"No problem. Leave it to me!"
The clone nodded, activating Immortal Mode as it took over control of the Great Buddha.
Jiang Yan stomped down with his right foot, his body shooting into the sky as he flew off into the distance.
After watching Jiang Yan depart, the clone clasped its hands together. The Great Buddha's body trembled violently, then slowly stood upright and began striding toward the direction of the Chen Yu Fleet.
Northwestern Underground of the Sumeru Desert
(Fun Lore Note: Based on the 3.6 map and storyline, there is an entrance to Khaenri'ah hidden beneath the new underground area. Thus, this novel sets Khaenri'ah's underground nation—Xidanata—stretching west beneath Fontaine and east beneath the Sumeru Desert. Since previews mentioned that Sumeru's entrance is only one of several, there may be entrances beneath other nations as well.)
What was once a vast, endless desert had now become shattered and broken. A gigantic cavernous opening stood silently in the earth.
Six gods hovered in the sky above it.
Facing them stood a middle-aged man clad in white divine robes.
(Another Lore Note: The Heavenly Principles is named Phanes in this novel and is male. The woman seen at the start of the original game is the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, one of Phanes' four shadows. In this story, all four Sustainers are female. Further explanations will be omitted. The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata does not participate in the Khaenri'ah War, having been ordered to guard the World Tree.)
Below the cavern, beneath the six gods and the Heavenly Principles, lay a nation that still appeared prosperous.
"Heavenly Principles! We have never provoked you—why do you invade our homeland?!"
King Irmin of Khaenri'ah glared furiously with his single eye, staring up at the gods in the sky.
"You have touched the forbidden."
"The only outcome… is death."
Phanes spoke coldly, clearly uninterested in further discussion. Not only he, but the six gods behind him could all see the black mist continuously seeping from Irmin's body.
"Hehehe… look at you—look at you lofty gods!"
Irmin staggered forward, the black fog around him growing thicker, the crimson glow in his single eye intensifying.
"Khaenri'ah is a nation without gods! A nation built entirely by humans!"
"We are humanity's pride!"
"And you—high and mighty gods—"
"Now seek to destroy the nation we painstakingly built!"
"It is you who wish to uproot humanity's pride from the garden of the gods like weeds!"
Irmin roared like a beast trapped in a cage. The Black Serpent Knights behind him tried to support him, only to be shoved away.
"I will not allow it!"
Irmin glared furiously at the gods in the sky.
"I will not allow you to destroy the crystallization of human wisdom!"
"I will not allow you to erase humanity's pride from this world!"
"If the gods stand in my way—"
"Then today!"
"I shall slaughter the gods!"
As his words fell, countless eyes glowing red suddenly opened within the vast nation behind him.
Then one… two… three…
Endless Ruin Machines surged up from the depths of the earth.
The ground shook violently. Behind them, innumerable Ruin Graders emerged.
Boom—!
A thunderous roar echoed forth. The pupils of all six gods shrank.
Before them, the desert trembled violently as several colossal Ruin Colossi, towering like mountains, rose from the ground.
Dense black mist poured endlessly from the depths below.
At this moment—
The war between the gods and Khaenri'ah officially began.
Deep within the Abyss
"Hehehe… it's finally begun?"
The Abyss Sovereign let out a hoarse, chilling laugh as the war between Khaenri'ah and the gods unfolded before his eyes.
Black fog surged endlessly around his body, like a dark tidal wave pouring upward toward the surface.
"Then let this war…"
"Become even more violent!"
"Hehehehahaha!!"
His sinister laughter echoed throughout the underground abyss.
On the Battlefield of Khaenri'ah
Countless humans piloting Ruin Machines suddenly clutched their heads in pain, groaning as their vision darkened.
Unseen by them, black mist seeped endlessly into their bodies.
When they opened their eyes once more, their pupils had already turned crimson.
"Kill!!"
At that moment, only savagery remained in their hearts.
They wished only to slaughter—without reason, without restraint.
Watching the Khaenri'ah soldiers charging toward them, the six gods showed traces of reluctance in their eyes.
They were gods who cherished humanity. They did not wish to harm humans.
But the decree of the Heavenly Principles could not be disobeyed.
Under Phanes' gaze, the six gods descended into battle.
Raiden Makoto wielded Musou Isshin, thunder roaring around her. With a single slash, a Ruin Machine was cleaved cleanly in two.
Morax spread his arms as a golden shield formed. Vortex Vanquisher appeared in his hand, and with one thrust, he sent a Ruin Machine flying.
Barbatos was even more nimble—winds swirling around him as he effortlessly evaded attacks. From time to time, he loosed an arrow, shattering a machine's core with precision.
At first, the gods did not strike with lethal intent—this was especially evident in Barbatos and Morax.
Makoto herself was not particularly strong, but destroying a single Ruin Machine posed no difficulty.
However, the Khaenri'ah soldiers corrupted by black mist showed no mercy.
Brilliant lights lit up in the eyes of Ruin Machines and Ruin Graders alike.
Then, like a torrential rain of death, countless beams of light shot toward the gods.
Only then did the gods become serious.
So—you expect us to hold back while you go for the kill?
How bold.
Countless currents of wind converged, forming a massive vortex at the center that dragged Ruin Machines inward.
And then—
From the heavens above, a meteor descended.
In an instant, vast swathes of Ruin Machines were crushed into scrap.
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