Shadow Emperor?
Straddling the back of the eight-legged steed Sleipnir, the Dragon King clad in iron armor and with eyes glowing like molten gold paused for half a second.
It wasn't surprising that his thoughts were in disarray—wasn't the Shadow Emperor, Uesugi Koeru, supposed to be dead?
Whether from the mission reports of Cassell College or the covert informants in Japan, all sources confirmed that the last Shadow Emperor, Uesugi Koeru, had fallen in battle on the artificial island.
His body had been devoured by the Ghost-toothed Dragon Vipers, leaving behind little more than a skeletal frame.
Finally, both he and the Dragon Viper had been dragged into the depths of the sea by alchemical sulfur bombs.
So, the question arises—how could someone confirmed dead possibly be "resurrected"?
Odin gazed at the "reborn" Uesugi Koeru, his arrogance giving way to an unsettling ripple of emotion. A peculiar feeling surged within him.
"Who... exactly are you?"
Perhaps it was the shock of witnessing such a miraculous "resurrection" that made Odin momentarily unsure of himself. The molten gold flames flickering in his single eye betrayed hesitation and unease.
It wasn't Uesugi Koeru he feared—but rather the existence lurking behind him.
Even the omnipotent Black King, Nidhogg, ruler of dragons and humanity, master of the five elements, would find it difficult to resurrect the dead.
Besides, the Black King had perished millennia ago and was far from his prophesied day of "awakening."
"Me? Just an ordinary ramen chef," Uesugi Koeru replied calmly. However, his right arm hung unnaturally at his side, gray scales crumbling away, blood dripping steadily.
His blazing golden eyes locked onto Odin as he continued, "How about we make a deal? You're the Dragon King, after all—magnanimous and all that. Why not just let us go, huh? How about it?"
Even for the Shadow Emperor, with his exceptionally high bloodline purity, going head-to-head with the mythic Dragon King yielded no benefit.
Though it might seem on the surface that he had gained the upper hand, forcing Odin and Sleipnir to retreat, the cost had been one of his arms. Continuing the fight would only end in disaster. Better to lower his stance now.
Who knows? The Dragon King might hold back out of caution and actually let them go.
What? You think begging for mercy is humiliating?
Uesugi Koeru could only say, "Face? Who cares about that? The opponent is a living Dragon King, not just some random nobody."
After living for almost ninety years, concepts like pride and dignity had long lost their shine. Practicality was far more important.
Begging for mercy isn't shameful—losing your life is!
Unfortunately, his idea was destined to fail. Odin, his iron face masked in shadows, gazed down with his single eye blazing like molten gold, radiating both searing heat and a bone-chilling cold:
"If thou art willing to reveal the one hiding behind thee, I shall spare thy life, grant thee immortality, and allow thee to stand before the Dragon Kings."
"Uhh... then let's just fight."
Thinking of that certain someone, Uesugi Koeru decisively concluded that fighting the Dragon King was still the more "merciful" option.
Hearing this, Sleipnir snorted out a shower of crackling lightning, charring the road beneath its hooves. Sitting tall on the steed, Odin caught the faint trace of 'disrespect' in Uesugi Koeru's response.
This immediately enraged him: "If thou seekest death, then I shall oblige!"
BOOM!!!
A massive, overwhelming pressure erupted like a tidal wave!
The Dragon King-level progenitor's pure and terrifying mental field expanded with unstoppable force, crashing into the real world like a tsunami.
A gray, misty domain enveloped the entire overpass—that was the manifestation of a "King's Domain."
The torrential raindrops falling from the sky were annihilated the instant they touched the domain, disintegrating under its sheer mental power.
Not just the rain—even the surrounding void distorted under its influence.
"The King's Domain of a progenitor... this is going to be tricky." Uesugi Koeru, as the last Shadow Emperor, furrowed his brows. He recognized the gray domain all too well and was fully aware of its deadly nature.
Anything that collided with the "King's Domain" would disintegrate like a moth drawn to flames!
"Hey, are you really sure we can't negotiate further?" Uesugi Koeru made one last desperate attempt.
Odin answered his question with action. Wielding Gungnir, he summoned rain and thunder as though they were extensions of his will.
