Arch-enemy? Just a Clown!

While Isaac was vigorously pursuing development on his end, the atmosphere in the inner hall of the Terra Empire's Imperial Capital was unusually solemn.

There were only six people in the inner hall: the First Prince seated at the head, and standing on either side were Sarode Felman, commander of the Royal Mage Corps; Grand Arcanist Mensa Barlow, leader of the Stargazing Tower; Ilis Fischel, commander of the Royal Knights; Prime Minister Constantine Calvin; and Grand Princess Filo.

Of the six people in the inner hall, aside from Grand Princess Filo, the other five could be said to be the true holders of power in the Terra Empire.

After all, most powerhouses above Tier 4 were seeking opportunities to advance further. Most of them had little desire for authority. They merely did not hold power; whenever the Empire needed them, they would still swiftly mobilize.

For example, the recent battle for the godhead in the Endless Sea.

Thus, the grave expressions on the faces of these five people made it clear that the Empire had truly encountered trouble this time—major trouble!

Unlike others, although rumors of the Empire's crisis were spreading wildly outside, many people merely treated them as entertainment. They did not believe the Empire would perish over this, including those stirring up sentiment from behind the scenes.

After all, the Emperor's reputation as a demigod had been forged through slaughter, piled atop countless corpses!

Among them were even two gods: one Outer God and one true god!

One had to know, how old was the Emperor?

Such a formidable record already rivaled that of many veteran demigods.

Therefore, whether inside or outside the Empire, few believed this was truly an imperial crisis.

But the six people present were different, because compared to everyone else, they knew one extremely important piece of information—the Emperor's Fated Death!

As long as the Emperor remained, the Empire would naturally be safe and sound. No matter how great the difficulty, they believed the Empire would emerge unscathed. That was the confidence the Emperor had given them.

But what if the Emperor was gone?

It was too terrifying for them to even contemplate!

Yet what was even more terrifying was that it was real!

And no one knew when it would arrive!

The Emperor had only foreseen that he would die. When he would die and what he would die from remained unknown.

The only thing they could roughly infer was that after his death, Isaac would still be Tier 3 and would not have broken through to Tier 4. In another of his prophecies, the Terra Empire was destroyed by Isaac, then a High Wizard, leading an enormous army of monsters!

Though that future might not be real, and even if it was real, it could still be changed. Yet it could still be inferred that by then, the Emperor must already have died—and died beyond any possible return.

Otherwise, Isaac would never have acted.

They had conducted extensive investigations into one of the Empire's only two Mad Witches. They understood that although Isaac had done many insane things, he was actually a very cautious, patient, and intelligent person.

And an intelligent person like that would not act rashly.

That was the key reason they were all so nervous.

Because Isaac was already a High Wizard...

And he had advanced some time ago. Though the High Wizard stage differed from the previous ranks—the more talented one was, the longer one remained in that realm—the Mad Witch could not be judged by common sense...

Who knew whether he might once again quickly advance to Tier 4, just as he had before?

So in truth, the Empire did not have much time left.

And it was very likely that this summoning incident involving the Lord of Myriad Flesh was it!

Demigods truly did not fear gods, and the Emperor had even slain two gods. But all of that had one prerequisite—they had to fight one-on-one!

And this clearly was not a one-on-one fight, so the Emperor might very well fall at the hands of the Lord of Myriad Flesh...

Even more troublesome was that although they had prepared contingency plans for this long ago, when it truly came before them, they were still at a loss.

Because this matter was simply too enormous.

The only way for the Empire to safely survive this incident was for it to produce another demigod!

But...

Mensa and the others quietly glanced at the First Prince at the head and Grand Princess Filo at the end, sighing inwardly. There was still too little time...

Whether the First Prince or the Grand Princess, both could be said to possess the potential to become demigods!

Given enough time, they would become demigods sooner or later, perhaps even faster than the Emperor had back then!

After all, one was a Mad Witch. Every Mad Witch possessed nearly limitless potential. So long as they did not die, becoming a demigod was practically guaranteed. Of course, more Mad Witches died halfway through, but the potential was unquestionably there.

As for the other...

