Another Black King (3K)

Bai Cangshu opened his eyes. Black Mud dripped endlessly before him, and within it, an invisible spirit struggled and twisted.

Bai Cangshu tilted his head, watching that fiercely struggling King’s Heart sink deeper and deeper.

In this special state, he could almost completely read the heart of this king.

Burdened with the fate of the Chosen King, countless soldiers had followed her into battle. Yet in the end, the kingdom had still declined, and the pain and disappointment of her people had nearly destroyed her.

The Ever-Victorious Knight King had begun to fear facing the Fallen Knights. Guilt and regret within her had started to consume her.

The Chosen King had fallen into self-doubt because she could not save Britannia, while the Ever-Victorious King had begun to fear that she would be unable to win.

Those dark, twisted thoughts coiled around this king’s steadfast, flawless soul. As Black Mud corroded her, it swiftly submerged the spirit within it.

Fresh flesh began to gather within All the World’s Evil, naturally radiating magic power so intense it had condensed into a tangible form.

Her blue dress and silver armor faded away. Crimson patterns spread across her Black Dress, Ink Armor, and even her brilliant golden hair seemed to fade into an almost white shade.

A black faceplate appeared over her face, covering this king who had fallen into the darkness of her heart. Corrupted Artoria officially appeared in the real world.

At the top of the tower, Bai Cangshu looked at the Black Saber before him, his eyes full of interest.

The sight of something so holy and flawless falling into darkness fascinated him immensely. He also felt that observing her current state could bring him closer to this so-called heart.

At the very least, he had already found certain common traits among those who displayed Heart Light Pulse.

Intense emotional fluctuations, incomparably firm conviction, and a catalyst capable of burning those things until they drowned out one’s personal will!

The first two were easy enough to explain. Only the last factor still left Bai Cangshu with little clue.

Still, he was far from reaching that level anyway.

His highest priority now was naturally to continue strengthening his energy attributes, break through the so-called Second Tier, and obtain authority.

Besides that, he needed to find a way to trade for more Golden Souls. Compared to making his own soul holy, directly integrating ready-made Golden Souls into his body was far more convenient.

Fortunately, Paradise of the Dead had told him that there was already news regarding that. They apparently wanted to use those things in exchange for a special transaction.

"How do we take it?"

Black Saber’s voice was cold, and her words were extremely brief. Her body had been remade by Black Mud, placing her under Bai Cangshu’s control, but All the World’s Evil had not stripped her of her personal will or pure ideals.

Under Black Mud’s influence, she had merely developed another way of thinking, a harsher and more resolute philosophy for carrying out her ideals.

Artoria had upheld the principle of the Lone King. In order to protect Britannia and the Pure Justice in her heart, she had severed all personal desires and erased her own emotions.

She possessed a typical self-sacrificing idealist personality.

Yet her purity and ideals had ultimately run contrary to the outcome. Thus, under the influence of All the World’s Evil, she accepted another path.

Tyranny, too, was the Way of the King!

Pure violence and cruel slaughter could also protect those behind her and uphold the justice in her heart.

If she could not be understood, then there was no need to be understood. So long as she carried out her own Way of the King and practiced dominance through pure strength, the world she sought would reappear.

That was the change in Artoria after her corruption. Her cold question was really asking, where should we begin?

The newly awakened corrupted king seemed to possess an almost unrestrained killing intent beneath that cold face and voice.

At the same time, the black Excalibur Morgan in her hand continuously emitted a terrifying aura now that she no longer restrained her magic power.

Suddenly, Artoria turned her head and looked beyond the city.

"Powerful magic power."

She walked to the edge of the tower, braced both hands on her sword, and directly spread her black magic power outward.

In the sky, someone sensed that sharp magic power and looked up at the same time, his gaze landing on that iconic Black Tower.

White Long Hair floated in the wind. With a single glance from his Heterochromatic Eyes, he had already locked onto the target.

"Black Saber… is this coincidence, or destiny?"

The voice of the man codenamed Solomon reached the tower. The next moment, he appeared directly amid a flash of magic power.

Outside the city, Jin, who had the appearance of a Shōnen, Tree Herder, who had dealt with Bai Cangshu in B711 World, and another man and woman all flew over from low altitude.

Reincarnators who reached Title-level or above would usually gain some sort of flight-related ability.

In the past, Reincarnators rarely used such abilities in the real world to avoid being caught on camera. But with the emergence of the Ability User identity, more and more High-tier Reincarnators had grown accustomed to moving more freely in the real world.

White Long Hair, one red eye and one blue eye, a tall and slender build, a white knit sweater, and magic power fluctuations overflowing from his body.

In Bai Cangshu’s eyes, this Solomon radiated a presence almost entirely on par with Mahakala and the others.

"Coincidence, or destiny?"

"You mean corrupted Artoria holds some special significance in the space?"

