Chapter 686

[Congratulations! Rising Emperor's Domain Milestone Reached!]

[50,260,997/50,000,000 Links of Loyalty Created]

[New Perk Unlocked: Rising Emperor's Imperial Reach]

Info:

All Commanders can appoint 10 Knights and share 50% of their total borrowed stats. Each Knight may take up to 5% max of the Commanders' borrowed power.

All Generals, Commanders, and Knights can now borrow up to 2 Skills simultaneously from the Rising Emperor.

The generals may now borrow an additional 5% of all Base Stat Points and Mana Control efficiency from all subordinates under the allegiance of the Rising Emperor. In addition, 5% of the generals' Base Stat Points and Mana Control may be temporarily distributed to any subordinate under the allegiance of the Rising Emperor.

The maximum amount borrowed or shared per general is now 2%. All generals acting together may control 10%.

When not in use, the Rising Emperor may use all 10% of this untapped power. The Rising Emperor has total authority and can override the generals' power sharing even if they are activated.

The caster may only borrow or share exclusively; both actions cannot be performed simultaneously.

Members affected by this perk are not required to be within range of the Rising Emperor's Domain.

This buff stacks with the [Expansion] perk, [Dominance] perk, [Authority] perk, [Power Holder] perk, and [Ruler's Gaze] perk if used simultaneously.

—

As I'm about to reply to the demon's words, new status screens in my Rising Emperor's domain pop up, and I do a quick mental math of what this new power grants me.

This brings the total stats now available to me up to 40%.

With this new General-to-Commander-to-Knight hierarchy in place, each general can now use up to 2% of stats, Commanders can be appointed and have access to 0.5% each, and Knights can use up to 0.025%.

While it doesn't seem like much on the surface, even a knight at such a low percentage can still borrow upward of 1.25 million stat points per category.

At 0.5%, the commanders can each borrow roughly 25 million at full capacity, and the generals using their full 2% borrowed power can now take just over 100 million each.

These numbers for my subordinates are approaching the 500 million stats I borrowed during my battle with Redgrave.

In addition to this rise in stats, two skills can now be shared at once with my Inner Circle.

The scene before my eyes outside the tower takes a drastic turn, and tens of millions of sighs of relief are had in unison, looking through our eyes.

–

My immediate attention shifts back to the situation in front of me, as I grip my blade tight while it digests the remaining Divine Energy within the Soul Weapons it devoured moments ago.

I take a deep breath and lift my blade as it shimmers red and yellow, then reply.

"I think my decision is obvious. I will fight for this world. Maybe I should be the one giving you the option to back out now. Head on back to the Demonic Realm, and we can forget this ever happened; what do you say?"

The Arch Demon in dense black armor grins, but still stands unmoving with a straight back, staring at me with unworried eyes.

Its purple and black dragon yawns, stretching its wings, still staring up at the silver pillar, not even seeing the human before it as a threat.

I can't help but look at the demon's shimmering blood-red horns, each the size of my entire Soul Sword, as it responds.

"The Vermillion Family has invested too much time and resources into this newly connected world. I'm afraid I cannot take your offer seriously."

Its eyes pierce into mine, and I reply.

"What about the generals that follow you? You're not concerned that if I leave this tower, I could take them out?"

"That would not be a problem. The one who claims the throne will have complete control of this world. As a noble bloodline, the warriors created from a 3rd Class Mana World like this will not be a problem. The man you just killed was right. Taking out this world's top warriors that have been looking after it for centuries will be the beginning of your downfall..."

I raise an eyebrow at his words, as this mention of a 3rd Class Mana World makes me wonder if there is a link between this and the Demonic Bloodline classifications that are being unsealed outside.

The demon reads my expression and expands on his point.

"It seems you're truly lacking sight if you do not even understand the difference between us. This is the lowest mana density world that fits onto the Standard Grading Scale. The beings of this planet can only progress so far and are born with an innate talent based on their surroundings. Second, First, and Noble-graded worlds are far superior from birth. You may have a few strong warriors, but the rest of your world is weak."

Its eyes shift to my blade, then to my right hand, focusing on the dark purple ring around my finger.

"That artifact is what must have brought you this far. Its creator comes from a 1st Class World much closer to the source... I've always wondered where that pocket realm went."

It grins as my eyes widen, taking in all this information. This demon is not ordinary at all; its knowledge and nonchalant attitude about my purple divine artifact and blatant confidence make me feel unease again.

Even with the massive increase in power from both the True Cores of the big three, and 32% of the stats from over 50 million links, I can't see through the demon's mental or physical defenses to gauge its stats.

The demon's attention shifts away from me and toward Ember, who stands in his human form at the back of the sector we entered this room in.

"Are you a dragon? I can't sense any energy readings coming off of you... Other than that scent... I didn't know it was possible for your race to soul bond with a human."

Ember grins back but shrugs.

This lack of response prompts the purple and black dragon to turn its head away from the silver pillar of light and enter the conversation with a deep and slow voice.

"If a human clears a labyrinth before its actualization phase, it is theoretically possible. One would need to steal the dragon's egg, absorb the Demon Core meant for that labyrinth contract, and feed it an absurd amount of Mana or Demonic Energy to sync the Soul-Bonded Pairs levels before the contract start timer ran out..."

It stares at Ember, then shakes its head and turns back to the silver staircase.

"So, it's possible, but to limit a dragon's growth potential by bonding with a human is worse than dying before your contract even begins. That form is disgusting..."

Ember turns to me and nods.

