Reborn As A Ghost: Time To Build My Undead Army!-Chapter 1770: Showdown! Maria Against The Heavenly Emperor!
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"{Thousand-Armed Vajra Protection Celestial Formation}!"
"Hahahaha! HAHAHAHA!"
"{Ten Thousand-Armed Ghostly God Formation: God of Destruction Shiva}!"
"WHAAAAT?!"
To the utter shock of everyone within the Heavenly Palace, Maria had come fully prepared. A titanic formation rose, embodying a colossal god of destruction with ten thousand arms, clashing against and seizing the golden palms of the Vajra god.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions of darkness, ghostly flames, and blinding light erupted across the heavens. Yet the Vajra proved too frail. Cracks spiderwebbed across its form before it shattered into fragments within the first five seconds of battle.
Crack, crack...!
CRASH!
BOOOMMM!!!
A devastating blast followed, born from both the formation’s destruction and Maria slamming her Ghostly Pagoda into the Heavenly Palace. The impact tore through the ceiling and much of the grand structure, fracturing it and spilling millions of treasures and energies that had sustained the palace.
RUMBLE!
"This cannot be happening!" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚
"The Heavenly Palace!"
"Nooooo!"
Hundreds of Immortals perished in the explosions, consumed utterly, leaving only vengeful souls behind. The moment those souls brushed against Maria’s Ghostly Pagoda, they transformed into Immortal Ghosts, surging into the palace to attack anyone in sight.
The Heavenly Emperor, preparing a final gambit from his throne, heard the cataclysmic roar. His eyes widened in fury as he burst outside, unleashing his full Aura. The palace desperately absorbed his power, struggling to regenerate.
Yet Maria’s Ghostly Pagoda blocked the process completely. Worse still, she was refining the entire Heavenly Palace, using the pagoda as a vessel for her soul, spreading her influence everywhere.
By claiming this immense Celestial Formation, Maria could seize total control of the vast palace.
Meanwhile, massive breaches poured treasures down upon the world of Murim, returning them to the mortals below—the rightful owners from whom everything had been stolen.
Dimensional energies, like transparent rivers, leaked out, warping space and exposing over a hundred shattered internal realms within the palace.
"YOUUU! HOW DARE YOU! THIS IS PREPOSTEROUS! HOW DID YOU ARRIVE HERE SO SWIFTLY?! I DEACTIVATED THE TELEPORTATION DEVICE!"
The Heavenly Emperor’s voice thundered across the heavens. A colossal shockwave of Divine Power slammed into the Ghostly Pagoda, slowly pushing the massive structure away.
At that instant, the pagoda’s gates swung open. Maria emerged, followed by her family and disciples, leaping into the Heavenly Palace like bold pirates boarding an enemy vessel.
"So you’re the Heavenly Emperor, huh? You don’t even look that impressive. What a disappointment!"
Maria grinned with fierce pride as she faced him—a towering "human" over twenty meters tall, clad in golden dragon-scale armor, wielding an enormous golden dragon spear, with a grand banner flowing behind him.
His Aura, however, was overwhelming, radiating like an endless sun. The palace amplified it further, so Maria decided to neutralize the structure immediately.
"This palace isn’t too shabby. I think I’ll devour it. You don’t mind, do you?"
"Devour it?! What are you—NO! STOP!"
The Heavenly Emperor realized her intent as a small black hole opened in Maria’s chest. The hundreds of realms within the palace were violently sucked inside, merging chaotically with her Soul Realm in a vortex that twisted space, time, and reality itself.
"H-HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?! WHAT ARE YOU?!"
"Heavenly Emperor! Help!"
"Aaaaaggghh!"
"Save us!"
"We’re being pulled in!"
"Aaaahhhh!"
The Heavenly Emperor hastily extended his Aura, shielding as many Immortals as he could. Still, hundreds more vanished into the black hole, trapped forever within her Soul Realm.
As she absorbed the inner realms, the palace shuddered and began to collapse. Ceilings, walls, and countless chambers crumbled apart.
Despair filled the Heavenly Emperor’s eyes as he watched his magnificent home—built over thousands of years—utterly destroyed.
"YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!"
Driven by raw madness, he charged at Maria without strategy. His Aura detonated as six Celestial Martial Souls manifested simultaneously, resembling majestic Bodhisattvas commanding Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Wood, and Metal.
All six attacked Maria, the pagoda, and everyone behind her. A torrent of apocalyptic power surged forth, enough to obliterate entire continents.
And yet...
CRAAASH!
"Ngh?! Y-YOU...!"
The Heavenly Emperor gasped as Maria’s Aura erupted in response. She summoned six Martial Souls of her own.
Not only the Skeleton Goddess, but five more—each embodying her past evolutions.
A towering ghostly lady woven from curses and chaos: Pandora.
A giantess formed of venomous ghostly serpents: Gorgon.
A colossal insect queen swarmed by millions of flies: Beelzebub.
A powerful titan goddess sculpted from moonlight: Selene.
Maria had realized that if Martial Souls reflected a person’s soul, will, and experiences, then manifesting her former selves was entirely possible.
All five surged forward, colliding with the Emperor’s Bodhisattvas. Explosions of poison and clashing elements ravaged everything—freezing, burning, vaporizing, and corrupting the surroundings.
BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!
"This is impossible! How could you possess six Martial Souls?! Only I have attained such enlightenment!" the Heavenly Emperor roared, thrusting his draconic spear. Dozens of golden dragon spirits burst forth, striking Maria relentlessly.
Yet her Aura flared brighter. Nine Dream Soul Spheres materialized, transforming into swords of starlight forged from dreams, nightmares, chaos, and void. They cleaved through his assaults, cracking his vaunted spear.
"W-WHAT?! YOU’RE SHATTERING MY INDESTRUCTIBLE SPEAR?!"
"Well, it turns out my soul is stronger than your weapon."
{Spectral Ghostly Fist Art: Ninth Form—Dream Chasing Star Blade}!
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
Ten devastating slashes of sword ki struck the Heavenly Emperor. He blocked desperately with his spear, only to watch it fracture and explode into shards.
Crack, crack...
CRASH!
"Damn it!"
With a frantic thought, dozens of weapons poured from golden portals linked to his Personal Treasury, where his mightiest artifacts rested.
"Nice portals. Mind if I take them over?"
"HM?!"
To his horror, as he grasped for weapons, Maria extended a tendril of her soul into one portal, wrenching it open and siphoning everything within.
"All your treasures are mine now, jackass."
"WHAT?! NO...! NO, STOP!"
The Heavenly Emperor lunged to intervene, but her swords pierced his body, slicing through defenses and barriers effortlessly. Blood poured from deep wounds as he screamed in agony. Lucifer stepped forward, slamming a kick into his face and unleashing thousands of punishing blows while Maria calmly emptied the entire Treasury Realm—then devoured it, fusing it into her own Soul Realm.
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