Leon bore the brunt of the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm's deafening voice.
The sound wave blasted at his face and blew his hair back while the black sand on the ground rippled with waves and the stalactite dangling from the cave ceiling trembled.
However, he stood his ground firmly with a calm look.
Swoosh!
Gaseous clouds of dark energy slowly oozed out of his pores before swirling around his body like a small tornado.
In that instance, his insignificant presence completely changed from the perspective of the dark wyrms.
'A noble demon!' they thought.
"Do I have the qualifications to negotiate now?" Leon casually asked.
The Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm stared at Leon with a deep and solemn look in silence.
"You're very confident, but you have the right to be confident. We'll at least listen to what you have to say," it said after a moment.
At the same time, the other forty-nine Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrms retracted their hostilities and intimidating gazes, releasing a load of pressure off Leon's shoulders.
He had made the right call not to force his way through.
His proficiency in the Devil Emperor's Tome of Eternal Darkness was not high enough to suppress Arch Demons, contrary to the realm spirit's expectation.
However, he already knew that.
If his dark power didn't work on three Arch Demons he previously fought, there was little chance that it would work on other Arch Demon-level beasts.
"Say it, what kind of deal do you have that makes you think we won't refuse?" the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm pressed with a glint of curiosity.
"Aren't you tired of being confined in this enclosed space? I will break your shackles and grant you freedom," Leon stated.
"…"
After a brief moment of silence, the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm burst into anguish laughter before glaring at Leon.
"How ridiculous!" the dark wyrm spat.
"Do you think an enclosed space like this can contain us if we genuinely wish to leave?! We didn't leave for the past few thousand years because we couldn't! We didn't leave because we are bound by our duty to guard our ancestor's tomb!"
"And that is exactly what I meant by your shackles!" Leon argued.
"Do not treat me like you would treat a being of lesser intelligence; I am above you! Who wouldn't know what Arch Demon-level beings like you are capable of?" he added with a condescending tone.
"It appears I have jumped to conclusions, but that makes your claim even more ridiculous!" the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm said with a gloomy gaze.
"To proclaim you will break our shackles that is our duty to guard our ancestor's tomb, you are justifying your reason to raid our ancestor's tomb. Such audacity!"
"I won't deny that I have my eyes on the Shadow Tempest Demon Lord's inheritance, but what about you? And the rest of you?"
Leon stared back at the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm before sweeping his gaze across the rest of the dark wyrms.
"Don't tell me you all plan to guard your ancestor's tomb until the end of time and die in a lightless place like this? Have you no ambitions?! Do you not wish to reach the same heights as your ancestor and beyond?! The vast world outside should be your stages!" Leon incited.
The Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrms felt a stir in their emotions like a lit flame before it quickly died as soon as it appeared.
"I understand where you are getting at, but it's no use," the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm said with a calm yet dispiriting tone.
At the same time, the other forty-nine dark wyrms lowered themselves in resting positions like deflated balloons with their guards down, seemingly dispirited as they recalled their shattered dreams.
"There was a time when we all thought we achieve our ancestor's heights, but it is simply impossible."
"And why is it impossible?" Leon argued.
"Because we are not talented like our ancestor; Our strength had long stagnated and failed to progress further," the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm explained.
However, Leon could only snicker with ridicule in the face of such a lame excuse while earning the dark wyrms' ire in response.
"Do you find this funny, human?" the dark wyrms asked in a deep tone.
"Very," Leon admitted.
"The outside world is filled with endless possibilities; if you don't go out and search for them, how can you prove that you will never reach your ancestor's heights? It's not impossible because you don't have the talent; it's impossible because you have given up!"
After hearing that, the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm had no words to refute him; he was right.
They chose to continue guarding their ancestor's tomb to the end of their lifespans because they were discouraged by their inability to advance into Divine Beasts.
However, some of the prideful dark wyrms could not stomach Leon's criticism.
"If you only came here to ridicule us, then even if you are a noble demon, we still dare to kill you!" one of the dark wyrms snarled.
However, in response to such a threat, Leon shrugged nonchalantly before saying, "As I have said, I have a deal that you guys cannot refuse. Did you think I was speaking empty words?"
"The same True Dragon's blood in your ancestor's body also flows in all your veins! So if I strengthen your True Dragon's blood, do you all think your strengths will remain as they are?!" he questioned them.
Many dark wyrms' eyes immediately flickered with intense light as if Leon had lighted a fire in their hearts with his words and reignited their ambitions.
"Even if you have such an ability to strengthen our True Dragon Blood and awaken our bloodline, what's in it for you?" the Mid Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrm asked.
"A small portion of True Dragon Blood for each strengthening I perform," Leon stated his intention.
He might not be lucky enough to find a True Dragon from the primordial age, but if he can cultivate his own dragons, he will have access to unlimited dragon blood.
The fifty Arch Demon-level Dark Wyrms' eyes all flickered with thoughtful looks after hearing Leon's condition.