"There is one of her in the Black King Society?"

Bai Cangshu’s thoughts were incredibly active. In the future, so-called World-shattering Wisdom would be no joke to him.

Solomon fell silent for a moment. These days, many people said that Mercenary Tao was not merely a powerful ferocious beast, but a ferocious beast who was perhaps smarter than anyone else.

Now, he had witnessed it for himself.

Nodding, Solomon sat down casually. The stone ground rose up, wrapping around him like a seat.

There was no casting gesture, nor had there even been any process of mobilizing magic power. Bai Cangshu guessed this was probably what it looked like when a caster reached Level 9 specialization in Peak of Technique.

Of course, Solomon might also possess a special casting ability or bloodline.

Unlike casters such as Mahakala, who specialized purely in destruction, Solomon’s abilities were secretive and versatile.

Artoria, who stood at the entrance, turned around as well. She drew that terrifying black long sword, and the magic power atop the tower immediately became chaotic.

Solomon frowned. He was not sure whether this move was Mercenary Tao trying to intimidate him.

Yet even he could clearly sense the omnipresent aggression radiating from Mercenary Tao.

This had already gone far beyond the scope of a ferocious beast.

A ferocious beast that was too powerful and too intelligent had already transcended the category of beasts. Perhaps monster was a more fitting term.

"The Black King Society currently has roughly seven members. I have only confirmed three, and that one is among them."

He spoke vaguely, but Bai Cangshu understood. There was an Artoria within the Black King Society.

That was not necessarily an Artoria corrupted by Black Mud. More likely, like that Luffy, she was the true Black King Artoria who had lost everything across countless worldlines and timelines.

The Noble Phantasm in her hand might not be Excalibur Morgan either, but the complete Holy Sword of the Stars, or perhaps… the Holy Lance…

In an instant, Bai Cangshu made many connections, but he said nothing. Solomon had not specified the identities of the three Black Kings he had confirmed, clearly unwilling to hand such secret information to Bai Cangshu for nothing.

Whoosh~

Amid the sound of something slicing through the air, Snow Witch, Tree Herder, and several other members of the Far East Magic Society arrived atop the tower as well.

The atmosphere immediately turned sharp.

"Haha, this lineup of ours might be even more terrifying than the force that besieged you that day, His Excellency Mercenary Tao."

The crisp laughter came from a blond Shōnen. His chest was bare, with little muscle on it, but a huge Red Sun-like symbol marked his chest, faintly flowing with magic power.

Jin, the Far East Magic Society’s number two figure after Solomon. Many rumored that he might possess the power of the Sin of Pride from the Seven Great Sins World—Magic Power: Sun!

But it had never been confirmed.

Tree Herder stood behind him and Snow Witch. This strange man with green hair and pale skin met Bai Cangshu’s gaze and nodded.

Snow Witch noticed this, and the atmosphere grew even subtler.

"Hahahaha…"

Bai Cangshu burst into laughter. Intense sound waves accompanied violent tremors in the air, and the sheer volume made people frown involuntarily.

The smile on Jin’s face faded considerably amid Mercenary Tao’s laughter.

There were no energy fluctuations at all. This commotion had truly been caused by Mercenary Tao laughing.

Damn it, just how high were that guy’s physical attributes?!

He was certain that after efficiency conversion, Mercenary Tao’s strength was probably close to one hundred points!

With such a body combined with Mercenary Tao’s Martial Arts Techniques, close combat would be every caster’s nightmare.

"Stop with those pointless tests, Mercenary Tao. We do not wish to be your enemy, but neither do we fear your existence."

Solomon spoke, ending the increasingly tense atmosphere.

Then, he snapped his fingers, and Yang Yan appeared before him with a dazed expression.

"Yang Yan, hand over that item. We will forgive what you did this time and will not pursue you. Of course, if you run into any of our members in a mission world, then that will be your misfortune."

There was no room for negotiation in Solomon’s words.

Yang Yan instinctively looked toward Bai Cangshu, but the latter merely watched him with a smile.

Only then did Yang Yan realize that while Mercenary Tao would protect his life in Paradise, he simply would not care about mission worlds or anywhere else.

And Mercenary Tao… was no kindhearted person to begin with!

He shuddered. A flash of light appeared in his hand, and a rather unusual pager emerged. Judging by its design, it looked somewhat similar to the one Nick Fury used to contact Captain Marvel in the Marvel World.

Bai Cangshu naturally extended his hand. Yang Yan hesitated for a moment before handing the item over.

You obtained item: S.H.I.E.L.D. Emergency Communicator (Blue)

Solomon did not stop him. He slowly shifted his gaze away from Artoria and looked at Mercenary Tao again.

"Before the mission begins, we will come to you to form a temporary team. I hope you can make preparations in advance."

"We will not be facing only one Vision."

"Most likely, there will also be an extremely enraged… Witch."