The unstoppable winds formed countless streams of dazzling light, descending like a brilliant galaxy cascading toward Uesugi Koeru.
Boom!!!
The Dragon King's enraged strike descended like a collapsing sky, as if the wrath of nature itself had been unleashed!
Though moments ago he had seemed to grovel, begging humbly for mercy, Uesugi Koeru now shed that pitiful facade.
His golden eyes burned like the scorching sun, radiating the majesty of the Shadow Emperor.
His presence, akin to a blazing sun piercing the darkest night, rose to match even the might of a Dragon King, refusing to falter in the face of overwhelming power!
Word Soul: Black Sun!
The instant this supreme Word Soul was unleashed, its terrifying might was evident.
Centered around Uesugi Koeru, a pitch-black corona resembling a black hole erupted, releasing waves of intense gravitational force.
The ground beneath him crumbled and cracked, visible ripples spreading outward in a destructive sweep.
In the next moment, the thousands of dazzling beams emitted by Gungnir were warped and captured as they neared within mere meters of him.
Like a vortex, the black corona tore them apart and swallowed them into its depths. The entire overpass collapsed under the pull of its gravity, plunging the scene into utter chaos!
But just as the destruction unfolded, Uesugi Koeru suddenly stepped forward. His overwhelming power erupted like a bomb, creating shockwaves that rippled through the air.
Boom!
His sheer speed compressed the airflow around him, carving a vacuum in his wake.
The violent winds tore like blades, creating a tempest so fierce it nearly overturned Sleipnir.
Odin, caught off guard by Uesugi Koeru's blinding speed, barely had time to process the thought before the man had already stepped into the forbidden King's Domain!
Gray-white dragon scales groaned in protest under the crushing force of the King's Domain, emitting the wailing cries of something on the verge of shattering.
The clash of Black Sun and the King's Domain occurred in an infinitesimal space, the two opposing forces colliding and entangling in a chaotic, twisted mess of conflicting energies.
Now!
Uesugi Koeru took a deep breath, his lungs filling with air as his powerful heart pumped blood to every corner of his body. His frail, elderly figure began to transform.
Muscles swelled as if inflated, and in an instant, he morphed into a towering, two-meter-tall giant that exuded demonic power.
Thick, black veins coiled around his body like serpents, bulging grotesquely. Clad in gray-white dragon scales, Uesugi Koeru resembled a ferocious member of the dragon race far more than he did a mere human.
The five fingers suddenly clenched tightly, crushing the air with a sharp crack. His arms stretched out like a fully drawn bowstring, releasing a thunderous sound.
Then, stepping forward and twisting his waist, he channeled an overwhelming, unmatched power. His fists, like a barrage of artillery fire or an unending tsunami of fury, crashed down on the stunned Odin in an instant!
Boom!!!
Each punch was faster and heavier than the last!
Like a storm of shadows, the punches engulfed Odin. The terrifying force caused waves in the air, sending ripples through the atmosphere.
Sleipnir let out a pained wail as its body was torn apart, reduced to nothing but a mangled heap of flesh. Odin, caught off guard, felt countless fists land on him.
Pain like he had never experienced before overwhelmed him, leaving him reeling. His dark-golden armor bore deep and shallow imprints of fists, evidence of the relentless assault.
Odin had never been so humiliated. The mortal he looked down on the most had knocked him off his steed and to the ground, forcing him to kneel on one knee.
"Hey, is this all you've got?"
Uesugi Koeru looked at him mockingly, exhaling a breath of boiling steam, as if the blood in his veins was far hotter than the boiling point of water.
"Was that… Moment!?"
Shock flickered in Odin's single iron eye.
"Oh, you mean Word Soul Moment?" Uesugi Koeru grinned and said, "You could call it an 'employee benefit.'"
After all, as the first chosen follower, it was only right to offer some perks. Borrowing the authority of the White King, Uesugi Koeru had been granted the ability to simulate the powers of other Word Soul.
To some extent, if he disregarded the consequences, Uesugi Koeru could even simulate the ultimate Word Soul of the Four Great Dragon Kings!
Of course, the price for doing so would be death.
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