"Come forth, guards of the tomb! Destroy these insolent intruders who dare trespass in the forbidden zone!"
After steadying himself, Imhotep clutched the Book of the Dead and sneered inwardly.
As long as I don't offend the gods or provoke a power from the highest realm, I'm invincible!
In the underground palace, the orderly, marching footsteps of an army suddenly sounded from a corridor.
The Mummy Guards appeared in an endless stream.
They all wielded ancient weapons and shields, and were under the High Priest's command.
That wasn't all. One Sphinx after another came to life.
"Gather sand and take form! You, with the face of a man and the body of a divine lion, my servants, awaken!"
Whoosh...
But the mage still couldn't cast his spell fast enough. Uchiha Xiu used Earth Style: Subterranean Voyage, darting through the pyramid's layers of rock with the Byakugan's precise guidance. He moved as fast as a ghost.
A sharp rush of wind followed.
"Rasengan!"
The floor burst apart. A spiraling ball of chakra appeared in his palm, and without a second thought, he slammed it into the High Priest's face.
You were just giving me that sinister smile, weren't you?
Resistance met his palm.
The Black Book of the Dead in Imhotep's hand spewed forth deathly energy, which transformed into the enormous phantom of a demon god. It resembled Susanoo and possessed a certain degree of defensive power.
"Lava Release: Scorching Flame Rasengan."
The nature transformation of his Lava Release chakra immediately flowed from his palm into the deep-blue sphere. Uchiha Xiu had chakra to spare and didn't hesitate to pour it in.
Like a hot knife through butter, the phantom covering the lovesick High Priest shattered in great chunks!
Boom!
An explosion echoed through the underground arena beneath the central pyramid. The ground and walls trembled with the roar.
The shock wave from the blast and its scorching heat sent the entire ghostly figure flying.
"Bang!"
Beside him, Kaguya-hime gently swept out her palm, using Gentle Fist to snap the chains entangling Evelyn.
[You rescued Evelyn, the protagonist of The Mummy series. Reward: 1 C-rank bonus mission and 1,500 reward points!]
[Bonus mission activated: Escort Evelyn, O'Connell, and Jonathan safely out of the City of the Dead.]
[Mission complete. Reward: 2 C-rank bonus missions and 3,000 reward points.]
[Failure penalty: 2,000 reward points deducted for each death.]
The value Kaguya-hime had earned was smoothly inherited by her master, Uchiha Xiu.
At once, the Kamui eye installed in her forehead in place of the Three-Tomoe Sharingan activated.
Space rippled.
It sent their protected targets straight into her personal Kamui Dimension. These eyes could also protect noncombatants during team battles, preventing the East Sea Team from losing points if an enemy claimed their lives.
In a corner of the pyramid.
"..." O'Connell, the male lead.
Jonathan, his brother-in-law: "..."
The two stared at each other, unable to believe things had come to this. Yet another inhuman force had entered the fray.
Roar--!
The High Priest, still clutching the Black Book of the Dead and refusing to let go, crashed through one thick wall after another. He only managed to stop in front of the full statue of Sun God Ra, where he let out an instinctive roar.
With that furious cry, which sounded almost like a wail, the ghostly death energy quickly crumbled away, as if shedding flakes.
Still, he staggered back toward the altar, barely managing to fly.
The smell of roasting flesh wafted from his body.
His beloved's mummy and the canopic jars containing his internal organs were all here. The most devoted lover in ancient Egypt couldn't let himself be a coward.
That devotion had once moved Zheng Zha, captain of the Central Continent Team in another timeline, and earned his respect.
But as the times changed... devoted lovers became synonymous with simps, and were no longer considered human!
A certain Z, a creator from a higher dimension, had also transformed into a warrior, waging a chaotic battle on the forums against all manner of monsters and demons.
"Please, spare me! No, no, no! If you let Anck-Su-Namun go, I beg you, you can kill me."
After just one exchange, the mage's pride had been utterly crushed by Uchiha Xiu.