"Ready when you are. This small talk is only wasting time. You take the demon, and I'll teach this dragon a lesson in underestimating the humans of this world."

I smirk and lift a finger to light a small fireball above it.

Then, I send it slowly flying across the massive room, right past the silver pillar, straight into the demon's chestplate.

It doesn't bother to block, and I take the few slow seconds of tension and silence to power up my greater form and activate all my buffs and new abilities to make the room fill with my maximized True Core's Aura and perception.

I send a message through the link as the small fireball collides with the demon and dissipates.

"There, I've made the first move. Your past agreement with the former rulers of this world is broken. Whoever wins this fight will claim the throne."

The demon reaches into a dark black and purple demonic rift by its side, pulling out a 7-meter-long demonic longsword with a True Core energy signature equal to its own, and doesn't waste any time, using that odd movement technique to blip forward.

Its eyes widen, and its grin grows.

While swinging its blade across its body, a horrific aura of intimidation pours out of this monster as it finally can let loose and not break some sacred pact made 50 years ago.

If it had released this aura outside the tower, I'm certain the entire world would feel it...

If I were within a few kilometers, it probably would have killed me instantly without me even being able to resist or know what happened.

Now, as it hits me, the violent energy is strong and insidious, but with a True Core almost 10 times stronger than when I entered this tower, far more borrowed stats, and a warm white barrier of mental Divine Ether protection blocking the dark waves that hit my consciousness, I'm able to withstand its aura and stay upright.

However, its absurd speed is impossible for my eyes to track, even with my all-seeing eye on full blast.

When it appears in front of me, already going in for the kill, an incredibly odd sensation materializes in my vision.

Powered by one of the new abilities of my True Core and the Divine Grade Foresight skill I've instinctively activated, it appears as though thousands of demons are in front of me.

All of the demon's images take different paths, and the exact strength and power necessary to block, dodge, or run away becomes clear in my mind.

It's distracting and mind-bending at first, but as the milliseconds pass and the demon's massive sword swings down toward my Soul Sword, swinging upward to block, fewer and fewer demons appear in my mind's eye.

It's as though all possible futures are compressing, and the best options for me are becoming crystal clear while worse options fade.

I'm able to see which movements I need to make to get a desired outcome within the next few milliseconds.

Trying to think further into the future spawns hundreds of thousands, then even millions of demons in my mind, as there are too many possible outcomes and variables the further I look.

It distracts me from the task at hand, even bringing on a faint headache. So, I focus on one crystal-clear option that leads to a desirable outcome.

I smirk, twisting my body and changing the direction of my sword to follow the exact holographic foresight images in my mind.

My blade scrapes against the demon's black sword, only adding to my momentum to the side while I airstep aside and spin to gain enough torque to swing my blade again at the demon as it follows through with its strike.

My second swing is directed at the demon's neck, but not to kill.

Too many future variants show going in for the kill ending in the demon's counterattack being too fast and powerful to block. Even activating my hexagonal defensive barrier right now would be too advanced, putting the demon on the full offensive before I can even prepare with my Astral Form.

The only option I have that gives me something to work with is grazing its flesh and tanking the counter hit while focusing 100% of my greater form's power into defense on a single point.

It happens just as I see it in my mind's eye, channeling all of my perception and attack into my blade with swordsmanship, and all of my defense into the demon's second sword swing as it pivots its body and even head toward me.

Its eyes lock with mine as I make a tiny scratch on its skin and receive a monstrous blow to the chest from its blade.

The impact force alone makes every bone in my body rattle, tearing through my full greater form, blood-bonded armor, and coming within millimeters of my divine core.

Stats rush through my mind as I break through its energy barrier just slightly, drawing its blood and finally seeing the true extent of this demon's abilities.

As I cough up blood and am sent flying back to the curved back wall of the room, I laugh out loud at the [Lv. 39,805] in bright purple text burning into my mind.

It even has three skills: [Body Double][Divine Grade], [Shadow Step][Divine Grade], and [Demonic Energy Manipulation][Supreme Grade].

The single ranked-up buff [Noble Bloodline Transformation] is the last status information I see before its wounds are healed and its protective barrier repaired. At the same time, I slam into the back wall with overwhelming force, reminding me of the bone-breaking battle I fought with Redgrave at the bottom of this tower.

My Self-Regeneration skill begins to heal the Demonic Energy wound and the hole in my armor, but before I can even pry myself off the wall, the demon disappears and reappears right in front of me, swinging its blade aiming to kill again.

-

On the other side of the room, the exchange between Ember and the purple and black dragon proceeds much slower.

The demonic beast looks down from the stairs, and back to Ember.

"Shall we fight? My master will kill your human in a matter of seconds. That Soul Bond of yours will kill you anyway. I might as well not waste the energy."

Ember grins and begins taking steps closer to the dragon, shifting his form to Hybrid, then into his full Dragon Form.

The crimson underbelly scales momentarily glimmer with a faint golden glow.

He speaks up while flapping his wings and flying into the air.

"Oh, come on, you're not even the slightest bit curious why a dragon bonded with a human? You've hit enough level thresholds to know this is not only theoretically possible but has happened before in the past. Your claim that I am stunting my potential is contradictory. I would say that bonding with a Demon limits your growth if you're truly aiming for the top."

The black and purple dragon's eyes widen, and its attention is actually captured for the first time at this remark, flapping its wings to lift off into the air and reply.

"A 3rd Class World knowing of this history? You must have read some false ancient text."

Ember's front claws become covered in a dense layer of silver threads.

"Oh, I assure you, these are real memories, not ancient texts."

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Author's Note:

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