Ancient Evil and the Giant Dragon

In the Anzeta Great Wasteland, at Dragon Blood Mountain, winter has already arrived in the the North, but the area around this majestic mountain remains sweltering.

"Roar--"

A deafening roar echoed across the sky as a massive Red Dragon tore through space, appearing atop the mountain amidst flames and thick smoke.

"Finally back."

Feeling that familiar sense of control, Keosius smiled contentedly, finally putting his mind at ease.

This is absolute security; within his own Empire Domain, even gods might not be able to do anything to him.

As the saying goes, "There's no place like home," and although North Aisel is full of magical energy, in his heart it can never compare to Anzeta, the place where he grew and thrived step by step.

After spending several months in the North Aisel Plains, Keosius finally returned to Anzeta, back to the Empire Domain he knew so well.

However, Keosius's return this time was not to reminisce about the past, but to deal with an extremely dangerous item that even he was not confident he could fully control— the Eye of Gruumsh.

Anything associated with a deity, even an object long since separated from its physical form, possesses power far beyond mortal imagination, so Keosius had to treat it with utmost caution.

Because he keenly sensed something: the power within the Eye of Gruumsh was gradually reviving!

From the pool of blood, where Divine Blood mingled in the legendary battle between Gruumsh and Corellon Larethian, was born Idiak Auridil, the "Elf-Eater," one of the infamous Three Ancient Evils.

This Ancient Evil lurks year-round in the mud of a forgotten layer of the Abyss, feeding on the spirits of Elf and plundering the Elven Kingdom multiple times throughout known history.

Only by fulfilling the condition of killing it as if it were a demigod in its original plane of existence can a mortal or a god truly kill Idiak-Auredir. Otherwise, it will always be reborn in the Abyss ten years later.

Even Greater God deities like the Storm God and the Elven God could not completely kill Him.

If the blood of a god can give birth to such a terrifying evil, then what about His eyes?

Therefore, Keosius had a conjecture that he was able to obtain this Greater God artifact so easily because he likely had the tacit approval of Moradin and Corellon.

In this Third Era, where the gods are isolated from the Material Plane, even Greater God find it difficult to demonstrate their might in the Material Plane. And once the Eye of Gruumsh is completely broken free of its seal, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Rather than wasting the lives of Dwarf and Elf to seal away the evil, it would be better to let our equally troublesome dragon deal with it. Perhaps this would even result in a fight between two tigers, where one of them would inevitably be injured.

However, this is just a baseless guess, since his identity has not yet been revealed, and the Embers of the Burned Empire is his own domain, which can protect him from all outside prying eyes.

Although this eye is only half-formed and was sealed away for many years by the powerful gods Moradin and Corellon, its power should not be underestimated.

In short, we must not let our guard down in the slightest.

"Let me see what kind of power the remains of Greater God deity can contain."

Keosius extended his dragon claw, inserted it into the Alternate Dimension prepared for him by his clone, and took out the half of the Eye of Gruumsh, holding it in his palm.

Sure enough, that power has revived!

"Aww—"

In an instant, an incredibly dense evil force surged forth like a tidal wave, and a dark fog of war permeated the surrounding space. The noisy and ear-piercing battle cries and wails echoed through the sky.

Red Dragon could feel the endless resentment pouring out, even washing over his mind.

Immediately afterwards, terrifying divine power from the realms of chaos, evil, war, strength, and hatred poured out, distorting everything around it like a terrifying black hole.

"This is."

Keosius looked around. The surroundings had transformed into a battlefield riddled with holes, filled with the stench of Gunsmoke and blood. Spears and battle axes were stuck in the ground, and the corpses of orcs, Elf, and Dwarf littered the area. It was a battlefield from ancient times! In that distant era, gods could still walk on the earth, and it was said that in that magnificent duel, the three gods, Gruumsh, Corellon, and Moradin, fought until the heavens and earth trembled.

That duel lasted for years, bringing terrible disaster to the world, and ended with Corellon blinding Gruumsh's left eye, resulting in the orcs' defeat.

"Waaah—"

A distant horn sounded, and the Red Dragon raised his head to see an orc deity looking down at him with disdain.

He was covered in heavy, crude black full-body armor, his figure was incredibly tall and imposing, and his whole body exuded an aura of evil and chaos. Behind that figure was a mottled sky interwoven with blood and black.

