Michael was not particularly surprised that his entry into the imperial capital had been discovered.

After his previous clash with the emperor through the Third Prince’s mental imprint, there had already been a high possibility the empire would increase the capital’s defenses afterward.

And even if the emperor had somehow not done that, perhaps out of confidence that no sane person would willingly walk into what could become a cage at any moment, Michael still would not have underestimated the capital itself.

Legendary beings were only considered rare relative to ordinary people. To existences like the emperor, they were likely far more common than outsiders imagined.

If powerful figures at that level could casually enter and leave the emperor’s personal territory unnoticed, that would be a terrifying flaw for the empire. Michael had already expected the imperial capital to possess methods specifically designed to detect powerful intruders.

Of course, if he had managed to sneak in completely undetected, Michael would not have found that strange either. He possessed quite a few absurd concealment methods and was confident in his ability to hide when necessary.

Still, being discovered changed very little. From the very beginning, he had never truly intended to remain hidden forever.

High above the capital, cold wind swept across the night sky. Several hundred undead floated silently in formation. Terrifying energy rolled across the clouds while countless glowing eyes stared downward toward the imperial capital beneath them.

At this moment, the emperor’s expression had become noticeably colder.

Suddenly, a sharp scream echoed across the imperial capital. "ENEMY ATTACK!"

The voice was amplified by mana and spread throughout nearly half the city instantly. "Highest alert level! Legendary-grade threat detected above the capital!"

The peaceful atmosphere below shattered immediately.

BOOOOOOM!!!

One after another, countless magic circles suddenly lit up across the skies. Massive glowing formations expanded above the capital like layers of overlapping heavens. Strange runes rotated endlessly while pillars of blue light erupted upward from different regions of the city.

The entire imperial capital instantly transformed into a gigantic fortress.

At first glance, the formations did not seem to do anything directly. However, only a second later, Michael’s expression shifted slightly.

"...Oh?"

He immediately felt it. The void itself had been sealed. Or more accurately, locked. The surrounding space had not become inaccessible, but heavily restricted. Michael could still enter the void if he wished, yet movement through it would remain limited entirely within the boundaries of the imperial capital.

In simple terms, he was trapped.

At the same time, many of the undead behind Michael stirred slightly as they sensed the surrounding changes. The emperor, meanwhile, simply stood silently in the distance while observing him.

Michael did not look afraid at all. Instead, his eyes calmly swept across the glowing formations covering the heavens. "...Interesting."

He wondered briefly whether his High Drake could forcefully break through. After all, that was a near-demigod creature.

Below, panic had already begun spreading rapidly throughout the city. Countless civilians fled into buildings while armored soldiers flooded the streets. Flying knights rapidly gathered in formation across the skies while powerful auras awakened continuously throughout the capital one after another.

The emperor slowly looked toward Michael. "You entered the imperial capital willingly. Did you truly think leaving would be so easy?"

Michael merely laughed softly. "Leaving? Who said I was planning to leave immediately?"

The emperor’s eyes narrowed faintly.

High above the capital, hundreds of undead remained floating silently like an army of death overlooking the empire itself. Cold wind swept across the skies. Michael’s expression remained extremely calm, though internally his thoughts were moving rapidly.

Michael was not reckless enough to believe attacking the Black Serpent Empire directly would be easy. This was not Lionheart. This was the strongest hegemonic force in the region.

The fact that they could lock down the void across an entire capital already proved how terrifying their foundations truly were. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Still, Michael was not without confidence. He possessed multiple Legendary undead and over two thousand Rank 3 undead.

Looking around he could also not deny that the Black Serpent Empire was truly powerful.

Just from the imperial family alone, Michael could already sense around four hundred Rank 3 knights and mages mobilizing rapidly throughout the capital. Four hundred. Even in Aurora, he had not seen such a massive number of Rank 3 existences gathered together openly like this.

Of course, this did not mean the empire was stronger than Aurora. Comparing the two directly was somewhat unfair. Aurora was a whole high-tier civilization. The structures of both powers were entirely different.

Still, the sheer military strength displayed by the empire was undeniably terrifying, and that was only the royal family itself.

As Michael’s senses swept farther outward, he quickly noticed several powerful auras rising from different noble districts as well. The great noble clans possessed their own Rank 3 experts. Some families had one. Some had three. A few had even more.

Gradually, the total number of Rank 3 beings surrounding the imperial capital climbed past five hundred. Michael’s eyes narrowed slightly. "This probably still isn’t everything."

The empire had been caught somewhat unprepared tonight. Many experts were likely absent from the capital entirely. If the empire had been fully prepared beforehand, the number would have been even more absurd.

The Black Serpent Empire had existed for hundreds upon hundreds of years. Even if ascending to Rank 3 was difficult, enough time would naturally produce a terrifying accumulation.

Whether it was cultivation manuals, rare treasures, or special resources like Law Seeds, the empire almost certainly possessed enormous reserves of all of them.

Even people lacking natural talent could potentially ascend given sufficient comprehension and the right inheritance.

This was the true terror of ancient hegemonic powers. Accumulation.

As for the countless supernaturals below Rank 3 gathering throughout the city, Michael barely paid them any attention. To his current level they were honestly irrelevant. Even his ordinary Rank 3 undead could slaughter through them endlessly.

Yet despite the empire’s overwhelming numbers, the expressions on many faces below were solemn. Some were even pale.