Chapter 119: The Devil Calls!

Novak stood on the hillside.

Here's an improved version:

Though referred to as a hillside, this area had no towering mountains. In this small village tucked among the hills, the ridges rose no higher than a hundred meters.

Yet, that was enough.

He lowered his gaze, observing the scene below. His eyes narrowed.

The village was tiny, with only about 20 households.

Yet, within this unremarkable place lay the chance for an S-tier career change.

This was the beginning of the end.

If one had luck, courage, and the will to fight, the rewards were guaranteed—so long as one survived.

Novak knew this well from his previous life.

"This time it will be different," he muttered.

In the distance, beyond the village, a figure slowly approached. Novak's lips curled into a smile as he recognized Kong.

In his past life, Kong had stolen victory from him, claiming the final blow against the ultimate demon BOSS at the last moment. This bastard had robbed Novak of his kill!

While the cosmic will's judgement for a kill was based on overall contribution, the one who dealt the final strike still held significant authority.

And so, Kong had the right to claim the most valuable spoils. Back then, it was the coveted Demon Hunter job transfer scroll that Novak had lost to him.

But not this time. This time, Novak would take what was his.

From the moment of his rebirth, Novak was determined to settle this hatred.

Now, once again, Novak returned, looking down from above, ready to witness the chaos and slaughter below.

"Grim! Prepare the formation!" someone bellowed.

A group of burly men emerged at the village gate. To an outsider, they might have looked like debt collectors from the underworld.

Kong extended his hand, and a long spear materialized in his grip.

This wasn't some ordinary weapon—it was loot from the Gods and Demons' Proving Ground.

The real deal.

Such long-handled weapons were precious, even at gathering places. They were second only to the ranged weaponry Novak had provided Andrea before departing.

"Boss, those common villagers are only at level 3! The ones with tattoos are level 5! And the black-robed villagers at the center—they're already at level 7!" someone reported.

Kong inhaled deeply. But now wasn't the time to hesitate. He raised his spear.

"Brothers, line up. Formation!"

"Kill!"

Novak nodded in approval as he observed. Though the demon village was small, it was filled with high-level inhabitants, making it no simple feat to take them down one by one.

That's why deploying the military formation had been the right decision. Kong's elite team, though small in number, was highly skilled. With additional regular members reinforcing their ranks from outside, the formation would amplify their combat power significantly.

Their timing was also ideal.

At the village center, the high-ranking, black-robed demon villagers were engrossed in their summoning ritual, too preoccupied to pay attention to intruders. They believed that once their summoned demon appeared, its power would be enough to obliterate anyone who dared set foot in their domain.

But in the end, they were still just villagers.

Despite their bodies being enhanced by the demon's blood, their combat skills were no match for zombies of the same level.

The zombie virus carried by the infected was an unimaginably lethal force. Yet these brutish demon villagers had forgotten how to wield any real weapons, relying instead on their fists—large and blunt, like sandbags.

With such crude tactics, how could they hope to stand against Kong's battle-hardened warriors and his fierce, evolved soldiers, already primed for bloodshed?

The screams of the villagers echoed through the valley.

In a village of nearly a hundred people, with dozens of households, it took less than an hour for the entire valley—and the demon village within it—to be drenched in blood.

The blood of the fallen stained every corner of the land.

And yet, Kong's forces barely suffered any losses—just a few minor injuries here and there.

Novak watched the carnage unfold and nodded in approval. It was no surprise since Kong had served in the military, having retired from a special branch of the forces.

No wonder he had managed to rise so quickly in the future, becoming Daphne's fiercest rival in De M-anila.

It took over thirty years for their competition in Re-M-anila City to finally reach a conclusion.

This guy really knew what he was doing.

If events played out as planned and the demon village was wiped out, the nine remaining level-7 villagers—though stronger than the rest—would pose little threat to a well-prepared force.

But Novak knew from both past and present lives that Kong, his namesake, was a gambler—bold and ambitious, even to a fault.

In truth, Novak shared that same nature. Had their roles been reversed, he would have made the same choice.

"Brother Kong, it's done!"

The sight of corpses strewn across the battlefield ignited excitement in the faces of Kong's men. Bloodlust gleamed in their eyes.

As they looked toward the center of the village, where the remaining villagers were performing some kind of ritual, a few men began to move forward. But Kong halted them.

"Wait."

"Brother Kong, what's the matter? Isn't our mission to destroy that demon's arrival?" one of the men asked, curiosity tinged with confusion.

Kong grinned, a sly, calculating smile.

"Yes, but think about it—if we kill the demon during the summoning, wouldn't that still count as stopping its descent? Wouldn't that complete the task just the same? And if we let the thing arrive and 'then' kill it—imagine the benefits we'd reap!"

At his words, a spark of greed flickered in the eyes of his men, quickly growing into a wild hunger.

The demon villagers had been laughably weak. The word "demon" might have sounded menacing, but so far, their strength had been unimpressive.

Though some still favored caution, it was clear no one could sway Kong from his decision now.

Novak, standing on the cliff, smiled as he watched the familiar scene unfold below.

As expected, Kong had made the same choice he had in their previous lives.

In less than three minutes, as the black-robed villagers chanted their incantations, a blood-red light shot into the sky.

And within the summoning circle, a familiar figure materialized.

A demon had arrived.