With a thought, the Sovereign Pipa appeared in Michael's hand. The Three-Star Epic treasure radiated a faint pressure that seemed to stir the surrounding air.

Michael did not hesitate. He immediately tossed it toward the Rank 4 Demonic Supernatural.

"Use it."

The Demonic Supernatural caught the instrument without question. Unlike Michael, who was relatively weakened and running on depleted mana reserves, the Demonic Supernatural still possessed enough power to fully utilize the treasure.

Michael's eyes remained fixed on the glowing palace. The Emperor had clearly prepared something. The man did not strike him as a coward, so Michael did not dare underestimate him, nor was he currently qualified to.

The problem was that Michael did not know the Emperor's plans.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, he did not need to wait long to find out.

AAAAARRRRGGGHHHHHH!!!

A horrifying scream suddenly erupted from within the palace. The sound echoed throughout the entire capital. Everyone froze. Cultivators. Soldiers. Nobles. Even Michael's undead.

The scream did not sound like a single person. It sounded like close to a thousand. Countless voices merged together into a single terrifying cry.

Michael's expression changed instantly.

KRAAAAABOOOOM!!!

The next moment, a pillar of bloody light erupted from the center of the palace. The protective formation trembled violently. Crimson energy flooded the heavens.

At the same time, an aura began rising. Growing stronger and stronger. The pressure rapidly climbed toward a terrifying level.

Michael's eyes remained narrowed. The aura felt familiar. Very familiar.

"It's the Emperor."

Meanwhile, feeling the aura coming from the palace, blood drained from the faces of countless spectators.

Michael remained focused on the Emperor's aura. It carried the Emperor's presence, yet it was also different. More violent. More chaotic. Very unstable. It was as though countless presences had been mixed together into a single existence.

KRAAAAABOOOOM!!!

The bloody pillar expanded again. The aura continued rising. Soon it approached Beginning's current level.

Michael immediately understood he could no longer keep waiting. Whatever the Emperor was doing, it could not be allowed to continue.

"Attack! Break it now!"

His voice thundered across the capital.

The moment the command left his mouth, Beginning moved. The giant's body rapidly expanded. Sixty meters. Seventy. Eighty. The surrounding air exploded as his terrifying physique loomed above the capital. Countless people looked up in horror.

The giant raised his fist.

Meanwhile, the Demonic Supernatural had already raised the Sovereign Pipa. The amount of mana entering it was far greater than anything Michael had previously supplied.

The strings immediately began trembling violently. The Demonic Supernatural's finger landed on the first string.

Shattering Pluck.

TWAAAAAAAAANG!!!

The sound exploded across the heavens. Unlike Michael's previous attacks, this was a Rank 4 existence wielding the treasure. The difference was immediately obvious. A concentrated sonic burst shot forward, appearing almost invisible. Only a thin line distorting reality itself marked its passage.

Then it struck.

KRAAAAABOOOOM!!!

The golden barrier shook violently. Countless runes exploded apart. Cracks instantly spread across the surface.

Far below, screams erupted throughout the capital while the bloody aura inside the palace fluctuated.

"Again!"

Michael roared. The Demonic Supernatural plucked the string a second time.

TWAAAAAAAAANG!!!

Another sonic burst erupted, even stronger than the first. The protective formation trembled violently. Entire sections of the barrier caved inward. The golden light dimmed.

At the same moment, Beginning attacked. His gigantic fist descended from the heavens. The world seemed to go silent for a fraction of a second.

Then, KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAABOOOOOOOOM!!!

The fist smashed directly into the weakened formation. The capital shook. Buildings collapsed. Shockwaves flattened entire districts. The protective barrier distorted dramatically. Thousands of cracks spread across its surface.

Inside the palace, the bloody aura suddenly surged again. Michael's expression immediately darkened. Not only had the attack failed to stop whatever ritual was occurring, it seemed to have accelerated it.

"Faster!"

Beginning attacked again. The Demonic Supernatural plucked another string.

TWAAAAANG!!! KRAAAAABOOOOM!!!

TWAAAAANG!!! KRAAAAABOOOOM!!!

The barrier trembled continuously. Chunks of golden light exploded away. Runes shattered as formation nodes collapsed. The entire capital watched in horror as the protection formation of the palace was slowly torn apart.

Yet despite the terrifying attacks raining down upon it, the bloody aura within the palace only continued rising. The pressure spreading from within was becoming increasingly suffocating.

Michael's expression darkened. This could not continue.

"Together!"

His voice echoed throughout the sky. Beginning moved immediately. The giant drew back his fist while the Demonic Supernatural simultaneously placed its fingers upon the first string of the Sovereign Pipa once more.

The heavens shook. The concentrated sonic burst tore through space itself. At the exact same moment, Beginning's fist descended. The two attacks landed simultaneously.

This time the protective formation could no longer endure. The already damaged runes shattered one after another. Entire sections of the barrier collapsed. Golden light exploded outward.

Then, KRAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

A gigantic crack spread from the center of the formation. For a brief moment, everything seemed to freeze.

Then the entire defensive barrier exploded.

KRAAAAAAAABOOOOOOOOM!!!

A storm of golden fragments swept across the capital. The palace grounds were finally exposed.

What everyone saw caused countless faces to pale. Michael's expression immediately changed.

The palace, or rather what remained of it, was devastation. The majority of the palace complex had already collapsed. Spread throughout the entire area were bodies. Hundreds of bodies. Men. Women. Children. Servants. Guards. The dead were everywhere. Blood covered the ground. It flowed through the ruins like rivers.

Even many of the empire's surviving experts outside the palace who had remained loyal until now stared in disbelief. The scene resembled a sacrifice. A massive sacrifice.

At the center of it all stood eleven figures. Or rather, eleven corpses. Their bodies remained standing despite being completely drained. Their skin had shrunk tightly against their bones. Their eyes were hollow. Their expressions were frozen in pain.

And standing amongst them was the Emperor.

He had returned to his human form. Blood-red veins covered his entire body. His black robes had long since disappeared. Crimson energy continuously flowed from the eleven corpses into him.

The surrounding space distorted from the pressure. The emperor's rising aura had now stabilized, though even then it seemed marginally stronger than Beginning beside him.