Chapter 450
Chapter 450
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 450
Chapter Title: Otherworld Conquest (2)
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Suddenly summoned to this otherworld and saddled with a massive burden, Olivia was now utterly immersed in profound emotion.
'Death permeates the entire world. At this level, it rivals—even surpasses—the heyday when we conquered the continent alongside the previous Immortal King.'
No, considering that the front lines back then were concentrated in the western continent whereas everywhere here was in a similar state, it was no exaggeration to say it exceeded those times.
Given the undead's nature of growing stronger the thicker the death energy, this place was nothing short of the perfect battlefield for them.
'I've always wondered where His Majesty went after vacating his throne...'
Now she finally understood his movements.
Why the current Immortal King hadn't been so proactive in conquering Outerica.
Why he'd dragged out the war and prioritized other matters.
'To think he was already preparing to advance into another dimension back then!'
A grand scheme none in the Immortal Army could have anticipated.
Chastising herself for daring to second-guess the great sovereign's thoughts, she threw herself into fulfilling his command, drawing on the knowledge of that human named McCarthy.
The increased workload didn't faze her.
She was used to working around the clock anyway.
'Whether I'm there or here, the volume of tasks I handle in a day won't change much.'
More than that, she was thrilled that His Majesty had summoned her first among the high-ranking officers.
Didn't that prove he trusted and favored her above all others?
[I must repay that trust... Time is short... Scour every inch of this world...!]
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions...] A deep hum rose—
—as waves of spirits swirled around Olivia, who had soared high into the sky, spreading out across the entire world.
Not just the ghosts already present, but new entities born from her power joined in droves, expanding the waves even further.
Unfulfilled wishes, grudges from unjust deaths, lingering regrets.
In a world already shattered and brimming with despair, there was an overflowing abundance of souls bearing such remnants—ripe material for the task.
And her full-scale mobilization was more than enough to provoke the arrogant beings who had treated this world as their playground.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A colossal fortress at the heart of the continent.
"The air feels unsettled today."
Lafua, the lord of the great fortress, frowned as he gazed at the sky beyond the window.
But he soon shook his head lightly and hurried on his way.
He had just received his master's summons—there was no time to spare elsewhere.
In public, he reigned as a king at the pinnacle of the world, a transcendent being above humanity. In truth, he was little more than a slave.
Knock knock—
Standing before the ornate door, he knocked politely and entered cautiously.
The vast chamber, filled with extravagant furnishings much like the door, held a massive man standing with hands clasped behind his back, staring out the window.
"You summoned me."
"Mm."
With a heavy basso, the man slowly turned.
Over two meters tall, skin so black his features were indistinguishable, blood-red tattoos etched densely across it, and crimson orbs gleaming like glass without pupils.
"Lafua."
The terminal created by the Infinite Archdemon—undisputed strongest being in this world—gazed down at his contractor and spoke lowly.
"It seems some rat is getting bold."
"A rat... you say?"
As Lafua echoed in question, he slowly extended one hand.
Though his arms had been behind his back from start to finish, a pale spirit now thrashed futilely in his pitch-black grasp—who knew when he'd seized it.
"Necromancy of considerable caliber. And this one's not alone."
"...And it dared to spy on this place with that?"
Lafua stared incredulously at the spirit before letting out a hollow chuckle.
The Infinite Archdemon was deemed peerless in this era.
For someone to pull such a stunt in the fortress where he resided was sheer idiocy.
'Who could it be? Destruction? Lamentation?'
The prime suspects were fellow Archdemons 'Destruction' and 'Lamentation,' but Lafua dismissed the notion.
Though they'd ascended to Archdemon alongside Infinite amid the world's turmoil, the gap between them remained vast.
Unlike those two who had newly risen, the Infinite Archdemon had held his throne for millennia.
Not even their combined might could topple their master.
And they knew it best—no way they'd provoke him with such folly.
'Unless it's that Eternal from the legends.'
Records of the Eternal Archdemon were pure myth.
From lowly human-spawned demon to pinnacle Archdemon in a mere twenty years.
He'd even slain 'Massacre' and 'Terror'—fellow Archdemons seated beside Infinite at the time—before vanishing abruptly a century ago, never to reappear.
Were it not for the traces he left scarring this ruined world, even Lafua wouldn't believe it...
"You're lost in idle thoughts."
"M-My apologies."
Lafua's reverie shattered under the chill voice and murderous aura.
Recalling his master's distaste for Eternal tales, he hastily offered the desired response.
"I'll handle it immediately. We'll eradicate the culprit thoroughly and ensure no fools dare repeat this with a stern warning."
"Hmph."
The black demon nodded slowly, then turned back to the window.
Lafua inwardly sighed in relief, but the Infinite Archdemon's gaze remained coldly fixed outside.
Pondering the alien texture from his fingertips after crushing the spirit.
'Necromancy... Necromancy.'
Demons devout to Devourer, who embodied his epithet above all, shunned necromancy.
Why waste power there when they could absorb spirit essence to fuel their own might?
A 'Demon of Phantoms' might differ, but no candidate he knew could command spirits at this level.
'And this unfamiliarity.'
It dredged up a long-forgotten displeasure.
Yes—like when he'd clashed with that Eternal bastard a century ago.
