Free Web NovelChapter 104: Chapter 79: Reinhardt’s Sword, Divine Emperor’s Fury
The world where Demons are born is a wondrous place.
An inverted sky.
Leaning towers.
Clouds of dark blue Energy drifted like a breeze, omnipresent, brilliant, and deadly.
As he wandered the endless, desolate wilderness, a voice whispered ceaselessly in his ear, recounting the ancient history of this world.
Ten thousand years ago, the Divine Emperor launched the great, unyielding rebellion, leading humanity to break free from the millennia of enslavement and control by the Wizards.
Within the illusions of the Void Realm, Reinhardt could hear the tragic songs of Knights on epic battlefields, of ancient, Legendary heroes rising and falling over a ten-thousand-year war.
The Demons marked the birth of the first Radiant Knight as the beginning of the first millennium.
The Human Empire marked the Day of Great Unification as the beginning of the first millennium.
This was the end of the Wizards’ era, and the dawn of a new age.
It was not difficult to find an exit from the Void Realm back to the real world. A will of steel, the Divine Emperor’s blessing, and the fear of Demons.
Possessing these three qualities allowed one, like Reinhardt, to tear through the veil between reality and illusion in the endless, magnificent wilderness of the Wisdom High Tower and return here.
If the Furious Great Demon Hekatos was a cold, ruthless killing machine, then the Thousand-Change Monarch was a conspirator who excelled at playing with people’s minds.
A profane creation of the Formless Divine Monarch’s Mighty Power, a Void Divine Artifact: the Mind-Stealing Gem.
Reinhardt had to admit that a few greedy thoughts had crossed his mind. To possess it was to possess all the knowledge in the world; all secrets would be meaningless before it.
The Thousand-Change Monarch wanted to lure him into total depravity, but it had underestimated human courage and overestimated the temptation of power.
For the Divine Emperor, for the Empire, Raphael chose martyrdom rather than sinking into the wicked mire of pursuing power.
Then and now, to realize the noble ideals of a Knight, Reinhardt fought relentlessly.
This was a righteous cause that had already lasted for ten thousand years.
A great epic forged in sacrifice and death.
He was not fighting alone. The noble souls who had died for him, who had died for the Empire, were like bright lamps in the dark of night, illuminating the path forward.
Radiant Reforging.
The Divine Emperor’s blessing.
Expressionless, Reinhardt clenched his fist around the Mind-Stealing Gem as it tried to break free. With his right hand, he drew his old Iron Sword.
The curse of Avernus had failed to corrupt his heart and will. How could a mere Void Divine Artifact hope to tempt him into darkness?
The Thousand-Change Monarch’s ever-shifting voice no longer held its previous confidence. Humiliation turned to rage, then descended into utter madness.
’This is my treasure! My treasure—! Give it back—!’
But its only response was Reinhardt’s cold, merciless gaze. His eyes burned with a fury that seemed to pierce through the dense fog behind the gem, intent on incinerating the Great Demon’s evil soul!
"In the name of the Divine Emperor."
His low voice was laced with a towering, furious flame.
The next moment, a blindingly white, holy radiance descended from the heavens!
A magnificent, divine pillar of light saturated Reinhardt’s body, annihilating the curse of Avernus hidden in his heart, reforging his broken bones, and mending his old wounds.
The old Iron Sword continuously absorbed the power of the holy radiance, undergoing a rebirth amidst the searing white flames.
When the monks of Caster Monastery witnessed this divine scene befalling Reinhardt, a moment so sacred it was as if the Divine Emperor himself had appeared.
They were astonished that Reinhardt could break free from the Demon’s control.
They were shocked that this young Imperial Knight, his soul so noble and pure, could actually attract the gaze of the Divine Emperor.
They raised their heads, gazing toward the end of the pillar of light that pierced the thick clouds and descended upon this world.
The body of every monk trembled slightly.
"A miracle..."
"The Divine Emperor above."
One by one, they knelt on a single knee, offering their most devout Loyalty.
When the residents of the Desolate Wasteland Ruins saw the holy light symbolizing the Divine Emperor’s Mighty Power, millions of Mortals fell to their knees in worship.
Even in the darkest corners of the Lower City District, even the grotesque Aliens who had already been corrupted, they all cautiously looked toward the unreachable Upper City District.
When the Divine Emperor’s radiance entered their eyes, it was like a light illuminating the darkness, and their former faith echoed through their fallen souls.
On the front lines, hundreds of kilometers from the Desolate Wasteland Ruins.
This holy radiance was like the arrival of the Divine Emperor’s will, symbolizing the coming of victory.
Experienced old soldiers raised their weapons and roared, trying to stir the long-numb hearts of their fellow soldiers.
"A Teleportation Waymark—! Reinforcements from the Imperial Knights have arrived!"
"Hold the line! Hold the line—!"
Raphael fell backward to his knees. In his vision, the holy radiance dispelled the darkness shrouding his mind, and the demonic whispers in his head began to fade.
He couldn’t feel the pain, couldn’t feel anything of the real world, only stared blankly at the sky.
Confronting the whispers of the Thousand-Change Monarch, resisting the Mighty Power of the Formless Divine Monarch.
For a Mortal, Raphael had already burned away everything he had. Through the long agony and torment, he had even lost his sense of passing time.
’Is this what death feels like?’
’Oh, Divine Emperor...’
His heart was at peace, ready to welcome the arrival of death.
But a roaring, furious flame, like the Divine Emperor’s own wrath, suddenly appeared in his mind.
He took a sharp breath, and Raphael’s unfocused pupils suddenly contracted. An excruciating, bone-deep pain relentlessly stimulated his nerves.
His hair had long since turned white.
The power of the psychic link, born from burning his talent and life force, had consumed too much of his vitality.
A tall figure now stood before him.
’Reinhardt...?’
An eternally burning scarlet flame coiled around the Longsword in his hand. Arcane runes of holy blessing were densely engraved upon the blade.
A Void Divine Artifact cannot be destroyed—on the premise that one is using mortal power.
That was why the Thousand-Change Monarch had confidently bestowed the Mind-Stealing Gem upon Chad, using it as a part of a scheme to corrupt Reinhardt.
But now, faced with a Sacred Artifact that had undergone Radiant Reforging—Reinhardt’s Sword, the Divine Emperor’s Fury!
The Thousand-Change Monarch’s enraged voice actually pierced the barrier between reality and illusion, echoing throughout the entire Seventeenth Military Port World!
"That is my treasure! It’s mine—! Reinhardt—! One day, you will pay the price for your actions!! Aaaahhh..."
The Demon’s voice came quickly and faded just as fast.
At that moment, witnessed by Raphael and the many monks, Reinhardt gripped the Longsword burning with holy wrath in both hands. His eyes wide with fury, looking exactly like a Hero Knight from an epic scroll, he brought the sword down, splitting apart the profane gem that held the Mighty Power of the Formless Divine Monarch!
THOOM—!
As the Demon’s and the Divine Emperor’s Mighty Power collided, the entire ruined city trembled. A turbulent shockwave shot into the heavens, Tearing apart the thick, eternal clouds high above the city. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
One hundred years... or was it two hundred? ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Raphael couldn’t remember the last time the light of a sun had shone upon this world. He lay limp on his back, the warm rays caressing his weary face.
Meanwhile, in a corner of the Lower City District, the arrogant and conceited Scholar Lakon was now like a frightened rabbit, because he knew that someone would soon be coming for him.
