Overlord of Blood and Iron

[Warning, warning!]

The augmented reality programme in the Ectoplasm Oversuit warned Kang Chul-In, as he activated the Outrage Drive.

[Power, 500% increase!]

As expected from the final phase of Overdrive, Outrage Drive displayed a magnificent increase in power.

[Stamina decreasing by 500 units/second!]

[59 seconds remaining for Outrage Drive!]

However, there was a substantial penalty that followed its use.

1 minute.

Kang Chul-In pondered hard about that short duration. He had to subjugate Saturnus and send him back to hell. Otherwise, he would be the one to rest in his grave!

Ssssss...! Kaiforce began to emit black and evil energy.

Simultaneously, Saturnus threw a heavy punch at Kang Chul-In.

“Get lost...” Kang Chul-In mumbled. “To hell!”

He then parried Saturnus’ fist with Kaiforce.

Clang...! An ear-piercing screech echoed as Kaiforce and Saturnus’ fist collided.

“...!”

Saturnus was appalled.

“What, surprised?”

“...!”

“This is nothing much, huh?”

Kang Chul-In, who had been pushed back so far, could now fight on equal terms with Saturnus.

“Bite hard, Saturnus.”

“...!”

“Let me break all of them.”

Kang Chul-In was obviously referring to his opponent’s teeth.

“Bastard...!” Saturnus hissed.

Crack! At that instant, Kang Chul-In headbutted Saturnus on his nose because their faces were in close proximity.

“Keuk...!”

Saturnus’ nose bled, and his head was flung backwards. Meanwhile, Kang Chul-In grasped onto both Kaiforce and Mitra and followed up with his Hyper-speed sword skills.

Swish!

He began to slash at Saturnus without mercy.

Pssssshhh! Red blood spurted out.

It’s happening!

Kang Chul-In grinned. Outrage Drive was really incredible. Despite seemingly impossible to cut previously, Saturnus’ body was now covered in injuries and was spurting out blood.

“Die!”

Kang Chul-In stabbed Kaiforce into Saturnus’ abdomen. He believed that even Saturnus couldn’t survive the Demon Sword in his belly.

However,

Clang! Kang Chul-In was astonished.

“This crazy bastard...!”

Saturnus had bitten Kaiforce to nullify its attack.

“Kehuehue...!”

He laughed creepily with Kaiforce in his mouth. It was a truly shuddering laugh. Shockingly, he could laugh despite having a few of his teeth broken and his mouth full of blood. Kang Chul-In immediately let go of Mitra and held Kaiforce with both hands. He wanted to add more force onto Kaiforce.

“Bastard...!”

“Kehehe...!”

“Die!”

“Heh...!”

At that moment,

Crack! Saturnus grabbed Kang Chul-In by his upper body with both hands.

“...!”

It was Kang Chul-In’s crisis now. Saturnus’ incredible grip pressured Kang Chul-In’s upper body. He was doing a ‘bearhug,’ attempting to crush Kang Chul-In!

“Urgh...!” Kang Chul-In moaned in agony. “You crazy... fucker...”

“Kehehe...!”

It was a close match. Kang Chul-In wanted to stab Saturnus and Saturnus wanted to crush Kang Chul-In.

The battle of two spears! One was sharp, and the other was blunt, but they were the same. Both of them neglected defense and focused all their strength to destroy the opponent!

[40 seconds remaining for Outrage Drive!]

However, Kang Chul-In was at a disadvantage.

Damn it...!

He couldn’t overwhelm Saturnus even with a 500% power-up. If Saturnus had gone all-out since the start, Kang Chul-In would have been murdered before he could even activate Outrage Drive... he was indeed the ancient emperor who had cast fear onto the whole continent.

“Heh...!”

Suddenly, Saturnus’ punch landed on Kang Chul-In’s flank.

Crack! Kang Chul-In almost screamed from the sharp pain that followed.

My breathing...!

He didn’t feel good. His breath became shallow. One of the crushed ribs must have punctured the lungs. However, Saturnus refused to stop his punches. Although they didn’t carry the full power, they were still as powerful as a tank.

“Keuk...!”

Finally, Kang Chul-In couldn’t hold back his moan.

And that one punch!

Banggggg! Saturnus’ fist struck Kang Chul-In’s solar plexus hard.

“Urgh...!”

Kang Chul-In coughed out blood and was pushed back together with Kaiforce.

“Heh... son...!” Saturnus grinned. “Not bad, huh?”

“Keuk...!”

“But... I don’t think you can entertain me for long, can you? How long more? One minute? No, 30 seconds?”

“...!”

“Kek, kekeke... alright, let’s play to our hearts’ content. You will be an empty shell after a while... I waited a thousand years for this revenge; I can wait for another one minute, no problem.”

Saturnus had sharp eyes. He could discern Kang Chul-In’s status in one look and even had room to relax. Kang Chul-In had never faced an opponent like this in his entire lifetime. Saturnus was his true nemesis and predator. Even without a single artifact or magical ability, he could display such incredible strength.

Should I use it? Kang Chul-In pondered.

[25 seconds remaining for Outrage Drive!]

He was running out of time. After 25 seconds, he would be rendered unable to fight due to the aftermath of the Outrage Drive. Kang Chul-In had to defeat Saturnus within this short duration to fulfill his ambition and uphold the Emperor of Blood and Iron’s legacy. If only the Ectoplasm Oversuit was fully synchronized... he could have easily killed Saturnus. What a shame.

Clench! Kang Chul-In gritted his teeth.

“Hu...”

“Why, son? Are you furious at your incompetence?”

