196 The Final God

"The Final God..."

Artoria stared blankly at Merlin, but suddenly, a violent noise echoed in her ears.

She turned around to see Vortigern already resurrected, spreading his wings as he soared into the sky.

Moreover, whether it was her imagination or not, she couldn't shake the feeling that his body size had increased a bit?

Just as Vortigern opened his mouth, preparing to unleash his dragon breath, a black flame suddenly surged from a distance. The scorching heat warped the very air itself.

Caught off guard, Vortigern was engulfed by the black flames. The power of death pierced through scales, corroding flesh, rampant and voracious, like a greedy hyena devouring his vitality.

Vortigern let out a painful wail, crashing heavily to the ground again. His eyes dimmed, devoid of any vitality.

Watching a colossal black dragon circling above, Artoria's eyes lit up with a hint of pleasant surprise.

"Lady Nidhogg!"

"Sorry, Lily, we're a bit late."

The fabric of space twisted slightly as Scathach and Morgan emerged.

"Elder Sister, Lady Scathach, you're here too." Artoria's face brightened. "By the way, how's the situation with the army?"

"Don't worry, I've got it all covered. I've already ordered Bedivere and Gawain to retreat with the army." Morgan replied.

"Hahh..." Artoria finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, we're lucky to have you, Elder Sister."

"Don't celebrate too soon. Unless we deal with that thing completely, Britain will fall sooner or later." Morgan shook her head. 

As they spoke, Vortigern resurrected once again. His body expanded, noticeably larger than before, his aura even more powerful.

Simultaneously, the white glow's expansion speed increased again, encompassing more and more land.

This was the power of the Final God. As his domain expanded with each passing moment, Vortigern's strength grew, and the faster he grew, the quicker the domain expanded. They truly complemented each other.

Unless they found a way to stop him, the entire world would fall.

Nidhogg flapped her wings, exhaling flames imbued with the intense power of death. Vortigern raised his head, spewing a magical beam that collided with the incoming fiery breath, creating a whirlwind.

Artoria's mind stirred, and soon, the tower of light on the ground gathered storms and lightning once more and struck Vortigern's body, but this time, it only penetrated the surface scales and flesh, not piercing through the entire body like before.

Scathach materialized Gae Bolg, throwing it forward like a scarlet lightning bolt that ruthlessly impaled Vortigern's forehead.

As a renowned god slayer, she naturally possessed a special attack against divine beings. With just one spear thrust, Vortigern's eyes dimmed instantly, collapsing once again on the ground, lifeless.

However, soon after, new vitality surged on his body.

"At this rate, when he encompasses half of Britain in his domain, we might not stand a chance against him." Nidhogg, now in her human form, descended from the sky and remarked with her brows furrowed.

"But without weapons specifically designed to counter his immortality, we're basically incapable of killing him." Merlin sighed helplessly.

Everyone fell into silence. Weapons tailored to combat immortality were exceedingly rare worldwide; where on earth would they find one?

Just as they were at a loss, a familiar voice suddenly echoed in their ears.

"Okay, leave the next steps to me."

In the void, a crimson feather fell, igniting spontaneously and forming an illusionary humanoid figure.

"Arkhan?!"

Nidhogg, Morgan, and Scathach exclaimed simultaneously, even Merlin appeared slightly taken aback.

"Long time no see, everyone." Arkhan smiled.

"Arkhan, what is this exactly..." Nidhogg hurriedly approached, asking urgently.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not a ghost. It's just a wisp of my consciousness that I left on Lily." Arkhan reassured.

"Geez, you almost scared me to death."

Nidhogg let out a long sigh and patted her chest. For her, who resided in Helheim, seeing such an illusory form naturally led to thoughts of ghosts.

"I'll explain my situation later. For now, let's deal with the matter at hand." Arkhan pointed to Vortigern prostrate not far away.

"Do you have a way to kill him?" Morgan questioned.

"Killing him isn't difficult, but I need to confirm something first." Arkhan turned to Merlin. "Merlin, can Vortigern still use the Holy Grail?"

Merlin shook his head.

"Reversing Nidhogg's concept, forcibly connecting oneself to the concept of the Age of Gods, that's already the limit of the Holy Grail's power he can wield. Right now, he can't use the Holy Grail anymore, or else I wouldn't see him in his current state."

"In that case, I can rest easy." Arkhan nodded slightly. "Merlin, Big Sis, can you find a way to stop the expansion of his domain?"

Merlin hesitated for a moment, then smiled bitterly.

"Stopping it is probably impossible. At most, I can delay the speed of its spread."

Even Merlin, dubbed as the best mage, said that. Let alone Morgan, she naturally couldn't come up with a better solution.

Arkhan didn't pay much attention to it and just nodded in agreement.

"Do your best to delay it. Delay as much as you can. Then inform Bedivere and the others to urge them to hurry to East Anglia and take over the royal capital. Remember, do it as quickly as possible!"

"But, with our current situation, does it even make sense to take that place now?" Morgan questioned, puzzled.

"Just do as I say. It's the only way we can win." Arkhan said with a serious expression.

"Alright, I understand!"

Seeing Arkhan's grave expression, Morgan didn't hesitate any longer. She immediately used magecraft to relay the message to Bedivere and the others.

"Oh, Your Majesty, I hope this time you can continue to create miracles..." Merlin sighed, then tapped his staff on the ground. Countless vibrant flowers soon appeared, covering the entire ground in an instant.

Invisible forces accompanied the flowers, slowing down the visible expansion of Vortigern's domain. Morgan also used her magecraft, assisting Merlin in slowing down the domain's expansion.

Seeing this, Arkhan nodded and turned to Nidhogg, Artoria, and Scathach.

"Right now, only you three can fight here normally, so no matter what, you must hold off Vortigern. Understand?"

"Understood!"

"Got it!"

"Leave it to me!"

The three women nodded with confidence.