Cosmic Ruler - Chapter 200

Chapter 200: Purification IV

Shelly nodded seeing this and thought to herself, ‘It seems I lost.’

Aiden looked at the scythe and felt it was lower than his own scythe’s level. ‘Well, not like he’s going to use it,’ he thought and then nodded to the Ancient Dullahan King.

Dullahan nodded and began to walk up to the lich, who was joyfully playing with his scythe.

Serina looked at the old man and asked Aiden, “Isn’t this contradictory?”

“What is contradictory?” Aiden asked back.

“Well, you tortured him only to have him revived as a being he is now truly likes or what he hoped to achieve, Hasn’t he achieved his life goal?” Serina asked. Shelly’s eyes widened as she heard her, nodding in approval and looking at Aiden for answers.

“Well… just watch,” Aiden smiled and said mysteriously.

Raven, who was having the time of his life, looked ahead as he saw the armored knight appearing in front of him.

“Do you need anything?” he asked, tilting his skeletal head.

The Dullahan’s flaming skull flickered as it moved closer, its presence imposing and ominous. Without a word, the Dullahan swung its flaming sword, aiming at the lich’s newly formed body. The Skull Lord tried to defend himself, raising his scythe, but the Dullahan’s strength was overwhelming.

In an instant, the scythe was knocked from the lich’s grasp, and the Dullahan’s sword sliced through the lich’s body, black flames consuming the creature. Raven screamed, feeling an unimaginable pain as his new form was torn apart.

“Why?” Raven gasped, his voice filled with anguish as his body began to disintegrate under the relentless assault of the Dullahan’s flames.

Aiden stepped forward, his expression cold. “Your goal might have been achieved, but your existence is still mine to command. You were never meant to enjoy this power, only to serve as a stepping stone for something greater.”

Shelly and Serina watched as Aiden yanked a core out of the exposed body of Raven. As he took the core, the Skull Lord disintegrated into ashes.

“So, this is the Despair Core,” Aiden thought as he looked at the pulsating red core in his hand.

It was the size of an adult fist, appearing as a mass of energy encased in a glass-like sphere.

Aiden looked at the Dullahan and asked, “Do you really want to do it?”

The Dullahan’s flames flickered for a moment before he nodded.

Aiden sighed and then passed him the core. Taking the core, the Dullahan gulped it down, and a cocoon of pulsating red energy formed around him.

“What is this?” Serina asked as she touched the cocoon.

“He is undergoing evolution,” Aiden said and then began to explain his true goal. “As we arrived here, I began to hear the wailing of a middle-aged man. It was coming from a ghost. Using necromancy, I started to communicate with him.”

“In the end, it turned out he was the chief of this village. He was also the strongest in this village, having a Grade 5 machete as his martial spirit. But he lost to the old man, and then he watched on his deathbed as his whole village was consumed by him. He watched helplessly as the old man raped his wife. I decided to help him.have his revenge by incarnating him as the Dullahan, the armored knight you just saw earlier,” Aiden explained.

“But after I successfully incarnated him, he began to ask me to take him as his permanent servant.”

“After some thinking, I accepted his proposal. So I formulated a plan to make him stronger. This led to the scenario of the formation of the Despair Core. Then, I gave him the core so that he can evolve from the Dullahan to the Ancient Dullahan King,” Aiden explained, leaving both Shelly and Serina in awe.

Shelly, still processing the story, nodded slowly. “I see now… This wasn’t just about power. It was about vengeance and purpose.”

Aiden nodded. “Exactly. If I wanted power, I don’t need to go through this much hassle. I can easily obtain it by just raiding a bandit hideout or any demonic sect.”

“Power without meaning, at the end of the day, is nothing but a burden,” Aiden added.

The cocoon around the Dullahan began to crack, causing everyones focus to shift to it, From the cracks, red energy spilling out in tendrils. The transformation was nearing completion. The air around them grew tense, the power emanating from the cocoon palpable and intense.

With a final burst of energy, the cocoon shattered, revealing the newly evolved Ancient Dullahan King.

