Dungeon Corpse Stacker: I Absorb Everything to Become Ominous Monarch
Chapter 42: THE FALL OF THE FOUR MASTERS

Chapter 42: Chapter 42: THE FALL OF THE FOUR MASTERS

The highway before the Northern Gate detonated into a storm of raw, destruction-class energy as the four remaining S-Rank Guild Masters unleashed their full, unrestricted power simultaneously.

Marcus "The Blood Blade" surged forward like a localized natural disaster, his massive muscular body shrouded in a towering, volatile avatar of crimson kinetic force that shattered the paved concrete road six inches deep beneath his every step. To his left, Guild Master Vance of Northern Frost slammed his ancient rune-engraved staff onto the ground, spawning an absolute-zero blizzard that froze dozens of burning artillery tanks into jagged monuments of black ice. On the right, Guild Master Kaelen of Central Aegis activated his signature S-Rank defensive technique, Impenetrable Fortress, his broad frame glowing with a golden, mountain-like barrier that pushed back the surrounding Shadow Knights with violent kinetic force.

From the dark clouds above, Guild Master Sylas of Shadow Fang—the country’s deadliest S-Rank assassin—vanished entirely into thin air, his physical presence and mana signature completely erased as he moved through the ambient shadows for a fatal execution strike against Renan’s heart.

"Die, Calamity!" Marcus roared, throwing his entire body weight into a mountain-cleaving vertical slash wrapped in S-Rank blood-fire, aimed straight at Renan’s collarbone.

Simultaneously, Vance unleashed three massive, jagged spears of glacial ice toward Renan’s flanks, while Sylas materialized out of the shadows directly behind Renan’s back, driving twin poison-dripping daggers toward his blind spot at supersonic speed.

Four S-Rank lethality vectors converged on a single point in a fraction of a millisecond, generating a sonic shockwave that blew away the surrounding smoke.

Renan didn’t even bother to turn around or draw a weapon.

[Active Skill Applied: ’Monarch’s Absolute Gravitational Domain’]

Target Area: 50-Meter Radius.

Gravity Multiplier: 100x Standard Earth Force.

BOOM!

An invisible, catastrophic gravitational force slammed down upon the battlefield like an anvil dropped from the heavens. The ambient air groaned under the sudden, suffocating density, and the highway surface caved inward.

The three colossal glacial spears launched by Vance shattered instantly into fine ice powder before reaching within ten feet of Renan. Sylas, attempting his lethal shadow step behind Renan, was violently slammed out of stealth and pinned face-first into the scorched asphalt, his ribs splintering under the crushing weight. Kaelen’s golden fortress barrier cracked like brittle glass, forcing the massive guardian down onto both knees, his heavy steel gauntlets digging deep into the road as he gasped for air.

Even Marcus, propelled by his terrifying S-Rank kinetic momentum, felt his crimson blade forced downward by forty inches, his iron boots sinking six inches deep into the crushing pavement as his shoulders buckled.

"What... what is this suffocating weight?!" Marcus choked out, blood boiling in his veins as he struggled to lift his broadsword against the invisible mountain pressing down on his spine. "He hasn’t even drawn a weapon!"

Renan slowly turned his head, his glowing golden eyes locking onto Sylas, who lay writhing in the crushed asphalt behind him, unable to lift his chin.

"An assassin who hides in the shadows," Renan murmured coldly, his voice echoing in the assassin’s ears, "trying to strike the Master of Shadows."

Renan raised his boot and brought it down directly onto Sylas’s exposed spine with crushing momentum.

CRACK!

[Absolute Extraction System Activated]

Target Locked: Guild Master Sylas (Rank-S Assassin).

Commencing Instant Soul Binding Protocol...

A muffled, horror-filled shriek escaped Sylas’s throat as dark, viscous miasma burst from his back, dragging his soul directly out of his flesh. In less than three seconds, the assassin’s physical body dissolved into dark gray ash, replaced by a swift, spectral entity wrapped in dark leather armor, wielding twin blades of pure, void-infused darkness.

[Extraction Successful!]

[New Entity Acquired: Shadow Commander ’Sylas’ (Rank-EX)]

+810 Agility

+540 Strength

[Skill Acquired: ’Void Concealment’ (Rank-S)]

Without pausing for a single breath, the newly born Shadow Commander Sylas vanished into the shadows beneath his feet, reappearing instantly behind Guild Master Vance of Northern Frost. Before the elderly elemental mage could react or cast a protective frost barrier, Sylas’s void daggers pierced Vance’s throat and chest clean from behind.

"Vance!" Kaelen screamed, watching his long-time comrade fall backward into the dark pool of miasma that erupted beneath his feet.

Within seconds, dark ice crackled across Vance’s corpse as his soul was extracted, transforming the S-Rank mage into a dark, frozen specter that immediately began casting corrupted frost spells onto the remaining, disoriented Coalition infantry.

[Extraction Successful!]

[New Entity Acquired: Shadow Commander ’Vance’ (Rank-EX)]

The battlefield had transformed into a total, horror-filled slaughterhouse. Out of the five Regional Guild Masters who had marched on Sector 4 with three thousand elite Hunters, only Marcus and Kaelen remained standing, surrounded by over two thousand newly converted Shadow Knights and four Rank-EX Shadow Commanders.

Marcus stumbled backward, his hands trembling violently as he looked at the sprawling field of corpses. His men were gone. His allies were turned into dark, immortal puppets serving the very monster they had come to execute.

"Monster..." Marcus whimpered, his voice stripped of all its previous bravado and pride. "You aren’t a Hunter... You’re a god of death..."

"I am simply the result of your corrupt system, Marcus," Renan said, stepping calmly through the sea of shadow soldiers. "You built this world on the backs of the weak and discarded. I am here to tear it down."

Renan motioned with his pale hand. Shadow General Ignis and Shadow Commander Elena stepped forward, while the newly extracted Shadow Sylas and Shadow Vance took positions on their flanks.

Kaelen raised his heavy tower shield one last time, tears of despair running down his face, while Marcus let out a ragged, suicidal roar, charging forward with his broken crimson blade.

BOOM!

The combined, catastrophic strikes of four Rank-EX Shadow Commanders obliterated the last defensive line of the Regional Coalition in a blinding flash of violet lightning, dark frost, and dragon fire.

[Mass Battle Summary: Northern Gate War]

Target Executed: 3,000 Regional Coalition Hunters.

Target Executed: 5 Regional S-Rank Guild Masters.

[System Threshold Reached: Tier-3 Monarch Awakening]

[Shadow Legion Capacity: UNLIMITED (No Limit)]

[Total Active Shadow Legion: 3,561 Units]

As the acrid smoke cleared, the eight-lane highway was entirely silent save for the crackling of burning metal. Three thousand five hundred dark, armored Shadow Knights stood in flawless, disciplined military formation, stretching as far as the eye could see down the highway.

At the head of this immortal legion stood Renan. His golden eyes flared with terrifying, absolute authority as he turned his gaze toward the distant horizon, where the massive skyscrapers of the Capital City gleamed under the darkening, storm-swept sky.

Arc 4 was over. The regional armies were no more.

Renan raised his hand, pointing his pale finger toward the heart of the nation.

"To the Capital," Renan commanded, his voice shaking the earth beneath his army. "Dismantle their throne."