I am the Emperor of Humanity across the Multiverse

In the twisted space, Saruy, having reformed his body, stood bewildered.

His wrinkled, eerie face twisted in confusion, as if he had swallowed something foul. He stared at Dorne and Volgan, who had been rendered immobile by the constant assault of dark magic and corrupt whispers, unable to fight or move.

Despite their paralysis, the brothers' gazes remained resolute, unshaken and unwavering as they glared at Saruy.

Suddenly, boom! Two brilliant and scorching beams of golden light descended from the heavens, dispelling all the darkness and corruption that had plagued the two Primarchs with absolute force.

Not only that, but the brothers' bodies ignited with a faint golden flame.

Saruy froze in shock.

What was happening with these beams of golden light?! Could it be the work of the Emperor in the south?

And how did these two children possess such strong willpower? More importantly, why did they feel no resentment toward the new Emperor?

Saruy's ultimate goal had always been to corrupt the Primarchs.

By using the sacrifice of the six hundred thousand residents of the eastern district as bait, he had hoped to ally with the discontented palace guards and the Primarchs. He then planned to sacrifice not only the residents but also the elite guards, trapping Dorne and Volgan.

But Saruy had grossly underestimated the brothers' loyalty to the new Emperor, leaving him in a state of extreme self-doubt, unsure of how to proceed.

"You like playing tricks, don't you? Well, die for me!" Dorne yelled.

"Corruption? You think your tricks can stand against my hammer?" Volgan roared.

Freed from their bonds, Dorne and Volgan wasted no time pondering Saruy's thoughts. They had only one goal: to obliterate the sorcerer standing before them.

Seeing the brothers' fierce attack, Saruy felt a pang of fear.

Escape!

This sorcerer, seemingly corrupted by Moidoh, realized that if he stayed in this twisted space, his only outcome would be death—an annihilation of his very soul.

Terrified, Saruy quickly pulled out a teleportation scroll, written in blood, intending to flee beyond the capital.

However, Dorne and Volgan had already anticipated such a move from their earlier encounter with the baron. In perfect synchronization, they acted:

Slash! The golden-flamed storm giant sword severed both of Saruy's arms.

Boom! Volgan's frost hammer followed, smashing into Saruy's body once more.

Splatter! The corrupt sorcerer, skilled in long-range magic and mind manipulation, exploded like a melon hitting the ground, his black, foul-smelling blood spraying everywhere, along with his twitching intestines and scattered organs.

Only Saruy's head, neck, and part of his chest remained, hurtling through the air before crashing down at the feet of Dorne and Volgan.

"My lord... save me..." Saruy gasped in agony, trying to call out to his master, Moidoh, hoping for a divine intervention, much like the one the Emperor seemed to have provided for the brothers.

But no salvation came. Instead, in his fading consciousness, Saruy's last vision was of a towering figure bathed in radiant light.

And then his life, and even his soul, were consumed by the giant.

From Dorne and Volgan's perspective, Saruy's body fragments were incinerated by the golden flames, disappearing without a trace.

"Little brother, do you think it was Father who helped us?" Dorne asked.

"Yes," Volgan nodded, still scanning the twisted space around them. "But now, how do we get out of here?"

"Maybe try smashing the ground with your hammer?" Dorne suggested casually.

"Alright." Volgan, taking the suggestion seriously, raised his frost hammer and swung it at the ground with full force.

Boom!

Just before the hammer could make contact, the twisted space around them began to tremble and collapse.

"Huh?"

Dorne looked at Volgan in confusion, as if to say, "I didn't think you'd actually break the place by smashing it."

"It wasn't me," Volgan shrugged, hefting his frost hammer. He explained that he had pulled back at the last second, realizing something was off, and hadn't actually struck the ground.

Before the two could step away, the desert-like surface beneath them gave way, pulling them into a dark abyss.

Meanwhile, back at the central square:

The twisted space appeared as a giant, dark purple dome, completely covering the central square and preventing anyone outside from seeing what was happening within.

Additionally, the magical barrier that enveloped the entire eastern district remained intact, indicating that Saruy's death hadn't caused its dissolution.

Aoe, Thorion, and Pietro had left the underground tunnels when the anomaly began, retreating to a nearby alley to observe.

Looking at the dome, which rose nearly a hundred meters high, Thorion couldn't help but wonder aloud, "Those two brats better be alright."

"Don't worry," Pietro, the seasoned soldier, remained calm.

Aoe, usually cold and indifferent, now had a furrowed brow, deeply concerned.

