Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 1737: The Eighth Pharaoh

For an overlord like the Evileye Tyrant Monarch to be driven into such a pitiful state was truly humiliating.

It was not simply a matter of bad luck. First, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch had been thoroughly battered by the soul overmages of the Alveroth Empire. Then it was subjected to an even more terrifying pursuit by Hela and her subordinate.

The power of the World Serpent, Jormungandr, alone was already enough to match the Evileye Tyrant Monarch head-on.

Combined with the cunning tactics, abundant treasures, and terrifying backing that Hela, the Goddess of Death, possessed, the outcome was all but inevitable.

Having been part of the Magus Alliance for twenty or thirty thousand years, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch knew full well that Hela was the eldest daughter of Odin, the Rank Eight Titan World overlord.

Known as the God of Gods, Odin was a truly fearsome existence—widely acknowledged as the strongest being within the Magus Alliance.

Although the Alliance had seen two new Rank Eight overlords emerge in recent years—Aeluna, the God of Elves, and Skybearer, the Giant Mountain God—neither came close to Odin in foundation or prestige.

What was more, Odin was an existence even the Eighth Pharaoh of the Amenkha Empire preferred not to provoke too early.

Deep down, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch strongly suspected that its backing, the Eighth Pharaoh, was no match for Odin.

Back when the Evileye Tyrant Monarch had betrayed the Magus Civilization and gravely wounded an alliance overlord, the Ice Phoenix[1], that act became its entry ticket to operating as a double agent for both the Gallant Federation and the Amenkha Empire.

But if another alliance overlord were to appear near the Grand Eye Demon World Star Domain, especially someone like Odin himself, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch would absolutely not dare move a single muscle.

Now, summoned across vast distances by the Evileye Tyrant Monarch’s desperate plea, a torrent of furious scolding and curses poured out from the roiling black mist.

The Amenkha Empire clearly had no intention of getting involved so early. Yet this emergency call from the Evileye Tyrant Monarch had effectively exposed them.

As the Eighth Pharaoh of the Amenkha Empire and the figure responsible for closely monitoring the Magus Civilization’s situation, he could not simply stand by and allow the Evileye Tyrant Monarch to be slain here by Hela.

Overlord-level beings were rare existences within the Amenkha Empire as well.

The Evileye Tyrant Monarch might have disgraced itself, but as an overlord, it was still a useful subordinate.

Thick black mist surged out from the shattered dark mirror expelled by the Evileye Tyrant Monarch.

Even though the surrounding space was tightly sealed by the golden tower in Hela’s hand, a dark passage stretching across an immense distance slowly began to take shape within that churning black mist.

Seeing this, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch felt its survival instinct surge and immediately retreated behind the black mist.

Hela calmly sheathed her Space-Rending Blade and put away the small golden tower. In its place, she retrieved a white pearl that radiated pure light.

As the daughter of the God of Gods and a bearer of Magus World’s most noble bloodline, Hela clearly lacked no remarkable artifacts.

Whether it was the Space-Rending Blade, the small golden tower, or the white pearl now in her hand, each emitted an exceptionally powerful law fluctuation of a world-class secret treasure.

Moreover, even among world-class secret treasures, these items were anything but ordinary.

Watching Hela calmly produce one artifact after another with such confidence, one could not help wondering just how many treasures she still had in reserve.

The overwhelming aura seeping out from the depths of the black mist did little to unsettle her. It was the World Serpent beneath her feet that reacted instead.

Sensing the presence of something truly terrifying, it curled its massive body into a dense knot. Like a mountain of living flesh, it fixed its cold gaze on the black mist ahead.

Hela remained standing still atop Jormungandr’s head, even though the approaching existence was a rank higher than her in life level.

“So it really is the Pharaoh of the Amenkha Empire, after all? Auntie and the others were correct in their assessment,” Hela murmured to herself as she watched the black mist.

At the edge of the darkness, a humanoid figure slowly took shape.

It was a humanoid monster, its entire body wrapped in grayish-white bandages that completely obscured its facial features.

Shrouded in thick black mist, it exuded an eerie sense of desolation and menace.

The gentle light released by the Radiant Pearl in Hela’s hand steadily dispelled the chilling aura surrounding this terrifying presence.

The World Serpent flicked its tongue, standing alongside its master as they faced this formidable enemy.

“To stand before the Eternal Soul of an overlord whose life level exceeds yours by an entire Rank, and not even flinch? You truly live up to your status as the descendant of the Supreme Knight Overlord,” the humanoid monster said, its smile cold and unsettling.

This was a Rank Eight being. Within the Astral Realm, beings of such rank stood at the very pinnacle of existence.

The greatest distinction between a Rank Eight overlord and a Rank Seven overlord lay in one thing alone—the overlord’s Omnipotent Soul had fully condensed into an Eternal Soul.

Whether in combat or other domains, the number of Overlord Souls a Rank Eight expended was far lower than that of a Rank Seven.

Under normal circumstances, a Rank Seven overlord would never be a match for a Rank Eight.

Even setting aside the gap in overall power, a Rank Eight overlord could exhaust a Rank Seven to death through sheer endurance in a battle of Overlord Souls alone.

That said, given the circumstances of this battlefield, the newly arrived overlord of the Amenkha Empire could not possibly afford a prolonged standoff with Hela here.

After all, this was a star domain firmly under the Magus Civilization’s control. The Gallant Federation forces, once present in the Grand Eye Demon World Star Domain, had long since been wiped out.

An overlord-level battle was never something that could be resolved in an instant.

If Hela and Jormungandr could delay their opponent even briefly, the Magus Civilization overlords from the surrounding star domains would descend in force, drawn by the violent fluctuations of battle.

At that point, it would become a one-sided slaughter.

And this was merely the Eighth Pharaoh. Even the First Pharaoh, who was on the brink of a breakthrough, or the Third Pharaoh, who had risen to prominence in recent years, would be doomed if they were to face so many Magus Civilization powerhouses alone.

Hela knew that her aunt was certainly watching this place. After all, it was Bev who had personally sent her here.

The moment foreign overlord-level power fluctuations appeared, Bev would have sensed the anomaly.

What Hela was curious about now was how many followers this Pharaoh could bring with him.

Unfortunately, her expectations came to nothing.

The Eighth Pharaoh stepped out of the passage within the black mist all alone.

The Amenkha Empire lay far from the Magus Civilization, and teleporting across such vast star domains came at an astronomical energy cost, particularly for overlord-level beings.

More importantly, the Amenkha Empire’s current strategic focus lay elsewhere. Their attention was fixed on the Luminara Civilization, which was far closer to them.

The natural aversion that umbra elemental and necromantic beings felt toward lumen elemental creatures, combined with long-standing historical grudges, made the Luminara Civilization their primary target, not the distant Magus Civilization that was still embroiled in a bitter war with the Gallant Federation.

1. Translator’s Note: Just a recap, the Ice Phoenix, Tamberina, was first introduced in Chapter 1303. She was the familiar of a certain deceased mage from the Magus Civilization. ☜