Debuff Master-Chapter 1029

Chapter 1029
After activating Demon Lord’s Descent, Siegfried changed the entire tide of the battle with his presence alone.
Thanks to activating Embrace of Despair and Eternal Flames before he returned to the battlefield, his debuffs inflicted the enemies with a powerful slow and shredded their defenses.
The results of having his debuffs were simply overwhelming.
“
Ack!”
“Aaakk!”
The Holy Alliance soldiers couldn’t even put up a fight against the coalition forces after getting debuffed.
This was a natural turn of events, as Siegfried’s debuffs were already powerful when he was in his human form. Upon assuming the form of the Demon Lord of Greed and Betrayal, however, his debuffs became even stronger, and their range had massively expanded.
The effects of both Embrace of Despair and Eternal Flames were so debilitating that they were instantly nerfed fifty levels or more.
What about the skill-suppression effect of Dark Sky? It no longer held any influence over the battlefield.
Even though the coalition forces were unable to use their own skills, they could still wipe out their enemies with just basic attacks, all thanks to Siegfried’s overwhelming debuffs.
“Y-You... What in the world are you?” Cassius asked, his voice trembling.
Siegfried’s appearance no longer looked remotely human after transforming into the Demon Lord of Greed and Betrayal.
“No idea. What do you think I am? Any guesses?” Siegfried sneered.
“...?”
“But I know one thing for sure. You’re dead.”
With that, Siegfried started walking toward the Dark Sky Lord.
As soon as he moved forward...
“Y-You dare! I am the Lord of Darkness, the Dark Sky Lord! I am omnipotent under these black skies!” Cassius exclaimed, visibly panicking as he jumped backward to narrowly evade Siegfried’s attack.
And then—
Shwoooosh!
He was suddenly engulfed in a black torrent of energy, and a thick black mist emanated from him.
“I am invincible under these skies.”
With those words, the Dark Sky Lord transformed into a stream of dark energy and slipped through Siegfried’s attack.
Chwaaak!
He suddenly reappeared behind Siegfried and swung his twin blades at his neck, but...
“Too slow.”
Swoosh!
Siegfried vanished and appeared behind the Dark Sky Lord.
“...!”
The Dark Sky Lord froze, horrified by the voice that now came from behind him.
‘
W-When did he get there?!’
He prided himself on his speed, but now, Siegfried, who was slower than him just a while ago, was suddenly moving far faster than him.
However, the Dark Sky Lord did not have the luxury to dwell on it.
Baaam!
Siegfried slammed his knee into the Dark Sky Lord’s back.
“
Kuheok!”
The force of the blow rattled his organs, causing him to collapse forward, coughing up blood.
Siegfried was not even using his skills. The knee kick was just a basic attack, yet the damage it dealt was simply absurd.
However, it made sense, as Siegfried was currently the Demon Lord of Greed and Betrayal, which meant he was so powerful that even the Dragon Lord, Gerog, would have to take a step back.
In other words, he did not have to use skills against a
mere
Grandmaster. His raw stats were so overwhelming that even his basic attacks could pummel the Dark Sky Lord into the ground.
This was why he did not even bother to use Overclocking before entering the battlefield again.
“This is very personal for me.”
“
A-Argh...”
“So just die.”
Grabbing the Dark Sky Lord by the neck, Siegfried lifted him off the ground. Then, he began pounding the man’s solar plexus with a barrage of punches.
Bam! Bam! Bam! Thwack!
And the result...
“
G-Greuk! Bleuuurgh!”
The Dark Sky Lord could no longer endure the force behind Siegfried’s fists, and he started vomiting uncontrollably while suspended helplessly in the air.
‘
Phew! That’s better. I got to relieve some stress,’
Siegfried thought, thinking of toying with the Grandmaster further.
After all, it was not every day one got the chance to completely manhandle a Grandmaster who had reached the pinnacle of martial prowess.
On top of that, revenge was always the sweetest dish out there, but...
