Chapter 399 Split body, very abnormal - Socially Anxious Witch in the Apocalypse

The magical doppelganger spell is truly useful! Upon returning to camp, Su Miao immediately set to work on studying the "Potionology" book to prepare a magical potion for Xia Xiao An's treatment. After a moment's preparation, she remembered she also needed to refine her magical town domain and construct a domain unique to herself. Besides these, keeping up with global events online was equally important. Suddenly, an idea sparked in her mind, and she released a multitude of magical doppelgangers. "You three, form a group to perfect the magical town domain." "You three, work on constructing my personal domain." "You three, focus on potionology research," Su Miao instructed her doppelgangers. Each doppelganger got right to work. However, some seemed a bit off. One doppelganger grabbed a notebook, found a chair, sat down, and promptly fell asleep. Not only was it sleeping, but it also would occasionally tip left or right, as if desperately trying to stay awake. Another doppelganger, for reasons unknown, pulled a large cardboard box from the magical space. With a fearful glance at the original, it shrank inside the box and shut it. Yet another doppelganger suddenly had a blanket, wrapping itself completely while warily surveying the surroundings. Three more doppelgangers crawled under a large table they had brought out. ... Su Miao felt something was seriously wrong. Although the doppelgangers were conscious and could speak, she considered this within the understandable range. As long as they were in that range, memory sharing was essentially possible, and she hadn't identified any real issues. In addition, she had used the magical doppelganger spell multiple times, doing many tasks without encountering any significant problems. Today, however, these issues kept cropping up. Why did some doppelgangers exhibit social anxiety?   Aren't all the doppelgangers essentially her? Suddenly, she recalled that when she sent doppelgangers on tasks before, they would leave immediately for their destinations. After they returned, she could somewhat perceive the social anxiety from their memories. Given that they were all parts of herself, social anxiety seemed normal. Su Miao hadn't given it much thought. Never did she expect that gathering multiple magical doppelgangers would result in this situation. Despite their social anxieties, the doppelgangers would persist in their magical research. But as the original, Su Miao couldn't stand aside. To prevent accidents and ensure smooth research, she needed to take care of each doppelganger. "Honestly, they're all me, so why does the original need to care for the doppelgangers? It's just too weird..." ... In the inner world, Mist Island. The grand demon king Kento signaled the commencement of the centennial Demon King meeting. In an instant, the skies above Mist Island were interwoven with various rules and laws, as terrifying demon king projections descended one by one. The inner world is a prime resource area they have heavily invested in, and though it holds many inexplicable oddities, under absolute power, risks are manageable. However, this time is different. The inner world has connected to a perilous human world. Initially, they thought this new world could be a valuable resource. Who would have thought it harbored extremely dangerous entities? In the grand and solemn demon king council hall, one demon king after another took their seats. Sensing the terrifying aura, the Chi Zhu Demon King looked into the distance and discovered that today's meeting had attracted over twenty grand demon kings, including three grand demon gods. Could this be a call to war against that world? Vaguely, the Chi Zhu Demon King perceived numerous magical thoughts threading through the void. These magical thoughts emitted overwhelmingly terrifying auras, leaving him too frightened to eavesdrop on any. "Quiet! Quiet! Quiet!" The grand demon king Kento rapped a gavel and said, "The meeting has begun!" An immense aura expanded, quelling the magical thoughts above the meeting and drawing all the demon kings' attention to the grand demon king Kento. "Ladies and gentlemen, recently, the inner world has connected with thirty-one worlds on the brink of destruction. Sixteen of them are barren worlds with no development value, while the rest hold potential." "Of the fifteen valuable worlds, nine have fallen under our control, three are about to be conquered, two are nearing collapse, and one remains unexplored." "This meeting's main focus is on the allocation of resources from the conquered worlds and the study of the unexplored world, designated as 'World 16.'" "World 16 is a human world that, upon connecting with the inner world, proactively invaded for resource plunder." ... An