The Beginning of Destruction, the Herald

"Retreat! Evacuate immediately!!"

Gazing at this scene that defied their common sense, the knights scrambled to retreat. The city, larger than a mountain range, slowly rose, the dust it kicked up obscuring the sun. Though its immense size made the movement seem incredibly slow, the overwhelming sense of oppression it exuded was impossible to ignore.

Elsewhere, similar scenes were unfolding. Although the armies dispatched by various countries had no communication with each other, they all sensed each other's presence through experience and intuition. Faced with this almost catastrophic situation, no one could remain calm.

The roar grew louder, dust settled, and the earth trembled. Even the well-trained warhorses could not withstand the fear and turned back to where they had come from, while the knights lay prone on the ground, closing their eyes to endure the terrible, raging sandstorm. Everyone prayed silently, waiting anxiously, for no one knew what would happen next.

It seemed like a long time had passed, yet it also seemed like very little time had gone by; the roaring sound finally gradually subsided.

"Cough, cough."

The knight commander waved away the dust from his face and hair, rubbed his eyes, and stood up.

"Everyone report in: Is everything alright?"

"Sir, there are no problems."

After quickly ascertaining the number of people and general situation on their side, the adjutant responded promptly.

"Very good, what exactly was that just now...?"

The knight commander turned his head away, and then his mouth remained open.

The bottomless pit before them was pitch black and gloomy, its edges completely invisible. Even with all their might, they couldn't discern its sheer size. Before the knights lay treacherous cliffs. It was as if an invisible hand had forcefully dug into the ground, leaving behind the marks of its creation.

"What, what exactly happened?!"

Panic, unease, and doubt gripped even the most seasoned knight. The already bizarre command now seemed even more peculiar.

Looking out from the deep crater below, the knight wanted to at least know the extent of the damage. With this in mind, he carefully observed the scene, shifting his gaze.

However, he did not see the horizon.

The horizon, which should have been visible in the distance, completely vanished. Only darkness continued to flow, as if under a spell. The knight commander laboriously moved his head, slowly looking upwards. His mind was perfectly clear; from his current perspective and angle, he should have already seen the horizon—no, he should have even seen the blue sky and white clouds that were just moments before. But all he saw was darkness. It was as if he weren't standing under a blue sky, but inside a vast, dark cave.

Finally, the knight commander raised his head and looked up.

Then, his legs gave way and he collapsed to the ground.

Above his head, a distinct black line divided the sky. One half was the usual sky, the other half was boundless darkness. However, it wasn't true darkness; it was merely a shadow cast by sunlight being blocked by "something."

A vast, boundless expanse of floating debris, stretching as far as the eye can see.

This is the true appearance of the Capital of the Magic Empire.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..."

Looking at the fearful and uneasy appearance of the armies from various countries in the illusion, Angela chuckled softly.

"Foolish humans, have you finally felt fear? It's too late to realize the mistakes you've made now!"

It's not too late yet.

Li Lin answered while manipulating the magic circle in front of him.

"If they realize their foolishness now, it's already too early."

As Li Lin spoke, the crimson magic circle began to flash rapidly. Nia and Suoxiate stood on either side, their expressions solemn.

"Li Lin, the first to fifth cores have already exceeded their limits and are about to collapse."

"Master, the sixth to twelfth cores are twenty seconds away from complete collapse."

The technique that allows such a massive floating city to levitate in the air originates from the thirteen fortified castles and libraries built upon it by Arcane Mage. They placed interconnected magical cores within these castles to maintain the city's operation. However, with all twelve Arcane Mage now dead, the cores responsible for their operation are being run by Li Lin's power, which is, to say the least, far too strained.

"No problem, Your Excellency. Those guys have all obediently entered the city, and everything is ready."

"Contract the barrier and halt energy transmission to the first, third, fifth, seventh, and ninth cores."

As Li Lin gave the order, the floating city began to tremble and rumble incongruously, a result of its core losing power and being unable to support the vast and heavy land.

"The second, fourth, sixth, eighth, and tenth cores have been extinguished."

The ground beneath their feet began to tremble. Li Lin closed his eyes, seemingly unwilling to witness what was happening before him.

The Capital of the Magic Empire, the largest and only culmination of his and twelve other Arcane Mage' efforts, was now about to be destroyed by his own hands. The thought filled Li Lin with a deep sense of reluctance. But ultimately, he opened his eyes, gazing at the once-prosperous but now mostly dimmed magic circle, and sighed deeply. Then, he reached out and placed his hand in the center of the magic circle.

"Transfer all energy to the thirteenth core, shut down all core circuits!"

With Li Lin's final command, the Capital of the Magic Empire, which had existed for thousands of years, finally came to an end.

Although such a large meteorite would be enough to destroy the world on Earth, the power Li Lin unleashed was limited, and while the Capital of the Magic Empire possessed vast land, it lacked the speed and power required for such a fall. Even so, after losing the power of its magical core, the gradually crumbling land began to fall, and the resulting catastrophe was not to be underestimated.

For the army that had just arrived in the Capital of the Magic Empire and was trying to explore, this scene was undoubtedly the end of the world.

The massive boulder crashed to the ground, causing a shockwave that cracked the already fragile surface. A series of tremors and collapses began to occur, and even the most powerful spells could not produce such a terrible and devastating consequence.

"Retreat! Retreat immediately! Report to the general..."

No longer caring about their dignity, the knights turned and fled in the face of this catastrophe that resembled a cataclysmic change in the heavens and earth. Behind them, massive rocks and dust reappeared, and many were completely engulfed before they could escape the dust, disappearing without a trace after letting out a pitiful cry. The ground seemed to be constantly being hammered, cracking and collapsing once more.

