Earth's Greatest Magus

Chapter 2917: Swamp Battle 8

"DIE!!"

The Chimera Sovereign surged forward like a rampaging beast, its massive crimson body tearing across the battlefield with unstoppable momentum. Each step it took crushed the ground beneath it, sending tremors through the swamp as trees splintered, stones shattered, and the very terrain collapsed under its sheer weight and power.

Its presence alone was overwhelming.

The newly formed body appeared even more formidable than Maldrin’s previous demonic form.

Emery’s flying willow swords struck repeatedly, their blades flashing with precision as they carved across the creature’s surface—but none of the attacks could deliver meaningful damage. The shallow cuts they managed to inflict closed almost instantly, flesh knitting together as if the strikes had never landed.

In just a few seconds, Emery understood.

The Spirit Shaman had not merely absorbed his disciples—he had taken their abilities completely. Maldrin’s monstrous physique, Skylark’s regenerative vitality, and likely more hidden traits had been seamlessly integrated into this new form. The ease with which the Chimera Sovereign wielded these powers suggested something even more unsettling—that these abilities had originally belonged to him, merely lent out to his followers.

Still—

There was a flaw.

The overwhelming fusion had come at a cost. The Chimera’s concealment and abnormal speed were no longer as refined as before. Though its body could still blur and fade from sight, its movements now distorted the surrounding space, creating visible ripples that betrayed its position.

That was enough.

Emery acted immediately.

With a single thought, he recalled all his flying swords as he shifted his focus entirely to Excalibur. The divine blade gleamed brightly in his grasp as his Twilight transformation surged to its peak, his Dao of Heaven and Earth amplifying both his physical strength and reaction speed.

The Chimera’s claw descended.

Emery vanished.

A ripple of spatial energy carried him to the creature’s flank, where he reappeared mid-motion, Excalibur already cutting forward in a precise arc.

[Dao Edge]

The blade hummed with destructive force as it carved across the Chimera’s torso, releasing a sharp burst of energy upon impact. The strike landed cleanly, drawing a line of blood—but before Emery could follow through, the crystalline insect limbs snapped into place, intercepting his second attack with perfect timing.

CLANG!!

The collision sent a shockwave through the air.

The counterattack came instantly.

Python limbs surged outward from multiple angles, their jaws snapping with lethal intent as they struck toward Emery’s blind spots.

The attacks overlapped, leaving no clear escape path.

But Emery had already moved.

His body twisted as space bent around him, allowing him to slip between the incoming strikes by mere inches while parrying a few with the divine sword.

One serpent grazed past his shoulder, tearing through lingering energy, but he avoided the fatal blow as he retreated backward.

Behind the Chimera—

Morgana struck.

Flames erupted from her position as she unleashed a barrage of mid-range attacks, each sphere of cosmic fire crashing into the creature’s back with explosive force. The repeated impacts forced the Chimera to shift its focus, its massive frame turning to face the new threat as its insect limbs rose to block the incoming flames.

That moment—

Was all Emery needed.

He reappeared again, this time above the creature, Excalibur descending in a vertical strike aimed directly at its spine. The blade cut down with precision, but once again, the Chimera reacted with unnatural speed, its insect limbs crossing overhead to absorb the attack.

Sparks burst.

Energy scattered.

The battlefield trembled under the repeated clashes.

The Chimera roared, its frustration growing as its massive form lashed out in retaliation, sweeping its limbs across the area in wide, destructive arcs that tore through everything in their path.

With Morgana applying constant pressure from a distance and Emery engaging in precise, close-range strikes, the two had begun to force the Chimera into a reactive state, disrupting its overwhelming offense and creating small but crucial openings.

Irritated by the constant pressure and unable to fully suppress Emery, the abomination suddenly shifted its focus and charged toward Morgana. Its massive form blurred as it slipped into partial concealment, its presence fading just enough to make its trajectory difficult to track.

For Morgana, whose strength lay more in instinct and power than refined spirit perception, the attack came dangerously fast.

Yet she did not panic.

Her bone wings flared open in an instant, igniting with blazing cosmic flames that spread outward like a protective mantle. The wings did more than shield her—they propelled her, granting a burst of speed as she twisted through the air, narrowly evading the Chimera’s sudden strike. The ground below exploded where she had been moments before, mud and fire scattering in all directions.

"Run, little coward! Run!" the creature bellowed, its voice warped and dripping with fury. "If I had devoured that three-flamed bird, you wouldn’t have escaped!" it grumbled.

The clash continued for several more minutes, each exchange shaking the battlefield as fire, steel, and monstrous force collided again and again. Yet even without relying fully on his divine sense, Emery could clearly perceive the unsettling truth.

The abomination—

Was growing stronger.

Its body continued to expand subtly, its muscles tightening with greater density, while its aura thickened with each passing second. What had initially stabilized at the first layer of the Three Cosmos realm had already risen into the second layer, and it showed no sign of slowing.

"We can’t let it keep growing," Emery said, his voice calm but decisive.

He glanced toward Morgana.

No further explanation was needed.

Through their shared bond, the plan was understood instantly.

