Episode 626

“Siemens Apollyon’s memories?”

After King Solomon became the first Demon King, it was Siemens Apollyon who summoned his sealed soul back to the physical realm.

He was the adopted son of the Hero King Kaisir and a disciple of the Great Sage.

However, when Kaisir left for the Fairy Realm and the Sword Saint Shaton Draker became the successor of Chronos, Siemens Apollyon was consumed by rage and turned against Chronos.

He was the one who extracted the heart of his contracted dragon and implanted it into himself, seeking to wield the dragon’s power and claim the Demon King’s soul.

Thus, it was entirely plausible for Siemens Apollyon’s memories to exist within the Demon King’s soul.

At that moment, a message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.

[Some of the restored Karma data is being replayed.]

Simultaneously, a voice echoed in Zeke’s ears.

―…Siemens, you…

Zeke was taken aback by the voice resonating in his ears.

“Whose voice is this?”

The voice emerging from the restored data was none other than that of Chronos, the Dragon of Time.

He couldn’t fathom why Chronos’s voice was embedded in the memories within the Demon King’s soul.

The voice continued.

―…Why such a tragedy… incomplete…

But the voice was fragmented, making it impossible to grasp its full meaning.

To understand the entire content, it seemed necessary to fully absorb and restore the Karma data.

Zzzzzzz—

Just then, the black light emanating from the library’s hole flowed towards Zeke, causing the monstrous angel hovering above the gate to begin moving.

Rumble—

The monstrous angel no longer bore any resemblance to Harvey Draker.

Baron, who had suffered a blow to his soul from a single strike, wiped the blood from his mouth and shouted at the monstrous angel.

“Capture Zeke Draker. Swallow him and reclaim the Demon King’s soul!”

Baron’s eyes were filled with murderous intent.

To Baron, a fanatic worshiper of the god Arthur Draker, Zeke was the most troublesome obstacle.

He believed that with the power of the monstrous angel, created by Arthur Draker’s authority, he could defeat Zeke and reclaim the Demon King’s soul.

The monstrous angel, floating above the grotesque gate, responded to Baron’s command and began to move.

Thud, thud, thud!

Because Zeke had not absorbed all the power of the black light, there were gaps in the monstrous angel’s body where black crystals were missing.

The monstrous angel raised its head and let out a terrifying roar.

Roar!

Simultaneously, tentacles writhing from its back began to form a shape.

The shape resembled dragon wings.

However, the wings were grotesque, with teeth and eyes embedded throughout.

The monstrous angel spread its newly formed wings and slowly ascended into the air.

Rumble!

Even in its incomplete state, having not absorbed all of the Demon King’s soul, the aura emanating from the monstrous angel was powerful enough to rival the great lords of the demon realm.

Zeke, who was absorbing the corrupted Karma data from the shadows, looked down at the monstrous angel.

“The soul it absorbed… I must reclaim it.”

In truth, Zeke was still skeptical about absorbing the Demon King’s soul, as the arrogant savior had suggested.

Even the great King Solomon had succumbed to temptation, becoming the “first to fall” and a threat to the physical realm as a Demon King.

There was no guarantee that Zeke wouldn’t fall to the same temptation.

But now, he had changed his mind, all because of the Karma Points.

“If I can purify the Demon King’s soul with Karma Points, I can escape the temptation.”

Without the risk of temptation, the Demon King’s soul would be a valuable means to elevate the status of a celestial being.

Zeke gripped Levatein, facing the monstrous angel that roared at him.

Vroom!

Levatein resonated with Zeke’s will.

“I will reclaim the Demon King’s soul.”

Zeke unleashed the power of the celestial being.

The power of the celestial being, “One Who Surpasses the Wall,” spread throughout the library.

Rumble!

The aura of the monstrous angel clashed with Zeke’s power, creating a powerful shockwave.

Nabu, carrying Nigel on a carpet, descended to the lower part of the library to avoid the storm.

“Hold on tight!”

He picked up Ivan and Mana, placing them back on the carpet, and sought refuge within the barrier created by Guardian Innocent.

Rumble—

The clash of power between Zeke and the monstrous angel caused the entire infinite library, the unique space of the Great Sage, to tremble.

Even the high tables, beings with the status of great lords, were witnessing such a clash for the first time and were astonished by the power.

“This is insane. Are all celestial beings such monsters?”

Nabu’s lament was met with nods of agreement from the other high tables as they watched the clash unfold.

The first to move was the monstrous angel.

Roar!

With a roar that mixed the cries of a dragon and a monster, the monstrous angel soared into the sky.

It was unclear how much of the Demon King’s soul it had absorbed, but the aura it exuded was distinctly different from that of Harvey Draker.

The monstrous angel opened its mouth wide and unleashed a torrent of dark energy towards Zeke.

Boom, boom, boom!

The concentrated energy shot towards Zeke with the intent to pierce through him.

Zeke charged forward, wielding Levatein.

“Haaah!”

He executed the sword technique of the Infinite Sword Art, slashing at the energy.

Swoosh—

Since mastering the Heart Sword Technique, Zeke’s swordsmanship had reached a new level.

Though it was a simple downward slash, the intent within it contained a higher-dimensional power incomparable to before.

Swoosh—

As the energy met Zeke’s sword, it split in half and dissipated without a trace.

The attack, powerful enough to obliterate an entire city, was perfectly cleaved by Zeke’s sword.

Zeke had truly transcended the realm of a sword saint to become a sword god.