‘
I have to end this quickly,’
Siegfried chose his allies over his personal satisfaction.
The longer he wasted time playing with the Dark Sky Lord, the more casualties his side would suffer.
As much as it pained him to end this fight quickly, it was the best course of action.
The real world war was just getting started, so they had to conserve troops for the long fight ahead.
‘
No choice. I’ll just finish him off now and end this battle.’
With that thought, Siegfried punched the Dark Sky Lord straight in the face.
Baaam!
[Cassius de Blackcrow]
[HP: ■□□□□□□□□□]
The Dark Sky Lord’s HP dropped to ten percent in the blink of an eye.
He still had ten percent HP left, but he was practically done for. The Dark Sky lord had taken irreparable damage and could no longer fight. Even if he was not hit again, he was already incapacitated.
And yet, Siegfried did not go for the kill.
‘
I’ll turn him into a slave,’
he thought, placing a hand on the unconscious Grandmaster’s head.
Sseuuu...!
Then, he began injecting radioactive microbes into his head, spreading them throughout his body.
Siegfried was going to turn the Dark Sky Lord into an Irradiator.
“
Ggraaaugh!”
As the radioactive microbes invaded his body, the Dark Sky Lord cried out like a wounded beast, as his mouth started foaming.
***
While the battle between the coalition forces and the Holy Alliance was reaching its peak...
“Your Imperial Majesty.”
Emperor Stuttgart received a from Duke Neighdelberg.
“The battle at Pallas Fortress was—”
“Did we lose?” Emperor Stuttgart asked, not even lifting his eyes from the document he was reading.
“Yes, sire...” Duke Neighdelberg replied, lowering his head as if ashamed and hesitant to deliver such devastating news.
“The damage?”
“Total annihilation, sire...”
“What about enemy casualties?”
“They were minimal, according to the s.”
“So the battle was that bad.”
“The s state that a massive swarm of Fallen Angels joined the Holy Alliance’s forces, and those without divine power were unable to do anything against them.”
“I see.”
Surprisingly, Emperor Stuttgart did not show a hint of being disturbed by the news.
“What about the Coral Planet?”
“We are getting results, but we cannot afford to let our guard down. If even a small portion of the troops or Adventurers we deployed are pulled out, then the balance of power will instantly collapse.”
“So we can’t pull troops from the Coral Planet, yet we also can’t stop the Holy Alliance.”
“My deepest apologies, my lord...”
Still focused on the documents, Emperor Stuttgart gave his next command.
“Keep things as they are on the Coral Planet. As for the battle here, we will outsource it.”
“Outsource it?”
“Where is Siegfried van Proa?”
“According to our s, he is currently engaged in battle against the Holy Alliance forces that invaded the Kiev Kingdom.”
“Tell him I wish to see him once the battle is over.”
“Do you plan to outsource it to King Siegfried van Proa?”
“Everyone has something they’re good at, don’t they?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Tell the military to focus on building a solid defense line and minimizing casualties for now.”
“As you command, sire,” Duke Neighdelberg replied with a bow.
Seuk... Seuk...
Emperor Stuttgart never once lifted his gaze the entire time while receiving the duke’s . Instead, he continued about his work, signing paperwork, as if he hadn't just lost the southern defensive line and an army of two hundred thousand men.
It was like today was just another day.
The young emperor showed not a hint of unrest, and just as always, he remained entirely absorbed in his duties as the emperor.
***
Turning the Dark Sky Lord into an Irradiator was no easy task...
“G-Graaagh! Graaaah!”
The Dark Sky Lord screamed in agony, but refused to convert so easily into an Irradiator.
A Grandmaster possessed immunity to all poisons, so even high concentrations of radioactive energy and radioactive microbes were virtually incapable of poisoning the Dark Sky Lord.
And that was not all...
‘
I’ve already injected that much into him, yet he’s not budging an inch?’
Siegfried was stunned by the sheer quantity of radioactive energy he was feeding into the Dark Sky Lord.
