Ch.231Chapter 231: A New Era (3).

# Chapter 231: A New Era (3)

“Hmm…”

Zmorael said nothing more.

He merely slowly, very slowly, raised his head to look up at the sky.

As he took a deep breath, the crimson-black demonic energy around him swirled and was sucked into his pitch-black armor. When he exhaled, an even more concentrated and pure malice than before spread in all directions like a storm.

This was not a display of physical force.

It was a different level of power that manifested through his very existence.

“Aaaaaaah…!”

The World Tree was the first to react.

Just as it had barely caught its breath after Valt’s heroic efforts and was faintly trying to regain its purifying light, the World Tree screamed in agony as if directly hit by the wave of pure malice emanating from Zmorael.

The entire tree trembled violently. What few green leaves remained instantly turned black and crumbled away, while black sap flowed down the trunk like tears.

The purifying light of the World Tree dimmed as if suffocating, and it began to be enveloped in hopeless darkness, as though abandoning even its final resistance.

“Mother! The World Tree…!”

Arias screamed.

Queen Lurien Silverwood bit her lip and gripped her staff more firmly, but deep despair appeared on her face.

“That is… an ancient calamity… the Black Sun itself, only faintly mentioned in our elven race’s oldest records! How could such a being…!”

All elven warriors, including Grand Warrior Kiriel, fell to their knees or collapsed.

Their bravery and noble will to protect the World Tree felt like mere grains of sand before this primordial evil.

The same was true for Valt and his companions.

“This… this can’t be…”

Lati, with the fairy race’s unique ability to sense magical power, felt more clearly than anyone how alien and destructive Zmorael’s existence was.

Her entire body trembled like an aspen.

“My magic… my magic is freezing before this being…”

Arias and Liris also stood with pale faces, barely able to remain standing.

Their magic circuits seemed unable to function properly in the face of Zmorael’s overwhelming demonic energy.

Even physical warriors like Solpin, Victor, Yuria, Aileen, and Robin were engulfed by instinctive fear.

Their trained bodies and strong willpower were powerless before the killing intent and pressure emitted by that fundamental evil.

Hearts freezing, limbs refusing to obey—extreme terror.

Valt gritted his teeth.

His 8th circle magic power, his body with 500 strength, and even Noah’s authority felt like a child’s toy before that being.

He now painfully realized how heavy a responsibility the system’s quest “Protect the World” truly was.

‘Is this… an opponent we can defeat in battle?’

***

The massive wave of malice was not confined to the elven village alone.

At the main camp of the Continental Alliance forces, who were gaining the upper hand against the demon legion on the outskirts of the Western Great Forest.

Emperor Gehrt von Halkin unconsciously tightened his grip on his sword at the sudden suffocating pressure and sense of despair that seemed to cover the entire world.

The battlefield cries momentarily subsided, and all soldiers instinctively looked toward the western sky, in the direction of the elven village, with terror-stricken eyes.

The sky… was turning black.

“This energy… is not mere demonic power…”

The Emperor’s brow furrowed deeply.

“Could it be… that the gate has been completely opened… that being recorded in ancient forbidden books that would destroy the world…”

Eastern Alliance Commander-in-Chief King Jerdin, standing beside him, muttered with a pale face.

“The entire continent… is in danger. If that is truly unleashed… all living things… are finished.”

In their eyes, the hope of victory that had been burning until just moments ago was replaced by the deep despair of those witnessing the end.

And at that moment, the descendants of the Seven Heroes, or beings of equal standing, who were either in seclusion or active across the continent, simultaneously detected the anomaly in the sky.

The Sword Star.

The Magic Tower Master.

The Fist King.

The Spear Emperor.

The Bow God.

The Holy Maiden.

The Medicine Emperor.

The same tremor was etched into all their souls.

Among them, the Holy Maiden reacted most strongly.

She had already foreseen this crisis.

‘This terrible malice… finally… has the time come? I must stop it… before it devours the world…!’

She was already on her way to the Great Forest after receiving the blessing of the main deity from the Great Temple in the far north to join the continental alliance forces.

“Holy Knights! Make haste!”

“Yes, Holy Maiden!”