Though his own talent was somewhat inferior to that of the original owner, he had, after all, seized the boundless authority. Combined with the Terra Royal Family's resources, there could be said to be no obstacles on his path to demigodhood.

But...

It was still the same issue—time!

Merely fusing with the boundless authority had taken a great deal of time. His cultivation speed was indeed extremely fast after the complete fusion, but he was still only a High Knight. He remained unimaginably far from becoming a demigod!

After all, for a knight to receive the title of demigod, they had to be at least Tier 6! (Note: Tier 3 High, Tier 4 Miracle, Tier 5 Legendary.)

There were still two entire major ranks between them. That gulf was not so easily crossed.

Originally, the godhead from the battle for the godhead had been the closest thing to success in their plans. Though true gods could no longer interfere with the real world as freely as demigods as time passed, they would at least not be affected in the near future. That would have bought the First Prince and Grand Princess enough time to grow.

Unfortunately...

In the end, all their efforts had come to nothing!

The godhead had been snatched away by an unknown Tier 4 powerhouse...

And it had been taken in that troublesome place, the Endless Sea, leaving them with every means at their disposal but nowhere to use them...

It gave them the inexplicable feeling that the Terra Empire was being targeted by fate itself...

Casting a shadow over their hearts...

"Whew~"

Just as the six people in the inner hall were weighed down with worry, a breeze swept past. A figure shrouded in golden light suddenly appeared in the inner hall, standing with his hands behind his back as he gazed out the window.

Beneath the golden radiance none could see through, his face was utterly calm.

As if the one about to die was not himself.

"Your Majesty! (Father!)"

The instant the figure appeared, the six people in the inner hall rose at once, dropped to one knee, and saluted respectfully.

Yes, the one who had appeared was the Terra Empire's strongest being—the Terra Emperor!

His strength was so extreme that although he was a knight, he had stepped into the mysterious domain of wizards and concealed even his true name. Thus, despite being a demigod who had risen only recently, no one remembered his true name. They only knew that he was the Emperor of the Terra Empire...

However, the stronger the Emperor was, the greater the impact his fall would have on the Terra Empire...

"Rise. There is no need to worry so much. Let nature take its course. Believe in yourselves, and believe in the Empire." With his hands behind his back, the Emperor looked out the window and smiled.

Hearing this, they hesitated before rising from the ground, their gazes upon the Emperor still carrying traces of concern.

Clearly, the worries in their hearts could not be dispelled by just a few words.

Though the Emperor had not turned to look at them, he understood what they were thinking. He could only smile helplessly, then turn around and calmly look at the First Prince and Grand Princess Filo.

"I am not trying to comfort you. The Empire will not cease functioning without me. Perhaps my presence has been too overwhelming, causing you to forget that while only a nation with a demigod may be called an Empire, the Empire existed long before me."

"But..." Yet neither the First Prince nor Filo showed any joy at the Emperor's reassurance. Instead, sorrow appeared on their faces, because the man before them was their father!

In a world where extraordinary power belonged to the individual, most kings and emperors actually had fairly harmonious relationships with their children, because there was one very obvious standard for whether one could ascend to the throne—strength.

If someone lacking sufficient strength was forcibly placed on the throne, they would only die sooner.

Thus, their relationship was actually quite good. Filo in particular had even deeper sorrow in her eyes.

Though outsiders claimed that her relationship with the Emperor was poor, that was merely a smokescreen they had released. If their relationship were truly bad, why would the Emperor have given her the Emperor Token?

Yet it was precisely because of the Emperor Token that Filo felt even more guilty. No matter how she looked at the current situation, the Emperor's death seemed to have an enormous connection to her...

At the very least, if the Emperor truly died in this siege by the Lord of Myriad Flesh, then in terms of assigning responsibility, Filo would deserve first place!

It could not be helped. The Emperor Token was convenient to use, but its commotion was simply too great. Once it was used, the other side would know who was responsible. Everything in this world had long been secretly marked with a price, and now, the time had come to pay it back...

