Ex rank talent Awakening: 100\% Dodge rate-Chapter 197 - : DEMON WAVE IX
"Grey Empire Imperial Technique, Heaven's Fall," Brian said calmly, his eyes fixed on the approaching horde of hundreds of demons, his voice steady like a declaration of fate.
[Grey Empire Imperial Technique: Heaven's Fall. Created by the first emperor of the Grey Empire, Emperor Grey, during the '#+$!(## battle before he ascended to godhood.
Cuts a little big miniature sun, causing it to fall and lay waste to the area around it (upgrades as your strength increases). It is an improved technique with no drawbacks. The lethality of the attack can be reduced, and it does not harm those deemed as allies. Cooldown: 6 hours.]
The world-defying skill was activated once more. Unlike the first time, where it had manifested merely as a miniature sun, this time there was more weight to it—a little big was added to it. The technique had grown along with his strength stats, increasing its size and intensity.
The illusion of a sun, split in two, materialized high above the battlefield, hanging in the sky like a divine judgment before it began its descent. In an instant, it crashed downward, swift and devastating, as though the heavens themselves were slamming shut.
A blinding white light was the first to engulf the battlefield. Every single being instinctively shut their eyes from the searing brilliance—except the Emperor, the Marquis, the Commanders, and Elizabeth. They stared directly into the oncoming force, their eyes wide in grim understanding.
Next came the sound—the roar of the explosion—an ear-splitting, supersonic boom that sent powerful shockwaves in every direction. Dust, wind, and debris rippled outward like a storm unleashed by a wrathful god.
Every demon from the fourth wave was utterly annihilated. Not a trace remained—not a limb, not a shriek, not even ash. It was total.
"Hah! It's been a while since you used that move," Chris laughed heartily. He sat comfortably in the center of the newly formed crater, his posture relaxed, as if he hadn't just witnessed a cataclysmic attack. He acted like it was just another sunny afternoon.
[Congratulations! The Fourth Demon Wave Has Been Completed.]
[Prepare for the Fifth Wave…]
The system notification echoed through the battlefield, heard only by the last two remaining players.
Brian stared upward. From the depth of the crater, the sky was out of view. The hole he had carved into the earth was deeper than he had expected. "Need help going up? Hold my hand," Chris said, extending his arm cheerfully. He looked excited, even giddy, like someone about to witness something truly entertaining.
He knew Brian better than anyone. To others, Brian might seem kind—naive, even. But Chris had seen the monster beneath the kindness, the part of Brian that emerged only when cornered. Cold. Merciless. Void of hesitation. It had happened before—when Brian discovered the truth about his parents' involvement in Chris's accident.
Brian had been the one who forced their arrest. He had been the driving force behind the investigation, the one who pushed for their execution for conspiracy to commit murder. That was the kind of person Brian became when pushed too far. And now, it seemed, the Empire had pushed him there once more.
Emperor Augustus watched the battlefield from the safety of the ramparts. His eyes scanned the obliterated landscape and the gaping crater that now scarred the land. He recognized the technique. Of course he did. As emperor, he had mastered every imperial technique passed down through the generations. And yet… this version was beyond even his understanding.
The scale of Brian's destruction disturbed him deeply. It surpassed anything he had seen before. Not even he—nor any emperor since the founding—had ever caused such devastation. Only one had: the legendary Emperor Grey himself.
In that moment, Augustus reassessed Brian. No longer a mere pest who could be squashed at his leisure—Brian had become a threat. A dangerous foe capable of toppling the very empire. He didn't know whether Brian had gone all out or not, but the power he had displayed could level an entire city.
Worse, Augustus was right to worry—because Brian hadn't even used the technique at its full potential. The system had automatically reduced its range and lethality to avoid harming unintended targets. The technique had identified only the demons as enemies, and thus restrained itself. Even so, the crater was deeper and more devastating than the second time Brian had used it.
The Emperor knew what he had to do. Plans and calculations whirred in his mind. Brian could not be allowed to live. Not if the empire was to survive.
Commander Harold watched with open resentment. He didn't bother hiding it. He believed with every fiber of his being that Brian didn't deserve such power. That belief had now fermented into hatred. The war commander, standing beside him, had reached the same conclusion as the Emperor: Brian had to be eliminated, and quickly.
They had all seen it. Brian's strength was now too dangerous to ignore.
Elizabeth, meanwhile, stared at Brian with something far more complicated than envy. She remembered vividly how she had once saved that pitiful, powerless man from a group of bandits. And now, he had surpassed her by an overwhelming margin.
She wasn't jealous. She couldn't be. But shame curled in her stomach like a coiled serpent. She was ashamed of herself—for falling behind, for not growing stronger. Brian had risen, and she felt left behind in the shadow of his ascent.
"Embrace the coldness in your heart."
Kodiac's words echoed in her mind, like a forgotten warning resurfacing. She had resisted that advice for so long, but now her last defense was crumbling.
She felt it then—a surge of strength awakening from within. The air around her grew subtly colder, a contrast to the blazing aftermath of the sun-like technique. Her lips paled, the early signs of frostbite creeping in. Strands of her hair, one by one, began turning white. But no one noticed. The oppressive heat that lingered from Brian's attack masked the creeping chill that began to radiate from her.
Brian took Chris's hand, and together they teleported to the surface above.
With calm, steady purpose, Brian began walking toward the castle gate. Each of his steps echoed across the silent field, his presence too commanding to be ignored. The Emperor. Elizabeth. The war commander. Commander Harold. Every knight—every eye—was locked on him, unable to look away.
They wondered what he would do next.
Brian ignored them all. He was used to being watched, used to the weight of attention. Ever since childhood, eyes had followed him. Judged him. Feared him.
He stopped exactly two hundred meters from the castle gate. Then, his voice rang out cold and clear, devoid of warmth:
"Open the gate, or I will do so myself."
Gone was the kind, reasonable Brian. In his place stood a man whose patience had run dry.
Silence followed—an oppressive, suffocating silence. No one moved. No one dared speak. His audacity was shocking. His arrogance, unthinkable. But fear gripped their hearts, and none were foolish enough to test him.
Brian waited. A full minute passed. Still, nothing. No movement. No signal from within the gate.
It was clear.
The Emperor had made his decision.
"So you've chosen, then?" Brian muttered. His voice dropped an octave, no longer seeking permission, only sealing fate.
"Then you leave me no choice."