Watching from below, Nigel couldn’t help but be impressed by Zeke’s swordsmanship.

“Zeke…”

Recalling the memories of his past life etched into his soul, Nigel knew what kind of life Zeke had led before his return.

Thus, he could fully appreciate the significance of the sword Zeke had perfected.

The monstrous angel, seeing its attack nullified, let out a roar and charged at Zeke with even greater speed.

Roar!

Zeke blocked the monstrous angel’s roar, which seeped into his soul, with the resonance of Levatein.

Vroom!

Levatein, resonating with Zeke’s will, left his hand and floated into the air.

Simultaneously, a brilliant light erupted from Levatein.

Rumble!

The intense light from Levatein illuminated the entire space.

Levatein, emitting a radiant sword light, flew towards the monstrous angel with its own will.

Swoosh!

The movement of Levatein, cutting through the air, was distinctly different from that of magically controlled swords.

Each beam of sword light was akin to the aura blades wielded by a black knight.

Roar!

The monstrous angel let out a thunderous roar at the fearsome Levatein flying towards it.

But as if unaffected, Levatein continued its relentless advance, prompting the monstrous angel to spread its wings and expose its chest.

The crystallized black armor split open, revealing a massive mouth.

Vroom!

Within the gaping mouth, an even greater energy began to condense.

Crack—

The energy was so intense that the surrounding space distorted, causing a gravitational pull that sucked in nearby books and shelves.

Boom, boom, boom!

The energy, concentrated within the chest’s mouth, met the oncoming Levatein head-on.

As the mouth opened wider, the gathered energy surged forward.

The concentrated energy formed a pillar of darkness, engulfing the sword light surrounding Levatein.

A deafening roar echoed, and the dark energy spread, destroying the library’s space.

But then—

Swoosh—

Levatein, enveloped in sword light, continued to advance through the pillar of darkness, still aiming for the monstrous angel.

Connected to Zeke’s soul, Levatein carried his will, counteracting the concentrated dark pillar to pierce through the monstrous angel.

Crack!

As Levatein defied its power, the monstrous angel focused its energy even more intensely.

Rumble!

The dark pillar compressed further, attempting to halt Levatein.

Yet the sword light remained undeterred, shining even more brilliantly as it flew straight towards the monstrous angel.

Roar!

The monstrous angel, exerting all its strength, roared to stop Levatein.

But the sword never faltered.

Realizing it couldn’t continue like this, the monstrous angel spread its wings and ascended.

Then, changing direction, it opened its mouth wide to gather energy for a direct attack on Zeke.

However, when the monstrous angel looked to attack, Zeke was nowhere to be found.

“Looking for me?”

Zeke’s voice came from behind.

As the monstrous angel turned in shock, Ascalon pierced through its back and emerged from its chest.

“Graaaah!”

The creature let out a horrific scream, writhing in agony.

Seizing the moment, Zeke drove Ascalon deeper into the beast with renewed force.

With a resounding crack, a radiant light, akin to that of Levatein, burst forth from the sword embedded in the creature.

A low hum filled the air as the light enveloped the monstrous angel, causing the black crystals covering its body to shatter and fall away, sucked into Zeke’s shadow.

[Corrupted Karma data absorbed.]

Reading the message that appeared before him, Zeke realized that the black crystals were the crystallized essence of the demon king’s soul.

“So, it wasn’t a complete absorption of the demon king’s soul, but rather a crystallization, like a dragon heart, to draw power externally.”

It seemed to be a method devised to harness the power without succumbing to the demon king’s temptations.

By combining the dragon heart bestowed by Arthur Draker, the power of external species, and the twisted causality, this bizarre phenomenon had been induced.

Even as Zeke analyzed the situation, the impaled creature thrashed violently, trying to shake him off.

Suddenly, the angel’s wings morphed, transforming into tentacles sprouting eyes and teeth.

“Raaaargh!”

The tentacles lunged at Zeke, who quickly released Ascalon and retreated.

In an instant, Caladbolg materialized from the shadows into Zeke’s grasp.

With a hiss, Caladbolg extended its shadow towards the tentacles.

The shadows morphed into sharp blades, viciously tearing through the tentacles, devouring them whole.

“What is this?”

Zeke felt a shiver as he sensed the power of gluttony emanating from Caladbolg.

The power of gluttony, absorbed from a malevolent deity, was a formidable force that consumed everything, but it was difficult to control, so Zeke used it sparingly.

The fact that Caladbolg naturally harbored this power puzzled him.

Just then, the monstrous angel let out another deafening roar, launching razor-sharp claws imbued with dark energy at Zeke.

The six hook-like claws spun towards him with lethal intent.

Zeke watched the claws hurtling his way and swung Caladbolg.

With a mighty sweep, Caladbolg unleashed a storm of shadows, swallowing the angel’s claws whole.

Zeke noticed Caladbolg’s growing hunger and furrowed his brow.

“The stronger my divinity becomes, the more powerful Caladbolg seems to grow.”

He dismissed Caladbolg, sending it back into the shadows.

Even as it vanished, Caladbolg seemed to lament the missed opportunity to consume more.

Sensing an opening, the monstrous angel bristled with crystalline spikes and charged at Zeke.

Each spike sliced through the air, creating ripples in space.

With a shriek, the crystallized spikes erupted from the angel’s body, forming a storm aimed at Zeke.

In response, a massive light surged forward.

Levatein, engulfed in a brilliant glow, pierced through the storm of spikes, cutting a path through the chaos.