***

Meanwhile, in the massive fortress city of the Dark Assembly deep within the Western Great Forest.

The faces of the Dark Assembly’s Leader and Military Commander, who were watching Zmorael’s complete descent and his overwhelming power through a crystal ball, were filled with fanatical ecstasy.

The massive damage they had suffered from Valt’s Star of Destruction was already beyond their concern.

“Kuhahahahaha!! Did you see that, Commander! That is the true God of Destruction! The true Lord of Purification! The great manifestation of Lord Zmorael!”

The Leader’s eyes burned with greed and madness.

He jumped to his feet and spread his arms wide.

“The time has come! It is time for us to personally welcome that great being and receive his first breath! Let us have the honor of becoming the first disciples to open a new era at his feet!”

The Military Commander prostrated himself on the floor in rapture.

“We worship you, Leader! We worship you, great Lord Zmorael! Now the continent will find true order under his wisdom and power!”

At the Leader’s command, the elite Obscurants, black mages, and corrupted knights hiding within the Dark Assembly city began to move as one.

Their goal was not battle.

They departed swiftly and secretly toward the elven village where Zmorael had descended, to welcome their god and carry out his first command.

Their faces were filled only with fanatical belief that they would usher in a new era.

***

In the elven village, Valt’s gaze remained fixed on Zmorael standing at the center of the crater.

The great demon slowly, very slowly, raised his head and turned his gaze toward the World Tree, which was trying to emit its last light.

And the cruel smile on his lips grew even deeper. Just as he was about to take a single step toward the World Tree.

Four people stood before Zmorael.

The Sword Star, the Fist King, the Spear Emperor, and the Medicine Emperor.

They had already sensed the great ominousness that would befall this great forest and had each arrived here in their own way, lurking and waiting for the right moment.

The Magic Tower Master and the Bow God had joined the Emperor’s army to provide more direct help in the large-scale frontal battle against the demons, fighting alongside the alliance forces.

Zmorael’s red pupils slowly scanned the four mortals blocking his path.

The cruel smile on his face faded ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly.

For the first time, something worthy of being called an “obstacle” had appeared before his existence.

“Oh…?”

A low exclamation with a hint of interest, different from before, flowed from Zmorael’s lips.

“Even among dust-like mortals, there are some that emit quite a respectable radiance. Are you the strongest cards this world can desperately send out as its final struggle?”

Valt’s master, Fist King Lycan, stepped forward, breathing heavily.

The ground beneath his feet sank slightly under his pressure.

“So you’re the source of all this calamity! How dare you set foot on this land! I, the great Lycan, will personally smash that arrogant head of yours!”

The tip of Shukville’s master, Spear Emperor Valerius’s magic spear, pointed toward Zmorael.

His voice was cold as steel.

“Demon, what you seek is not here. If you don’t leave now, this spear tip will pierce your heart.”

Aileen’s master, Sword Star Arka, still had his eyes closed, but a cold smile appeared on his lips.

“The smell of death… is quite overwhelming. Worth cutting down.”

Medicine Emperor Elios quietly raised his staff, pointing toward the World Tree.

“One who defiles life cannot be forgiven, no matter what being they may be. Disappear from this place, creature of darkness.”

The four heroes.

Their aura and resolve pierced the heavens, and the different-colored auras, magical powers, or energies they emitted collided violently with Zmorael’s crimson-black demonic energy, creating a tension that seemed to tear the atmosphere.

Valt and his companions watched this unbelievable scene from afar, holding their breath.

The legendary heroes of the continent were now facing that absolute great demon before their very eyes.

Zmorael showed no sign of being moved by the heroes’ declarations, which were almost like provocations.

Instead, the smile on his lips deepened once more, filled with cruel pleasure that seemed to mock the courage of mortals and desire to break that courage.

“Kuk… kukkukuk…! Very well. Very good! To think such toys still remained in this primitive world! How much will your pitiful resistance alleviate my boredom… I look forward to it.”

Swoosh—!

Zmorael’s six pairs of black wings slowly unfurled.

Paradoxically, despite being the wingbeat of a being that would destroy the world, it was even beautiful.

“Kukkukuk, come, mortals. Let’s see what you can do.”