Chapter 352: Regicide

With that shout of "Arrogance," the deterrence of the Imperial Armament was fully unleashed.

Before switching to the Tyrant class, Caligula was already one of the finest berserkers among the Dolarak Tribe, proficient in multiple melee Elements.

The Tyrant, a transcendent vocation, is primarily melee-focused, with Divine Technique as support.

His charge had long been honed to the pinnacle, speed at its extreme; his massive body resembled a high‑speed steam locomotive, carving a deep trench in the ground, generating terrifying wind pressure, the airflow forming hundreds of razor‑sharp blades that slashed at Lei En.

A crackling clatter rang out, the air blades leaving streaks of white.

Caligula felt a slight chill in his heart.

He knew well that after empowering himself with the Imperial Armament, his strength was immense—able to contend with Legendary High-rank clan heads, and even transcendent beings below Legendary could not withstand his charge's deterrence.

Yet all of this seemed to have no effect on this human.

"Does he dare to clash with me head‑on?"

Before Caligula's thought could settle, he saw Lei En swing his war hammer, his body arching backward like a massive bow, then sweeping his right arm in a wide arc, hammering down fiercely.

In the Imperial Armament state, Caligula's Mental Force Field enveloped a radius of a hundred meters.

Every movement of Lei En was mirrored in his mind, but knowing is one thing, reacting is another; Lei En's timing with the hammer was perfect, his motion as swift as lightning, leaving no chance for adjustment.

The wheel‑like great axe and war hammer collided without any flourish.

Clang!

A terrifying blast roar echoed across the battlefield.

Sound waves and air surges intermingled, forming a white shockwave that spread in all directions.

Many Makurag people standing on the Astat City Wall couldn't help covering their ears, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

The Gunwing Knight Order, pursuing Dolarak barbarians several hundred meters away, was disrupted; the vast majority of one‑rank Gunwing Knights couldn't endure, and their formation fell into chaos.

At the spot where the two fought, countless bolts of lightning erupted simultaneously.

The ground was struck, leaving a shallow, charred pit.

Caligula's dark silhouette was flung backward by the lightning, crashing heavily onto the ground a hundred meters away, stumbling to his feet, his entire arm trembling uncontrollably, half his body numb.

He could hardly believe that even in the Imperial Armament state, he lost a head‑on clash.

Had he not promptly "released force," channeling the reflected power of the great axe into the ground, he would likely have been gravely injured by that hammer.

Moreover, the opponent countered while standing still, never moving his feet, merely sinking deep into the earth.

Only then did he notice the opponent's skin shimmering with dragon‑scale texture, muscles forged as if of steel, pupils standing upright; though not as towering as a barbarian, the figure exuded a flawless, awe‑inspiring power.

Such a young human, such terrifying defense, such overwhelming power!

"So it's a Dragon Rider…"

Caligula straightened, inhaled deeply, his voice turning hoarse as he couldn't help asking again, "Who exactly are you? I don't believe someone of your strength could remain unknown in the Empire."

"A dying man has no need to be known."

Lei En glanced at the Gunwing Knights; they had restored order, retreating farther under several platoon leaders while pursuing fleeing enemies.

He no longer hesitated; before finishing his sentence, the Wind‑Thunder Wing behind him vibrated, and a deep musical tone resonated from his body.

Bang—thunder!

Lei En transformed entirely into lightning, tracing a winding, elusive path in midair straight toward Caligula.

In an instant, he was behind Caligula.

The lightning hammer came crashing down.

Caligula seemed already forewarned, anticipating the attack; he calmly turned, meeting it with his great axe, black blade streaks forming a dense net like a meat grinder, frenetically slicing everything within a dozen meters.

Lei En let the blade shards cut his body, sparks flying, and kept swinging the hammer.

The two massive weapons collided again.

Bang.

A surge wave and a torrent of lightning erupted, deafening, turning the corpses on the ground to ash.

This time, Lei En used motion to dominate stillness, and activated battle music, amplifying his power to near tenth‑level.

Caligula's power had just reached ninth level.

Both wielding ninth‑level power, the actual disparity was over threefold; the black‑armored Tyrant let out a muted grunt, immediately smashed to the ground, the earth forming a huge pit that swallowed his body.

Under the massive force, Caligula was dizzy, his movements slowed.

Seizing the chance, Lei En leapt into the air, raising both hands with the war hammer overhead, his body arching backward then snapping forward, and, amid the resonant music, he slammed down with all his might.

Boom!

Like a Five‑Ring Flame Burst explosion, half the battlefield trembled.

The thunderous strike's lightning was so densely packed it seemed solid, like a small sun impossible to stare at, ravaging the deep pit.

Yet only Lei En was inside the pit.

Just as the hammer was about to strike, Caligula used "Phantom Step" to escape; the Imperial Armament's foresight and ultra‑strong perception let him time the combat exquisitely.

Lei En's Truth Will had a similar effect, though its foresight was slightly inferior to the Mental Force Field.

"It actually missed…"

His thoughts shifted, his gaze already fixed on Caligula.

That guy's Phantom Step is extremely fast, not inferior to a Gale‑wind Swordmaster, but no matter how swift, without a flash it offers only foresight, lacking any counter‑strike; all is useless.

In the next instant, Lei En's figure vanished from the pit.

Caligula's Mental Force Field, centered on himself, covered a hundred‑meter radius; he looked up, spotted Lei En's silhouette, only to see a pale violet staff in his hand, two ribbons at its tip fluttering without wind, disappearing into the void.

A warning bell rang loudly in his mind, sensing great danger.

