

Under Sara’s gaze, the Gate of Worlds gradually began to glow with a dazzling light.

Before long, a figure, as if passing through the other side of the gate, arrived in the Demon Realm.

It was a heroic-looking goddess.

It was a dazzling goddess.

She had a dignified appearance, slender limbs, a tall and slender figure, distinct curves, and exuded an incredibly strong presence, making it impossible to look away from her.

She had long silver hair and wore feathered armor, a silver headdress, silver bracers on both hands, a skirt armor that reached her knees, and silver boots resembling high boots, her entire appearance like a Valkyrie.

The most striking feature was the pair of silver swords at her waist.

They were both silver, gleaming brightly, exuding an aura of holiness, making them appear extraordinary at first glance.

The silver Valkyrie wore them on either side of her waist, and together with her sturdy boots that struck the ground forcefully, creating a clang, she exuded a solemn and majestic aura.

“The Demon Realm…”

The goddess stepped out of the Gate of Worlds and glanced around.

“So this is what it looks like?”

The silver Valkyrie murmured, her voice melodious, but lacking a sentimental beauty, instead giving the impression that she was examining something, her demeanor incredibly serious.

Sara, looking at this silver Valkyrie, smiled faintly.

“Long time no see, Artemis.”

Sara didn’t approach but spoke to her.

Yes.

This silver Valkyrie was a high-ranking god of the Divine Race, her strength among the top three in the entire Divine Race, her status lofty, second only to the three goddesses, the goddess in charge of justice and order—Artemis.

“Moon Demon Sara.”

Artemis turned her gaze towards Sara.

Upon closer inspection, Artemis’s eyes were azure blue, very beautiful.

However, just like her, these beautiful azure blue eyes carried a sharp presence, making people feel more apprehensive than attracted.

Artemis, the Goddess of Justice, looked directly at Sara, then walked towards her.

“Long time no see, Supreme Ruler of the Demon Race.” Artemis said calmly in a cold and stern tone. “Thank you for receiving me this time.”

It was no wonder Artemis would say this.

Because it was Sara who had petitioned the Divine Race, asking them to send a goddess of sufficient standing.

That was why Sara was able to make arrangements in advance and have everyone here evacuated.

There was no helping it.

She knew very well how strong this goddess’s sense of justice was and how much she hated evil.

It wouldn’t be a good thing if this goddess saw too many demon citizens.

After all, demons were basically tempered from battles since childhood and could be said to have blood on their hands.

Naturally, in the Demon Realm, it was common for demons to fight and kill over minor conflicts, causing unnecessary bloodshed.

If there were too many demons here, they might all be judged by this goddess before her, forced to atone for their sins.

In fact, even Sara herself, in this goddess’s eyes, probably needed to atone.

As the Supreme Ruler of the Demon Race, an enemy of the Divine Race since ancient times, how could she avoid killing Divine Race goddesses and innocent human lives?

If Sara weren’t the current leader of the Demon Race, her existence a restraint on many ambitious demons, making them willing to maintain peace and actively engage in diplomacy, to some extent, she could be considered reformed, her existence bringing more benefits than harm to Omnipotence. If she were gone, the Demon Race might lose control and run amok, causing widespread suffering. If not for this, the Goddess of Justice definitely wouldn’t hesitate to take action against her.

Therefore, only Sara came here to receive her.

“I didn’t expect it would be you.” Sara said honestly. “I thought Nadue would come herself and take those three troublesome little girls back.”

Hearing this, Artemis’s expression remained unchanged.

“Goddess Nadue has other matters to attend to.” Artemis still said calmly. “With the Tripartite Conference approaching, the three goddesses are all making preparations for it and don’t have much time to deal with such trivial matters.”

“That’s why you deliberately came yourself, right?” Sara said helplessly. “As diligent as ever.”

“This is what I should do.” Artemis replied calmly. “As long as it’s for the Divine Race, for the Human Race, for Omnipotence, no matter how small the matter, I’m willing to do it.”

“Indeed.” Sara smiled faintly. “This is what I admire most about you, and also what I find most troublesome.”

“I apologize for that.” Artemis said, but there wasn’t a hint of apology in her tone, even saying matter-of-factly, “I am the Goddess of Justice, the Goddess of Order. Everything I do is for justice and order.”

“I know.” Sara looked directly at Artemis and said meaningfully, “That’s why I was a little surprised when I learned you were coming.”

“Surprised?” Artemis looked at Sara.

“That’s right.” Sara nodded, admitting frankly, “To you, the Demon Realm is no different from a lawless land. That you would actually be willing to come here is truly beyond my expectations.”

In the past thousand years, the three goddesses had all come to the Demon Realm for diplomatic purposes.

No, not just the three goddesses, but other goddesses as well, coming to the Demon Realm for various reasons.

The Demon Realm had never forbidden gods and humans from visiting, just as the Human Realm never forbade the presence of gods and demons.

