The Gentleman at the End

As Yi Chen pulled out a section of the iron chain from the parasite's mouth, he blocked the Great Emperor's sword head-on.

William, on the observation platform, suddenly clutched the armrest of his chair tightly, almost crushing the biologically hardened armrest. The thorny iron chain, already integrated into the "Complete Shaper Body," emitted an extremely strong sensing,

causing thorny protrusions to sprout from various parts of William's body, even between his pupils.

However, the thorny iron chain had become entirely William's possession, containing both bony elements and the vitality of a plant… No longer retaining the monastery iron chain's characteristics, it had been integrated into William's plague environment, becoming an indispensable part of his body's structure.

In terms of the chain's rarity,

the "thorny iron chain" gifted by the Duke could rank among the top in the monastery. If William wished to take a position there, he could certainly become an executioner like Asimov.

Yet as rare as it was, it couldn't compare to the mysterious chain that Yi Chen pulled from the parasite's mouth in the circus arena,

even William, seeing just a short section, could sense its "innate suppressive force," indicating that the opponent's chain was far superior, not just by a small margin.

Half-paralyzed, with a shattered face, William slowly relaxed as abyss black worms emerged in his wounds, helping to reconstruct his shattered body.

"Fortunately, my complete shaper body broadly integrates illnesses. No matter how strong or weak the illness itself is, once integrated into this 'big family,' they can work together to enhance each other.

If I were still wielding the chain alone, I would be completely overshadowed by Yi Chen~ Also, seeing such a high-quality chain might inevitably stir feelings of envy.

Wait… no! The owner of this chain isn't Yi Chen, it's Nash!

Mr. Yi is really generous~ to voluntarily give this opportunity to Nash."

…

Inside the arena.

Yi Chen, who blocked a strike head-on, felt a faint throbbing pain from his wrist, as if he had just battled an entire army, with even death being threatened.

However, by blocking the strike, Yi Chen roughly understood the sword entwined in deep red ropes, and the true meaning of the Great Emperor's title.

Combining what he had heard from Balon Casas in the [Endless Prison] about the Blood Emperor's lore, Yi Chen roughly understood the formidable opponent before him.

『No wonder the Duke personally recommended the weapon used by Emperor Pulaid,

this mysterious sword made up of deep red ropes is indeed suitable for me… This 'King's Sword' formed by sacrifices of countless deceased can also provide a sanctuary for the dead following behind me and perfectly utilize their power.

Back then, Emperor Pulaid did not forcibly sacrifice his governed nation through tyranny,

but it was the nation governed by the Great Emperor that voluntarily offered themselves, combined with the stance of blood and death to form part of the sword, following the Great Emperor in battles far and wide.

After dividing the estate and proclaiming himself emperor, the 'cultivation model' the Great Emperor adopted was fundamentally different from the original blood estate. For any blood plague subjects born in the great nation, upon developing self-awareness, they were immediately subjected to militarized management.

By imposing strict military discipline to curb the temptations incited by blood plague, significantly reducing the chances of the blood plague getting out of control and individuals falling into being blood slaves.

Regrettably,

this city-state, nominally equivalent to a source epidemic area, ultimately nurtured a slightly inferior army,

perhaps due to the incorrect method of controlling the blood plague, using external military pressure instead of relying on self-thought control.

Or perhaps because the blood citizenry, having detached from the estate, the source epidemic area, were unable to receive sufficient blood nourishment and lacked the support of the "Plague Book," their inherent blood plague concentration was relatively lower.

The "Blood-colored Knight Order" ultimately cultivated by the Great Emperor frequently faced defeat, whether against the Venerable Tumor Knight Order or the Death Plague Knight Order, the end result was mostly losses rather than victories.

No matter how powerful the Great Emperor himself was, he struggled to escape the tide of defeat.

The Great Emperor ultimately locked himself deep within the city-state, delving into the Blood Well to contemplate the reasons and concluded that 'fission' was a wrong decision.