By now, he had injected almost thirty times the usual amount needed to make an Irradiator.
‘
Is this what it means to be a Grandmaster?’
Siegfried couldn’t help but think.
But even more surprising...
“
G-Grrgh!
I... I will not... become a slave...!”
Despite having received an absurd amount of radioactive microbes, the Dark Sky Lord fought against the brainwashing with everything he had.
‘
As expected,’
Siegfried thought in awe.
A Grandmaster had to have experienced countless battles and life-or-death moments, so it was only natural for their mental fortitude to be this terrifyingly strong.
There was no way someone like that would break so easily.
‘
But he can’t hold out much longer,’
Siegfried thought.
Determined, he drastically increased the amount of radioactive microbes he was injecting into the Dark Sky Lord. He wanted to see which one of them would break first, but he was confident that it was not going to be him.
Just then...
Fssshh!
The necklace around the Dark Sky Lord’s neck emitted a radiant light.
“...!”
Siegfried’s eyes widened after sensing a powerful surge of divine power pouring out from the necklace.
Badump! Badump! Badump!
His heart began to thump wildly in response to the divine power.
‘
This is...! An Archangel! An Archangel is descending!’
Siegfried instantly realized what was happening. The necklace that the Dark Sky Lord was wearing was acting as a medium for an Archangel to possess him.
As the Demon Lord of Greed and Betrayal, Siegfried could sense the presence of an Archangel out of pure instinct, and he could sense them far more clearly than anyone else.
‘
I’ve got no choice.’
He immediately halted the injection of radioactive microbes into the Dark Sky Lord.
Why?
It was all because if an Archangel were allowed to possess a Grandmaster, the consequences would be catastrophic.
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 21 seconds remaining!]
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 20 seconds remaining!]
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 19 seconds remaining!]
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 18 seconds remaining!]
To make matters worse, Demon Lord’s Descent was about to end, which meant Siegfried would soon revert to his human form, making it impossible to fight against an Archangel.
Then what other choice did he have?
Siegfried pouted and gripped the Dark Sky Lord’s head even tighter.
C-Crack!
In an instant, the Dark Sky Lord’s skull exploded into pieces, sending bone fragments and brain matter bursting in all directions.
Rather than allowing an Archangel to possess a Grandmaster, it was better to give up on turning him into an Irradiator and just kill him outright.
And with that—
Fsshhh...!
The burning red light from the necklace slowly faded, returning to its former state.
‘
Hmm... So this must be a holy relic,’
Siegfried thought, picking up the necklace the Dark Sky Lord had been wearing and inspecting it.
[Alert: You have acquired Archangel’s Necklace!]
Just as he suspected, the Holy Alliance was planning to use the Dark Sky Lord as a vessel for an Archangel.
‘
Phew! That was a close one. I would’ve been dead if I noticed it a second later,’
Siegfried thought, letting out a sigh of relief.
Then, he immediately turned to move.
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 10 seconds remaining!]
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 9 seconds remaining!]
[Alert: Demon Lord’s Descent has 8 seconds remaining!]
Not much time was remaining, so he couldn’t afford to waste it.
Using Demon Lord’s Descent placed an enormous strain on his mana hall, so he needed to do something before collapsing.
Now that the Dark Sky Lord was dead, the darkness shrouding the battlefield dissipated, allowing sunlight to once again shine down.
In other words, the Dark Sky, which sealed the use of skills, had disappeared.
‘
Let’s do this.’
Siegfried channeled his mana and demonic power.
W-Wooong!
Hundreds—no, hundreds of thousands of aura blades bathed in a spectral blue glow formed around him. These aura blades were wrapped in ghostfire, giving them an ominous appearance like will-o’-the-wisps.
‘
Target locked. Three, two, one...’
Just then...
Shwaaaaaak!
Hundreds of thousands of ghostly swords began raining down on the entire battlefield like a deadly storm. Siegfried had unleashed Transcendent Torrential Flower Rain, showering the battlefield with a rain of lethal spectral swords.