The sea within the Nibelungen shifted between extremes, freezing into solid ice one moment and erupting into scorching flames the next.
Ice and fire clashed endlessly, repainting the world in violent colors.
The sky was no less chaotic.
As far as the eye could see, Tailed Beast Balls detonated one after another like guided missiles, while Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosions tore through the air, splitting entire stretches of ocean for dozens of miles.
Cosmos Ultraman, who had earlier stunned everyone with his appearance, was now reduced to repeatedly releasing the Full Moon Wave, desperately trying to calm the battlefield.
It barely helped.
The combatants were locked in a frenzy, and the shockwaves of their attacks triggered landslides, collapsing ice shelves, and massive tsunamis. The vast Nibelungen shook violently, its structure destabilizing and threatening to collapse at any moment.
At the center of the chaos was the Black King.
And it was suffering the most.
Its power was still terrifying. Odin had cultivated it in the Arctic Ocean for many years, turning the sea itself into its hunting ground. Though it had not yet fully matured and lacked true intelligence, it was still the Black King, carrying the blood of Nidhogg.
If given time, it could have spawned multiple Crowned Dragons, each rivaling a Dragon King.
Yet now, this terrifying existence could only roar helplessly as ice and fire crashed into it from all directions.
Even when it activated the high risk Word Spirit, Nine Infants, the result was pitiful.
A single Tailed Beast Ball blasted it from the sea into the air, leaving it flailing helplessly as blood sprayed from countless wounds.
As the battle dragged on, the Black King grew weaker, its movements slowing, its roars fading into ragged cries.
No one noticed that Pompeii, who had remained motionless on the shore the entire time, had already changed.
At some point, his form had shifted into that of a god clad in dark gold armor, a blue cloak billowing behind him.
He took a single step forward.
In that instant, time itself seemed to freeze.
This was Odin activating a time based Word Spirit.
By the time Lu Mingfei and the others reacted, Odin was already standing atop the Black King's head, Gungnir gripped firmly in his hand.
The spear plunged downward without hesitation, piercing straight through the Black King's skull.
With a heavy crack, the skull split open.
Odin crouched low, thrusting his hand into the shattered cranium.
Blood poured out, thick and radiant, carrying the essence of the Dragon race itself, a living gene pool.
Odin devoured it greedily.
The Black King barely resisted.
The supreme authority flowed into Odin along with the blood, merging with his body.
At that moment, Odin glimpsed a corner of the Supreme Throne.
His body trembled.
After a thousand years of plotting, he was finally stepping beyond fate's chessboard.
The only regret was that the Black King had not fully matured. The power he gained was immense, but still incomplete.
"Odin!"
A furious shout rang out.
Xia Mi, glowing with blinding golden light in the sky, was the first to react. She had been watching the Black King more closely than anyone else.
After tasting the rewards of the system, her hunger for points had grown uncontrollable.
"He's devouring the Black King's flesh and blood. Stop him, all of you!"
She narrowly avoided a strike from Lu Mingfei, then twisted away from the combined flames unleashed by the Norton brothers.
Ignoring everything else, she charged straight toward the Black King, her massive Nine Tails form crashing through the water and sending waves skyward.
The others finally snapped out of it.
They surged forward together, all aiming straight for Odin.
Even Chu Zihang, who had remained distant from the chaos, sharpened his gaze.
He handed the coffin containing Chu Tianjiao to Angers for safekeeping.
Then he gripped his Zanpakuto, activated Shikai, and shot toward Odin without hesitation.
With so many powerful figures converging, even a fully grown Black King would have panicked.
But Odin refused to retreat.
He roared and suddenly changed tactics.
He began to speak.
"Sister. My sister, the great King of Earth and Mountain, Jormungandr."
"It has been a thousand years. Seeing you like this truly surprises me. You even grew nine tails, truly… cough."
Odin, having spent too long playing the role of the indulgent Gatto family head, lacked any real Dragon King gravitas. He lost focus halfway through his speech and coughed awkwardly before continuing.
"And Norton, Constantine, my brothers. Time has not diminished your greatness in the slightest."
"But tell me, my brothers and sisters, why break into my Nibelungen and reduce it to this?"
"In the ancient past, we had our grievances, but was this truly necessary?"
He put on a wounded expression, playing the role of the wronged sibling.
For a brief moment, Xia Mi actually hesitated, studying him carefully.
The Odin she remembered had not been like this.
But when she saw the Black King's withered form beneath him, her eyes hardened.
"Enough nonsense," Xia Mi snapped, lunging forward. "You hid the Black King's egg here to hatch. Were we supposed to just stand by and watch you scheme?"
The Norton brothers attacked at the same time.
Lu Mingfei and Cosmos Ultraman followed behind at a more relaxed pace.
Seeing that emotional manipulation had failed, Odin turned sharply toward cosmos.
"Ultraman. Kind Ultraman. If I'm not mistaken, you are Uesugi Erii of the Sheqi Hachi Family, aren't you?"
"Damn it, utterly damned," he muttered, then spoke rapidly. "You still don't know, do you? Your family head, Kikumasamune, is a despicable villain. He is Herzog's shadow warrior, plotting behind your back!"
Erii froze.
Cosmos took several quick steps forward, instinctively blocking Xia Mi and the Norton brothers.
Odin's heart surged with hope.
He hurriedly revealed everything he knew, Herzog's true identity, his plans, and how everything had been manipulated from behind the scenes.
After all, Odin himself had been orchestrating events for a thousand years. He knew every detail.
He believed this information would win him an ally.
When Erii finished listening, she nodded.
Then she gave Odin a cheerful thumbs up.
And calmly stepped aside.
"What?" Odin stared in disbelief as Xia Mi and the Norton brothers resumed their charge.
He reacted instantly, hurling Gungnir at Xia Mi and blasting her back more than a hundred meters.
At the same time, he activated Word Spirit, Indra's Wrath, forcing Norton to halt.
Still, he continued shouting, desperate now. "Family Head Uesugi, I helped you. I exposed Herzog. Help me in return!"
Any remaining dignity of a Dragon King was gone.
Erii simply shook her head.
Shuichi Gen arrived beside her and spoke calmly, explaining on her behalf.
"Erii occasionally transforms at home to practice the Full Moon Wave."
"The family head, Herzog, was accidentally hit once. He broke down and confessed everything. He has already been dealt with."
"Odin, your information came too late."
Odin was speechless.
Ultraman practicing beam attacks at home, and using them on people?
He did not know whether to be furious or despairing.
As he faltered, his expression darkened.
Xia Mi, who had been blasted away by Gungnir, had torn off one of her own tails to survive the impact.
Now she was charging back through the water, completely enraged.
At the same time, the Norton brothers had broken through Indra's Wrath and were closing in again.
Odin's mind raced.
He had already devoured nearly two thirds of the Black King.
If he could finish it.
If he could consume everything.
He would gain a fragment of that Supreme Being's power.
Enough to overturn the board entirely.
Enough to crush every chaotic variable standing before him.
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