Outside the City of the Dead, they had traded two blows to see who was the stronger magical artillery platform.
Imhotep had been completely defeated!
And now, things were even worse.
If he hadn't been clutching the priceless Black Book, the High Priest couldn't help wondering if the power of the molten rock would have reduced his body to ashes.
"Eight Trigrams Palms: Heavenly Spin!"
Not far from the altar, Kaguya-hime stood guard at the entrance. She spun lightly, performing the Hyuga Main Family's advanced secret technique.
A blue hemisphere took shape!
It was an "absolute defense" that repelled physical attacks.
Now, it ground to dust the waves of undead guards rushing toward it, along with the enormous Sphinxes.
Dust filled the air. The immortal magic sustaining them rapidly evaporated as chakra struck.
"Imhotep, begging for a woman is an ugly sight."
"And I despise seeing you kneel for lack of strength."
Protected by his Lava Release Chakra Cloak, Uchiha Xiu opened his Mangekyo Sharingan and murmured inwardly:
I must pursue greater power, and never let myself sink to such a humiliating state. I will never again let myself cower and run, as I did before arriving in Main God Space.
"If you won't let her live, then we'll die together!!!"
A roar came from the front.
Yellow sand blotted out the sun. Hamunaptra, the ancient City of the Dead, trembled as dark death energy surged up from deep beneath the earth.
The Black Book of the Dead floated above the altar. Its yellowed pages opened on their own, and obscure ancient Egyptian incantations slowly flowed across them.
Imhotep, charging forward for love, stood at the center of the magic circle. The black power of the undead and the energy of the city's ley lines tightly enveloped his seared body.
The endless resentment of Cairo poured into him as well.
Imhotep's body, scorched by Lava Release, rapidly swelled and grew. Dark incantations spread across his bronze skin, bone spurs burst through his flesh, and the immense force tore apart his robes!
In an instant, a hundred-meter-tall undead giant stood in the underground altar hall.
Its enormous, withered face twisted in a savage grimace, and black flames of the underworld surged in its hollow eye sockets.
"Now this is getting interesting."
His scarlet Sharingan turned, and a dazzling golden Susanoo appeared. Armor formed over its body, and in an instant, a solid, brilliant Beast-Swallowing Bright Light Armor covered it.
Boom--
Scalding magma surged and solidified into a massive shield on its left arm. Flames roared across it, evaporating the surrounding undead energy.
The fingers of his right hand curled into a fist. The Mangekyo's power surged from his right eye and interwove with crackling lightning, forming a long spear wrapped in purple thunder.
Arcs of lightning burst from its tip, tearing through the barrier of deathly energy!
"..." Imhotep looked up at the divine general from the East and swallowed, overwhelmed by despair.
Getting desperate wouldn't help.
How could he fight and still have a chance of surviving?
The next moment, the High Priest, transformed into a hundred-meter-tall undead giant, swung his fist down. He struck with brute force that lacked even the confidence to back it up.
Uchiha Xiu's mind stirred, and he calmly guided Susanoo to block.
The lava shield dipped slightly, and its wall of flames immediately tore apart the wave of deathly energy.
The damage was no worse than when Danzo had tried to stab Sasuke's Susanoo with a Kunai in the original Naruto storyline.
Before Imhotep could even cry out, Uchiha Xiu thrust his right arm forward. The lightning spear easily pierced the giant's undead body.
Rumble!
Lightning flashed and thunder roared. The frenzied lightning exploded inside the body, and its rotting flesh, cursed markings, underground yin energy, and countless spirits visibly disintegrated.
Then they were transformed into high-quality Yin Release Chakra, absorbed from a distance by his right eye.
"Hmm, my ocular power is increasing."
"I haven't used anything up. I've actually gained something. I really am the undead's natural enemy."
There was no fierce struggle, no evenly matched fight—just a complete, crushing rout!
The lovesick High Priest's furious helplessness amounted to nothing more than a brief burst of anger.
"In front of these eyes, victory is only to be expected."
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