Ashen Dragon

The Beastman God's face twisted into a savage snarl when he saw the lack of response from his opponent. Raising the spear in his hand, he roared furiously: "Dragon! Do you know—what kind of being stands before you?!"

"Of course I know..."

The Beastman had not expected that the Red Dragon in front of him would remain utterly fearless, merely responding with: "Just a god-pretending, divine monstrosity!"

"What? How could you..."

The Beastman "God"'s pupils suddenly dilated, a flash of panic passing across his face.

Cassius continued wistfully: "Tsk tsk, no wonder a remnant corpse of a mighty deity transformed into a monstrosity can execute such exquisite mimicry.

The oppression of this divine status, the scent of divine power—so convincing that even I couldn't discern it. Almost indistinguishable from a divine incarnation, except..."

Turning his tone, Cassius bared his razor-sharp teeth in a grim smile, his voice morphing into a roar: "This is the Ashen Empire!"

"Boom!"

The Red Dragon clenched its claw fiercely, and instantly, dense web-like cracks spread across the surrounding space, accompanied by crisp noises as the space fractured.

The mottled celestial dome and the majestic ancient battlefield vanished in that moment, dissipating into scattered mist.

The "Beastman God" hovering in the sky twisted grotesquely, as if forcibly stitched together into a monster-like existence, seemingly on the brink of unraveling.

"Who gave you the audacity to play god on my territory!" Cassius suddenly raised his Dragon Wings and soared into the air.

The Dragon Crystal on the Red Dragon's chest emitted an incomparably dazzling radiance, as the Ancestral Dragon Blood, Sun God Power, Force of Order, and Chaos Flames within began rapidly circulating, unleashing a surge of overwhelming energy.

A torrent of endless flames surged out from Cassius's body, extending into his limbs, and within mere breaths, his sixty-meter dragon frame expanded abruptly to over one hundred meters.

At the same time, Cassius's [Imperial Region] was activated at full strength, exerting absolute control over the surrounding lightning, fire, airflow, and even the laws of space-time.

At this moment, the Red Dragon was the deity of this domain!

The Red Dragon raised its head and let out a furious roar, lifting its front claws, and countless frenzied fire dragons surged from the ground, rushing skyward toward the Beastman.

"Damn you! I am the Sleepless One, the War King, Gush!" the Beastman bellowed into the heavens, swinging his spear thunderously, unleashing an immense aura of divine power.

Clearly, he was making his final struggle, attempting to intimidate the Red Dragon with the force he exhibited.

But Cassius sneered coldly, his Dragon Wings sweeping forth, unleashing a blazing storm fierce enough to shatter space.

"Do you know the Beastman God's most notorious title nowadays?—the One-eyed God!"

Without hesitation, Cassius spread his broad wings, carrying an overwhelming might as he dove from the sky, slicing through the firmament.

[Imperial Region: Explosion]

[Imperial Region: Control]

Not only flames, thunder, and radiance surged like tidal waves, but the surrounding space also compressed toward the Beastman, fractured dimensions piercing his body like sharp blades.

"Aaargh—"

Ear-piercing screeches reverberated, laden with malevolence and hatred, sounds potent enough to drive mortals insane merely by hearing.

The Beastman's figure grew increasingly bizarre, hundreds of eyes sprouting from his head, his arms and torso riddled with eye sockets exuding chaotic energies.

The monstrosity could no longer maintain the form of Gush—the godly shape was disintegrating to reveal its true form as an Ancient Evil!

This monstrosity born of ancient hatred embodied the most chaotic and destructive instincts embedded in divinity!

At this moment, the ancient evil power began corrupting even the Imperial Region, eroding the order Cassius had established, attempting to taint Dragon Blood Mountain and all of Anzeta.

"To combat absolute chaos, one can only counter it with the purest order..."

