Earth's Greatest Magus

Chapter 2846: Beast

Aeterna Gratia was a periodic celestial rite for the Astiel—a revered convergence marking the moon’s descent and the sun’s ascent.

For generations, it had been regarded as an unquestionably auspicious occasion.

No one had ever imagined it would become the trigger for catastrophe.

To witness the restrained savage grand magus breaking free at the heart of such a sacred event left even the most seasoned Astiel elders stunned beyond belief.

ROAAARRR!!!

The roar erupted like a primordial decree, rolling across the island with crushing force as power detonated outward in violent waves.

[Integration 62%... 64%... 68%]

The surge unleashed hurricane-level winds that tore through formations and shook the land itself, cracking stone and collapsing weakened structures. The remaining spectators finally abandoned all pretense of dignity, retreating in panic as even Astiel’s closest allies instinctively widened the distance between themselves and the epicenter of destruction..

Emery’s transformation had advanced.

His body had grown more than threefold in size, towering over the battlefield like a dark colossus, sharp black fur bristling with savage energy as raw power rolled off him in suffocating waves.

The Heaven’s Will Swordmaster clenched his jaw. His divine spirit blade embedded within Emery’s body screamed in protest, its flawless golden surface spiderwebbing with fractures under an invisible pressure that grew heavier with every heartbeat.

Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, the Storm Lord—made his move. Lightning exploded around his form as he broke through the papal church’s formation lines, a thunder spear condensing in his grasp as he prepared to strike, intent on crushing the transformation before it could complete.

"NO!"

The Papal Cardinal’s voice rang out with absolute authority, forcing the storm to stall mid-eruption.

"Attacking him now will endanger my people!"

The Storm Lord froze mid-motion, rage boiling in his eyes as he struggled against restraint.

The Cardinal’s breath caught. He raised the Chalice of Faith and chanted at full force, forcibly recalling the seraphs..

Two pillars of golden light snapped upward as two seraph souls were dragged back into their physical bodies. Both panting violently, faces pale with shock as their wings flickered behind them.

One did not return.

The Cardinal’s eyes widened.

"...Where is Zachari?"

The question hung unanswered in the air, heavy with dread, as the island continued to tremble beneath the rising roar of the transforming beast.

Within Emery’s inner domain, the answer unfolded.

The elder seraph hovered near the northern reaches of the domain, his body trembling.

Before him, rising from the land like a nightmare, stood the roaring beast.

Its presence alone warped the domain.

Moonlight spilled down upon its form, feeding it, amplifying it, and in that cold illumination the seraph finally understood what he was facing.

"Dear heaven... Star... Devouring Beast..."

Panic shattered his composure.

He surged upward, abandoning all restraint, desperately attempting to flee the domain altogether—but the moment he turned his back, the beast reacted.

The chains that had once bound the Star Devouring Beast snapped apart with a thunderous crack, and with a roar that shook the very foundations of the domain, it launched itself after the fleeing seraph. Space distorted beneath its leap as its massive form closed the distance in an instant.

The seraph’s face drained of all color.

SPLAATT!!!

One colossal paw slammed into him mid-flight, crushing his radiant wings into fragments of shattered light while its claws tore across his back. The seraph screamed, his form spiraling out of control.

Yet survival instinct prevailed.

With his life hanging by a thread, he activated an escape technique, forcibly tearing himself free at the cost of immense soul damage. Light flared violently as he shot upward once more, staggering, barely conscious, but alive—so close to escaping the domain.

Too close.

The beast reared back, jaws opening wide as cosmic energy condensed within its throat.

"NO—!"

A beam of annihilating force erupted from its maw, ripping through the air with world-ending momentum.

Outside the domain, the Papal Cardinal’s eyes widened in horror.

Without hesitation, he poured his power into the Chalice of Faith, forcibly extending his will into the domain and yanking the elder seraph’s soul back at the final possible instant.

The extraction succeeded—but barely.

The seraph’s soul tore free just as the blast consumed the space where he had been, and when it slammed back into his physical body, he convulsed violently, blood exploding from his mouth as his wings collapsed into fading motes of light. He was gravely wounded, his life flickering like a dying candle.

Seeing the last seraph had returned, the Storm Lord no longer hesitated.

With a thunderous roar of his own, he hurled the condensed thunder spear forward.

The weapon tore through the air and slammed directly into Emery’s still-transforming body, detonating in a blinding explosion as chains of lightning tore through flesh, bone, and soul alike.

ROAAARRR!!!

The beast howled, its roar shaking the heavens—

—but instead of collapsing, the lightning began to fade.

To the shock of everyone watching, the thunder spear did not tear Emery apart.

It was being absorbed.

The lightning streams were drawn inward, swallowed by the transforming body as if consumed by an abyss, while at the same time the Heaven’s Will Swordmaster’s remaining spirit blades shattered completely, exploding into fragments of golden light.

The battlefield fell into stunned silence.

The elder seraph, barely clinging to consciousness, trembled as he whispered through blood-filled lips,

"Star... Devouring Beast..."

"What?!" the cardinal shouted in disbelief.

And then—

HOWLLLL!!!

