[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-magus-supremacy":3,"chapter-magus-supremacy-magus-supremacy-chapter-960":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Magus Supremacy",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1244360,1673,"Chapter 958 958: Julius' Strength","magus-supremacy-chapter-960",960,"\u003Cp>Before anybody could do or say anything else, the Emperor had decided to take matters into his own hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite his fragile condition and the harrowing fact that he could perish from the sheer strain of combat, he still chose to initiate an attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The simple truth was that he was bored; after years of political stagnation and illness, he needed to flex his hands once more and feel the rush of true power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment he took a single step forward, he vanished from view entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A ripple of dark shadows could be seen undulating beneath the demon's feet, signaling an imminent strike.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without physical eyes, it seemed the creature was able to 'see' through some otherworldly sensory perception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its gaze drifted to the ground, and without hesitation, it vaulted into the air with explosive force just as Julius' hand reached out from the gloom to seize it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, the Emperor grabbed nothing but empty air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While mid-air, the demon's throat swelled immediately as if it had swallowed a large, jagged sphere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, exhaling with a guttural roar, a massive rounded ball of glowing spikes burst out at full speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Julius' hand instinctively sank back into the protection of the shadows to evade the projectile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>CRASH—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The spiked ball tore a massive, jagged trench into the earth upon impact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dust billowed into the atmosphere for a second as the projectile landed several meters away, vibrating with dark energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The creature's mouth swelled again, though not as large as before, and from its gullet, more of those lethal spheres shot toward the gathered group of mages like fired darts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The velocity with which the balls flew was staggering, but before they could travel too far, a shadow portal yawned open in their path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The void swallowed them whole with a few dark ripples.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, just like that, the Emperor rose from the ground smoothly like a phantom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes remained glowing with an ethereal light as an enormous funnel of concentrated flames burst out around his frame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hauling his hand forward, the blazing inferno rocketed toward the demon as if it were a falling meteor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The echelon was incredibly quick on its feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a nimble dancer, it managed to pivot around the strike fluidly, causing the flames to crash into where it stood a moment ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heat was so intense it totally consumed the soil, burning like a persistent inferno.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the creature's feet could stabilize properly on the ground, thick strings of mana weaved into existence as if they were heavy ropes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without pause, these ethereal cords shot toward the demon with blazing speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kicking backward, the monster managed to evade the initial snare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The strings burrowed into the earth, turning the terrain into a complex tunnel system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bursting out from the other end of the soil, the mana-cords gave chase toward the demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its mouth swelled incredulously once more, and a huge ball burst forth, smashing directly into the head of the pursuing strings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cords froze for a moment as the ground rumbled loudly, and then, as if they were made of wet pasta, the strings crumbled from the tip down to the base.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The projectile didn't stop there; it gave chase toward the Emperor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without so much as flinching, a shadow hand the size of a giant's materialized out of nowhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It clamped hard on the ball, stopping it from moving an inch, albeit with a visible struggle against the momentum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twirling his wrist around, Julius commanded the shadow hand to hurl the ball back at the demon with twice its original speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound barrier shattered from the force of the throw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demon's hollow sockets seemed to widen in horror as it found itself unable to dodge the redirected strike in time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>WAM—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ball slammed into the demon's abdomen with the force of a freight train.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ground rumbled violently and exploded, sending massive chunks of debris flying into the air while the creature was propelled backward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was on the verge of being flung away, but due to it exerting equal force on the sphere and shoving it back, it wasn't sent sailing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cough… cough…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Specks of blood were trickling down Julius' lips, but he didn't mind the pain as he maintained his composure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grey, who stood on the sidelines, had an amazed expression on his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Woah! He is going toe-to-toe with an Echelon? Back then, I had to enlist the help of everyone, including Thalos, to take down the beast. Well, in my defense, I was still a stage four warrior and I didn't have my remaining affinities in my arsenal.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pondered for a moment as a realization crossed his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes gleamed for a second as he observed the monstrosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'... And I certainly didn't know the demon's weakness in time. I possess that knowledge now.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would have joined the fray sooner, but he decided to stand back to observe what more the demon had to offer and what secrets it was going to reveal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back when he had faced number ten, he wasn't nearly as potent as he was now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew he could win. He must triumph.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But would it be easy? That was the uncertainty he had yet to solve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Greg glanced at the others around him with a confused expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Shouldn't we be helping him? We all know the Emperor's condition, right? Shouldn't we lend a helping hand?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kael frowned as he watched his father matching the demon blow for blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was only the second time he had witnessed the old geezer fight throughout his entire lifetime, and it was certainly a sight to behold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>String and shadow affinities—most people would have dismissed these two as weak or utterly useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But not Julius.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had managed to transform those two elements into something entirely formidable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After awakening the shadow affinity himself, Kael had strived to make his own power just as deadly as his father's.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though he had refined it into something great, it still wasn't quite on par with the Emperor's mastery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, even as powerful as he was, Julius couldn't go all out unless he risked his own demise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kael had to watch painfully as his old man struggled against a creature that shouldn't even have the audacity to look at him, let alone contend with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I need to hel—'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could take a single step further, Julius' face split apart in a chilling smile just as the demon managed to push the ball back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The creature was panting softly for some reason, its dark frame heaving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Interesting. You are strong. But I still haven't seen the hype yet. Show me,\" Julius challenged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demon frowned at this comment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why was it feeling this way? It had come to take Grey down, yet it was being held at bay by this man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Or would you prefer I attack?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Emperor asked as he pointed his finger toward the heavens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon enough, the whole area became chillingly cold as five hundred ice spears shimmered into view, their frozen tips glistening with lethal intent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grey's lips twitched in surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Fire. Shadow. String. And Ice.'\u003C\u002Fp>",1199,"2026-06-05T15:21:43.521Z",1,"novelbin.me","db0e22f8a48a148b7acf49f91a9aaf657c1691261dce2fcdfecba67bf9496e1e","magus-supremacy-chapter-961","magus-supremacy-chapter-959",1068,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmagus-supremacy-cover.jpg"]