Arthur stood atop the icy peak of Mount Everest, the wind howling around him at hundreds of miles per hour. Ordinarily, the thin air and sub-zero temperatures would have frozen a man solid in minutes. But for the Omni-Monarch, the cold felt like a gentle caress.
He looked down at his palms. In one hand, he held the 'Blood of the Creator'—a vial of swirling silver liquid that contained the blueprints of existence. In the other, he held a single 'Divine Spark'.
"The world is afraid," Arthur whispered, his voice carrying through the wind to every corner of the planet. "They think the dungeons were the end. They don't realize that the real game hasn't even started."
[Ding!]
[Host is attempting to use 'Blood of the Creator' on a planetary scale.]
[Warning: This will permanently alter the geography of the Earth.]
[Do you wish to proceed?]
"Proceed," Arthur commanded. "And System... activate the Multiplier."
[Ding!]
[100x Multiplier Activated!]
[Blood of the Creator x100 applied to the Himalayan Range!]
Arthur slammed his hands into the snow. Suddenly, the earth didn't just shake—it screamed. The silver liquid flowed out of his fingers like a river, seeping into the tectonic plates. For thousands of miles, the ground began to shift and grow. Massive towers of obsidian and dark diamond erupted from the ice, reaching higher than the clouds.
What was once a desolate mountain range was being transformed into a sprawling, futuristic fortress-city. The Multiplier turned a single tower into a forest of spires. A single defensive wall became a hundred layers of unbreakable shadow-steel.
[Ding!]
[Construction Complete: The Capital of Shadows - 'Xerxes'.]
[Defense Rating: Divine Level.]
[Inhabitants: 0/1,000,000.]
Arthur looked at the empty, majestic city. It was beautiful, but it was silent. He reached into his inventory and pulled out the 100 'Divine Sparks' he had taken from the Sun God.
"Igris," Arthur called out.
The Shadow Knight appeared, bowing so low his forehead touched the new diamond floor. "Master."
"You have served me since the first floor. You were my shadow when I was weak. Now, be my general when I am a God."
Arthur crushed one of the Divine Sparks and thrust the energy into Igris's chest.
[Ding!]
[100x Multiplier Activated!]
[Evolution Triggered: Shadow Knight Igris is evolving into 'Shadow Deity Igris'!]
A pillar of dark purple fire erupted from Igris. His armor transformed into a set of scales that seemed to be made of trapped stars. His cape became a shroud of void energy that could swallow light itself. Behind him, four massive spectral wings unfurled, crackling with black lightning.
[Name: Igris (Deity Grade)]
[Level: 450]
[Loyalty: Absolute]
"Thank you, My Sovereign," Igris's voice now sounded like the echo of an entire legion.
Arthur turned toward the horizon. He could see military jets from India, China, and Russia approaching his new territory. They were terrified, their sensors unable to comprehend the massive structure that had appeared out of nowhere.
"Igris, take the Divine Sparks. Select the most loyal of our shadow soldiers and ascend them. We need a Council of Twelve to match the 'Great Twelve' who are coming from the Heavens."
"As you command," Igris vanished, taking the sparks with him.
As the jets circled his city, Arthur sent out a global mental broadcast. It wasn't just a message; it was a law.
"To the leaders of Earth," Arthur's voice boomed in the minds of every president, prime minister, and king. "You have thirty days to dismantle your guilds and swear fealty to Xerxes. The dungeons were your childhood. This war will be your adulthood. Anyone who resists will be turned into a shadow and added to my walls."
In an office in New Delhi, the Prime Minister of India dropped his pen. In Washington D.C., the President went pale. In a hidden base in Siberia, the world's last remaining S-Rank hunters looked at each other with tears in their eyes.
The balance of power had not just shifted; it had been deleted.
Arthur sat on his new throne, carved from the core of the mountain. He felt the '100x Multiplier' humming in his soul, ready for the next move. He knew that the Great Twelve wouldn't wait thirty days. They would send a scout—a being so powerful that it could destroy a planet just by breathing.
"Let them come," Arthur said, closing his eyes. "I'm hungry for another level