Chapter 173: The First-Generation Rulers
"Are you alright?"
Ariel, noticing Gulie's unusual demeanor, spoke up to ask.
"I'm fine. I just thought of an old friend and some past events."
Hearing Gulie's words, Ariel did not press further, merely patting his back a few times to offer comfort.
In Ariel's eyes, this guy had never been good at expressing his emotions from beginning to end, let alone at his current age.
"Leave this place to Dustin and me. You guys go do what you need to do."
The outcome of the great human-demon war was already a foregone conclusion. Unless the Evil God personally intervened, no one could change this result.
Rather than standing here and staring blankly, it was better to head over early to prepare for conquering the system.
"Are you sure?"
Shirazawa raised an eyebrow, pointing toward Sophia, who was gradually growing frenzied in the middle of the battlefield.
A Vampire Progenitor with completely maxed-out stats possessed combat power that had already surpassed that of the previous Demon Lord Ariel, even showing faint signs of stepping into the Divine Realm.
Shirazawa was already starting to get a headache over how to discipline this yandere lolita in the future.
The thought of a yandere divinity emerging was simply terrifying.
Liking a yandere is one thing; a yandere liking you is an entirely different story.
He was currently worried that this girl might lack a filter in her brain and stir up some irremediable mess.
"No matter. I am, after all, the man who defeated the Vampire Progenitor. Do not underestimate the strength of the true Dragon Race."
Since the other party had put it that way, Shirazawa shrugged helplessly.
"Leest, you guys stay on the battlefield to remain on guard as well. By the way, I'll give you a task: don't let Yuri die. I've grown used to using her, and I'm too lazy to swap her out for another tool."
The massive alternate dimension portal swung open, and Shirazawa released the members of the Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Armies.
"Uh... Master, are you sure I can beat Sister Sophia?"
Leest cradled Kuromaru, looking at Shirazawa with a thoroughly troubled face. Clearly, she didn't quite believe she was up to the task.
"It's fine. Just do your best."
Shirazawa waved his hand dismissively.
With his Holy Grail acting as a medium, he could rescue the Saint Yuri at any moment. Assigning the task to Leest was merely a precaution.
"Alright then." Leest reluctantly accepted the task.
"Oh, right."
Before leaving, Shirazawa warned everyone, "If the system truly collapses, you individuals who carry a massive number of skills will definitely be the most affected. If you aren't careful, even your souls might collapse."
*Snap~*
He casually snapped his fingers, and an Anti-Magic Barrier expanded, enveloping everyone.
"This thing is still the most useful."
"Just stay inside the barrier. Once the magic is shielded, the impact you suffer will be reduced to the absolute minimum."
"Thank you, Lord Mistress!"
"Thank you, Lord Mistress!" xN
White One was the first to bow and kneel in gratitude, and the white-robed army behind her promptly followed suit.
The corner of Shirazawa's mouth twitched twice. Pretending he hadn't heard a thing, he chose to ignore it completely. Dragging Shiraori and Ariel along, he hurriedly fled this awkward situation.
Dustin, Gulie, and the others couldn't help but chuckle. At the same time, they exchanged glances, smiling as they shook their heads.
...
The deepest depths of the Great Elroe Labyrinth.
Sariel, who was right on the verge of shattering, was bound in the void. Her lower body had long since vanished, looking as if she had merged into one with the void.
Spatial ripples manifested, and the three of them stepped out from within.
"Goddess Sariel, we will be reunited very soon."
Ariel reached out to gently caress the Goddess's cold cheek, her eyes brimming with tenderness and pity.
In the past, the Goddess had been surrounded by children of all shapes and sizes. Although they were mischievous, those days were filled with warmth.
Those children later became the First Hero, the First Saint, the Rulers, the Beast King, and the King of Demagogues.
Every single one of them possessed spectacular talent.
Only she, Ariel.
She was merely a sickly weakling who spent her days barely surviving on intravenous drips.
She had originally thought she would be the very first to bid farewell to everyone, yet she had actually lived to the very end, becoming completely solitary.
One could only say that life was truly unpredictable.
Shiraori gently pulled Ariel into her embrace, comforting her lonely heart.
"You aren't alone now. You still have us."
"Mm, I know."
