The Five Hundred and Forty-Fourth Proclamation
Deep within the tomb of the royal mausoleum, in the dimly lit chamber, gray-black spirit mists continuously surged out from a large stone coffin. Between the mist, one could barely make out a distorted human figure, flickering in and out of sight. The aura emanating from the figure was clearly malevolent and filled with resentment. It was evident that the spirit within the stone coffin was far from normal.
Seeing the soul just released was clearly a vengeful spirit, Uta’s soul, which was leaning on Nephnis, did not dare to be careless. He immediately whispered to the nearby Doro zombie puppet.
“This spirit has been corrupted and is very dangerous. I will immediately pacify it. You communicate with him and buy some time,” Uta told Doro before sitting aside and silently starting to use his abilities to pacify the spirit. Meanwhile, after hearing Uta’s words, Doro operated all the zombie puppets in the chamber to kneel neatly towards the floating shadow above the stone coffin, performing the standard Adus etiquette.
“Respected King Rahman, we are not part of the decaying Baruch royal family. We are rebels determined to overthrow the Baruch dynasty. To seek power, we have dared to disturb your eternal rest. Please forgive us!”
“Haha… Not my descendants? Don’t lie to me! No one but them can come here. Regardless of what you’re up to this time, I won’t fall for your tricks anymore! d*e!”
With that, the twisted black shadow rushed out and entered the body of the foremost zombie puppet. Instantly, the puppet’s body began to mutate, quickly distorting and swelling until it exploded with a bang, splattering bl**d and flesh everywhere.
“d*mn, this guy is clearly in a delirious state.”
Seeing this scene, Doro immediately controlled the other zombie puppets to stand up, displaying fearful expressions towards the twisted black shadow emerging from the bl**d. She commanded one of the zombie puppets to angrily shout at the shadow.
“Tyrant! Foolish king! You and your descendants are all fools!”
Hearing the zombie puppet’s words, the shadow seemed agitated and directly lunged at the puppet who had mocked him, taking control of its arm to twist off its head.
Then, Doro controlled all the zombie puppets in the chamber to scatter in panic while shouting insults at the shadow. The shadow did not hesitate to chase and k*ll each puppet, brutally and instantly ending their existence.
For a moment, Doro’s zombie puppets were rapidly depleted, and the scene became extremely bloody. Doro simultaneously lamented inwardly, thankful that the vengeful spirit was in such a deranged state; otherwise, it would have been much harder to handle.
Finally, after the vengeful spirit slaughtered dozens of zombie puppets and turned the entire chamber into a scene reminiscent of a B-grade movie, Uta’s pacification started to take effect. The enraged shadow gradually slowed down, eventually floating and stopping in place. The gray-black spirit mists around him slowly dissipated, stabilizing his distorted form into a more normal human shape.
Gradually, the shadow returned to a semi-transparent spirit, revealing a tall, robust middle-aged male spirit standing nearly six feet tall. He wore metal armor adorned with muscular figures, a cloak, a helmet, and a sword at his waist. His face was marked with the distinctive thick beard of an adult male from Northern Ufeiga, somewhat similar to Mazale’s appearance, though his demeanor was entirely different. The spirit’s presence was much more imposing than Mazale’s bulky yet robust figure.
As Rahman’s spirit returned to normal, his eyes were filled with confusion. He looked around at the bloody and cruel scene before him, regret flashing across his eyes. The terrified expressions and angry curses of those who died before him flashed through his mind. He couldn’t help but look at his hands and murmur:
“What did I do just now…”
“You did nothing, King Rahman. They were just puppets,” Doro controlled another zombie puppet to say at this moment. Upon hearing these words, Rahman glanced at the surrounding corpses and recalled that he had no perception of these “people”’s souls during his rampage. They were indeed just puppets.
“Who are you? What are you doing intruding into my mausoleum? Only my unworthy descendants should be able to enter here,” Rahman said sternly, looking at the zombie puppets with clear rationality. He knew that controlling so many puppets and opening his own mausoleum indicated that the other party was no ordinary person.
“Regarding our identity… we’ve already explained earlier. We are rebels against the corrupt rule of Baruch. We awakened you to gain the strength to oppose Baruch. Since you call those Baruchs your unworthy descendants and still harbor malice towards them even in an irrational state… surely you must know about their corruption. So, will you help us?”
Looking at Rahman, Doro slowly spoke through the mouth of the puppet. After listening to Doro’s words, Rahman paused for thought before turning his gaze towards the exit of the chamber, the entrance to the underground palace. After sensing something, he shifted his gaze back to the zombie puppets and spoke.