Facing the increasingly nightmarish Beastman, the Red Dragon didn't falter but calmly pondered. The terrifying energy coursing through his vessels leaked out of his scales, resembling flickering root-like threads.

The Red Dragon inhaled deeply, feeling the Force of Order flowing within him, then opened his jaws, silver flames pooling in the depth of his throat, glowing with the brilliance of the sun breaking through.

[Order Returning Breath]

In an instant, accompanied by the explosion of air, the silver flames burst forth, streaking through the skies like a comet!

"Boom!"

The silver pillar of fire pierced the thick black fog spewed by the Ancient Evil, directly striking the true form hidden within the darkness.

The [Order Fire] not only evaporated moisture from the air but consumed the chaos and evil emanating from the Ancient Evil, infusing the surrounding space with order.

"Why!"

"Why stand against me! Why restrain me!

I am the incarnation of Gush, a mighty deity! All who oppose me—be they elves, dwarves, or dragons—will be obliterated!"

The piercing shriek shook space violently, trembling as if the world were on the verge of collapse.

The silver pillar of fire ripped apart the Ancient Evil's final disguise, hundreds of eye-studded tentacles bursting out of its grotesque Beastman-like shell.

Finally, a massive, mucus-drenched eye emerged from the husk, its pitch-black pupil brimming with boundless malice. However, the eye was cleaved in half, as if neatly sliced by a blade.

The eye's body had a diameter of a hundred meters, and each of its thousand-meter tentacles writhed like serpents, nearly obscuring the heavens.

The tentacles were covered with countless eye sockets, each sprouting thousands of eyes glaring venomously at the Red Dragon, a chilling sight to behold.

"Ignorant mortal, I will rend you apart!

I am the Terminator of All, the Destroyer of Elves and Dwarves, the Avenger, Gush's Half-Eye—Evnis!"

Layer upon layer of shrill screams resonated as the evil entity proclaimed its true name, inspiring terror in all creation.

Every moment, this Ancient Evil exuded an ancient forbidden aura, contaminating the surrounding space. Any mortal witnessing such bizarre scenes would surely lose their sanity and go mad.

This is the nature of the Ancient Evil, entities sealed, imprisoned, and constrained by the forces representing the world's order since ancient times. Once unleashed, they would wreak unthinkable havoc, annihilating the worlds where various races thrive and survive.

Their essence is not divine, yet they are immortal.

But Cassius, flapping his wings, looked at the Ancient Evil resembling an Eye Demon and showed no fear—instead, his face displayed disdain.

With furrowed brow scales, the Red Dragon muttered: "Seriously, this thing is grotesque as hell, even worse than the Fungus Lady I encountered the other day."

Moreover, Cassius keenly perceived that this so-called Ancient Evil appeared far weaker than he had initially estimated.

[Chaotic Evil Eye - Evnis (Challenge Level: 28)]

In Cassius's view, the Ancient Evil at this moment was even weaker than the Red Dragon in its normal state.

Comparatively, it was leagues beneath Cassius's divine stature within the Imperial Region, its terrifying appearance entirely misleading.

"Could it be... it hasn't fully unsealed yet?"

Realizing this, a mischievous smile spread across Cassius's dragon face: "So that's how it is..."

This Ancient Evil had taken the concept of "bluffing" to the extreme—it likely unleashed all the residual divine power of Gush to fabricate this intimidating display, yet its true form remained trapped within that half stone shard.

If anyone else had faced such a scenario, they might have succumbed to the illusion of Gush, allowing the Ancient Evil to seize freedom.

"Since that's the case, let me show you the strength of this 'mortal.'"

The Red Dragon swept his wings, extending his claw skyward and clenched it tightly. Instantly, an enormous, thousand-meter-long incandescent scarlet dragon claw materialized in the heavens, grasping toward the evil entity's enormous eye.

"Aaargh—"

Another agonized scream erupted as the Chaotic Evil Eye exploded midair, disintegrating into mists of black fog.