Even the Red Dragon could feel a strong sense of oppression on its shoulders; it was the suppression of a god-level life form.

Judging solely from his appearance and aura, his identity is already obvious— Gruumsh, the Orc God.

Since then, Gruumsh's has ruled the other orc gods with an iron fist. He is a terrible and cruel god who takes pleasure in war and is always seeking new territories for his race.

Under Keosius's gaze, the orc god slowly spoke, "Mortal, why do you not worship?"

The Red Dragon remained where it was, not paying its respects, but instead tilting its head and looking at the orc with an expression of curiosity.

Seeing no reaction from the other party, the orc god's face contorted with rage. He raised his spear and roared furiously, "Dragon! Do you know what kind of being stands before you?"

"Of course I know."

The orc was utterly astonished that the Red Dragon before him showed no fear whatsoever, simply saying, "Just a charlatan, a wicked god!"

"What? How could you?"

The orc "god"'s pupils suddenly dilated, and a look of panic appeared on his face.

Keosius continued to marvel, "Tsk tsk, no wonder it's an evil creature formed from the remains of a powerful god; it can actually create such a disguise."

The oppressive aura and divine power emanating from this person were so overwhelming that even I couldn't discern it; it was practically indistinguishable from God Avatar, except...

Keosius abruptly changed the subject, grinning menacingly, his voice turning into a roar, "This is the Embers of the Burned Empire!"

"Boom!"

The Red Dragon suddenly clenched its claws, and in an instant, countless spiderweb-like cracks appeared in the surrounding space, shattering with a crisp sound.

Whether it was the mottled sky or the magnificent ancient battlefield, they all vanished at this moment, turning into scattered mist.

The figure of the "Orc God" in the sky also became distorted, like a monster forcibly stitched together, seemingly about to disintegrate.

"Who gave you the audacity to play tricks on my turf!" Keosius suddenly raised his Dragon Wing and soared into the air.

The dragon crystal on the Red Dragon's chest emitted an incomparably dazzling light, Progenitor Dragon Blood, the Sun God Power, the power of order, and the chaotic flames within its body began to circulate rapidly, releasing a vast amount of energy.

An endless torrent of flames poured out from Keosius's body, becoming an extension of his limbs. His dragon body, originally sixty meters long, continued to expand, and in just a few breaths, it suddenly reached a length of over a hundred meters.

At the same time, Keosius activated his Empire Domain with full force, controlling the surrounding lightning, flames, air currents, and even the laws of spacetime.

At this moment, the Red Dragon was the god of this realm! The Red Dragon raised its head and roared, raising its forepaws, and countless raging fire dragons soared from the ground, attacking the orcs in the sky.

"Damn it! I am the Never-Sleeping One, the War Lord Gruumsh!" The orc roared to the sky, brandishing his spear and unleashing a powerful divine aura.

Clearly, he still wanted to make a final stand, hoping to intimidate the Red Dragon with the power he displayed.

But Keosius sneered, flapped his Dragon Wing, and stirred up a blazing gale powerful enough to shatter space itself.

"Do you know what that Orc God's most famous title is right now— The One-Eyed God!"

Without hesitation, Keosius spread his broad wings, carrying terrifying power, and swooped down from the sky, tearing through the heavens.

[Empire Domain: Outbreak]

[Empire Domain: Control]

This time, not only did flames, thunder, and light sweep in like a tsunami, but even the surrounding space was squeezed towards the orc. The shattered space was like sharp blades, piercing straight into the orc's body.

"Aww—"

A piercing shriek rang out, a sound filled with endless malice and resentment, enough to drive mortals mad just by hearing it.

The orc's figure became increasingly bizarre, with hundreds of eyes growing densely on its head, its arms and torso covered with eye sockets, exuding a chaotic aura.

This evil creature can no longer maintain Gruumsh form; its body is about to disintegrate, revealing its true form as Ancient Evil! It is hatred from ancient times, the most chaotic existence born from divinity, driven by the instinct of destruction!

At this moment, this ancient evil force is even infecting the Empire Domain, destroying the order established by Keosius, and attempting to corrupt Dragon Blood Mountain and even the entire Anzeta! "To deal with extreme chaos, only the purest order can prevail."