“What’s that thing outside?”
“Oh, that? That’s one of your heirs who inherited your throne. He is the current king of the Baruch Dynasty. His name is… Diadeen…”
“Diadeen…” Hearing the puppet’s words, Rahman seemed to recall something. He turned to look at the damaged array beside the stone coffin, his eyes widening slightly. Then, he turned and floated straight towards the exit of the chamber, seemingly wanting to leave the mausoleum.
“Please wait a moment, King Rahman.”
Seeing Rahman’s actions, Doro immediately had the zombie puppet call him back. After stopping, Rahman looked at the puppet, which then continued speaking.
“King Rahman, under the secret conspiracy you don’t know about, Diadeen is no longer the same as before. If you go alone as a wandering spirit, it might not be effective. Past spirits need stronger support to exert greater power.”
Doro had the puppet say this. Afterward, a figure emerged from the shadows of the chamber, Nephnis appearing before Rahman with a somewhat nervous expression, bowing slightly. At this moment, Uta’s soul, which had previously leaned on her, had left and was now watching the situation unfold silently.
Hovering in mid-air, Rahman gazed at Nephnis, then turned to look at the puppet speaking on the other side, and continued.
“Even my own bloodline betrays me. How can I trust you, puppet?”
Hearing Rahman’s words, the puppet smiled slightly and quickly drew a simple magic array on the ground. Rahman recognized it as a divination array.
Next, Doro had the puppet take out a coin, a lantern, and a stone fragment inscribed with writing. After turning on the lantern, a yellow-orange light diffused, and Rahman could sense the lamp’s spiritual energy. He understood that this was a Radiance Lamp.
Then, Doro had the puppet shine the Radiance Lamp on the stone fragment. Both the stone fragment and the lamp emitted a faint purple glow, indicating that the fragment contained spiritual energy, specifically “Enlightenment.” This was a storage item with “Enlightenment” spiritual energy, obtained by Doro from the vampire Claudius when they were friendly during their time at Crown University and Eight-pointed.
Finally, under Rahman’s watchful gaze, Doro placed the stone fragment in the magic array and recited the divination chant, tossing the coin before Rahman’s eyes, performing a divination ceremony.
“We have no ill intentions towards King Rahman.”
After saying this, Doro had the puppet slap the coin flying in mid-air onto the ground. As the ceremony proceeded, the slight purple light on the Radiance Lamp disappeared, proving that the “Enlightenment” spiritual energy on the stone fragment had vanished, confirming that this was a genuine divination ceremony without any deception.
Seeing this, Rahman focused his gaze on the puppet’s hand. As the puppet’s hand opened, Rahman saw the coin facing upwards. Doro used the divination to prove the authenticity of his words.
Looking at the coin on the array, Rahman remained silent for a moment before murmuring.
“How considerate…”
Afterward, Rahman floated forward and entered Nephnis’s body. When Nephnis’s eyes closed upon Rahman’s soul entering, they reopened, revealing a resolute determination different from her usual self. Turning around, she walked deeper into the chamber, soon reaching the stone coffin inside. Reaching into it, she pulled out a dust-covered sword blade.
After scanning the corpses inside the stone coffin and brushing the dust off the sword blade, Nephnis gripped the sword tightly and walked out of the chamber, followed by Doro and the zombie puppets.
…
In the north of Karnak, vast plains and mountain ranges were swept by fierce hurricanes. A massive amount of sand and dust were swirling in the air, obscuring the sun and making the entire city of Karnak appear dim and lifeless, as if in the midst of an apocalyptic scene.
The edge of the whirlwind sandstorm had reached the city, turning the entire Karnak into a dark yellow hue. The dazzling sun in the sky was obscured, and yellow sand was slamming against walls everywhere, causing a cacophony of noise that filled the surroundings. The streets were no longer safe for people to stand on. A large number of soldiers had already evacuated under Shadi’s orders, but many others were trapped in buildings, praying desperately for King Diadeen’s mercy.
The sandstorm caused by Diadeen had expanded to twice its size since it had first appeared. In the north of Karnak, Shadi froze his legs in place to prevent being blown away by the sandstorm while still struggling to stop Diadeen’s advance. Yellow sand pelted his skin painfully. At this moment, Setute shouted in Shadi’s heart.
“Boy! Enough! If we don’t run now, it’ll be too late!”
