Chapter 187: The Wrathful Knights

"I understand. Gods need faith, and yet Demon Hunters directly replaced the gods' presence." A chill ran through Muria, "So, the end of the Demon Hunting Era, the real puppeteers were the gods of humanity."

"It's just a speculation. And even if it were true, only a portion of the malevolent human gods would have been behind it," Caslana shook her head. "Not all gods bore hostility towards Demon Hunters. For example, the god of dawn, the lord of light, and many benevolent deities issued divine decrees to protect Demon Hunters during that era.

Otherwise, why do you think Demon Hunters still appear in this era? If not for the protection of deities, the Demon Hunters' lineage would have long been severed."

"Heh, Caslana, sister, that's not the main reason Demon Hunters have been passed down to today," Muria sneered. "Demon Hunters are preserved because those who masked themselves and hunted Demon Hunters feared and dreaded their transformation into Wrathful Knights, didn't they?"

The main reason the Demon Hunting Era ended was the first restriction set by the sage on Demon Hunting armor: Demon Hunters could not wield their swords against their kin. Once they harbored thoughts of attacking humans, the armor would automatically disassemble and fall off.

Without Demon Hunting armor, even though these knights were far superior to their peers, vastly outperforming ordinary humans in equal conditions, the hunters were far more than just five.

Those rulers who felt Demon Hunters obstructed their pursuit of immortality and power sent armies to hunt them down.

Thus, Demon Hunters, once the dread of demons, wicked beings, evil dragons, and dark races, fell one by one at the hands of their own people, those they fiercely protected.

The backbone that allowed humans to stand tall and even look down upon other races was forcefully broken by humans themselves, leaving humans unable to raise their heads before those naturally powerful races.

How ludicrous? How tragic?

If the sage hadn't placed such a restriction on Demon Hunting armor, the era of Demon Hunters would never have ended. Even if the gods had issues with them, so what? Didn't Demon Hunters lead humans to rise, slaying incarnations of foreign wicked gods in the process?

But alas, the world has no "ifs." Such a restriction exists on Demon Hunting armor, becoming a fatal weakness for Demon Hunters.

What the sage didn't anticipate was that Demon Hunters, donned in armor, would be worshipped by humans as deities, making the armor a vessel for faith generated through worship. Over long years, this nurtured an independent will.

Thus, when those masked trash used despicable means against Demon Hunters, completely shattering some knights' beliefs...

Wives defiled, children speared for threats, aged parents tortured to death... Seeing humanity's dark side, many Demon Hunters turned dark.

Their armors, having their own souls and thoughts, were in sync with the knights' wills and made choices too.

Thus, humanity's nightmare emerged: they created the most terrifying beings, the freed Demon Hunters—Wrathful Knights. No longer hunting monsters or protecting humanity, they chose revenge, eradicating all humans who betrayed them.

When Demon Hunters with the power to slay dragons alone turned their blades on humanity, those rulers longing for immortality experienced the fear and helplessness that non-human monsters and dark races once felt before Demon Hunters.

The first legendary Wrathful Knight, unshackled by restrictions, declared his existence by destroying a human kingdom. Then, successively, seventeen more legendary Wrathful Knights emerged amid human persecution.

Eighteen legendary Wrathful Knights shattered human domains.

Nearly fifty human realms were destroyed, their ruling classes slaughtered by Wrathful Knights. Human legends stood no chance against fully unleashed Wrathful Knights, described as effortlessly crushing.

This was the largest civil war in human history, with flames of war engulfing every continent and countless nations and lives affected. Yet, other races merely watched, not foolishly joining the conflict.

After this civil war, human expansion was halted, their territories significantly reduced. But due to the existence of numerous human deities above, it wasn't a complete downfall but a severe setback. Humanity had become a force to reckon with.

The eighteen legendary Wrathful Knights, for their mass slaughter of the human ruling class and bloodshed across human realms, finally drew the attention of innate deities. Countless deities descended avatars to stop the Wrathful Knights' massacre.

This was the final battle that ended the human Demon Hunting Era, between the darkened Demon Hunters and the variously motivated avatars of human deities.

Naturally, the deities triumphed. No matter how strong humans were, they couldn't outlast deities supported by divine realms.

After eight days and nights of battle, the eighteen Demon Hunters, exhausted, were defeated and sealed by human gods in various locations around the world, with the exact sealing sites known only to the participating deities.

After this battle, the surviving rulers dared not hunt the remaining Demon Hunters. Provoking another legendary Wrathful Knight meant the destruction of several nations was inevitable.

Yet, even so, the once 3,000 Demon Hunters, after this betrayal, were reduced to less than a tenth of their number. A large part turned dark, abandoning their duties as Demon Hunters to become Wrathful Knights, leaving human realms for the wilderness, taking the similarly darkened Demon Hunting, or rather, Wrathful armor with them.

The Demon Hunters, once the deterrent and guardians of humanity during the late dark age and early Demon Hunting Era, completely declined, almost vanishing within humanity due to the scarcity of remaining, non-darkened Demon Hunters.

"Fearing Demon Hunters' fall into Wrathful Knights is indeed one of the reasons they have been passed down," Caslana nodded, acknowledging Muria's statement.

"It's truly sad for today's Demon Hunters, who rightfully possess the power to slay humans turned into monsters. Yet, after fulfilling their duty by slaying Marquis Mendoza, the Demon Hunter must hide their identity and whereabouts to avoid detection."

"Little brother Muria, let me tell you, humans are a very complex species. If unnecessary, avoid making human friends carelessly, or sometimes, it might disgust you. Of course, sometimes, it might also bring you surprises."

"I think this Demon Hunter who appeared in Valiant is worth meeting."

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