As Zhang Nu finished off Emperor Frelio, the battle involving Han Kexin was also nearing its end. Lycan God Will was a formidable figure, and if it were just about brute strength, even Han Kexin, fused with the phoenix, was no match for him. However, Han Kexin's abilities in controlling psychic and soul proved to be the perfect counter to this type of opponent. When the straightforward, brawny Will faced the adept manipulator Han Kexin, his impressive speed, strength, and ability to fight with duplicates couldn't be fully utilized. After a struggle, Will died frustratingly at Han Kexin's hands. This was the first time Han Kexin had killed an adversary so high in level and ranking, providing her with invaluable experience.
With the Emperor and the Hero, Will, gone, the main combat forces of the empire had fallen. What impact could the remaining imperial elites and the five Sword Saints hope to make?
In a state close to despair, Marquis Gabrulain and the five Sword Saints, under the control of Han Kexin and the Ent King Grootroot, were quickly annihilated by several powerful arcane incarnations summoned by the Great Demon King. As for the elite troops led by the emperor, though they were a highly trained unit, they stood no chance against hundreds of Level 5 and above demons, thousands of abyssal dragons, and thousands of high-level ents. It was nearly a clean sweep.
"Everything unfolded nearly as you planned," Han Kexin remarked as she approached Zhang Nu. "This battle has turned out to be far less challenging than anticipated, and it seems the capital will fall much easier than we thought."
Han Kexin could hardly believe it even now that the emperor had simply perished so suddenly. Indeed, if Emperor Frelio XVI had opted for caution, he could have remained safely within the capital. Supported by the empire's multitude of powerhouses and the capital's defenses and heritage, accumulated over thousands of years, it would have been exceedingly difficult for the Demon King to breach it swiftly.
However, Emperor Frelio did not choose this safer route. Driven to annihilate the Demon King's forces and decisively break their power, he ventured to the front lines himself. Tragically, this aggressive move backfired, leading to his downfall.
Zhang Nu cautioned, "We mustn't let our guard down yet. The imperial army remains a formidable force, particularly with several hidden powerhouses among them."
The capital is a massive city with a population ranging from ten to twenty million. Even though Zhang Nu's forces numbered around a million, controlling the capital without causing major upheaval would present a significant challenge, especially since the main body of the imperial army was still intact.
Especially noteworthy was a Hero ranked in the top fifty---Prophet of Doom, Primo. Zhang Nu sensed that Primo was not merely a Level 7 mythic with innate time magic capabilities. His right eye, which harbored a fragment of an Evil God, significantly amplified his temporal abilities. This fragment was crucial; it was linked to the three fragments in Zhang Nu's possession, originating from the Eight-Eyed Evil God. Specifically, it was one of the eyes, wielding and embodying the power of time---one of the most revered powers among the Eight-Eyed Evil God's diverse abilities.
This Eye of the Evil God could potentially be the most powerful and valuable fragment of the Eight-Eyed Evil God, and the most challenging to contend with. After ascending to Level 7, Prophet Primo likely awakened a portion of his godhood. This awakening enabled him to suppress the eye's influence, preventing irreversible deformations and mutations to his body, though undoubtedly, Primo had not fully unleashed the eye's power.
Such an opponent could not be taken lightly, even by Zhang Nu. While Zhang Nu could sense the fragment of the Evil God within Primo, Primo could also detect the fragments within Zhang Nu. However, the lingering effects of the magical fog meant that even Primo could not discern the specifics of the ongoing battle.
At that moment, Primo had a foreboding premonition. For someone of his caliber, proficient in time magic, such premonitions typically carried predictive power. He had never before experienced such an ominous feeling, which almost certainly indicated that something significant was occurring. Just then, the fog was pierced. Hundreds of energy swords, condensed from thunder and flame, shot towards him. These swords filled the space around Primo almost instantaneously.
"What?!" Primo's expression changed dramatically. As a Level 7 mage, he could acutely feel the terrifying and immense power concentrated within these thunder-flame swords.
"Damn it! What happened to Frelio?" In frustration, Primo swept his staff through the air, unleashing a surge of temporal energy that dramatically slowed the lightning-fast velocity of the energy swords.
Following this, several S-rank spells erupted from Primo. Waves of energy, the antithesis of thunder and flame, met the incoming swords, instantly neutralizing this formidable force.