'No, he can't have returned. We confirmed multiple times that the otherworlder vanished beyond the dimensional veil.'
No one could breach dimensional walls—the absolute law.
Not even Eternal.
Then perhaps this was...
'...Something ominous. Best to tread carefully until we grasp the full picture.'
His legions teemed with stellar demons.
Even if Destruction and Lamentation allied against them, they wouldn't crumble easily.
He could buy ample time to assess any foe.
And he wasn't alone in such calculations.
Destruction and Lamentation—those most wary of Infinite—suspected him as the instigator.
Thus, like clockwork, they deployed their subordinates rather than stepping forth.
Devourer's ruling powers braced for prolonged conflict, each devising countermeasures amid the tense standoff.
One regrettable fact for them, however—
⚙ TELEPATHIC LINK ⚙ [My King... This girl has fulfilled all Your commands...] [Ho? Faster than expected.] [They didn't even bother hiding—arrogance from overconfidence, it seems... Pinpointing their location was no trouble...] [Kuhaha— Splendid. I love that hubris, assuming none can touch them.] [I'm eager to see their faces when that confidence shatters.] The true culprit behind this incident had no intention of letting it drag on.
'No need to stall when the enemy is clear.'
The conqueror invading this otherworld—Immortal King Hans—gazed down at the earthly plains.
From his blazing sockets gleamed the «Abyss Eye».
The land it touched blackened entirely.
And then.
"Kieeeek!"
[Heed the King's call!]
"Grrrruk!"
[Uuuuuu—!]
Countless forms, great and small, began rising from the terrestrial darkness.
Not just human corpses and skeletons, but undead from beast flesh, even jiangshi crafted from yokai and martial artists.
Rumble rumble—
Splurt!
Not stopping there, vengeful spirits long dead in this land revived.
Tattered corpses bursting savagely from the earth.
Having deliberately chosen an ancient battlefield thick with grudges, the risen undead numbered far beyond a few.
⚔ ARMY ASSEMBLY ⚔ [Your servant Karam shall uphold the Lord's command.] [For the King's glory—! Instill infinite terror in this world—!] [...Please, issue orders...] [Kuuoooo—!] At their forefront.
The Immortal Army's officers, answering the Immortal King's summons across dimensions, prostrated en masse, while bone dragons took to the skies in grand circles.
Empowered by skills like «Lord of Reverse Heaven» and linked to Hans—who had sprouted the divinity of 'Death'—their auras far surpassed their initial muster.
The officers' combined presence warped space itself.
Death energy saturating the world synergized with the abyss power from the Immortal King, igniting their forms in raging black flames.
"...Glory to the Lord of Death."
"Ahh! My sovereign!"
Among them were specially crafted jiangshi like the Heavenly Demon and the Scribe, plus numerous Abyss Revenants.
In essence, nearly the entirety of Hans's amassed undead forces had mobilized here.
[No need for lengthy words.]
The voice echoed across the undead-swarmed plains.
Chaos of noises fell instantly silent.
Myriad undead gazes locked on one point.
[I have no interest in dogs already subdued by might.]
McCarthy—the sole human, frozen breathless amid the awe-inspiring sight—swallowed hard with effort.
Ignoring the pain in his left arm and eye socket, barely clinging to consciousness.
This declaration was the final lifeline for this world's ragged survivors.
Already decayed humanity stood no chance against this host.
'This is... the lion's king the Archdemons mock, the Death Sovereign.'
Under ashen skies, the great conqueror hovered high, proudly surveying his legions.
Each word sent his minions' morale soaring boundlessly.
[Slaughter the demon scum ruling this world—!]
As his final command ended.
[Uoooo—!]
[Slaughter! Slaughter! Slaughter!]
[Coordinates locked! Activate gates now! Swift and decisive!]
With fierce roars, the Immortal Army dispersed around its officers and charged.
A war declared without fanfare against the entire world.
Long prepared, with precise coordinates, their advance flowed seamlessly.
The result?
158.
The number of demons—revered as untouchable in this world—hunted in mere days.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Devourer demons differed vastly from Outerica's.
If Outerica's demonkin resembled exotic other races dwelling in the demon realm, Devourer's evoked the quintessential image of 'demons'—primal, malevolent entities.
Transcendent evils akin to phenomena, incomprehensible to mortals.
'The Executioner was human-born awakener, so it wasn't obvious.'
Every demon bore an epithet.
A name defining their being, their power, and their rank.
'This world was once maintained by demon hunters purging underworld contractors from the shadows. Now it's full dark fantasy.'
Hell demons couldn't fall to conventional means.
They manifested through empowered contractors, untouchable directly.
Trouble brewed when hell's denizens spilled forth for unrestrained rampage.
Power balance collapsed; the world spiraled to ruin.
Even ascending to earth cost them immortality and more, yet insurmountable walls persisted among them.
Leading the apocalypse? The so-called Archdemons.
Beings wielding immense powers, lording over ordinary demons like sovereigns.
And one such exalted Archdemon—the Archdemon of Lamentation—was now.
💥 CAPTURED! 💥 [Kahat! That bastard's such a nuisance. As expected of an Archdemon?]
[Kuhuhuhu— What are you? Why is an irregular like you in this world?!]
Seized by a bony hand around its throat, lost in futile lament over this absurd violence.