uproar followed his words. Is this world really so bold? Connecting with the inner world only to invade it—these humans are courting disaster. The grand demon king Kento queried, "I trust many among you have had dealings with people from this world. What insights can you share about them?" "My explanation might be a bit convoluted, so in simple terms, the humans of this other world might not be human at all." "They seem, in states of severe injury or death, to have a chance to transform into monsters as long as their bodies remain." "These monsters resemble the inner world's oddities but possess even greater aggression." "They grow stronger by killing demon folk." A grand demon king with a black-furred bull's head spoke dismissively, "So what if they become stronger? They're all ants, just crush them." Under absolute strength, ants mean nothing. Many demon kings concurred with this sentiment. The grand demon king Kento intervened, "Black Hoof, don't rush. Let me finish introducing this other world." With a snort of disdain, the grand demon king Black Hoof withdrew. Possibly finding the meeting dull, he produced a red twin-tailed magic girl figurine from somewhere and engrossed himself in admiring it. Unintentionally, a drop of saliva trickled down, landing on a powerful demon general at Black Hoof's feet. The demon general didn't even have time to scream before dissolving in the saliva. Such terror. The grand demon king Kento continued, "To date, we've gathered various intelligence on humans invading the inner world. Among them, at least five possess strength approaching that of a demon king." "These quasi-demon king individuals, once fully unleashed, have the power to kill an ordinary demon king. They're exceptionally formidable." "Confirmed, an individual named Si Wu among them possesses full demon king strength." "Si Wu belongs to a human organization known as the Twelve Divisions, with eleven others said to be equally formidable." Gasp! The demon king meeting came alive with chatter. A world on the brink of destruction having this many powerful fighters, possibly even twelve at the level of demon kings? Such a notion is absurd, no wonder they dared to invade the inner world. Any one of those present would consider invading a new world given the chance. However, the existence of twelve quasi-demon king level individuals suggests wealth of resources in World 16. Gasp! These critical insights must be deliberated thoroughly. While twelve quasi-demon king level fighters are formidable, compared to the demon king council, they're insignificant. If several grand demon kings present took action, those twelve fighters would be annihilated in no time. Then, they merely need to follow in their footsteps, picking up the spoils to grow wealthy. Perhaps, leveraging those corpses might help them advance to grand demon king status. Moreover, only one individual has been confirmed as a demon king level fighter; the others within the Twelve Divisions haven't been substantiated, and their exact strength remains uncertain. Comparatively, just as having one grand demon king found wouldn't verify that the entire demon king council consists of grand demon kings. Considering this, conquering World 16 becomes seemingly less challenging. However, things must be more complex than they appear, or there'd be no need for the grand demon king Kento to convene such a serious meeting. The grand demon king Kento stated, "None of these matters individually concern me. What truly matters is the danger I recently faced first-hand." Danger? The demon kings were taken aback. What could pose a threat to the mighty grand demon king? Is it this human world? The grand demon king Kento elaborated, "Recently, we detected World 16's linkage to the inner world and assigned Saleh, the vampire demon king, to lead the conquest." "However, Saleh encountered resistance from humans invading the inner world and has long struggled to progress." "Eventually, the Evil Spirit Demon King and Hell Demon King joined the battle." "This time, they killed a human of demon king level strength and severely injured a quasi-demon king level human, successfully opening a passage and invading the foreign world." "However, following this, the vampire demon king, hell demon king, and evil spirit demon king have lost all contact with us." "It has been confirmed that they perished in World 16." Demon kings falling in battle isn’t exactly rare. In ancient times, worlds under siege from the Demon King Council would often see a rise of foolhardy heroes, fighting desperately to slay demon kings. With a bit of bad luck, they might even encounter those unreasonable magical girls. Before transforming, they look like ordinary people. But during battle, they transform into these unbelievably cute and invincible beings, capable of slaying a