“But… there’s still at least half of the troops in the city that haven’t evacuated…”
“It’s too late for them! This is beyond our control! Save yourself first!” Setute roared, his tone tinged with urgency.
“Setute… Is there no way to counter this guy?”
“No! Didn’t I tell you he has the support of hundreds of thousands of citizens and seven hundred years of Baruch history? There’s no way we can counter such a being! The more fear he instills in your soldiers, the deeper their belief in him, the stronger he becomes! He will continue to grow! We must run!”
Setute shouted again. Hearing this, Shadi’s originally clenched jaw showed a hint of reluctance. Through gritted teeth, he managed to say:
“d*mn… Are we really going to submit to his demands, Diadeen?”
Just as Shadi was grinding his teeth, Diadeen’s spirit within the center of the sandstorm moved, seemingly wanting to enhance itself. It triggered the environment once more, issuing a wide-ranging declaration.
“All resistance is futile! Rebels! You cannot defy me! I am Diadeen, the King of Adus! I am the country! I am Adus!”
The monstrous face of the sandstorm let out a roar, instantly spreading far and wide. Whether fleeing or trapped soldiers, upon hearing this declaration, crouched in despair, their fear reaching unprecedented heights. Under the immense power, every soldier believed Diadeen to be the true King of Adus. In this new round of affirmation and cognition, Diadeen’s power grew again. Shadi finally could no longer withstand Diadeen’s onslaught. The sandstorm, covering the sky, pressed down on the small city of Karnak.
At this moment, another voice echoed in everyone’s hearts.
“You are not the king…”
This voice was powerful and steady, resonating in every soldier’s heart, accompanied by a sense of tranquility.
“What… whose voice is this…” Shadi muttered in surprise, while Setute curiously asked:
“What’s wrong, boy? What did you hear?
“Uh… Setute, didn’t you hear? A male voice just said Diadeen is not the king…” Shadi responded in astonishment. Just as he was about to speak, the steady voice echoed again in Shadi’s heart.
“People of Adus, do not fear, do not kneel. The one who terrorizes you with calamity is not your king! The King of Adus never needs to rely on destruction to gain recognition.”
This deep voice spread without the aid of air, reaching every Adus citizen present, and swiftly traveled to distant towns, reaching countless Dosan citizens, leaving them astounded by the new voice.
“Who is it? Who is spreading rumors here!”
It seemed that Diadeen, manifesting as the storm, heard the rapid, mysterious voice and displayed an angry expression, shouting loudly in all directions.
Far away, on the peak of a mountain in the Dead Eagle Valley to the north of Karnak, the “Nephnis” dressed in a long robe stood holding a simple longsword, her resolute eyes fixed on the enormous sandstorm wall in the distance.
After hearing Diadeen’s shouts, “Nephnis” opened her mouth and solemnly declared to the sandstorm in the distance.
“People of Adus, listen to the voice of the ancient lineage. I am Rahman Baruch, the first king of Adus. Hereby, I formally announce through the bl**d covenant to all the people of Adus.
“The entire sixth-generation supreme council has acted recklessly, driven by ambition and committing unforgivable sins! They have violated and desecrated! They have undermined the law! Their crimes are unpardonable!
“I hereby declare the removal of the authority of the kings from the sixth generation down to the thirty-fourth generation, including Diadeen, a total of twenty-eight kings! All their powers were illegally obtained! All their wealth was illegally acquired! They are no longer the kings of Adus!”
Rahman’s declaration echoed in the hearts of countless Adus citizens. For some reason, despite the Adus people present having never heard this voice claiming to be the first king, it unexpectedly evoked a sense of trust.
Upon hearing this new declaration, Diadeen turned his terrifying face toward the south, glaring fiercely at the direction of Dead Eagle Valley. At this moment, the sword held by “Neph” pointed directly at Diadeen’s face, and she continued to declare loudly.
“I reject you, Diadeen! You are not fit to be king! You are no longer king! Never!”
With “Neph’s” judgment, the two pillars supporting Diadeen’s power—cognition and legal authority—both wavered. The pillar of legal authority collapsed instantly. Diadeen felt his power weakening significantly. The expanding storm ceased growing and instead began to rapidly shrink.
Feeling his power ebb away, Diadeen’s heart panicked. The anger in his gaze towards the north surged instantly, fiercer than even the desire for revenge against Shadi. Turning around, it pressed down on the north with overwhelming force, although its strength was rapidly diminishing, its original mass was still immense.
“Back to your grave, old man!”