“No way.”

“Kek... acting tough, are we? Your limits have already been revealed...”

“Any last words?”

“...?”

“I will let you talk some more bullshit before you die.”

Suddenly, Saturnus began to feel uneasy from observing Kang Chul-In’s face— his eyes, sealed lips, and tranquil expression. His composure proved that Kang Chul-In wasn’t exaggerating.

It’s all or nothing.

Kang Chul-In decided to use the Trinity Impact. He couldn’t defeat Saturnus with Outrage Drive alone. Therefore, he had to make use of his trump card.

“You only live once.” That was Kang Chul-In’s motto. It was game over if he died. Why prepare for tomorrow then? His utmost priority was to eliminate the ‘variable’ in front of him.

“Trinity Force... Acti...”

Kang Chul-In was about to activate his trump card when suddenly,

Thump! A blue silhouette fell from the sky.

It was Lucia, his soul mate and aide.

***

While Kang Chul-In and Saturnus were battling it out at the Khartoum river, Milenius had assumed control over the command center.

“Kwak Jun.”

“Yes, Your Majesty Andrei...”

“Prepare it.”

“Y-You mean ‘that’ thing?”

Kwak Jun was shocked. Milenius was referring to the Gullveig Alliance’s arrangement to hunt Kang Chul-In down, with Brynhildr as the bait.

“Now’s the golden opportunity to eliminate Kang Chul-In. We have to use it now.”

“Yes...”

“Execute it right away.”

“Will do.” action

Kwak Jun followed Milenius’ command without resistance. He didn’t have a choice. Otherwise, he would die.

Heh... Emperor of Blood and Iron... and Emperor of Lunacy and Night... an opportunity to kill the father and son...

After handing out the command, Milenius grinned.

Saturnus... how dare you treat your creator like a slave? Me, a member of the mighty Agnaga?

That was right. Milenius had never genuinely served Saturnus. In fact, he had been forced to obey him.

“All men!” Kwak Jun ordered. “Deploy project ‘King Slayer’!”

King Slayer. It was the Gullveig Alliance’s joker card to hunt Kang Chul-In down.

***

“Back off, Lucia!” Kang Chul-In shouted. He was about to activate the Trinity Impact but couldn’t do so with Lucia around.

However...

Lucia faced Saturnus, while Kang Chul-In stood behind her back.

This is...!

Kang Chul-In immediately realized the state Lucia was in.

Emilia...!

It was obvious. The Emperor of Blood and Iron didn’t have a clear memory of Lucia, so only Emilia the Dragon Lord could do such a thing. In other words, she had programmed Lucia to protect Kang Chul-In.

“Oh?” Saturnus grinned. “Cyborg... made by a dragon? Kek... as expected from my son... quite a casanova... to have a knight in shining armor.”

Saturnus didn’t bat an eyelid upon Lucia’s appearance. There was no way he would. Lucia might have awakened, but she was still substantially weaker than Saturnus. She could only buy time for Kang Chul-In to evacuate to safety...

Brrrr...! Kang Chul-In was genuinely furious.

“I can’t let this happen...”

Lucia was very special to him. A sovereign and his aide shared a bond tighter than anything else. In addition, Lucia was a loyal subject who had accompanied him ever since the Great Summoning. How could he use her as his shield, in front of Saturnus? He could never do that. Kang Chul-In was too prideful of a man to sacrifice Lucia just for his ambition. He was the Supreme King of the West. He could never appreciate such a circumstance.

“Lucia!” Kang Chul-In bellowed. “Leave, now!”

“Didn’t I tell you? Leave.”

However, all Lucia did was reiterate her given task with a robotic voice. She didn’t respond to Kang Chul-In at all.

[10 seconds remaining for Outrage Drive!]

At that moment, a notification appeared in front of Kang Chul-In.

[Warning, warning! Outrage Drive is ending soon! 9s... 8s... 7s...]

It was a crisis. At this rate, Kang Chul-In would collapse due to the aftermath of the Outrage Drive.

“God damn it!”

Kang Chul-In dashed.

He then grabbed Lucia by her neck and threw her back.

Oooooongg...! Subsequently, he garnered every last bit of his strength.

One blow to finish him off.

His next task was to activate the Trinity Impact.

Now was the time, before the effect of the Outrage Drive ended!

“Come at me, son!”

Saturnus opened both of his arms at Kang Chul-In. The tyrant who turned Pangea into a bloodbath 1000 years ago was confident.

“Die, you fucker...!”

Kang Chul-In was about to activate the Trinity Impact, when...

Bangggggg! A tremendous sound echoed in the air.

Bang, bang, bangggggg...!

The Gullveig Alliance naval fleet began to explode.

“...!”

It caught everyone off-guard. It was a serial explosion, at that.

“T-That is...!” Han Ye-Sun was appalled. “Oppa, we have to escape!”

In the sky above Khartoum River, a Gullveig Alliance aircraft was about to drop ‘something big.’

“...!”

Kang Chul-In was shocked as well.

What kind of bomb is that...!

It was obviously a bomb, but it was absolutely enormous. Almost as big as a small castle... its potential destructive power seemed to match that of an atomic bomb.

At that instant, Milenius’ voice could be heard from the aircraft, and immediately, the gigantic bomb fell straight from the sky. Milenius planned to kill Kang Chul-In, Saturnus, and Brynhildr with this single attack!

“Oppa...!”

Han Ye-Sun rushed towards Kang Chul-In. The bomb of the century landed on the battleship where the three of them stood.

Banggggggggggggg!

A massive explosion engulfed all of them.