Ariel bit her crimson lip slightly, offering a faint smile as she buried her head deeper, enjoying the softness Shiraori provided.
"Damn, why do I feel like I'm a bit superfluous here?"
Shirazawa couldn't stand the yuri atmosphere between the two of them, turning around to begin deciphering the core hub of the system.
To modify the database on the server, the best method was to acquire the administrator password.
The fourteen Ruler Skills were the keys to obtaining the administrator password.
They only had twelve keys on hand, lacking two.
Therefore, they could only resort to brute-force decryption.
Accompanied by Shirazawa's aggressive intrusion, the system immediately sounded a warning.
*Beep! Beep! Beep!*
[Intrusion of unidentified energy detected. System will initiate anti-virus protocols...]
[...Protocols successfully initiated. Objective: Eliminate intruders.]
In the next instant, space collapsed, and the three of them fell straight into an unknown dimension.
Aside from a blank expanse of pure white, fourteen pitch-black shadows stood towering before them.
"So, you guys were here all along."
Ariel seemed to recognize the origins of these shadows, murmuring to herself:
"The shadows of the first-generation Rulers. I was wondering why I couldn't find your reincarnations anywhere; as it turns out, you were dragged here to act as gatekeepers."
Shirazawa crossed his arms, looking at those shadows with great interest, and then cast a slightly inquiring glance toward Ariel.
"So, we can't destroy them?"
"On the contrary."
Ariel understood her brothers and sisters better than anyone.
She knew very well that if these shadows could speak, they would definitely be saying: "Kill us, and save Goddess Sariel at all costs."
The children's obsession and conviction were identical.
After so many years of effort and pouring in so much blood and sweat, the heavy burden had ultimately fallen onto Ariel's shoulders. She absolutely could not fail her family's expectations.
Therefore, even if the figures before her were her own close friends, siblings, and brothers-in-arms.
Ariel still decided to destroy these shadows.
She slowly shifted her gaze to Shirazawa, revealing a faint smile.
"If we eliminate these shadows, the system will be liberated, correct?"
Shirazawa and Shiraori exchanged a glance, subsequently nodding heavily in unison.
"Correct." x2
"In that case, let me bring things to a definitive end."
Receiving their confirmation, Ariel took a step forward, her entire being arriving in an instant.
At the exact same time, those fourteen shadows of various shapes and sizes also unleashed their respective Ruler Skills one after another.
The weakening effect of
All sorts of negative debuffs fell upon Ariel in rapid succession, causing her entire body to stiffen as her speed violently plummeted.
Yet with only these, it was still impossible to halt Ariel's advance.
"Rest in peace, everyone!"
Carrying a crushing, majestic pressure, Ariel slammed a fist forward, as a majestic wave of energy surged violently.
*Boom—!*
A deafening roar echoed.
Standing at the very front, the shadow capable of deploying an absolute barrier,
The remaining shadows were also affected one after another, blown back hundreds of meters away.
However, the power of fourteen Rulers striking simultaneously was far more than just this.
The effect of
The effect of
In the next second, the combat power of
Their bodies were all protected by
The most troublesome one was
"Tsk~ I never realized in the past that these guys were this troublesome."
Ariel fell into an unprecedentedly hard battle.
Shirazawa heavily suspected that the abilities of these shadows had been quietly buffed by D. Otherwise, Ariel's very first punch just now would have ended the battle; it would have been impossible for her to fall into a war of attrition afterward.
Perhaps, this was D's interview assessment for Ariel.
Considering this point, Shirazawa stopped Shiraori, who was preparing to step forward to help, signaling her to remain calm.
On a whim, he pulled out a bag of melon seeds, leisurely sitting down to watch the show.
"Give me some too."
"Here~"
The two heartless fellows began to spectate just like that, even cracking melon seeds while chatting.
"Who do you think will win this match?" Shiraori asked after cracking a melon seed.
Shirazawa pondered for a moment before speaking, "If Ariel hasn't hidden her strength, she will probably lose."
"Huh?" Shiraori widened her eyes. "But, she's already a Mid God."
"Sigh~ an Ariel who has just stepped into the Mid God tier only knows four Authorities, while her opponents are fourteen Authority-wielders."
"This..."
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