Only the Divine Realm was inaccessible to both demons and humans without permission.

That was the dwelling place of the gods, a sacred land, the place of faith.

Moreover, the omnipotent Supreme God Omnis resided in the Divine Realm.

Although Omnis had gone into seclusion, with the Demon King’s demise, the Supreme God was the supreme being of Omnipotence.

Furthermore, the Supreme God was the origin of everything, the creator of the world, her status transcendent. To ensure the tranquility of their mother goddess and respect her wish for seclusion, the Divine Race usually forbade other races from casually entering the Divine Realm.

The Demon Realm had no such rules.

Therefore, many goddesses had been to the Demon Realm.

However, Artemis wasn’t among them.

This Goddess of Justice hadn’t entered the Demon Realm even once in the past thousand years.

Everyone knew that this was because this goddess couldn’t stand the existence of the Demon Realm.

There were too many beings here that she needed to purge and judge.

To Artemis, there were indeed many lawless individuals here.

Therefore, just as gods wouldn’t descend into hell, this Goddess of Justice had never approached the Demon Realm.

This time, Artemis’s arrival truly surprised Sara.

Actually, there was a reason why Artemis was willing to come here.

Chapter 856: “No One Can Take Him Away.”

Meeting Sara’s meaningful gaze, Artemis pondered.

After a while, Artemis said indifferently,

“I just want to see what kind of world this generation’s Hero favors.”

Artemis stated her reason for coming here.

Hearing this reason, Sara wasn’t surprised, only thinking, “As expected.”

Sara had already guessed this reason.

Artemis continued softly,

“I find it hard to believe that the Hero, who has always been our companion, would be willing to come to this world and even marry that brutal Dragon Demon.” Artemis glanced at Sara and said, “But since even the Hero acknowledges this place, acknowledges you, out of trust in the Hero, I naturally have to see for myself.”

It was true that Artemis was a goddess with a very strong sense of justice.

But precisely because of her overly strong sense of justice, she had extraordinary trust in the Hero, who saved the world, saved Omnipotence, was capable of slaying the Demon King, and had always fought alongside the Divine and Human Races, charging at the forefront of the battlefield.

She believed that the Hero was an existence of justice, just like her, a guardian of order.

Therefore, in terms of trust and acknowledgment, Artemis could be said to be the goddess who trusted and acknowledged the Hero the most in the entire Divine Race.

In the past, Artemis often accompanied the Hero, readily offering assistance when needed.

If the Hero didn’t receive blessings from the three goddesses and become their blessed one, Artemis would definitely give her own blessing to every Hero.

Because of this, Artemis had another title—”Goddess Holy Sword.”

This meant that she, as the Goddess of Justice, could be considered the Hero’s second Holy Sword.

When the Hero charged onto the battlefield, it was often Artemis who fought closest to him.

When the Hero was surrounded by enemies, it was often Artemis who rescued him.

Every generation of Heroes had their own companions.

But sometimes, those companions didn’t spend as much time with the Hero as Artemis did.

If it weren’t for the three goddesses stopping her, and the Hero himself being too timid to… take advantage of the situation, this goddess might have even… eaten, drank, and slept with the Hero.

That was why she had earned the title of “Goddess Holy Sword.”

For Artemis, the appearance of the Hero was undoubtedly a joyous and celebratory occasion.

But this Hero seemed to be different.

He wasn’t as righteous as past Heroes.

He wasn’t as eager to uphold justice as past Heroes.

He was even entangled with that brutal Dragon Demon, who had killed two of her predecessors, from the very beginning. In the end, he even became engaged to the Dragon Demon, developing a close relationship with the Demon Lords.

Honestly, Artemis couldn’t quite accept this.

Therefore, after receiving Sara’s request, with the three goddesses unable to spare the time, Artemis took the initiative to accept this mission and came to the Demon Realm, a place she had never been before.

Sara was well aware of these things.

However…

“Speaking of acknowledgment, didn’t Mitra also acknowledge the existence of the Demon Race back then, taking the initiative to offer us peace and discuss a peace plan with us?”

Sara said this pointedly.

“That’s different.” Artemis shook her head. “Mitra only wanted to end the meaningless war, bring an end to the long-standing war between gods and demons in Omnipotence, and bring peace to the world. He didn’t intend to develop a relationship with the Demon Race.”

That was true.

As a Hero who had participated in the war between gods and demons, Mitra’s Holy Sword was stained with the blood of countless demons, and he had witnessed the deaths of many of his companions at the hands of demons.

Under such circumstances, even if Mitra could disregard hatred, he definitely wouldn’t like or approach the Demon Race.

If that weren’t the case, Mitra wouldn’t have fallen for Elven Queen Sophie, but for the Succubus Shafney.

Precisely because Mitra never had the thought of marrying a demon, he was able to resist Shafney’s terrifying charm.

But Shien was different.

