Devouring Monarch: Rebirth of the Profane Phoenix

Chapter 427 The Empire's Rage - Preparing for Revenge

Emperor Shang Wei, once a formidable and feared warrior, now sat on his throne with a desolate and furious aura, his lips pale and cracked, eyes sharp and filled with fire.

He looked down at the Head Eunuch, who was giving him information on a mysterious event that destroyed an unheard-of level.

"Your Majesty, the appearance of the firebird and devil have caused extreme damage to the eastern provinces, with over ten villages, four towns and two cities being wiped off the map. Casualties are reaching the six-figure mark, with more refugees and terrified villagers fleeing to the western and central provinces as we speak."

Head Eunuch Xu Ming spoke with a dignified voice, but those who knew him could detect the slight tremble and cowering of his body. He dared not look at the Emperor, his fear visible from his movements and his quivering aura.

"What of my son? Or the warriors we sent to reinforce the east?" Shang Wei's voice, like a mist of death, slowly trudged through the room, causing any who doubted the emperor to shudder and clench their fists in terror.

"Your forgiveness, I beg your forgiveness, your highness! Xu Ming is at fault!"

The head Eunuch and all his subordinates could do nothing but bow their heads, slamming them against the stone ground, because the reports of the second prince's death had been confirmed along with the 10,000 troops that supported him.

Although the Empire had a vast army, sadly, they were spread through the vast provinces and lacked the same level of training or power.

Thus, losing the elite 10,000 would be a great hit to their power.

All the experienced generals the emperor sent to support his second son's rise to power were gone. Now, unfamiliar faces and heirs stood where the once mighty allies and friends of Shang Wei stood, and a narrow black box at the centre of the room, carrying the only remaining parts of the second prince, his deformed head and mangled body.

'My son... you are gone, yet this father cannot even show his grief, for these vultures will use it to try and steal the throne and remove our family from history.'

"Who is responsible, Xu Ming? I do not want some imaginary beings or ridiculous stories. I want names, families, clans! Whoever is involved, we will destroy them."

The Emperor's voice trembled, and his anger and resentment bled into his words, but even so, he could not stop his tears as he looked upon his son's lonely casket, unable to look inside himself. His empress was already beside herself in grief and refusing to eat or drink.

'This is dangerous... that bitch Freyja, she will pay!'

He recalled the many times he tried to befriend or seduce the strange woman, but every time his attempts failed, he felt his anger and hatred grow.

"Your majesty, we have word from our spies, and we have discovered the identity of one of the two demons. Also, information about the forces inside the monster forest that have begun pushing north while clearing the monster clans!"

"OH?!"

"Your majesty, one is the daughter of the Feng Clan! Feng He Ra, that transformation is an ancient ritual of their clan! We captured their family who were lingering in the capital and speaking of the firebird. After we 'convinced' them to speak, it was confirmed the red firebird was their eldest daughter. Feng He Ra!"

He trudged towards the casket; because of his role, he always needed to be the strongest and show no faults or weaknesses, for the sweet taste of power the title Emperor had was appealing to others, and humans were too easily corrupted.

'My son... I wanted to hand everything to you. Your mother is wailing in sorrow after losing you. Yet I am not permitted to shed a single tear in this vast prison of emotions, should they know of my grief. The empire will fall; my acts were too rash, and I have many enemies, even amongst my trusted men.'

His lips trembled, and his eyes grew moist, yet the emperor stopped himself, unable to break down the barriers that protected him.

'I will find the person or being behind this disaster and make them suffer, but first, I must regain the stability and peace within our lands. My son, I will let them suffer your pain tenfold. This is my only way to appease and show my feelings to you. I shall kill their loved ones, and all families that exist, even people who are friendly with them, will die!'

Shang Wei smiled faintly, yet his expression was cold, and his eyes didn't smile once as he looked down at the mutilated head and body of his beloved child.

"Worry not. I will make sure they pay the price of your sacrifice."

This would be the day that the remaining nations and Silvara would remember the fearsome nature of the Emerald Empire.

The moment their troops rounded the Feng clan took less than an hour, and spies and informants from the entire continent began to shudder from the ruthless death of the entire clan being hung from the city walls.

Meanwhile, because Asura was suffering from injuries and damage to his body from the forced transformation and pushing his core to its limit, Helia and Sigurd now continued their mission while Shizuka and Rasha attended to him.

After he returned to human form, the various parts that were from each of his bloodlines didn't vanish, while the powerful and raging energy in his body constantly tore his flesh and veins, causing his body to bleed and become trapped in a cycle of wounding and regeneration.

The only positive was the losses were confirmed to be much less than thought, with 1,765 of the 2,000 troops remaining. Not only that but they reached the beautiful walls of Arachneas, a beautiful city with eastern architecture.

However, inside the city were the arachne who remained and monsters who sided with the Emerald Empire.

"Sigurd, do you believe we should attack them at night or try to establish a diplomatic approach?"

"Helliana, I think we should ask the queen for some input. Maybe she can help with the diplomatic approach. But we must be careful. The scouts report that the empire is preparing for a counterattack, and with Asura like that..."

"Time isn't on our side..." Lucia kept her clones in Asura's shadow and her main body in Helia's shadow because of her pregnancy.

"I only hope that our husband can recover soon, I never thought that he would become that way after Ignis almost died..." Helia muttered; however, Sigurd tapped his shoulder.

"Come on—you know how caring that man is, not to mention those two always had a strange relationship, and I was wondering why he hadn't taken a Valkyrie as his fiancée yet."

Lucia tapped her chin and then looked at the enemy walls filled with arachne spitters that would spit venom from their lips and acid-like webs from their spinnerets.

"This will be a difficult battle if we cannot negotiate."