Read Novel Full Chapter 1324: The Return of the Sovereign
Chapter 1324: The Return of the Sovereign
In the meantime, within the small town of Blackthorn, which stood at the edge of the Obsidian Caverns, one of the Forbidden Lands of the Continent and several hundred kilometers from the nearest major city, a thick fog suddenly covered its surroundings…
Although it was little more than a settlement surrounded by forests and rocky hills, it had recently become a gathering place for several groups of Chaos Arts Practitioners.
They had come from different regions, drawn by rumors of an ancient underground chamber buried beneath the town.
According to the information they had gathered, the chamber contained remnants of an ancient civilization that had once worshipped a being from beyond the boundaries of reality.
Most of the practitioners believed the rumors were exaggerated. Nevertheless, the possibility of discovering ancient knowledge and powerful artifacts was enough to convince them to take the risk.
Unfortunately for them, they had no idea what they were about to awaken.
Deep beneath Blackthorn, a vast formation carved into the walls of an underground chamber suddenly began to glow.
The formation had remained dormant for countless years, its intricate symbols barely visible beneath layers of dust and mineral deposits. However, the energy flowing through the chamber had begun to change. Dark tendrils emerged from the formation, twisting through the air like living creatures before converging upon a circular platform at its center.
Then, something stirred beyond the boundary of reality.
A crack appeared in the air above the platform.
It was initially no larger than a hairline fracture, but it expanded rapidly, spreading across the chamber like a shattered mirror. Through the widening fissure came an overwhelming aura of Chaos Energy, causing the surrounding rocks to crumble and the ancient formation to tremble violently.
The Chaos Arts Practitioners stationed inside the chamber immediately sensed the disturbance.
“What is happening?”
“That energy… It can’t be!”
Several of them hurried toward the platform, their faces pale as they recognized the nature of the power pouring through the fissure.
They had spent years studying ancient records and forbidden rituals, but none of them had ever encountered anything remotely comparable to this.
Before anyone could react, a hand emerged from the crack.
Its fingers were unnaturally long, covered in dark scales that seemed to shift beneath the light. The moment it touched the edge of the fissure, the surrounding space twisted violently, and the crack expanded until it swallowed the entire platform.
A figure slowly stepped through.
It resembled a humanoid creature wrapped in a cloak of living darkness. Its body was tall and slender, but its proportions seemed subtly wrong, as though reality itself struggled to accommodate its existence.
Fragments of distorted space drifted around its shoulders, while countless tiny eyes opened and closed across the darkness surrounding its body.
The Chaos Arts Practitioners stared at the newcomer in disbelief.
One of the older practitioners suddenly fell to his knees.
“Th-The Chaos Sovereign…”
His voice trembled as he pressed his forehead against the ground.
“The Chaos Sovereign has returned!”
The others immediately followed suit. Some began chanting ancient prayers, while others trembled so violently that they could barely remain standing.
They had devoted their lives to studying Chaos Arts, hoping to one day obtain a fraction of the power possessed by the legendary beings described in their forbidden scriptures.
Yet now that one of those beings stood before them, none dared to raise their heads.
The figure slowly turned its gaze toward them.
“How many years…”
Its voice echoed throughout the chamber, sounding as though countless voices were speaking simultaneously from different directions.
“…have passed?”
No one dared to answer.
The Chaos Sovereign tilted its head slightly before extending one hand.
A black sphere appeared above its palm.
The moment it emerged, the surrounding Chaos Arts Practitioners felt their bodies grow cold. Their carefully cultivated Chaos Energy began to move uncontrollably, surging toward the sphere as though they had become connected to it by invisible chains.
“What is this?!”
“Stop! Please, we are your followers!”
Their desperate cries accomplished nothing.
One after another, their bodies collapsed into streams of dark energy that were pulled into the sphere. Their screams lasted only a few seconds before their physical forms dissolved completely, leaving behind nothing but empty robes and scattered equipment.
Even the older practitioner who had first recognized the Chaos Sovereign was unable to escape.
Within moments, every Chaos Arts Practitioner in the chamber had been consumed.
The black sphere disappeared into the Chaos Sovereign’s palm.
It remained motionless for a moment, seemingly digesting the energy it had absorbed.
“Pathetic.”
The word echoed through the chamber.
Although the energy it had consumed was insignificant compared to its former power, it was enough to restore a fraction of its strength after its long absence from the material world.
The Chaos Sovereign raised its head.
Above it lay a town filled with thousands of living beings.
It could feel their presence.
Their bodies contained energy. Their souls contained traces of spiritual power. Even the ordinary citizens, who knew nothing about Chaos Arts or the supernatural world, possessed something that could be consumed.
The Chaos Sovereign smiled.
Then the ground beneath Blackthorn trembled.
A moment later, the first screams erupted from the streets.
Black vines burst through the ground, spreading between buildings and wrapping around everything they encountered. Wooden houses collapsed as the vines tore through their foundations, while people fled in terror as the darkness spread through the town.
Some attempted to fight back with ordinary weapons. Others desperately tried to escape through the northern road.
None of them got far.
The darkness spread too quickly.
Anyone caught by the tendrils was dragged into the air, their bodies dissolving into streams of energy that flowed toward the Chaos Sovereign. The creature stood at the center of the town, absorbing everything around it without making the slightest effort to distinguish between men, women, children, or the elderly.
Within minutes, Blackthorn became a slaughterhouse.
Then, just as suddenly as the massacre had begun, the screams stopped.
Every living inhabitant of the town had been consumed… Not a single human presence remained.
The Chaos Sovereign slowly surveyed the devastation.
It had recovered a little more strength.
Still, it was nowhere near its former peak.
“How disappointing. This world has grown weaker.”