178: The Tragedy of the Stars (Part Two)

"Arrogant talk."

The First Prince snorted coldly and suddenly retreated dozens of meters.

At the same time, the doors of the Administration Office were punched open, and seven SS-Class Transcendents rushed in, surrounding the purple-eyed youth in the center.

"First Prince, you go first. We'll hold him back."

Feeling the immense pressure faintly emanating from him, one of them gritted his teeth and gripped his weapon tightly.

"Ignorant lifeform, I told you not to do anything unnecessary."

The purple-eyed youth shook his head indifferently and lightly stamped his right foot.

The strange patterns on his body began to flow as if they were alive.

In an instant, the seven powerful SS-Class Transcendents felt a cold energy spread from beneath their feet, instantly diffusing throughout their bodies and rendering them unable to move.

"This..."

A trace of horror appeared in the First Prince's eyes. He saw the faces of these powerful guards crawl with strange patterns, and their skin shriveled at a visible rate as if some monster inside them was frantically devouring them.

"Aaaah!"

After a simultaneous scream, seven desiccated corpses—nothing but skin and bone—fell to the ground.

So many SS-Class Transcendents hadn't even lasted a minute!

"Who on earth are you..."

The First Prince's voice trembled as he spoke, but before he could finish, with a 'bang,' his entire body exploded into a mist of blood and flesh.

"Stupid lifeforms aren't even worth further communication."

The purple-eyed youth didn't spare another glance, vanishing into the shadows.

Elsewhere, in the manors of the other princes, similar scenes were unfolding.

The Second Prince's Manor.

"What exactly is your goal!"

"It's simple: become my servant and follow my orders. In exchange, I might consider sparing your life."

"Heh, in your dreams! A bunch of otherworldly demons. When Father was here, you all hid like tortoises in their shells, and now... Ugh!"

A beating heart was crushed, and the Second Prince's body fell limply.

"Stubborn..."

The Third Prince's Manor.

"Don't kill me... Don't kill me! I'm willing to follow your orders!"

A blond youth screamed in terror as a mangled corpse was tossed before him.

This was an Imperial Enshrined, one of the two remaining 3S-Class Transcendents, yet even he was no match for these otherworldly demons. His mental defenses collapsed instantly.

"Very good... You need to prove your worth and take control of this nation for us as soon as possible, otherwise..."

The Fourth Prince... The Fifth Prince... Once the Empire's top combat forces were tied down, those previously dormant trial taker teams began to emerge one by one.

Unlike those who had been killed, those who survived until now had at least the strength of an ordinary level 2 rules lifeform and had gathered intelligence on this world.

Without those experts who had undergone secondary enhancement, it was a complete dimensional suppression... At the Imperial border, the Starry Sky Defense Belt.

Emperor Luo and the Master of the Beast Tide were still confronting each other from a distance.

However, their respective pressures had begun to clash violently, no longer maintaining the previous peace.

"Your Majesty, there is a piece of news you may need to know."

At that moment, the projection of the Wisdom Brain automatically appeared.

"What has happened?"

Emperor Luo's heart sank.

At such a critical moment, unless it was a matter of life and death, it was absolutely impossible for it to disturb him.

"His Highness the First Prince, His Highness the Second Prince, His Highness the Fifth Prince... His Highness the Seventeenth Prince have died for the country..."

"The two Enshrined Lords were besieged and fell..."

"The Transcendent Association headquarters has been attacked by unknown personnel..."

"Twelve teleportation supply lines have been destroyed..."

The Wisdom Brain quickly summarized all important matters while simultaneously sending the specific footage.

Those trial takers seemed completely unconcerned about exposure; most of their actions did not avoid surveillance.

The seven SS-Class Transcendents sucked into dry corpses... the First Prince blown to pieces... the Second Prince with his heart pierced... Emperor Luo watched the images from the Wisdom Brain quietly, his expression showing neither sorrow nor joy.

After a long while, he said faintly, "I understand."

As the possessor of the Strength-type Gods Chosen Transcendent ability, his clenched fists were actually trembling slightly at this moment.

In truth, he had anticipated this long ago.

His previous efforts to hunt down the otherworldly people everywhere were to clean the Empire as much as possible.

Unfortunately... the beast tide came too quickly.

If he didn't use the entire nation's power to stop it here, then the whole Empire would be devastated.

As the Emperor of the Empire, he had to consider the big picture.

To hold out until that partner in the Star Alliance broke through again and found a way to deal with this disaster.

But now... with internal strife and external threats, it seemed he could no longer hold out.

"Then, let us fight."

Emperor Luo's gaze turned cold.

He suddenly stepped forward. As his muscles swelled, he grew taller and taller, transforming into a ten-thousand-foot giant in the blink of an eye.

A suit of armor shimmering with transcendent luster spread inch by inch, quickly covering his entire body.

He swung his clenched right fist into the void. The infinite power brought by his Gods Chosen Transcendent ability bolstered him, and the vast force of the punch tore through the void.

"Break!"

The deadlocked atmosphere was instantly shattered.

"You dare to strike first? You're looking for death!"

The madness in the Master of the Beast Tide's crimson eyes grew even more intense.

He felt insulted that a native dared to take the initiative against him!

"Heaven-Rending Strike!"

Amidst a low roar, sharp claws extended from his grey-scaled palms, and he struck out to meet the attack.

Six freezing cold light-shadows crashed directly into the near-solid fist energy.

Clang! Clang!

The sound of clashing metal rang out as the two powerful forces continuously ground against each other. Ultimately, the Master of the Beast Tide was superior, tearing the energy apart and letting the aftershocks ripple toward Emperor Luo's position.

However, these scattered energies naturally posed no threat.

"Die!"

Luster flowed over the transcendent armor. Emperor Luo did not retreat; instead, he advanced, his physical body crashing through the aftershocks as both fists struck out directly at the Master of the Beast Tide.

The Master of the Beast Tide swung his claws repeatedly, but this time they were shattered by the vast power before they could even get close.

Strength breaks all laws!

Seeing the peerless might, the Master of the Beast Tide subconsciously took half a step back. But he immediately remembered this was just a lower-world native. Flushed with shame and anger, he stopped and took out a bottle of spiritual medicine emitting a powerful aura and gulped it down.

Instantly, his grey scales took on a dark golden glow.

"You dared to make me waste a treasure. Damn you!"

Bolstered by the potion, the Master of the Beast Tide's aura surged. He clenched both fists and charged forward without dodging.

Boom!

A massive shockwave expanded, leveling everything within dozens of kilometers.

Emperor Luo groaned and was sent flying dozens of miles, his armor stained with a layer of blood.

The Master of the Beast Tide clearly held the upper hand. Although the scales on his arms were shattered and bloody, he stabilized himself after retreating only dozens of meters.

"Hahaha! A mere native, how could you possibly understand the foundation of a great power? Be destroyed!"

He laughed wildly, closing in rapidly, clearly intending to end the battle while the potion's duration lasted.

"Foundation of a power, is it..."

Emperor Luo barely stabilized himself and slowly stood up, his eyes icy cold.

"Wisdom Brain, notify all personnel to retreat. Furthermore, in the name of the Emperor, I hereby order the removal of all your operational restrictions within the Empire, and share supreme authority with Zhang Huaiyuan, the leader of the Free Star Alliance."

As he spoke, he looked expressionlessly at the incoming Master of the Beast Tide.

His pupils were gradually covered by a bloodthirsty red glow, and the skin over his entire body began to ripple as if something was about to burst out...