Morgana ascended sharply, her wings beating once before she launched into a swift aerial maneuver. From above, she unleashed a concentrated torrent of flames, each blazing projectile crashing down toward the Chimera in rapid succession. The attack was not meant to kill—it was meant to overwhelm, to distract, to force its attention upward.

And in that brief opening—

Emery prepared.

This time, he did not hold back.

Rather than drawing a single thread of Khaos energy, he released it entirely. Power surged violently through his body as the primal force of the Star Devouring Beast awakened once more, flooding his limbs with savage, ancient strength.

[Integration... 35%... 40%]

His aura expanded, dark and oppressive, as raw energy coursed through his arms, causing the muscles to swell and tighten beyond their natural limits.

By the time the Chimera Sovereign realized the shift—

It was already too late.

Emery moved.

Excalibur gleamed in his grasp as he charged forward, the blade carrying not just divine power, but the overwhelming force of his awakened primal state, ready to deliver a decisive strike.

Sensing the overwhelming danger rising from Emery, the Chimera Sovereign instinctively reacted, its massive crimson body shifting as it attempted to retreat.

However, the moment it exerted force through its legs, it realized too late that something was wrong. Thick twilight vines, nearly invisible against the ruined swamp, had already wrapped tightly around its feet, coiling like living shackles beneath the surface.

The restraint was fragile, Insignificant against its monstrous strength.

But that was enough.

They were not meant to bind.

Only to delay.

And that moment was all Emery needed.

A violent surge of ancient will erupted from Emery as the primal force within him condensed, the aura of the Star Devouring Beast roaring to life. His arm tightened around Excalibur as the blade absorbed that savage energy, its edge trembling under the weight of the technique forming within it.

[Star-Rending Cleaves]

The first slash descended with crushing force.

In response, the Chimera activated its defensive technique. Its six insect limbs snapped forward in unison, their segmented joints locking into place as dark crystalline layers hardened along their surface, forming a multi-layered guard designed to absorb and redirect impact.

But the moment the blade struck—

The structure failed.

CRACKKK!

The crystalline limbs fractured instantly, the energy running through them collapsing as the force overwhelmed their defensive alignment. The blade tore through the formation, breaking the limbs apart and continuing into the creature’s torso, releasing a violent burst of blood and energy.

"Next!!"

The second slash followed without pause, its momentum building upon the first as Excalibur carved forward with amplified force. The Chimera Sovereign reacted instinctively, unleashing its python limbs in a coordinated counter. The serpents surged outward in layered formation, their jaws opening wide as venomous energy condensed along their fangs, attempting to intercept and disperse the incoming strike.

But the timing was broken.

The disrupted flow from the first impact left their formation incomplete.

SPLLLAATTT!!

The blade tore through them mid-motion.

The python limbs were crushed apart violently, their bodies splitting under the force as their energy collapsed before fully forming. The strike did not stop there—it continued through the Chimera’s side, shearing off a massive portion of its flesh and destroying several of its remaining limbs in the process.

For a brief moment, the creature’s structure faltered.

But Emery—

Had one more strike.

"Now DIE!!!"

The final slash formed instantly in a devastating diagonal arc, landing directly across its chest.

SPLATTT!!

The force of the blow split through its reinforced body, carving a deep across its entire frame before sending the colossal form hurtling backward.

BOOMMM!!

The impact crushed it into the rocky hillside, the entire formation collapsing as stone and debris cascaded downward, burying the creature beneath tons of rubble.

Emery remained where he stood, his breathing heavy as the residual energy of the technique dissipated through his body. The attack had consumed a significant portion of his spirit power, even with his enhanced physique and refined control.

Still—

The result was undeniable.

Or at least—

It should have been.

He did not lower his guard.

A quiet breath escaped him as he steadied himself, already aware that something was wrong.

Then—

A roar.

The rubble exploded outward.

The Chimera Sovereign rose again.

Emery’s gaze hardened as he watched the creature emerge from the debris, its body no longer merely wounded—but torn apart in a grotesque display. The slash had nearly split it in two, its torso hanging in jagged sections as exposed flesh, shattered bone, and ruptured organs were laid bare.

For a brief moment, it looked as though the creature would collapse.

Then—

It began to move.

Dark blood surged outward, not spilling—but threading. Thin, sinewy strands stretched between the separated halves, weaving rapidly like living cords. The torn flesh was pulled inward, dragged together as those blood threads tightened, stitching muscle to muscle, bone to bone.

The body convulsed.

Flesh twisted.

And within seconds—

What had been nearly cleaved apart was forcibly drawn back into a single form, the wound sealing with an unnatural, pulsating motion that made the entire process far more horrific than simple regeneration.

Emery could not help but feel a trace of grim admiration.

Its body—

Was absurdly resilient.

Such monstrous endurance...

But that thought quickly faded as something far more troubling became apparent.

Its aura—

Was still rising.

Emery could feel it clearly. The Chimera’s power had already surpassed its previous limit, pushing beyond what he could accurately measure.

It was still growing.

His expression darkened slightly as the realization settled in.

Could it reach the peak of the Three Cosmos realm?

Or worse—

Break into the Supreme realm?