Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"To win this war, Aurelion must die," Kharos declared.

"But, Your Majesty, even if all of us fight together, I'm afraid we still won't be able to kill him," Merlin said, stating the obvious.

The difference between an Eternal Sage and a Demi-God was incomprehensibly vast, for the gap was not merely that of a major realm, but of an entire tier; the former belonging to the mid-tier, while the latter stood in the late-tier.

Just as cultivators shed their mortal need for food upon becoming an Awakened Sage, the first mid-tier realm, upon reaching the Demi-God realm, they stepped onto the path of Godhood, no longer remaining human. That was the reason Kharos declared Aurelion's death a necessity to win the war.

"Father, how do you plan to kill him?" Hector asked. He knew Kharos would not have made such a statement without a plan.

"We will use the imperial weapon," Kharos declared, sending a wave of gasps through the meeting room.

"Th-this old man must have gone senile after losing Adam," Hector muttered inwardly. "I absolutely won't let him send us all to our doom."

"But, Father, we can only use it once," Hector said, his voice laced with concern. "If Aurelion dodges the attack, it would be a complete waste. Shouldn't it be used on Taranis, who stands at the center of this war and is responsible for all this massacre?"

The Dukes also agreed with Hector's suggestion. They were unaware of the true extent of a Demi-God's prowess. It was far too great a risk to use such a precious weapon on Aurelion when it could guarantee victory if used on Taranis.

"That monster is shrouded in mystery," Kharos said. "He survived even after his heart was pierced eighteen years ago. The rumors of him being immortal may not be false."

The camp fell silent. None could refute his claim, though they were surprised at how quickly Kharos had pulled himself out of the grief of losing his second son, almost to a suspicious degree.

However, their suspicion vanished as Kharos continued, an overwhelming pressure radiating from his body,

"Besides, that monster is my prey. I will not grant him such an easy death. I hope he truly is immortal, so I can torture him for eternity."

---

"Kharos Solaris, what are you plotting?" Aurelion muttered, his eyes fixed on the zenith of a distant valley where Kharos stood.

As his focus shifted for but a moment, a thunderous explosion erupted near the fortress wall, slightly beyond its perimeter.

Clouds of fire, as vast as the wall itself, surged outward, and cracks spread rapidly across its surface.

Aurelion's eyes narrowed as he searched for the source of the explosion.

"These wretched people..." Aurelion muttered as he sensed a knight glowing intensely upon nearing the wall. The next instant, the knight's body detonated, producing an explosion identical to the previous one.

"Using their own knights as sacrifices to breach the wall," Aurelion grumbled, a faint trace of disgust crossing his face.

Along the boundary before the fortress, one after another, the knights' bodies began to glow as they roared,

"Glory to the Azure Sun Empire!"

Just as they were about to explode, Aurelion unsheathed his sword for the second time in the war and spoke in a frigid tone,

"Sword of Snowbane: Chapter Five:

Snowstorm!"

With a single swing of Aurelion's sword, a cataclysmic snowstorm erupted, freezing the very air as it swept across the battlefield and swallowed everything in a blinding haze.

The ground vanished beneath a thick sheet of ice and snow, while the empire's knights, frozen solid, were hurled into the sky before shattering into bursts of white. No flesh or blood followed their fall, only fine particles of snow drifting down like the remnants of their existence.

At that very instant, Aurelion felt something dangerous closing in at a terrifying speed.

His head snapped toward the direction from which he sensed the ominous premonition. His senses flared violently as he saw an arrow of light piercing through the air, hurtling toward one of the high towers of the fortress, where a short, white-haired young man was operating a ballista.

"N-no!! Doran!!!!" Aurelion shouted, rushing toward the tower at his maximum speed.

A blinding white light erupted as the arrow struck, drawing the attention of every soldier in the Banes' army.

As the light faded, fear and horror spread through the soldiers' ranks. The Sect Masters stood with widened eyes and parted lips, and even Taranis, who had been fighting at the forefront, came to an abrupt halt. The sword in his hand trembled as his gaze shifted toward the high tower where the brilliant light had just appeared.

"F-father," Doran murmured, his expression darkened, his hand covering his face in shock and horror.

"It's alright, son," Aurelion murmured, blood leaking from the corner of his lips. "It's just a minor scratch."

A fist-sized, gaping hole had appeared in Aurelion's abdomen, from which a thick stream of blood poured out. His body leaned forward, and he collapsed onto Doran, his chin resting on his shoulder.

"Lord Aurelion!!" the Sect Masters shouted, desperate to rush to his aid. However, if they abandoned their positions, the Dukes and their army would break through the walls and invade the country.

They had no choice but to continue fighting, lest they lose the war itself.

However, unlike them, Taranis's mental state was far from stable. He remained frozen in place, his gaze locked onto Kharos in the distant valley, who wore an expression of satisfaction. In his hand, he held a massive bow etched with intricate patterns, which slowly crumbled into pieces and fell to the ground.

The empire's soldiers, seizing the opportunity presented by Taranis's stillness, swarmed him from all directions and unleashed their full assault upon him.

"The Demi-God Aurelion is dead!" Hector shouted from afar. "The fortress is defenseless without him! Claim the fortress and slaughter the Banes' army!"

Dopamine surged through the bodies of the empire's soldiers at Hector's declaration. Aurelion, the strongest warrior of the Banes' army, had fallen. The army roared with renewed fervor, their morale reaching its zenith as they pushed forward from all directions, overpowering the Banes' forces, who were still reeling in shock from the absurd spectacle they had just witnessed.