Looking at the increasingly ferocious and terrifying orcs, the Red Dragon did not panic. Instead, it pondered carefully. As it thought this, terrifying energy surged in its Base Blood Vessels, revealing scales that shimmered like roots.

The Red Dragon took a deep breath, feeling the flow of the power of order within its body. Then it opened its mouth, and silvery-white flames accumulated deep in its throat, radiating a brilliance like the sun in broad daylight.

[Orderly Breath]

In an instant, accompanied by the explosion of air, a stream of silvery-white flames poured out, streaking across the sky like a comet! "Boom!"

The silvery-white pillar of fire pierced directly through the thick black mist spewed out by the Ancient Evil and struck its true form, which was hidden behind the black mist.

The [Fire of Order] not only evaporated the moisture in the air, but also burned away the chaotic and evil aura emanating from the Ancient Evil, filling the surrounding space with order.

"Why!"

"Why are you making an enemy of me! Why are you binding me! I am the embodiment of Gruumsh, a mighty god, and all who oppose me—whether Elf, Dwarf, or dragons—will be destroyed!"

The piercing screams caused the space to shake and tremble, as if the world was about to collapse.

The silvery-white pillar of fire tore through the Ancient Evil's last disguise, and hundreds of tentacles covered in eyes burst through its skin, discarding the hide that resembled a burly orc.

Finally, a huge eyeball soaked in mucus burst out of the sac, its dark pupil filled with endless resentment. However, the eye was only half there, as if it had been neatly cut open with a knife.

The main body of this eyeball is hundreds of meters in diameter, and each tentacle is thousands of meters long. The tentacles grow on the eyeball, writhing and waving like countless pythons, almost covering the sky.

The tentacles were covered with countless eye sockets, with almost thousands of eyes on each tentacle, all staring venomously at the Red Dragon, making it look particularly eerie.

"Ignorant mortal, I will tear you to pieces! I am the Terminator of Everything, the Destroyer of Elf and Dwarf, the Avenger, the Gruumsh's Half Eye — Ivenis!"

A series of piercing screams rang out as evil cried out its true name, causing all things to tremble.

Every minute, every second, this evil creature exuded that forbidden aura from ancient times, polluting the surrounding space. If a mortal were to witness such a bizarre and grotesque sight, they would absolutely lose all their sanity and go insane on the spot.

These are the Ancient Evil, sealed, imprisoned, and restricted by the power representing the order of all worlds since ancient times. Once they are released, they will unleash monstrous evil and destruction, annihilating the world on which all races depend for survival and reproduction.

They are not gods, but they are equally immortal.

But as Keosius flapped his wings and gazed at the Ancient Evil in the distance that resembled the Eye Tyrant, the Dragon Face showed not fear—but disgust.

The Red Dragon frowned, its scales bulging, and couldn't help but exclaim, "This is fucking ugly! It's even more disgusting than the Fungus Lady I saw a couple of days ago."

Moreover, Keosius keenly sensed that this so-called Ancient Evil seemed to be much weaker than he had anticipated.

[Chaos Evil Eye-Ivanis (Challenge Rating: 28)]

In Keosius's eyes, the Ancient Evil at this moment was much weaker than the Red Dragon under normal circumstances.

Compared to Keosius, who was like a god in the Empire Domain, it was worlds apart, completely unlike the terrifying form it displayed.

"Does this mean it hasn't been fully reopened yet?"

Thinking of this, a mocking smile appeared on Keosius's Dragon Face: "So that's how it is."

This Ancient Evil truly mastered the art of bluffing. It must have unleashed all the remaining divine power of Gruumsh to create this overwhelming spectacle, yet its true form remained trapped within that half of the stone.

If anyone else were to encounter this situation, they would likely break down mentally when faced with the illusion of Gruumsh, giving this Ancient Evil a chance to escape.

"Since that's the case, then I'll let you witness the power of this 'mortal'."

The Red Dragon flapped its wings, stretched out its claws towards the sky, and with a swift grasp, a thousand-meter-long, shimmering crimson claw suddenly appeared in the sky, grabbing towards the main body of the evil creature's eyeball.

"Aww—"

Another mournful wail rang out as the Chaos Evil Eye exploded in mid-air, turning into wisps of black mist.