Chapter 749: Beyond Destiny (21)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 749: Beyond Destiny (21)
That kid… He insists on fighting alone, yet for some reason, I’m not worried at all.
Jin’s stamina, recovered thanks to Numerus’s blood, must have been at rock bottom again, and the Evil God could still have a hidden trump card.
Even so, watching Jin’s back as he strode toward his enemy, Murakan felt no anxiety. More than that, he couldn’t even entertain the possibility of Jin losing.
He didn’t know why. It was just an inexplicable certainty, a gut feeling washing over him. The Runcandel within Jin simply shone more brilliantly than the one within the Evil God.
You’ve grown a lot since I last saw you.
Murakan turned and exhaled a Breath into the storm of soul energy.
The Breath tore through one side of the storm as if it were paper, creating an exit.
[I probably won't be here by the time you finish. But we’ll see each other again soon. Wait for me, and keep Strawberry Pie safe.]
“Why don’t you make that confession yourself when you get out? Gilly is out there fighting, too.”
[Confession? How childish… Wait, you crazy brat! You brought Strawberry Pie here? To a place this dangerous?]
“She insisted on participating.”
[Even so! Argh, I need to get out there right now!]
In reality, Gilly hadn’t been able to join the battle, as she still hadn’t fully recovered from the injuries she’d sustained in their previous fight.
Without noticing Jin’s smirk, Murakan hurriedly flew out of the soul energy storm.
[Strawberry Pie—!]
At Murakan’s voice, which shook the entire battlefield, everyone in the outer combat zone momentarily looked up at the sky.
As they beheld Murakan glaring down at the ground, his two wings spread wide, both enemies and allies were momentarily overwhelmed.
[None who have harmed my Strawberry Pie shall ever set foot on this earth alive again! Not a single one of you will be spared by Murakan!]
“Wh-what is he talking about?!”
“What’s a Strawberry Pie?”
“Why did he come out alone? Where’s the 12th Flagbearer?”
Anyone would be bewildered by a sudden confession in the middle of a life-or-death battle.
The companions who were quick-witted enough to grasp the situation pressed their hands to their foreheads in secondhand embarrassment, while their allies were left in a daze, trying to decipher the meaning of his words.
However, the power Murakan possessed was the real deal.
It was a monstrous strength, capable of pulling the struggling allied forces from the brink of crisis and ruthlessly crushing the enemy in an instant.
As Murakan unleashed another roar filled with wrath, the knights of chaos collapsed in heaps, clutching their heads. Even though their bodies were supposed to be incapable of feeling pain, they were being crushed by the sheer overwhelming presence of the Black Dragon, Murakan.
Even among the allies, those with insufficient mental fortitude were struck by the roar. Some collapsed, blood pouring from every orifice in their faces.
Yet, this act didn't put the allies in greater danger.
Rather, it was a form of shock therapy. Every one of those who collapsed had been on the verge of losing consciousness to the Evil God’s mental attacks, right up until they heard Murakan’s roar. As painful as it was, the roar was awakening them from the psychic assault.
[What incredible pressure… Has he regained all the power of his prime?] Zephyrin spoke, her voice trembling. She was shuddering at Murakan’s aura.
[No. He is close, but he is still not comparable to how he was a thousand years ago.]
Zephyrin suppressed her shock at Orgal’s answer.
[…Is that true, Master?]
[Yes. Do you understand now why I told you never to fight Murakan, even when I was at my best?]
[I do.]
[Go and assist Murakan, Zephyrin. Your role isn’t to add to his strength, but to focus on protecting our allies so that he can fight more freely.]
Zephyrin’s eyes widened.
Orgal was implying that this alone would be enough to ensure victory.
[Understood.]
Zephyrin flew toward Murakan, and from the Zipple side, Veradin stepped forward, having unleashed the Demon God Stone once more.
The moment he witnessed Murakan’s power, he, too, had reached the same conclusion as Orgal.
Through the insight granted by Solderet’s divinity, Murakan immediately recognized him as Veradin, not Kelliark. Knowing how Jin felt about Veradin, Murakan offered him a short, heavy remark.
[You can still return, Veradin Zipple. So don’t commit too many more sins before then.]
Veradin did not answer, instead spreading his mana far and wide to deploy a shield.
After the final battle, I must confirm the manifestation conditions for the Fighting God and Murakan as quickly as possible and prepare for war…
He was deeply troubled. The manifestation of the Fighting God had been shocking enough, but if Murakan was also in peak condition, the pressure on the Zipple after today would become overwhelming.
[More importantly, where is Strawberry Pie?]
[If you are referring to Sir Jin’s nanny, she did not participate in this battle,] a hero replied.
[Dammit. That brat made a fool of me. Well, whatever. It’s better this way. Now that I know Strawberry Pie is safe, shall I take my time slaughtering these things?]