demon king in mere moments. Many demon kings, right before their demise, might not even realize what hit them, only finding the sight rather cute. Take, for example, the grand demon king Black Hoof—he was nearly killed by a magical girl. Now, he suffers from severe aftereffects. To prevent such situations, the Demon King Council was formed. With the council, demon kings put aside their pride, joining forces driven by mutual interests to invade other worlds, significantly reducing mortality rates. However, the complete loss of three demon kings in a single exploratory expedition into another world is unprecedented in the last hundred thousand years. Grand demon king Kento spoke, "Upon verification, Charlotte, the Hell Demon King, was close to advancing to a grand demon king. When fully unleashed, his combat strength rivaled that of a grand demon king for a short duration." "Furthermore, when I led several demon kings to reopen the ruptured world passage, ready to investigate World 16, a terrifying aura from the other side made me shudder." "My instincts warned that proceeding would lead to death, so I withdrew." "Beyond that, since the passage opened, the other side has been madly siphoning energy from the connected inner world." "This comprises the entirety of our intelligence." Could it be fabricated? Some demon kings skeptically eyed Kento as he delivered the report. They strongly suspected that grand demon king Kento might be overly timid, mistaking a trace of energy as evidence of a terrifying presence. What if that world is just in a state of destruction? "Kento, with all this pointless talk, what exactly are you trying to convey?" a gorilla-like grand demon king inquired. Grand demon king Kento replied, "I'm suggesting that we temporarily withdraw from this region, allowing the Demon King Council to remain hidden while we ascertain the true nature of World 16." The gorilla grand demon king immediately countered, "I oppose! This kind of world is best besieged viciously!" Black Hoof, the grand demon king, peered at a cute figurine in front of him, echoing, "Yes, besiege it mercilessly." In an instant, the presence emanating from several demon kings surged skyward, stirring the winds and clouds. Many demon kings at the meeting were too intimidated to even breathe. Grand demon king Kento, unfazed by the reproach, maintained his composure. "So, both of you advocate continued aggression?" Black Hoof declared, "Absolutely, we must attack!" The gorilla demon king added, "Cowardly Kento, I’ll show you rivers of blood in World 16." Grand demon king Kento continued, "Very well. According to council policy, when faced with a challenging world to conquer, two grand demon kings must unite to form a coalition for re-initiation." "If two grand demon kings unite, I will lend my full support, and the council will not interfere." "If not, then kindly follow my proposal." Black Hoof asserted, "Fight! You cowards—if you won’t, I will! Anyone else want to join?" The gorilla grand demon king stated, "Count me in." The two grand demon kings sealed a cooperative agreement. Witnessing this, Kento inwardly smirked sinisterly. The entire purpose of convening this meeting was to spur the grand demon kings to explore the human world under the guise of an invasion, allowing him space to maneuver. To his delight, things went unbelievably smoothly, with two fools taking the bait immediately. Recalling his encounter from that day, grand demon king Kento felt certain that an incredibly formidable force awaited on the other side. With Black Hoof and the gorilla demon king's substantial capabilities, they could hold the line against that formidable entity, paving the way for Kento to stealthily reap the spoils. As Black Hoof and the gorilla demon king forged their alliance, several regular demon kings expressed interest in joining the campaign, successfully enlisting in the team. The final assembly confirmed two grand demon kings and eleven regular demon kings in the assault force. One demon king stood and queried, "Kento, is this the only intel you've gathered?" From my understanding, World 16 is rumored to have cultivators, magical girls, witches, and such. Grand demon king Kento responded, "During their offensive, the vampire demon king, hell demon king, and evil spirit demon king extinguished a group of human cultivators, including demon king-level fighters. Be cautious, and there won't be issues." "As for magical girls and witches, we haven't detected any; rest assured." The querying demon king, contemplating joining the invasion force, sensed something amiss, suspecting Kento held back information. Yet, even if Kento remained tight-lipped, he decided to bide his time. Even if he missed this opportunity, his speed would ensure he wouldn't fall behind for long. *Heh heh heh.* (End of Chapter)