From the very beginning, he was very close to Airi and had received her protection countless times since his debut. His mount was also a transformed dragon, and coupled with the occasional rumors of his interactions with the Demon Lords, his relationship with the Demon Race was far closer than with the Divine Race.

Even though an Evil God, Lilith, later appeared by his side, and he spent almost all his time with her, rarely separating, that was because the Evil God had entrusted her [True Mark] to him, not because his relationship with the Divine Race had become closer.

Moreover, the three goddesses had all met Shien, but their interactions with him remained limited.

Anima had repeatedly expressed her support for Shien, but Shien never seemed to take it seriously.

Nadue had also spoken with him and taken one of the women by his side, but it was hard to say if they were close.

As for Lildas, there were even rumors of them arguing publicly.

On the other hand, the Demon Race…

Moon Demon Sara had attended Shien’s ennoblement banquet and his engagement banquet, even directly confronting Lildas for his sake, her regard for him evident.

Dragon Demon Airi was almost like the Evil God, inseparable from Shien.

It was said that Beast Demon Lid and Ghost Demon Millu had also eaten and lived with Shien in the Elven Homeland.

Even that Succubus, who always looked down on others and never paid attention to any man, had invited him to stay in her Succubus Fortress and had now gone to the Human Realm, living in his house.

Even for Poison Demon Kamina, there were reliable sources claiming that she often accompanied Shien in the Supreme Castle.

In summary, the relationship between the Demon Lords and this generation’s Hero was incredibly close.

When they learned of this news, many goddesses in the Divine Race were anxious, their sense of crisis increasing sharply, worried about whether the Hero would be won over by the Demon Race.

And among them, Artemis was the most worried.

“If the three goddesses hadn’t stopped me, I would have rushed to his side immediately, never giving any evil forces a chance to approach him.”

Artemis stated this.

“So…?” Sara raised an eyebrow, saying with a smirk, “Are you here to assert your dominance, to tell us to know our place and stay away from the Hero?”

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the air changed.

It became heavy and oppressive.

Artemis glanced at Sara and said, “I really want to do that, but I know I can’t.”

That was the case.

If it were only Airi, Artemis would definitely take action immediately, even fighting her to drive her away from the Hero’s side.

But now, the Hero was already entangled with the Demon Race, having a close relationship with all the Demon Lords. With Artemis’s strength alone, she could no longer snatch the Hero back from the Demon Race.

If the three goddesses were willing to help, there might be hope.

However, if that happened, the Divine and Demon Races would probably go to war again.

If the three goddesses and six Demon Lords, the beings at the pinnacle of Omnipotence, were to truly confront each other, the war between gods and demons would inevitably restart.

Therefore, the three goddesses definitely wouldn’t act rashly and disrupt the current balance between the two races.

“Before I came here, Goddess Lildas specifically instructed me not to cause conflict with you without reason.”

Artemis’s implication was simple.

She definitely wasn’t convinced.

But for the sake of all beings in the three realms, she wouldn’t take action here.

However, not taking action didn’t mean she couldn’t issue a warning.

Her overt purpose for coming here was to take back the three Goddesses of Time who were causing trouble in the Demon Realm, but her covert purpose was to tell the Demon Lords not to get too carried away.

“The Hero is our companion and won’t help the Demon Race do evil. Please remember this, Supreme Ruler of the Demon Race.”

Artemis looked directly at Sara, making this declaration.

Sara smiled in response.

“You haven’t changed at all, Goddess Holy Sword.”

Sara gave this calm assessment.

“Likewise.” Artemis retorted. “You still like using methods that others can’t understand. Not only are you trying to win over this generation’s Hero, but you’ve also been paying special attention to the Divine Realm recently, as if searching for something, right?”

It seemed that the Divine Race had been paying attention to Sara, to the movements of the Demon Race’s highest authority.

“What are you looking for? What are you planning?” Artemis questioned sternly. “Including winning over this generation’s Hero, these aren’t things the past you would do. But now you’ve done them, and many sensitive goddesses in the Divine Race have been provoked by you, thinking that you’re plotting something that might endanger the peace of the three races, Moon Demon Sara.”

This was also one of the reasons Artemis came to the Demon Realm.

She wanted to know what this notorious demon strategist, the most trusted advisor of the Demon King, was thinking.

Or…

“Do you know something we don’t? Moon Demon!”

Artemis stared intently at Sara, as if trying to see through her.

Unfortunately…

“This is a matter of our Demon Race and there’s no need to explain everything to you.” Sara shook her head. “If you really want to know the truth, go ask your mother goddess.”

“Wh…” Artemis’s expression changed.

Before she could react further, Sara unilaterally ended the conversation.

“In short, what I’m doing won’t endanger peace. You can rest assured.”

“But, there’s one thing I must make clear to you.”

Sara smiled faintly and declared in a crystal-clear voice,

“Hero Shien belongs to us.”

“No one can take him away.”