Max's eyes lingered on the gathered demons. He could not help but wonder if their true purpose in this war was really just a drop of blood. To ignite such a catastrophic conflict across worlds merely for a single drop sounded excessive, almost absurd, yet deep down he understood it could very well be the truth.

"Aren't there any geniuses of the human race who have stepped into the Divine Rank?" A mocking voice suddenly rang out from among the demonic host.

The one who spoke stepped forward, his appearance deceptively youthful. His face bore the sharpness of a young man in his prime, yet Max knew at a glance that this was nothing but the mask of a creature far older. By mortal reckoning, this demon should have lived for thousands of years, perhaps even longer.

Max's pupils contracted as he recognized him. He recalled seeing this figure among the thousand demons released when the Bright Buddha Palace's seal was torn apart.

The elders of the Middle Domain and the leaders of the Four God Nation stiffened as their gazes fell on the demon. They knew the danger he represented. His aura alone told the story clearly. He stood at the fifth life-and-death cycle, a cultivator who had reached the fifth level of the Divine Rank.

The demon smiled, his expression dripping with pride as he raised his voice for all to hear. "I am Balthazar, the strongest genius of the demon race. For more than a thousand years, I was bound in your human seal along with countless of my brethren. And now, finally, I am free." His chuckle echoed like the sound of chains breaking.

He tilted his head, his smile widening into something cruel. "When I awoke, I thought to loosen my hands by killing a few of your human geniuses at the Divine Rank. It would have been a pleasant warm-up after so many centuries of confinement. Yet what do I find? Not a single human genius at that realm. Tsk, tsk. How pitiful. The human race is truly in decline."

The words were not spoken loudly, but they carried across the square with the weight of poison. Every human genius felt the contempt in his tone, and even the elders clenched their fists.

"If you seek a battle with the geniuses of the human race, then wait until they return from the Heavenly Lord Secret Domain," Alexander Draconis, leader of the Azure Dragon God Nation, responded coldly. His sneer showed his unwillingness to let Balthazar's insult stand unchallenged.

"Oh, I will wait," Balthazar answered, his own sneer sharper than steel. His eyes swept slowly across the gathered prodigies, lingering on Victor and the others before he gave a laugh that cut into their pride. "But I already know I will be disappointed. You humans can gather as many so-called geniuses as you wish, and yet none of you will satisfy me."

Balthazar's lips curled into a smile at first, but the moment his gaze landed on Max that smile faltered and a cold edge crept into his chest. He had expected roar and fury from the humans, not the unshakable calm he now faced.

The silence in Max's eyes carried neither arrogance nor fear, but something far more dangerous: a steady certainty that belonged to those who truly believed they would change the world. Balthazar's mind raced as images snapped into place. 'This human is unnervingly calm; could he be the one who slew Zoltan and the twin demons?' he thought, and the possibility made bile rise at the back of his throat.

"You must be that Max who killed Zoltan," Balthazar said with a chuckle. "I have heard that you possess the greatest potential among your kind."

Max regarded him without haste, his voice quiet and unflinching. "I am that Max, and my talent surpasses even the best of the demon race. The day I reach the threshold I seek will be the day you demons are wiped from this world. Until then you will live with the knowledge that that day is coming soon."

Balthazar's brow twitched at the threat, and his contempt sharpened into irritation. "You are arrogant," he snapped. "You should know your place."

Max allowed a small smirk to cross his face, and that single expression was enough to stir a new, unfamiliar unease within Balthazar.

The thought struck him like a blade: 'This human thinks like a Divine Rank genius, he has a mindset of the geniuses of the Divine Realm, and if he enters the Heavenly Lord Secret Domain and grows stronger....'

The more he dwelt on that prospect, the hotter the panic burned inside him. He felt the logic of his race's old brutality flare into action. 'He must not be given time to grow,' Balthazar decided, and his resolve snapped into movement.

In an instant his form dissolved into black smoke that billowed and reformed into a living spear of shadow. He lunged toward Max with the speed of a falling star, the air around him tearing as if reality itself resisted his motion. The intent behind the attack was not mere killing; it was a desperate attempt to sever potential before it could blossom.

Max's sneer deepened as the shadow shot forward, and he made no motion to defend himself. Before Balthazar could close the distance an urgent cry cut through the square and a figure of crimson light erupted into being between them.

The phoenix manifested in a blaze of red brilliance, wings spread wide like oceans of flame, and it struck the shadow with a thunderous impact that scattered the darkness in every direction.

The force of the phoenix's blow sent Balthazar tumbling back through the air until he found purchase and forced his form to stabilize among shattered stone and whirling dust. He staggered to his feet, the smoke of his body coughing off like embers, and for a heartbeat his expression was not fury but a raw, sharpened fear.

He had not expected anyone to intervene so swiftly, and he had not expected Max to stand so calmly while danger struck.

Max's voice rang out clear and cold across the ruined plaza. "Wait for your doom," he said, and there was no boast in his tone, only the certainty of prophecy. "It will not be long before I reach my desired strength and exterminate you and your kind."

Balthazar steadied himself in the air, his black smoke form curling angrily around his body like writhing serpents. His eyes burned with humiliation and rage as they fixed once more on Max. That calm human had pierced his pride far deeper than the phoenix's blow had pierced his flesh. The unease in his chest now hardened into killing intent.

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