Instinctively, he launched a charge, widening the gap from Lei En.

"Bind!"

Just as Caligula was midway through his charge, a voice sounded, and instantly the surrounding space seemed to solidify, freezing him completely, rendering his whole body immobile.

A terrifying wind pressure surged from behind, and the mind‑force field sensed it was the enemy's war hammer.

In the emergency, Kali Gula roared wildly:

"Open for me!"

The Imperial Armament is forged of divine power and has extremely high resistance to spells; even a six‑ring Stasis Field can only trap him for less than half a second.

After breaking free, Kali Gula knew he could not turn his back on the enemy, and hurriedly turned back.

The war hammer flashing with electric light had already struck in front of him.

He only had time to raise his great axe to block horizontally.

Clang!

The great axe was smashed back, hitting his chest; countless bolts of lightning engulfed Kali Gula, and his heavy body, like a struck baseball, flew high into the air.

In mid‑air, Kali Gula spat a mouthful of fresh blood, noticing a crack appearing on the Imperial Armament on his chest.

However, Lei En's figure flashed again above.

A heavy hammer came down.

Kali Gula was solidly hammered, changing his trajectory and falling straight down.

Before he hit the ground, Lei En flashed to the ground once more; the war hammer swung upward from below, sending Kali Gula flying again.

Three consecutive heavy hammers; Kali Gula barely used his great axe to parry in time, not being directly struck. Nevertheless, he was already badly wounded, his armor loosening with signs of cracking.

Lei En stood still, raised his hand and cast a spell.

Each displacement spell has a casting gap, making continuous use difficult; the higher the ring count, the longer the gap, otherwise there is a risk of errors tearing space. He could flash three times in a row, thanks to the affinity effect of the Key of Doors; other casters would never dare such recklessness.

A thick rainbow‑light beam shot out, hitting the airborne Kali Gula.

The beam, like a festering ulcer, locked onto the target tightly.

After a few seconds the beam vanished, but the damage to Kali Gula was limited; it could not penetrate. The Imperial Armament's defense and resistance, even with the augmentation of the Rainbow Light Principle, meant that a four‑ring rainbow‑light beam was still somewhat weak.

"Only a hammer can kill him."

Lei En decisively abandoned attack spells, raised his Arcane Torrent Staff, and activated the Banishment Technique.

An illusory prison enveloped Kali Gula.

A four‑ring Banishment Technique was almost resisted in the blink of an eye, as if it had no effect. Lei En did not expect the technique to work; having already charged forward, he unhesitatingly released the final Stasis Field of the day.

Kali Gula, blood spattering from his mouth, crawled up, only to be bound again.

He hadn't managed to break free when Lei En's war hammer arrived, rapidly enlarging in his view, filling his entire sight.

Bang!

The war hammer struck his head dead center.

Lei En didn't have time to exert full force; the Imperial Armament's helmet, like a solemn crown, was smashed flat, and Kali Gula toppled, falling into a daze.

His Soul Eye saw his soul turn gray‑white, with no trace of emotional fluctuation.

This is the manifestation of lost thinking ability.

Lei En sheathed his staff, swung the war hammer with both hands, pounding several times—bang, bang, bang—each strike hitting Kali Gula's head; even subconsciously holding the great axe above was useless, the war hammer struck the great axe directly, the force penetrating, most of it still hitting the head.

Heavy hammer blows rang out, and bolts of lightning erupted.

This scene made everyone in Astat City and on the battlefield watch with their hearts pounding.

After several consecutive blows, finally, people seemed to hear the sound of hard material cracking; the black Imperial Armament shattered piece by piece, exposing Kali Gula's body.

Kali Gula's head was drenched in blood, and he had lost consciousness.

Lei En hesitated not; a hammer came down, and with a "puff" sound, blood and brain matter splattered, a black iron crown flew out, landing in the mud.

A legendary hero of the Sain Plateau, who had just set out on the road of conquest, died here.

Lei En turned off the battle music, saw a soul fly out of the corpse and be absorbed by him, and his energy surged faster.

At that moment, the Extreme Warriors and Gunwing Knights also shot the last Drolak barbarian; the army of over two thousand had no one escape.

A burst of cheers erupted in Astat City.

Lei En exhaled, looked at Kali Gula's corpse, and his gaze fell on the black iron crown not far away. The crown was simple in design, just a two‑finger‑wide iron ring, looking ordinary; Kali Gula's great axe had been smashed by him, yet the crown remained intact.

"It should be something valuable."

He was about to step forward when he suddenly sensed something, stopped, and was horrified to find the whole world fall silent, all sounds gone, even the wind halted.

In the distance, the Makurag people, as well as the Extreme Warriors and Gunwing Knights, kept various expressions on their faces, yet seemed frozen as if a pause button had been pressed.

Then, Lei En saw a hand.

The hand reached out from the void, five long, even fingers, likely belonging to a male human; an indescribable terrifying energy outlined the human shape, first only the palm, then an arm, shoulder, chest, head, and finally a pair of feet on the ground, revealing a complete male figure.

He was exceedingly handsome, black hair and black eyes, a modest smile on his face, medium build, dressed in well‑tailored elegant black attire.

At first glance, he seemed a gentleman who inspired goodwill.

But Lei En dared not move a muscle, opened his mouth, yet could not utter a word.

This "person" picked up the blood‑stained iron crown from the mud, brushed it lightly with his palm, erasing the blood and dirt, restoring its cleanliness; his eyes were full of affection, then he looked at Lei En and, in a faint voice, said, "Regicide, are you a follower of that VijesCui bitch?"

(End of chapter)