Suddenly, boom, boom! The ground began to shake violently, alerting the three that something was about to happen. They gripped their weapons, bracing for a fight.

But no battle ensued. Instead, the collapse of the twisted space triggered a chain reaction.

It was as if there were massive caverns beneath the surface. The collapse caused the ground, centered around the square, to rapidly sink outward.

"Run, mate! Elf, do what you want—you're faster than us anyway!" Thorion shouted as he grabbed Pietro, trying to escape the rapidly sinking ground.

But before he could move, the ground beneath their feet gave way.

"Ahhh!" 

Thorion, who had a fear of heights, screamed as they fell in freefall, darkness quickly engulfing them.

Buried under the soil, Thorion struggled, unable to move his arms or legs. The overwhelming sensation of suffocation was quickly consuming his thoughts.

Just as he thought he was about to die from lack of air, he felt someone digging, loosening the soil pressing down on him.

But before he could react, Thorion's consciousness faded.

Who knows how much time passed…

"Hey! Friend, wake up!"

Volgan's urgent voice echoed in his ears.

"Volgan… are you dead too?" Thorion mumbled in confusion.

Slap, slap! Thorion felt someone gently slapping his face.

Slowly opening his eyes, he saw Dorne, Aoe, Pietro, and Volgan crouched around him, with Volgan "carefully" slapping him awake.

!!

Thorion suddenly jumped to his feet, feeling himself all over, then looking at his comrades in disbelief. "I... I'm not dead?"

"Not only are you not dead," Dorne chuckled, glancing around. "We seem to have stumbled into the tomb of the first Emperor."

"Well, possibly the tomb of the first Emperor," Aoe corrected.

Tomb?

Hearing this, Thorion finally turned his attention to their surroundings.

They were standing at the entrance to a magnificent underground palace, a vast underground world stretching out before them.

The area was illuminated by floating light magic, courtesy of Aoe, making it unnecessary for them to grope around in the darkness.

Still somewhat dazed, Thorion continued to observe his surroundings as he followed his comrades deeper into the palace. "If I'm not mistaken, this must be the labyrinth beneath the capital. You two set out to kill a sorcerer, but somehow you led us to a legendary ancient tomb."

"It seems the prophecy is accurate," Aoe, walking ahead, explained. "The imperial labyrinth is rich with the rare metal mithril, so the Empire has exclusive rights to mine it. Adventurers and mercenaries aren't allowed to explore here."

"No outsiders, but what about the Empire itself?" Volgan asked.

"There are many natural magical barriers deep in the labyrinth. Without the help of a high-level mage, exploring would be nearly impossible," Aoe lowered his voice as they passed through a massive stone gateway and entered a stone-brick tunnel about seven meters wide and tall.

"High-level mages are strategic assets across all of Terila. They can cast super-tier magic, and with undead creatures lurking in the labyrinth, there hasn't been much motivation to continue exploration."

"It's mainly because the annual yield of mithril is enough to support the Empire's finances," Pietro added.

The old soldier, with his experience on the borders and disdain for the Empire's army, was always sensitive to matters concerning money.

"The most unexpected, yet most logical place was right under our feet," Volgan mused after hearing the explanations.

"So close, yet so far," Dorne recalled a phrase their father had once mentioned.

The group, hoping to stay hidden, proceeded in silence through the tunnel, guided by Aoe's light magic.

Leaving the tunnel, they entered a spacious chamber.

To Aoe, Thorion, and Pietro, it was merely a hall with four humanoid statues.

But to Dorne and Volgan, it looked like a miniature... relic base!

Those four statues—they resembled their father's vision of Astartes warriors.

Though curious, the brothers hid their surprise, revealing nothing about the statues to their three companions.

At that moment, they noticed a faint light flickering at the entrance to another passage at the far end of the hall.

They pressed on silently, passing the statues and entering the passage. Soon, they arrived at a massive underground space, much larger than the previous collapsed area.

Torches burned along the stone walls, illuminating what seemed to be an endless expanse before them.

And there, under the eternal flames, lay a vast sea of gold.

A literal ocean of gold coins, mountains of them stretching as far as the eye could see.

It wasn't just gold—heaps of mithril ingots were piled high, alongside casually scattered swords, armor, and magical gemstones of all kinds, glittering under the flickering light.

"This place... it's a treasure trove," Thorion, being a dwarf, couldn't resist his natural affinity for wealth. His eyes were glued to the riches before them, unable to look away.