The Ancient Dullahan King emerged from the cocoon, towering and majestic, his form radiating an aura of dread and power. His dark armor was intricately designed, forged from blackened steel and enchanted obsidian, adorned with runes and symbols that glowed a sinister crimson. The runes pulsed rhythmically, as if the armor itself was alive with dark magic. Atop his head sat a crown made of twisted, black metal, encrusted with blood-red jewels that shimmered with an unholy light.

His helmet, resembling a grotesque skull, housed flaming eye sockets that burned with an intense, malevolent fire. These flames flickered and danced, casting ominous, shifting shadows that seemed to move with a life of their own. The armor extended to his skeletal hands, encased in gauntlets that crackled with dark energy. A tattered cape made of spectral mist billowed behind him, adding to his fearsome presence.

In his hand, he wielded a massive greatsword. The hilt was wrapped in ancient, dark leather, and the guard was fashioned from black iron, shaped like demonic wings. The blade itself was enormous, forged from the same darkened metal as his armor, with jagged edges that seemed to hunger for the souls it would reap. The entire sword glowed faintly with a malevolent energy, a testament to its deadly power.

Ancient Dullahan King rose, the air around him crackling with dark energy. His hollow eye sockets emitted a piercing red light, and the flames within them flickered ominously. The greatsword in his hand seemed to vibrate with anticipation, ready to unleash its destructive power.

Shelly and Serina could feel the immense power radiating from the Ancient Dullahan King, leaving them in awe and a bit of trepidation. They couldn’t help but glance at each other as they sensed its realm, which was the peak of Spirit Emperor. Yet, the power within it seemed so destructive that Serina felt genuinely threatened, while Shelly found it interesting, wondering why he could wield such overwhelming power despite being “only” a Spirit Emperor.

He stepped forward and knelt before Aiden, his voice resonating with newfound strength. “My Lord, I am ready to serve.”

Aiden then looked at his status with Akashic Eyes.

****

Ancient Dullahan King – Status Screen

Name: Ancient Dullahan King

Realm: Peak Spirit Emperor

Martial Spirit: Sword of Myriad Despairs

Innate Skills:

Undying Will: Grants immense resilience, allowing the Dullahan to continue fighting even when heavily damaged. It can regenerate from wounds rapidly.

Aura of Despair: Emits an aura that saps the morale and energy of enemies within a certain radius, weakening their attacks and defenses.

Eternal Night: Creates a domain of darkness around the Dullahan, obscuring vision and making it difficult for enemies to predict and counter his movements.

Hellfire Flames: Conjures black flames that burn with intense heat, capable of bypassing physical defenses and directly attacking the soul.

Martial Spirit – Sword of Myriad Despairs:

Description: A massive greatsword forged from dark metal, etched with runes that shift and writhe. It is an artifact of great power and dread, nearly as tall as the Dullahan himself.

Abilities:

Soul Reaper: Every strike siphons a portion of the enemy’s spirit energy, replenishing the Dullahan’s own.

Army of the Fallen: Summons the spirits of fallen warriors to aid in battle, Can only Summon who has some connections with wielder or those who has fallen under this greatsword.

Despair Infusion: Each attack carries the weight of countless souls, causing mental and spiritual fatigue in those struck.

Vortex of Agony: Creates a whirlpool of dark energy that draws in enemies and rends their souls with the power of despair.

******

‘He is quite great, didn’t think there would be such difference between Simple Dullahan and King Dullahan’ Aiden thought as he watched his powers.

Aiden then nodded in satisfaction and asked ” So, you can speak now?”

” All thanks to my lord ” He replied.

” Tell me the real purpose , that you wanted to serve me so badly” Aiden nodded and then narrowing his eyes asked seriously.

Dullahan King nodded and then he stood up, he waved his band and black steel chairs formed along with a long table.

He gestured to tables and said ” It will be a long story my lord”.

Aiden nodded and sat with Shelly and Serina.

Dullahan the stomp his foot and the ground and then various skeletons rose and dashed to jungle, some went to village.

Dullahan king then also took a seat as he began to narrate.