33 Life-Ending Strikes (Part 2)

Chapter 34 33. Decapitation (Part 2)

Barbarus, northern mountains, the old stronghold.

Now.

.

The originally plain and sparsely decorated conference room had become incomparably luxurious. Though no additional decorations had been added, merely the man casually seated in the middle of the room made the simple conference room appear resplendent.

The man wore a white robe, with fine gold threads outlining the exquisite and elaborate patterns. However, from a distance, one could not discern the gold thread, only the shimmering golden light radiating from the white robe.

Numerous high-ranking officers crowded around the conference room, yet none dared approach the man. They merely gazed at him with respect and awe.

The man simply sat there, his eyes filled with kindness and sorrow, yet in an instant, they were filled with sternness and killing intent. His long, black hair was casually draped, yet it seemed as if a sculptor had spent a lifetime meticulously carving each strand.

The man's golden eyes seemed to pierce through the four walls of the room, through thousands of distances, directly piercing the highest peak in the distance.

Still not working?

The man, who had been as still as a verdant tree, suddenly moved. He reached out and grasped the sword in the scabbard at his waist.

+Transmit—

Wait?!

Barbarus, northern mountains, Alien Lord Nac'Lare's territory, the mountaintop.

At the same time.

.

Hades's vision blurred, large patches of black and green filling their sight.

As Hades's consciousness teetered on the very edge of the cliff, they saw Mortarion's swaying figure finally collapse under the immense pressure of Psychic Power and poison gas, dropping to one knee on the ground.

No... no...

It shouldn't be like this.

.

Then, Hades fell into a black hole of consciousness.

.

The instant Hades's last shred of autonomous consciousness vanished, the immense will to survive before death and the extreme unwillingness before unconsciousness caused the Null Field, which had been subconsciously compressed to the extreme, to explode instantly!

Before this, Hades's Null Field could not expand to its limit because their body was not strong enough. Forcing it to expand would have caused their body to collapse.

But now, the dying body subconsciously chose to go all out!

—This was a silent, massive explosion—

The enormous spherical Null Field suddenly enveloped the entire mountaintop. Unlike the thin, light black of the past when it expanded, the Null Field at this moment was of the most extreme pure black, as if not a single ray of light could escape its range. It ruthlessly devoured everything!

Alien Lord Nac'Lare instantly fell to his knees, blood spurting from his skin, like a ripe tomato being squeezed. His eyes bulged, and his left hand, which had been holding the scythe of annihilation, released the scythe and frantically clawed at his chest.

Mortarion, opposite him, also shuddered violently, clutching the scythe tightly with both hands. Blood also began to spurt from his seven orifices, slowly overflowing from his mouth.

The silent Null Field suppression seemed to last a long time, yet it also seemed to last only an instant.

As the Null Field slowly receded like the tide, the pure black Null Field gradually became transparent—

Mortarion, whose entire body had begun to rot away under the corrosion of the poison gas, stubbornly supported himself with the scythe, standing up in an incredible posture.

His face was covered in blood foam corroded by the poison gas, and his consciousness was attacked by the Null Field, swaying precariously on the cliff wall.

Mortarion felt as if he was desperately clinging to the cliff of consciousness with his fingernails to avoid immediately falling unconscious.

Mortarion hobbled along the ground, shuffling towards Nac'Lare, who was kneeling on the ground, clawing and vomiting blood.

He raised the scythe.

Nac'Lare seemed to wake up from a dream, his mouth wide open, looking up at the grim reaper whose shadow had already enveloped him.

No—no, no no!

Mortarion smiled.

The scythe fell.

That ridiculously laughable head slid down.

Seeing the alien head he had once loathed so much finally fall to the ground, Mortarion could no longer support himself and knelt on the spot.

With trembling hands, he raised his father's head until it was level with his own.

"I finally killed you, father."

He smiled happily, but the face with exposed white bones corroded by the poison gas could not quite manage a smile.

Then, using the last of his strength, he glanced in Hades's direction.

"Sorry, thank you."

"Bang!"

The Primarch's tall figure also fell.

Just as the Primarch fell, and as the Null Field completely dissipated, a burst of dazzling golden light flashed on the mountaintop.

The poisonous gas surrounding the summit was instantly dispelled by this golden light.

A tall and majestic figure slowly emerged from the golden light. The Emperor, adorned in his magnificent golden armor, the exquisitely crafted armor covered in vast yet microscopic patterns that seemed to kiss the lord of humanity.

Jet-black and smooth hair, with a golden olive wreath perched upon it, as if freshly picked from the tip of a morning treetop, delicate yet resilient.

The lord of humanity walked slowly to Mortarion's side. He knelt on one knee, embracing his poor, pitiful, and lamentable son.

He rose, Mortarion's tattered form leaning against the Emperor's body, unconscious.

A squad of Custodian Guard and Silent Sisters also stepped out from the golden light behind the Emperor, forming neat ranks.

The Custodian Guard, clad in ornate golden power armor, the towering red plumes atop their helmets danced proudly with their masters' movements, as if their mere presence here was the greatest act of mercy towards this defiled planet.

The Silent Sisters wore deep gray armor of the Oath, each sister's movements identical, the uniform clang of their armor echoing with every step.

The leading Silent Sister and Custodian Guard strode towards Hades's location.

The Silent Sister knelt down, closed her eyes, and focused her breathing.

Then, as if receiving an answer, she rose and gestured with a complex hand sign.

Upon becoming Silent Sisters, these left hands of the Emperor vowed to remain silent unless absolutely necessary. To replace speech, they used a dazzling form of sign language.

"My lord, it is an outsider."

The Custodian Guard's calm voice rang out. He drew his guardian spear, aiming it at the head of the dying Hades.

A brief pause.

The Custodian Guard seemed to be signaling his master, asking if he should eliminate this uncontrollable factor as he had done in the past.

"No."

"Take him back for treatment."

Just one chapter left, and the Barbarus arc will be over!

(/＼)

Happy reading ('ω')