Moreover, the Outer Gods the Lord of Myriad Flesh could summon might not be limited to those who had endured the backlash through the Emperor Token. Those who had never encountered the Emperor Token, or had never traded with her, but had traded with other Mad Witches—such as a certain Mad Witch surnamed Solomon—might also join in.

It was simple. Normal Mad Witch rituals were protected by the Legendary Gate, so a Mad Witch's personal information was generally difficult for Outer Gods and their churches to detect.

But that protection was limited to the two parties in the transaction.

The Outer Gods Isaac had cheated might be unable to investigate—or even perceive—Isaac's information, but Filo's information was unaffected. If They learned of this, there was a high chance They would join the Lord of Myriad Flesh in besieging the Emperor!

If they could not deal with Isaac, could they not deal with you?

It could be said that the more freely Filo had used the Emperor Token back then, the more she regretted it now.

Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regret in this world. By the time she realized the price of the Emperor Token, it was already too late.

"All right. You are my proudest son and daughter. How can you wear such expressions?" The Emperor looked at the First Prince and admonished, "Though you have already completely fused with the boundless authority, you must remember never to slack off in your cultivation. You and Caesar will fight one day. No one can stop that."

As he said this, the Emperor also glanced at Mensa and the others. Their expressions turned solemn, and they all nodded, putting away some of their private thoughts.

"Yes. I will definitely not disappoint you, Father!" The First Prince nodded seriously.

The Emperor said nothing, merely shook his head. If the First Prince only held onto the thought of not disappointing him, he might not be Caesar's match. After all, even after having his authority stolen, that child had still reached Tier 3 first despite inferior resources.

He could seize Caesar's authority, but he could not seize Caesar's talent.

Unfortunately, Fated Death had left him far too little time. Otherwise, he would not have taken such an extreme path and planted such a major hidden danger for the Empire...

He was not some foolish Emperor with no tolerance for others!

Unfortunately...

After addressing the First Prince, the Emperor's gaze fell upon Filo, who was mired in self-blame, and he sighed softly inwardly.

If there was anyone he had wronged most, it was surely this eldest daughter of his...

"You need not blame yourself so much. I saw Fated Death before you were even born. I personally arranged for you to become a Mad Witch. I had long anticipated today's situation, and this was also the result I chose. Filo, remember this: the most terrifying thing in this world is always the unknown. So compared to the completely unknown Fated Death, at least I have the ability to resist the future where I am besieged to death by Outer Gods!"

As he spoke, the Emperor reached out and stroked Filo's head.

"Could it be that you?!" Filo raised her head in surprise to look at the Emperor, then laughed self-mockingly. "Of course. How could a true powerhouse be willing to bow to fate? Compared to a true powerhouse, I really am still far too lacking..."

Watching Filo fall into gloom again, helplessness flashed through the Emperor's eyes. Perhaps this was the only thing he still could not let go of...

Being born in the same era and the same nation as a Mad Witch like Isaac was undoubtedly an exceedingly tragic thing...

"Take it slowly. There is no need to rush. Remember, if I fail to survive this Fated Death, then completely abandon the path of the Mad Witch. You are no longer suited for this path."

Though saying this would deal Filo an even heavier blow, the Emperor still said it, because the words might be harsh, but they were the truth.

Through this chain of events, Filo's spirit had already been completely shattered. If she, in this state, continued trading with those old foxes among the Outer Gods, she would be devoured without even scraps remaining!

In any case, with the foundation she now possessed, she already had the potential to become a demigod. There was no need for her to keep risking her life.

"All right, Father."

Just as the Emperor had expected, Filo showed not the slightest unwillingness toward this arrangement. Instead, she nodded as though it were only natural.

Mensa, who had taken in this sight, sighed softly to himself. What a pity. Time had ultimately not been on their side. Under his guidance, Filo had nearly cast off Isaac's influence and become a true Mad Witch. Unfortunately...

"All right. I have said all that needs to be said. I am going to prepare for battle. Go do what you need to do. Rest assured, if I die, the Empire will certainly be thrown into chaos for a time, but it will not fall. Have more faith in the Empire."

After saying that, another breeze abruptly stirred through the inner hall, and the Emperor's figure vanished without a trace.