Black chains of spirit energy extended from Murakan’s two wings. Thousands of them wavered in the sky like ominous tentacles.
Spirit Energy Release – Black Chains
Like a downpour, the chains of spirit energy slammed into the upper deck of the Ram all at once.
Despite the descent of such massive chains, there was no sound of rushing wind—only the explosive roar of the Ram’s upper deck being pierced and shattered.
The chaos forces’ formation collapsed instantly as they scrambled to evade the chains.
[Oho, so those are the resurrected former patriarchs.]
Among those countless chains, only four failed to pierce the Ram’s upper deck, having been either cut or deflected. The last four remaining former patriarchs had struck them away with their swords.
The effect, however, was negligible. All they had done was deflect a single chain each out of the multitude raining down upon them.
[Since the brat… no, since the 12th Flagbearer and Successor of Runcandel isn't here, I’ll say it in his stead. I hereby strip you of the privilege known as Runcandel.]
As soon as Murakan finished speaking, the upper deck of the Ram began to seethe. Spirit energy rose like bubbles from the embedded chains.
[Those who follow the 12th Flagbearer, do not avoid the spirit energy.]
The allies, who had instinctively tried to dodge the bubbles, halted their movements. When the spirit energy touched them, it caused no harm.
The enemies trapped in the bubbles, on the other hand, were melting away, like sand sinking into the sea and turning to mud.
Spirit energy release is the beginning and the end of manipulating shadow. Murakan was now demonstrating one facet of its pinnacle.
To make an opponent vanish into one’s own shadow without a struggle, without even a fight—the Black Chains, pushed to their limit, possessed such authority.
Among the chaos troops trapped in the bubbles, the ones who could be called elites resisted the spirit energy, maintaining their forms.
But it was only a matter of time.
If the forces of chaos could not resist, they would all soon be buried in their own shadows and reduced to nothing. It was as if a giant sieve were filtering out the impurity known as chaos.
[Flagbearers of Runcandel, listen! Taking the heads of those who were once patriarchs is a task you must perform. Move swiftly!]
Mary and the Tona brothers offered a sword salute toward the sky.
“We shall obey!”
“Hee-hee, Sister Mary. Can I join in, too?”
“Of course. Yona, you kill that one over there. You Tona brats take the left and right. I’ll take the center.”
“Hee-hee.”
The flagbearers who reached their respective former patriarchs didn't need to engage in a fierce struggle. The old patriarchs were already trapped by the Black Chains, unable to even move properly.
Murakan had specifically ordered the children of Runcandel to kill them for the sake of symbolism. He wanted to show everyone that the current Runcandel could cut away its own rotten roots and move forward once more.
The Black Chains showed no sign of stopping. Instead, their power deepened to an unfathomable degree. Murakan even went as far as to manifest another ultimate technique of spirit energy release alongside them.
Suddenly, the center of the Ram’s upper deck opened like an eye, revealing a main cannon that had been thought completely destroyed. The hidden cannon showed no signs of charging; it immediately spat a torrent of pitch-black fire toward Murakan. It was a power similar to what the Ram had shown before being broken by Ban.
However, Murakan simply gathered his strength, took a deep breath, and countered the bombardment with ease.
His Breath split the massive black beam fired from the Ram in two. The bombardment split apart like rotten wood, scattering as fragments across the battlefield. Zephyrin, Veradin, and the heroes of the human world deployed shields to protect their allies from the debris.
Murakan’s Breath did more than just tear through the bombardment; it snapped the hideously protruding main cannon once more and carved a massive hole into the Ram’s upper deck.
Nevertheless, Murakan seemed dissatisfied.
I fired that with as much power as I can muster right now, and that’s all it broke? Tsk, this makes me look weaker than that Fighting God of the Pluto Tribe. He completely destroyed this ship when it was perfectly intact.
Of course, contrary to Murakan’s inner thoughts, the allies were overcome with awe as they looked down at the hole that gaped like a thousand-foot precipice.
[My time is almost up. Everyone, stand and fight again! Show me that you can end this war safely even after this Black Dragon, Murakan, has departed!]
The allies, who had been standing frozen, raised their swords and staves once more. They spat out the blood pooling in their mouths, set their own broken bones, and roughly wrapped their torn wounds with bandages.
They were all already moving before Murakan even finished his command.
Every one of them held both hope and grit in their expressions.
Finally, Murakan looked toward the distant sky where Vail and Padler were fighting. Their battle was taking place so far from the main battlefield because Padler had lured his opponent there.
Padler Runcandel… I wanted to save that fellow if I could…
Murakan could see it: the chains of chaos bound to Padler’s heart.
Padler, too, now knew of the chains bound to him. He simply wasn't revealing it, believing it was already too late.
…Give my regards to Sarah, Padler.
As his form began to fade, returning to the realm of the gods, a hint of sorrow dwelled in Murakan’s eyes.