Earth's Greatest Magus

Chapter 2844: Intruder

Chime.

The clear, bell-like tone rolled across the battlefield and plunged straight into Emery’s spiritual sea.

His consciousness trembled violently.

His focus wavered.

Inside his inner world, the five-tiered rainbow pagoda began to crack. Fine fractures of white-gold light spiderwebbed across its luminous walls as the divine resonance forced its way inward.

Then the pagoda flared.

At the brink of collapse, another force awakened within him. His innate ability—[Emperor Focus]—ignited, pouring stabilizing will through every layer of his soul. The trembling structure steadied, and a fresh veil of prismatic light formed over the cracks, reinforcing the failing defenses with raw, unyielding intent.

Outside, the Papal Cardinal’s brows furrowed slightly.

"Such powerful soul defenses..."

"He is clearly at the fifth level of soul fortification, yet the density rivals high sixth-tier saints..."

"This is not natural. This must be evil at work."

The exchange flowed instantly through a shared divine link between the Cardinal and the three Seraphs.

Each of the three was a Grand Magus. The younger pair stood at One Cosmos, while the elder male radiated the pressure of Two Cosmos—no weaker than Casiel of Nova Roma.

All four chanted in perfect unison, their voices weaving into a single harmonic command while the holy artifact. [Chalice of Faith] hovered between them, radiating expanding rings of holy light. Even with their combined authority and the artifact’s amplification, subduing one broken, kneeling magus was taking far more effort than expected.

Unwilling to prolong the struggle, the three Seraphs invoked their innate blessing.

[Call of Faith]

Three pillars of golden radiance descended from the heavens and enveloped them. Wings of pure light unfolded from their backs, feathers formed from scripture and flame, their auras multiplying as divine authority flooded their forms.

Inside Emery’s spiritual sea, the reinforced pagoda finally reached its limit. With a soundless shatter, it exploded into shards of rainbow light.

"It is done," the Cardinal murmured.

Golden chains manifested instantly within Emery’s consciousness, wrapping around his soul core, binding limbs, thoughts, and spiritual circulation alike. Restraint sigils burned into place, locking his primary will in a prison of doctrine.

And yet—

The four holy casters sensed something was wrong.

They could restrain him.

They could suppress the surface of his consciousness.

But they could not enter—nor bend his will the way they had done to countless heretics before.

The resistance was not violent. As if part of his mind simply did not exist in the place they were searching.

One of the Seraphs whispered through the shared divine link. "This is highly irregular."

"The primary soul is bound," the Cardinal confirmed, his control over the Chalice of Faith unwavering. "And yet... there is another anchor point. Something separate."

Realization dawned almost simultaneously among them.

"A split soul..."

"He is only at the Two Cosmos realm, yet he has already formed an independent soul manifestation?"

"A prodigy of this level... he rivals the Church’s Faith Child—"

"That is blasphemy," the elder Seraph cut in sharply. "Do not confuse corruption with grace. This is not blessing. This is evil refined."

With the rainbow pagoda shattered and Emery’s main soul restrained, the barrier between his outer consciousness and his inner domain had weakened enough for intrusion.

"The split soul and the source of evil is inside... Find them"

The Cardinal remained outside to maintain suppression and artifact control, while the three Seraphs projected their awareness inward without hesitation.

Golden radiance tore open a passage.

They descended like falling suns.

Blazing pillars of light, wings unfurled, halos burning. It was like angels stepping down from heaven into a foreign creation.

And they froze.

The world around them stretched vast and alive.

"Such a vast inner world... He truly is extraordinary."

Their divine sense swept outward.

They ignored the settlements of orcs and chizpurs. Such lifeforms were irrelevant.

Two anomalies immediately stood out.

On a distant mountain peak grew a lone, radiant tree, its leaves shimmering with ancient life essence.

Further north, upon an isolated landmass, something immense slept—coiled, vast, exuding a predatory aura.

But discipline prevailed.

Years of training under rigid doctrine pulled the three Seraphs back from distraction. The strange tree, the distant slumbering beast, the unnatural stability of the domain—none of it mattered.

Their missions were the split soul and the source of evil.

And its presence bled from the heart of the dark mountain ahead.

"I can feel it," the female Seraph said, her golden wings folding slightly as her gaze sharpened. "That is where the corruption nests."

Without another word, the three descended toward the mountain’s face. The entrance yawned before them like the throat of some ancient creature, exhaling a slow, heavy pulse of abyssal energy.

They entered cautiously, divine senses extended, scripture sigils orbiting their forms.

The interior was vast—less a cave and more a hollowed world of black crystal and shadow-veined stone. At its center stood a wide platform of dark rock.

And upon it—

Two figures waited.

They were identical in appearance. Both bore Emery’s face, Emery’s build, Emery’s eyes. Yet their presences were fundamentally different.

One stood with arms loosely folded, a crooked smirk on his lips, darkness curling lazily around his shoulders like smoke.

"The intruders have arrived... Welcome" The Dark Avatar said lightly.

Beside him stood the Light Avatar, calm and upright, expression composed but wary.

"We hold no grievance against the Papal Church," he said evenly. "This is between us and the AstieI... I ask that you all withdraw."

The Seraphs did not even acknowledge the request.

Their attention had shifted past the two figures.

Behind the avatars stood four colossal gates embedded into the cavern wall.

One was enormous—ancient, sealed, etched with symbols so old they felt closer to law than language.

The other three were smaller, but far from insignificant. Each pulsed with a different, oppressive aura.

The elder Seraph stepped forward, golden eyes narrowing.

"I sense primordial power," the female Seraph said slowly.

"These gates are conduits," the younger male added, unease creeping in his voice. "They lead somewhere... or summon something."

"The corruption is concentrated here," the elder seraph concluded, divine light intensifying around him "These structures must be destroyed."

At those words, both avatars exchanged a glance.

No more discussion was needed.

Conflict was inevitable.

"You are making a mistake coming here," the Dark Avatar said, grin widening as shadows began to coil around his limbs like living armor.

The female Seraph lifted her chin, radiant and certain. "You are just fragments. Split souls. You have no authority to resist divine judgment. Submit, and the Church may yet decide your fate with mercy."

The Light Avatar let out a slow, measured breath. There was no fear in his eyes—only resolve. This confrontation had not caught them unprepared. On the contrary, it was exactly where they wanted their enemies to be.

"So be it..."

At his command, the cavern trembled.

The three smaller gates behind them groaned as ancient seals split apart, lines of Khaos energy blazing to life along their edges. One by one, they opened.

The three Khaos guardians.

Chututlu, Killgragah, Daurgototh

The cavern shook under their combined presence. Divine radiance from the Seraphs dimmed as if pressed down by an unseen abyss.

Fights were inevitable