Wizard starting from shoeing donkeys Chapter 1583 - 546: The Emperor’s Demise (Part 2)
Previously on Wizard starting from shoeing donkeys...
An unexpected burst of power from the distant Imperial Palace suddenly shattered Rein's train of thought.
"Huh? What's going on?" Rein instinctively whipped his head around to stare.
A powerful presence was surging upward in the Imperial Palace, one brimming with solemnity and splendor, though it carried a subtle variance from the sacred aura of divinity.
"Has His Majesty hit the pivotal point of his breakthrough?"
...
High above the Imperial Palace.
The senses of the various gods picked up the disturbance with far greater sharpness and detail.
"We must hurry things along."
"Hela, forget about that mortal for the moment. This mission is all about stopping another human from climbing to Demigod strength."
"Agreed, no matter how powerful that human gets, it'll still be some time before he reaches Demigod status. By that point, we would've already sent down our own Demigod-level projections. He won't be any danger."
The Nether Sea Goddess Hela felt an urge to counter with a few arguments.
Yet, recalling her three failed clashes with the Blasphemer, where she couldn't overpower him, Hela bit back her words to preserve her dignity and simply nodded along with the other gods' views.
"Alright, let's move as one!"
"Sword of Judgment!"
With a furious bellow, the multi-armed Evil God Grek slammed the massive Two-Handed Greatsword gripped in his primary arm straight into the Imperial Palace's floor.
In a flash, countless arms mimicked the strike, driving their Greatswords into the earth!
As brilliant crimson waves erupted, the terrain, columns, and all structures etched with intricate Defensive Witch Arrays started fracturing bit by bit.
For a split second, the palace shook like it was caught in a magnitude-ten quake, fissures spreading as it began to tumble down entirely.
"Black Water Soul!"
The Nether Sea Goddess Hela lifted her pale palm next, summoning thick clusters of dark watery vortices overhead, each one swirling with tormented ancient spirits bearing agonized expressions.
"Attack!"
She flicked her wrist, sending those hundreds of dark water vortices plummeting toward the broken ground, triggering a chain of devastating blasts!
At the same time, the remaining godly projections unleashed their own strikes!
Right away, the core section of the Imperial Palace lay in utter ruin!
"This is bad! Halt them now!" Elder Ivan's eyes bulged as he yelled.
"They're aiming for the Emperor!"
"Safeguard His Majesty!"
Even as the Imperial Guardians fired back with urgent defenses to block the foes, the moment had already slipped away.
Right then, a potent presence exploded upward from beneath the surface.
This force matched the intensity of the multiple divine projections facing it.
A towering form glowing with golden radiance gradually rose from the depths.
It was the human ruler himself, Carlos II!
And hovering in the sky, Rein—whose wounds were mending at a rapid pace—finally laid eyes on the supreme leader of the Dragan Empire: Carlos II.
The figure donned a flowing golden robe, bore a regal crown, displayed a commanding visage, clutched a Golden Scepter, and was encircled by Five-Colored Dragons at the Extremely Old Dragon Level.
"This... this presence means His Majesty has triumphed!" one Guardian cried out.
"Indeed! His Majesty has at last attained the Demigod realm!"
"Incredible!"
...
"Did he pull it off?" The same notion stirred within Rein as well.
In that instant, Carlos II swept his gaze over the encircling gods and declared:
"So the tales hold truth—you dread humans ascending to Demigod and possibly wielding that divine artifact."
"That's why, no matter the heavy toll in Divine Power, you've come down as incarnations to block my rise."
At these words, Rein's face grew tense.
"Divine artifact?"
Though Carlos II spoke in riddles, he had let slip certain details.
Like how this mysterious divine artifact probably held sway over these gods.
If not, the gods wouldn't waste Divine Power on such a futile effort.
"Dragan's heir, though you rule as emperor over humans, you must not desire that divine artifact—it's beyond your grasp," the Evil God Grek snarled with venom.
"Any desire will doom you and your Empire to disaster, exactly as it's unfolding now," the Nether Sea Goddess Hela remarked coolly, eyeing the wrecked palace debris and the seven or eight slain Five-Colored Giant Dragon bodies nearby.
The skirmish, barely lasting ten minutes, had demanded a steep price from the Empire.
Almost a dozen mature Giant Dragons had perished, alongside multiple Imperial Guardians who fell, hundreds of Elite Griffin Knights, and thousands of Empire troops aboard airships.
"Do you still fantasize about subjugating humans as you did in ancient eras?" Carlos II proclaimed gravely.
"Our forebears managed to bind all you invading Evil Gods back then, and this age will see it happen again!"
"Losing every one of your avatars here will undoubtedly delay your full revival!"
"Five-Colored Dragon Flame!"
With his words done, Carlos II hoisted his Emperor's Scepter skyward, prompting the nearby Extremely Old Dragon Level Red Dragon, Green Dragon, Yellow Dragon, Blue Dragon, and Black Dragon to bellow in unison, spewing their breaths toward the area over the scepter.
"Fiery Breath!"
"Acidic Breath!"
...
The scepter merged the five breaths using a strange force, crafting a massive rainbow-hued energy sphere. Its power surges dwarfed those of Rein's earlier 'Molten Core Flame'.