Free Web NovelChapter 111: Chapter 83: Combat Skill·Split Armor, Mighty Power United Upon My Body
The broadsword, infused with Knight Power, descended with immense force, whistling as it tore through the air straight for Reinhardt’s face.
While the Attributeless Destruction Force Field possessed no Special Abilities, it vastly enhanced a Knight’s speed, strength, and reflexes.
Clad in Full Coverage Steel Armor, the Two-star Military Rank Knight was like a war chariot. The entire building trembled from his charge, and the violent slash he delivered carried the force of thunder!
However...
...this blow, powerful enough to shatter a Composite Steel Shield Tower, was caught and held fast by a single large hand!
The dull impact forced Reinhardt’s body to sink slightly as spiderweb-like cracks spread out from beneath his feet.
When the Black Armored Knight’s gaze met Reinhardt’s indifferent eyes, a veteran’s intuition screamed of a superior foe. The mortal terror born from an absolute gap in power flooded his entire being in an instant.
Reinhardt’s presence was like an iron tower looming before him—a terrifying obstacle he could never surmount, even if he fought to the death!
He gripped the hilt with both hands, trying to retract the broadsword, but the blade felt as if it were fused to his opponent’s palm, refusing to budge an inch.
In that instant, he noticed the dark purple, living substance in Reinhardt’s palm. The squirming matter had wrapped itself around the blade, adhering to its surface.
’Extraordinary Armament.’
As if struck by lightning, the Black Armored Knight jerked back, releasing the hilt and stumbling backward.
He didn’t know what kind of Special Ability the dark purple substance possessed, but he was certain it had to have a defensive capability that absorbed impact.
Otherwise, not even a Six-star Military Rank Knight could have blocked his full-powered strike head-on with their bare flesh.
Even a Scaya Half-blood Dragonfolk would have been gravely wounded taking that blow head-on!
This was the first time Reinhardt had used the powerful Combat Skill he had spent years painstakingly developing—Split Armor—in such an asymmetrical fight.
The very day he perfected it, his Knight Power had advanced to the Six-star Military Rank.
Ethereal blue system text scrolled past his vision.
[Practical application is the best teacher.]
[You have delved into the application of Power, constantly refining your combat strategies. You understand that this meticulous Combat Skill—one that fuses will and Extraordinary Armament—cannot be mastered overnight.]
[Seven years of contemplation and refinement have all been worthwhile.]
[Optimizing Morphic Armor usage strategy...]
[Combat Skill·Split Armor: You can now flexibly control the location, intensity, and duration of the Morphic Armor.]
[Embrace the void and become one with it.]
After a single, simple exchange, the minds of the four Black Armored Knights were already in turmoil. The fear and unease they radiated was as foul as a Demon’s blood.
Utterly devoid of any Knight’s honor.
Reinhardt tossed the broadsword aside, gripped his axe in one hand, and took a step forward.
Yet this simple movement sent the four Knights scrambling as if facing a mortal enemy. They hastily spread out in an encirclement formation, attempting a desperate last stand.
Even so, Reinhardt could not sense any will to fight from these traitors and Fallen ones.
This wasn’t due to any Special Ability; the slightest sign of weakness or any subtle motion toward escape could not evade the perception of a battle-hardened veteran.
"Traitors who accepted demonic modification, what gives you the right to judge a Combat Priest who holds honor in his heart? It wasn’t even a blessing from a Great Demon, yet you willingly bent the knee, abandoning the glory of the Divine Emperor and the Imperial Knights.
I don’t know whether to feel pity for you, or shame."
Reinhardt’s low voice, like the interrogation of a Grand Judge, was filled with pressure as it echoed through the Governor’s Mansion. Three of the Black Armored Knights remained silent, but one cried out in disbelief.
"That’s impossible! How could you know..."
Siding with the Abyss and accepting demonic modification was Grand Lord Kles’s greatest secret. Even an experienced National Church Judge would be unable to easily discern their altered bodies.
Only a figure on the level of a Grand Judge would possess the perceptive ability to distinguish them from humans.
Reinhardt smiled.
His smile was so cruel it made the Fallen traitors’ blood run cold!
"I’ve killed enough Demons to make a mountain of them, traitors.
You killed my men. Letting you just die would be too easy."
As he spoke, under the horrified gazes of the four traitors, Reinhardt slowly raised his left hand. The raging flames of the Divine Emperor’s Fury began to coalesce in his palm... freeweɓnøvel.com
「Meanwhile.」
Deep within the besieged Caster Monastery, a streak of the eternally burning Divine Emperor’s Fury shot into the sky. It became a fiery-tailed meteor, streaking at high speed toward the Governor’s Mansion, located at the highest point of the Upper City District.
The overflowing Radiant Power was like the gaze of the Divine Emperor himself—unspeakably sacred.
Götz, a Battle Group Knight stationed at Caster Monastery, knelt on one knee to comfort a frightened little girl.
"That is Lord Reinhardt’s weapon. As long as he is here, you will be safe."
Götz’s scarred face looked ferocious, but his tone was devout and resolute.
Be that as it may, the little girl was still terrified. At that moment, at least ten to twenty thousand rebel soldiers were outside the Monastery. All he could do was remain calm.
Because...
Götz raised his head. As far as he could see, the Monastery’s chapel was packed with hundreds, if not thousands, of refugees. Their hopeful gazes were a source of pressure, but also a great responsibility that rested upon his shoulders.
The Caster Battle Group fought for the Divine Emperor and for the salvation of the world. This was the Battle Group’s highest creed, the very Knight’s oath they had sworn before the Radiant Holy Image.
「Outside the Monastery.」
When the tens of thousands of Demon-tainted rebels witnessed Reinhardt’s Sword—the Divine Emperor’s Fury—streak across the sky above them...
...its terrifying Radiant Power was more scorching and blinding than the sun. It was a punishment, a pain that pierced straight to the soul.
The tainted rebels screamed and scattered like frightened rats.
Even the Commanding Mages hiding among them were powerless to save themselves.
For a Demon’s lesser creations to behold the eternal, wrathful flames infused with Radiant Power was no different from a Mortal staring directly into the soul-devouring eyes of a Great Demon!
The followers of the Fire of Vengeance Hermitage, lying low in the Desolate Wasteland Ruins, witnessed this miracle. They felt the Divine Emperor’s wrath and heard his gospel.
In the name of Reinhardt, in the name of the Vengeful Angels, the Priests of the Hermitage recorded what they saw and heard, enshrining it as Holy Scripture.
「Governor’s Mansion.」
Reinhardt’s wild, medium-length black hair whipped about in the wind.
The Black War Axe slaughtered Aliens.
The Divine Emperor’s Fury incinerated Demons.
His towering figure stood before the four utterly horrified traitors. The sacred flames of Radiant Power and the bloody cruelty of the Alien slaughter merged into one, all embodied in Reinhardt.
And in that moment...
...they finally understood what a terrifying existence this unknown Imperial Knight truly was.
An Empire’s Chosen One.
A name synonymous with power.
Even the champion of the Imperial Arena would pale in comparison.
As the flames of the Divine Emperor’s Fury reflected in the Black Armored Knights’ pupils, the agony of their souls being set alight extinguished their last embers of courage.
But it was too late to run.