Another violent change erupted within Emery’s inner domain.

From deep within the mountain, the Khaos energy surged—not from a single source, but from all three lesser gates and the main gate simultaneously, pouring outward like a breached abyss. The mountain itself began to crack and scream, its foundations unable to withstand the converging powers.

The Star Devouring Beast reacted instantly.

Drawn by instinct, it leapt upward and crashed down upon the mountain, claws digging deep as its jaws opened wide. It did not merely absorb the energy—it fed upon it, devouring Khaos directly from the gates as if consuming flesh.

The mountain disintegrated beneath it.

[Integration 78%... 82%... 86%]

With each surge, Emery lost what little control he had left.

The primal transformation could no longer be restrained.

His form expanded violently, bones snapping and reforming as his body twisted beyond anything remotely human. The man was gone—replaced by a colossal wolf-beast standing upright on two legs, ten meters tall, its silhouette blotting out the moonlight itself.

A presence descended.

Every spectator—Astiel nobles, allied factions, even veteran grand magus—felt it press down upon their souls like an approaching extinction event. Knees buckled. Breaths hitched. Some screamed. Others fled without dignity.

The Papal Cardinal acted immediately.

"Withdraw!" he barked, turning to the remaining seraphs. "Take him and retreat—now!"

The two surviving seraphs rushed to support their gravely wounded elder, dragging him away as light flared around them. One by one, allied grand magus followed suit, retreating in disorder, even Darian Astiel himself pulling back under the sheer pressure.

Only a handful remained.

The Astiel elite.

A dozen hardened grand magus.

And the three pillars still standing against the apocalypse—

The Papal Cardinal.

The Heaven’s Will Swordmaster.

The Storm Lord.

The Cardinal’s voice cut through the collapsing battlefield, strained yet resolute.

"I carry the Divine Cross," he declared. "But to awaken it fully, I need time. Ten minutes."

Ten minutes.

The Storm Lord did not hesitate. He stepped forward as thunder rolled overhead, ancient words pouring from his lips as the laws of the sky answered his call. Lightning did not merely fall—it assembled, converging into structure and form until a colossal spectral giant of storm and cloud towered above the battlefield.

At its core stood the Storm Lord himself, suspended within the heart of the cosmic body, eyes blazing as he drew the giant’s arm back.

BAAMM!!!

The punch landed like the fall of a god.

The impact tore the ground apart, shockwaves racing across Eclipse Island and shattering what little remained intact. The wolf-beast was driven backward, scorched lightning carving blackened wounds into its massive frame, sparks exploding across its hide.

For a heartbeat, hope flickered.

Then the beast planted its feet.

It did not fall.

It did not stagger further.

It lifted its head slowly, glowing eyes locking onto the storm giant as its wounds began to knit together, flesh crawling back into place as if reality itself refused to let it die.

Before despair could fully settle, the Heaven’s Will Swordmaster struck.

Two divine blades descended from the heavens, formed of absolute sword intent, as he unleashed a perfected [Trinity Slash]

The arcs tore through space itself, carving deep gashes across the beast’s torso. Blackened blood sprayed across the battlefield as the beast roared in pain, its howl shaking the sky.

HOWWWLLLL!!!

Yet even as blood flowed, the damage did not last.

The wounds closed.

The flesh regenerated.

The aura only grew more violent.

Desperation spread.

The remaining elite grand magus unleashed everything they had—ancient treasures, forbidden spells, life-saving artifacts detonated without hesitation. Light, fire, frost, divine seals crashed against the beast in a storm of color and power.

It only enraged it further.

The wolf-beast reared back, its roar ripping through the air like a death sentence made manifest, before surging forward with terrifying speed.

Space itself warped under its charge as it smashed through the storm giant’s restraining grip, lightning shattering uselessly against its hide.

A follow-up strike from the Heaven’s Will Swordmaster, a massive spectral sword descended in a blinding arc, only to be caught mid-swing, the beast’s claw crashing into the divine blade and hurling the Swordmaster backward like a broken projectile.

The two strongest defenders were thrown apart, their domains flickering violently.

Then the slaughter began.

One unlucky grand magus was caught beneath its paw, his body crushed flat in an instant, bones and soul collapsing together before a scream could even form.

Another, still chanting, was seized mid-cast, bitten cleanly in half and torn apart, blood and fragments raining down across the battlefield like crimson hail.

Then

the wolf-beast suddenly halted.

Its head tilted.

The air screamed.

Space around its maw twisted violently, folding inward as chaotic energy condensed beyond comprehension. Then the beast exhaled.

Not flame.

Not lightning.

Space itself detonated.

A wave of distorted void surged outward, and across the battlefield dozens of miniature black holes erupted into existence, each no larger than a fist—yet each radiating apocalyptic pull. Gravity reversed.

Sky and ground lost meaning.

Screams erupted.

Formations collapsed.

Morale shattered.

The chaos did not remain confined to Eclipse Island.

Shockwaves rippled outward, cracking the land, churning the seas, and sending tremors across the planet itself, as if the world were reacting in fear to the monster unleashed upon it.

This was no longer a battle to be won.

It was a catastrophe struggling to be contained.

.