The source epidemic area is indivisible, even if the Great Emperor himself has been acknowledged by the Plague Master, he is never the source of the plague, or the development outside of the source epidemic area would only result in a gradually thinning plague concentration in descendants, an unavoidable problem of the Old World.

Upon reaching this conclusion, the Great Emperor decided to set everything within the city ablaze, leading the blood soldiers he cultivated back to the estate, once again relying on the Blood Lord.

But when Emperor Pulaid announced this to the entire city, all soldiers who grew up in the city gathered before the National Palace, uniting in prayer, unwilling to return to the estate, recognizing the Great Emperor as their supreme existence, unwilling to be tainted by the estate's corruption, stench, and unrestrained blood plague, even if such taint could grant them higher plague purity.

They only wanted to follow the Great Emperor in battles far and wide, determined to become the most powerful weapon in the Great Emperor's hands.

Thus, a [Nation Refinement] plan began execution, sacrificing the entire nation, using the oldest blood secret technique to bind all blood citizens together, resulting in this sword representing national will.

Once this sword was wielded, beneath the Plague Master, there was hardly any rival across the Old World, as the Great Emperor continuously challenged multiple 'Under the King' figures of source epidemic areas, achieving absolute victories and receiving high praise and commendation from several Plague Masters.

Along with this sword, the Great Emperor truly realized the 'Emperor's Heart,' transcending the constraints of the blood plague. If not for the limitation of "qualification," he could certainly stand alongside each Plague Master as an equal.

As the Great Emperor continued to triumph across the Old World, he gradually came to be recognized as the foremost in the Silver Circle.

When he finally arrived at the [Original Tomb] to issue challenges, defeating one 'Under the King' undead after another, an unusual white fog drifted in.

With the nation as his sword, possessing the Emperor's Heart, Emperor Pulaid ultimately suffered defeat, thereafter completely returning to the estate, aiding by the Blood Lord's side.』

…Most of the above was heard by Yi Chen from the White Reaper, Balon, clearly indicating an extraordinary relationship between the two.

Facing such a genuine 'Great Emperor,' Yi Chen naturally held nothing back.

"Nash."

At Yi Chen's call, Nash, who was coiled around his waist with his head resting on Yi Chen's shoulder, opened his eyes slightly,

although they were still those non-directional scattered eyes, they now held a strange metallic sheen, conveying a certain determination.

"I'm ready… Boss Yi! I have perfectly combined with the chain, before you find a suitable weapon, I shall be your strongest [sword]."

Yi Chen said no more, inserting his hand deeper into Nash than before, the entire arm plunged into Nash's mouth.

It seemed to grasp the deepest-rooted iron chain within Nash, or perhaps it clutched the core of Nash's illness,

pulling outward~

Clang clang~ Chains entwined with pope's divinity gradually revealed themselves.

This chain was not a weapon stored within Nash, but an indispensable object perfectly combined with Nash,

as the entire chain was pulled out, Nash's internal organs and tissues were torn apart, and he would die completely in this process.

Swish!

With a large number of organ fragments soaked in death black liquid falling to the ground,

the parasite coiled around Yi Chen was reduced to a dried-up, shriveled skin exuding a black aura, with no life or consciousness left within.

At this moment,

the object grasped in Yi Chen's hand instantly triggered a deep-seated sense of danger in everyone present at the circus.

Yi Chen's hands, gripping tightly in a 'reverse grasp,' held this iron chain nurtured by the corpse of a foreign god, completely dyed black for some reason.

However, the end of the chain held by his right hand had undergone a "form change," or rather a transformation from combining with Nash,

a pitch-black long blade with its end covered in flagella,

the hilt manifested as a metalized parasite skull shape,

the blade and the iron chain fused perfectly, making them a single entity,

clearly,

this was precisely what Nash had prepared, combining his death and the iron chain within him, ultimately forming such a unique weapon,

for Yi Chen to defeat the formidable foe ahead.