At least for the short term, this land will no longer be suitable for anyone to live on.

Li Lin withdrew his hand and turned to look out the window.

"Nia, let's leave. Our plan must begin now."

The massive earthquake lasted for a full half-day, utterly destroying most of the Capital of the Magic Empire and even affecting surrounding areas. None of the armies dispatched by various nations responded. Panic gripped the city, and all sorts of rumors circulated. Due to the devastating earthquake, several large cracks even spread to neighboring cities, tearing through their sturdy walls and causing terrible damage and chaos throughout the cities.

Faced with this situation, the leaders of the Five-Nation Alliance could no longer remain silent.

What on earth happened?!

The Speaker of Parliament, enraged, smashed his wine glass on the ground and roared in anger.

"Too slow! Where's the report? Where's the report I requested? What's going on?!"

"Sir, please calm down."

The mage stood beside the council chairman, offering gentle reassurance, but in truth, he himself was filled with doubt. He had already learned through channels that the Mages' Association was in turmoil, with almost every mage qualified to intervene offering their opinions, and even several long-lost old monsters had revealed themselves. However, it was no wonder that the Mages' Association was so nervous; after all, it was the Capital of the Magic Empire, and regardless of its reputation, it was a sacred place in the hearts of mages.

What happened.

This is something almost everyone secretly wants to know.

"Send more people to investigate. This time, bring a monk with you. I need to know the situation as soon as possible; I need to see it with my own eyes. What exactly happened there!"

"Yes!"

Faced with the council chairman's order, the mage said little. He quickly bowed and left the room. However, he did not immediately relay the chairman's command. Instead, the mage hurriedly returned to his own direction, cast a spell, and after confirming that no one was eavesdropping, he silently chanted an incantation in front of the crystal ball. Soon, the crystal ball emitted a faint white light, accompanied by a commotion.

"What do you mean you know nothing? Are you even a high-ranking mage specializing in divination? Can't you sense what happened there?!"

"I told you, Alix, the art of prophecy is a delicate science, far beyond the comprehension of someone like you who knows nothing but how to unleash fireballs from the sky! There's a massive and powerful magical force interfering with the entire space, rendering my prophecy spells ineffective!"

"Alright, everyone, we're not here to argue about which school of magic is more powerful; we should take a longer-term view!"

"Then, who can tell us what exactly happened here? What happened to the Capital of the Magic Empire? Who knows the answer?!"

"We didn't know, sir, that's why we're sitting here..."

"Sitting here arguing like idiots, why can't we send people to explore, like the Five-Nation Alliance and the Temple..."

"What a joke! Don't you know that the Mages' Association's every move is being monitored by the Five-Nation Alliance and the Knights Templar? If we send out armed forces on our own, who knows what they'll think!"

"But things are different now than a thousand years ago, we..."

"Gentlemen."

Gazing at the gleaming white crystal ball, the mage spoke somewhat awkwardly, and soon the argument, which resembled a shrew's shouting, subsided. Shortly after, a slightly embarrassed voice rang out.

"Hello, Great Master, how is the situation on your end?"

"The Speaker of Parliament has decided to send another army there; the decision has just been made."

"It seems that the Five-Nation Alliance has clearly made its decision."

An old voice sighed.

"Are we really just going to stand by and do nothing? We are the mages!"

"What other options do we have right now? Just maintaining the Mages' Association is already a huge challenge for us..."

Suddenly, the sound became intermittent, startling the mages who were intently listening to the meeting. This was a secret communication spell used by the higher-ups of the Mages' Association; without the correct password and incantation, it was impossible to connect. The current situation clearly indicated that the spell was being interfered with. Was someone actually trying to enter without permission under these circumstances?

"Greetings, fellow mages of the Mages' Association."

Just as everyone's doubts were still unresolved, suddenly, a deep and magnetic voice that they had never heard before appeared.

"... Who are you?"

After a moment of silence, the head of the Mages' Association finally spoke and asked.

Who I am is not important to you.

Although the voice was very calm, every mage could hear the undisguised smugness and pride in it, as well as a natural air of superiority.

"In fact, the reason I've bothered you all is simply to discuss some things with you."

"... What's up?"

"I learned through certain channels that you have been safeguarding a very important weapon for me, and I would like to express my gratitude to you. You know, it is no easy feat to preserve a weapon for a thousand years."

"I don't know what you're talking about, we..."

"Hymn of Destruction."

The leader of the association was interrupted by the mysterious man before he could finish speaking, and at the moment that name appeared, almost every mage felt their heart skip a beat.

"She really hates being alone, so I think it's time to take it back. Therefore, I plan to go to the Mages' Association in a few days to retrieve my weapon. What do you all think?"

"... I refuse. That's an extremely dangerous weapon, and besides, we don't even know who you are."

"I told you, you don't need to know."

The mysterious man was clearly unconcerned by the association leader's statement, which hinted at underlying anger.

"Just hand over your weapons to me; it will benefit both sides."

"... What if we refuse?"

"Then I will kill you all."

A declaration that is unwavering, merciless, and steadfast.

"I will kill anyone who stands in my way, whoever they may be... I hope you will reconsider my proposal and exchange my weapons for your lives. Of course, I will also temporarily allow you to call yourselves mages... although in my opinion, dogs who abandon the glory of magic and submit to their former enemies are not worthy of being called mages at all."

This was a final declaration, tinged with pride, mockery, and disdain.