"This could buy the entire capital... no, the entire Empire!" Pietro muttered to himself, his mind already calculating the sheer wealth before them.

"Little brother, do you think discovering this place will help ease Father and Atlas' financial burdens?" Dorne asked, half-jokingly.

"Maybe, but Atlas was never really short on money," Volgan replied, considering how this treasure might bolster their strength even further.

Aoe, on the other hand, was focused solely on the prophecy.

She didn't believe that just finding this treasure would be enough to defeat Moidoh once and for all.

Roar!

A deep, rumbling dragon's roar suddenly echoed through the chamber.

Whoosh—whoosh!

The rhythmic sound of massive wings flapping caused the group to immediately snap into high alert.

"You've got to be kidding me, we really have to slay a dragon?" Thorion muttered, as he always did when faced with an overwhelming challenge.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a massive, four-legged dragon, its body covered in dark scales and wings spanning over a hundred meters, appeared before them.

Whoosh—whoosh! 

The dragon flapped its wings a few more times before slowing down, landing gracefully atop one of the mountains of gold, towering over the group as it peered down at them.

"..." 

Seeing this, Dorne and Volgan debated whether they should launch an attack first.

After all, dragons in Terila were known for their proficiency in magic, and their deadly dragon breath was something every dragon could wield.

If this dragon had any ill intentions, their three companions might be in mortal danger. It would be best to strike first and secure the advantage.

However...

"Ah, you must be the sons of the Emperor, right?" The dragon's question shattered the tension in the air.

Before Dorne and Volgan could even respond, the dragon continued hastily, "No need to answer, of course. If you're here, it's definitely the Emperor's sons and their three companions. Wait a moment, I need to find the key to help you bind Moidoh…

Now, where did I put it… ah, my memory's failing me…"

The dragon began rummaging through the piles of gold with its two large front limbs, searching for something.

Dorne, Volgan, and their companions exchanged bewildered glances. They had prepared themselves for an intense battle against a dragon, but now it seemed that the creature was about to assist them in fulfilling the prophecy.

This… 

Not fighting, or at least not having a proper clash, somehow left them feeling unsettled.

"Aha! Found it!" 

At that moment, the dragon carefully extracted a "rusted sword" and a "metal claw" from the heaps of gold, gently placing them in front of the group.

"Uh…" 

Staring at the rusted one-handed sword and the worn iron claw, Dorne was perplexed but remained tactful, not wanting to offend the dragon. He politely asked, "Thank you for your assistance, Your Excellency. Might I ask your name?"

"My name? There's no way I'm telling you my true name, little one. I'd tell your father, sure, but as for you, you can call me Nirenhog," the dragon replied casually.

"Thank you, Lord Nirenhog," Dorne said, pretending to be troubled as he continued, "We seem to be trapped here. If you could help us return to the surface... or even better, take us straight to Sahai Town in the southern continent, we'd be extremely grateful."

"Sahai Town? You think the items I gave you are fake, and you want to confront your father about it, don't you?" Nirenhog growled, closing the distance between them with a low voice, his scorching breath filling the air.

"Ha! You think I'm afraid of you, little one?!" 

But in the next second, the dragon burst into laughter and turned away, exposing his back to them.

"Climb on! Getting you to the southern continent is no problem. You can see your father there and pledge your loyalty in person... Now hurry up!" Nirenhog urged.

—

Three hours later...

Far across the continent, in Sahai Town, everything had changed. 

Through the efforts of Atlas' engineering team and the dwarves, the town had transformed into a "semi-modern" military stronghold.

Over six hundred thousand soldiers from various races were stationed there, and Atlas had deployed over forty thousand armed units, half of which were made up of clone soldiers, serving as the backbone of their forces.

In the council hall of the lord's castle, Samuel Young, wearing his power armor, was reviewing real-time updates on Terila through a magical map and holographic screens.

He had sensed his sons' cries for help during their ambush and could feel their minds being tormented.

Naturally, Samuel had no intention of letting Saruy, the culprit, off lightly. He had directly devoured Saruy's soul through his divine power.

Yet this incident reminded him that all of his sons were vulnerable to manipulation by those who played with minds and hearts.

Still, Dorne and Volgan's resilience in resisting corruption reassured Samuel. His methods of raising them had proven effective.

"Your Majesty," 

Standing to his right, the elven queen Tinas Loslian's eyes briefly flashed with silver light. She turned slightly and, with her signature soft smile, said:

"As prophesied, your two sons have successfully found the key items needed to bind Moidoh."

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