"Has Frelio failed?" Primo wasn't just a mighty prophet with the power of foresight; he was also an unfathomable Level 7 mage. With the fog that had been blocking his senses now largely dissipated, Primo was shocked to find that the auras of Frelio and Wil had eerily vanished.
Something was amiss! Primo realized that the situation might have taken a turn beyond his foresight. Just as he was about to initiate a teleportation spell to escape the area, a powerful force field descended upon him while he was still dealing with the thunder-flame swords, sealing the surrounding space and time.
A commanding figure appeared before him. Primo spoke gravely, "It's you! Demon King!"
Although the two had never met, they could sense each other's formidable presence. Primo even recognized several familiar Evil God auras emanating from Zhang Nu. Who else could it be but the Demon King?
As Zhang Nu unleashed the formidable power of space-time laws, he spoke calmly and leisurely, "Your eye is quite remarkable, but I believe I need it more than you do, so hand it over!"
In the next instant, his space-time abilities transformed into a turbulent maelstrom. The space within a few thousand meters radius around Primo violently distorted, resembling an abstract painting. Primo's expression darkened. He had anticipated the Demon King's space-time capabilities to be strong, but not to this extent.
"Time Freeze!" Primo immediately cast a powerful spell. Instantly, the space around him seemed to hit pause, halting everything in motion and turning the entire battlefield into a static backdrop.
Zhang Nu was also affected by this force, but he countered by releasing his own time powers, which neutralized Primo's efforts. The two were locked in a standoff for several minutes. Although there appeared to be no change, the battle was intensely fierce.
Primo said solemnly, "Your mastery of time is indeed greater than mine. Without this Eye of Time, I indeed could not win against you. But in the presence of this eye, you too have no chance of defeating me!"
During the conversation, Primo's silver right eye unleashed power magnified tenfold, significantly boosting his time magic by dozens or even hundreds of times. This sudden surge allowed him to gain a clear advantage in the clash of time powers against Zhang Nu.
From the outside, it seemed that Primo's burst of power was overwhelming. The Demon King seemed destined to be subdued by the force of time, which would likely decide the outcome of their battle. However, to Primo's surprise, although he momentarily surpassed his opponent with his burst of time power, Zhang Nu, bathing in the torrent of time, remained unaffected and kept his normal state.
"What's going on?" asked Primo with a grim expression.
Zhang Nu smiled and replied, "I am the Void Overlord, able to easily resist the forces of space and time. Your power cannot affect me."
It was known that Zhang Nu inherently possessed high resistance to space-time. If he activated his Time Dragon form, he could navigate through any distorted or chaotic space-time. Ever since activating the Void Overlord talent, Zhang Nu had been able to easily counter abnormal space-time effects, even those generated by the power of the Evil God's Eye, making it exceedingly difficult for Primo to truly impact him.
"Playing with time in front of me?" Zhang Nu taunted with a sneer as he began to gather his power.
Despite being shocked that Zhang Nu could ignore the abnormal changes in space-time, Primo was still confident in his ability to at least protect himself with such power, if not defeat the Demon King. However, at that moment, Zhang Nu made his move. He fully unleashed the power of the Eye of Domination, forming a powerful psychic sword Qi that slashed down with unexpected speed.
"What... a psychic attack!" Primo's face showed utter horror.
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He feared no form of physical attack, whether it be elemental forces like wind, fire, water, earth, or even light, dark, and thunder, as all such attacks would be influenced by the flow of time around him. But psychic attacks were different! They had no trajectory to follow and were almost instantaneous, striking Primo directly!
Blood streamed from Primo's every orifice. Before he could even plead, another round of the Demon King's assault descended upon him. After a dozen rounds, the Demon King thoroughly overpowered the Hero. In a final, despairing gaze, Primo was struck by a breath infused with corrupted blood, rendering him momentarily silent. In the next instance, bolts of hellish lightning struck, decisively ending the battle.
[You've slain a Level 7 Hero, Skill stone +8, Mythic crystal +1, Hero leaderboard chest +1!]
As the fog cleared, everyone realized that the situation had spiraled completely out of control. The Emperor was dead, as were the Heroes Primo and Wil... Over a dozen beings, each at least a Level 6 monarch, had been utterly defeated by the Demon King in one fell swoop!
"It's over! All is lost!"
"The empire is on the brink of collapse!"
"We can no longer stand against the Demon King!"