Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

"Lord Orion, it's not wise to drag this out. Let's blast them to pieces in one go!"

"Understood."

Orion nodded, then poured all his energy into the Eightfold Spear Barrage. At the same time, the ripples of death spread outward on every side, unleashing a tremendous destructive force.

"Both of you, help me!"

"Black Sun Devour!"

A Black Sun that resembled a dark vortex suddenly appeared, swallowing the spider spears from the Eightfold Spear Barrage along with the death ripple shockwaves. The constant rumbling of battle abruptly died down.

Orion stood still where he was, while Rumbold hovered in the distance, expressionless—whether he was planning his next move or waiting for Orion's command was unclear.

As for Murktooth, Caleb, and Jarod, they were gasping for breath, looking on the verge of collapse.

Orion hesitated. He still had a trump card he hadn't played, but worried the enemy trio might be holding back as well. Besides, Rumbold had just told him through telepathy that using the death ripples took a heavy toll—dragging the fight out would risk exhausting Rumbold.

In that scenario, if they kept pushing, both Orion and Rumbold might pay the price.

Eyes narrowed, Orion quickly turned things over in his mind and came to a decision. A sudden flash of light heralded the appearance of two mirror images, each identical to him in every detail—both stood there radiating powerful energy, surrounding Murktooth, Caleb, and Jarod.

"Quite the Black Sun Devour. Its power is impressive!"

"In light of that move just now, I'll give you a chance: pledge your loyalty to us and work for us."

Orion's voice rang out, utterly self-assured, but then took on a sinister edge.

"However, my companion and I each get only one recommendation spot. There are three of you. We can only recommend two."

"You have three days to think it over."

"And remember—this world is already ours. There's nowhere to run."

While speaking, Orion directed his mirror images aside, opening a lone exit. Likewise, Rumbold opened a gap in the outermost layer of the death ripple.

Murktooth, Caleb, and Jarod watched, torn by suspicion and doubt, unsure whether to retreat. None of them were fools; they clearly heard the malice in Orion's proposal and suspected it might be a bluff to sow discord.

In truth, Orion had summoned the mirror images for exactly that reason—intimidation and stage-setting, to underscore his offer. The sudden appearance of two clones, each with unmistakable life force and formidable power, only added to the confusion for the trio.

"S-Sir, Murktooth will definitely consider your offer carefully!"

After a long internal struggle, Murktooth finally separated from the group, flying out on his own. Caleb and Jarod almost shouted for him to stop, but when they saw Murktooth slip safely past the encirclement, they clamped their mouths shut.

"Sir, Caleb will also think seriously about your proposal."

"Jarod will do the same!"

One after another, Caleb and Jarod darted out of the ring.

Watching the three scramble off, Orion spoke in a haughty tone:

"Remember, you only have three days!"

"We'll keep sweeping through the eastern region. If we catch you resisting, the offer expires!"

"Hahaha…"

Orion's triumphant, malevolent laughter echoed across the distance.

Not long after, Rumbold approached Orion.

"Lord Orion, are we really letting them off the hook like that? We haven't finished our sweep."

Always respectful, Rumbold had stayed silent until now, just serving as muscle and essentially fading into the background.

"You saw it yourself. Those three Legendary-level powerhouses cover all ranges of combat, and one of them is a shield warrior with top-tier defense. Battling them head-on isn't worth the cost. If we forced a victory, we'd still take a big risk."

That risk was big enough that Orion was unwilling to lose his two mirror images. He planned to keep nurturing them until they became his permanent guardians.

Rumbold nodded, conceding Orion's point. That said, knowing his own master, Rumbold was well aware that all of his master's allies were ridiculously capable. Each had countless hidden trump cards. Even if Orion lacked them, Rumbold himself did not—he was confident in keeping both of them alive no matter what.

"Lord Orion, so what now?" Experience new stories on My Virtual Library Empire

Orion shot Rumbold a cryptic look. There was no way Rumbold hadn't caught on; he was just feigning ignorance.

"We keep invading. No slowing down!"

"Plus, do you really think our attack ends here?"

From the way Murktooth broke away first, Orion could tell Murktooth, Caleb, and Jarod were hardly united. Their shaky alliance was headed for trouble. That alone gave Orion some hope in his plan.

"Even if it doesn't spark infighting, at least we can sow suspicion among them."

"And besides, we just sealed a three-day window without resistance, right?"

"Hehehe…"

Orion and Rumbold exchanged a knowing smile. Even if this outcome wasn't perfect, their future confrontations with Murktooth, Caleb, and Jarod would be far more manageable.

…

In the central region, compared to Orion's approach, Leonidas and Arthas were taking a more direct tack.

"Boney McBoneface, you never disappoint!"

"Those two we let slip away will definitely search for the last Arch Lord. He'll promise them all sorts of goodies if they join him in taking us down."

"Heh… they actually think our strength is on par with theirs, that they can kill us if they band together."

"In truth, this was just our warm-up. They're dreaming if they believe they can beat us."

Leonidas and Arthas were putting on quite the show. By teaming up, they'd made it look like they barely managed to drive off Arch Lords Gollum and John. In reality, they hadn't even tapped ten percent of their true power.

"Let's hurry up and lay our trap. Even though they're nowhere near our level, they are genuine Arch Lords."

"Never be careless. That's how you end up in a ditch."

Perched on the head of his bone dragon, Arthas cut a solitary figure against the quiet Black Sun looming in the sky. A certain lonely-master aura clung to him.

"Hah! If they think this godforsaken land is enough to make me stumble, they're living in a fantasy."

"Woof, woof…"

Leonidas, in his canine form, landed atop the bone dragon as well.

"You think Hulk, who's running the cleansing in the eastern zone, might be in danger? There are three lords out there, and he only just advanced to Legendary level."

Arthas lowered his gaze to Leonidas.

"What's this—getting worried about him already? Where was that concern when you invited him to join in the first place?"

"Woof… so I'm curious about his real power, is that so wrong?"

"…"