The man in black then slowly raised the strange weapon in his hand, a surge of black light emanating from his entire body, and his weapon was completely enveloped by that black light, giving off an indescribable strangeness.

At that very moment, a piercing shout erupted from the man in black: "Break for me!"

The black light, carrying an intense aura, shot towards the Holy Light Barrier. Upon impact, the barrier did not repel the attack as one might expect. Instead, after a violent tremor, the light curtain stabilized, though the white screen had clearly thinned considerably after the man in black’s strike. While the barrier had withstood the attack, a significant portion of its power had been neutralized, suggesting it might not withstand the next assault.

Seeing this, the man in black let out a soft "Hm?" and remarked, "I didn't expect this barrier could withstand my full-force blow. Remarkable; among humans, this must be the strongest barrier. However, I do not believe you can withstand my next attack."

Having said this, the man in black raised his weapon again, black energy continuously flowing from his hands, infusing his weapon. Then, the man in black roared, "Break for me again! I refuse to believe you can still resist!"

The mass of black light struck the Holy Light Barrier with undiminished force.

After the second assault from the man in black, the Holy Light Barrier finally yielded, vanishing after several violent quivers.

Seeing this, the man in black nodded with satisfaction and stated, "Not bad. It seems my strength has increased again since a few days ago."

Witnessing this, An Hai, lying on the ground, was so astonished that his jaw hung open. He had been present when the Pope of Light cast this barrier. The Pope had explicitly stated: "Even a Sword Saint would require at least half an hour to shatter this barrier." Yet, this man in black had broken it in just two strikes, in under five minutes. What kind of power was this? An Hai dared not imagine.

After shattering the Holy Light Barrier, the man in black put away his weapon and leisurely proceeded toward the Imperial Study.

Seeing this, An Hai struggled with all his might to rise and stop the intruder, but his body was completely devoid of strength, refusing his command. He could only watch with anxious eyes as the man in black entered the Emperor's Imperial Study.

Upon entering the study, the man in black saw a figure draped in a yellow robe sitting on the chair. However, only the general outline was visible through a sheer gauze curtain; the face was entirely obscured.

Noticing the man in black entering, the Emperor behind the curtain spoke calmly, his voice somewhat hoarse and peculiar: "Who are you? Why have you come to assassinate me? Does my Tianlong Empire hold any grudge against you?"

Hearing the Emperor's raspy voice, the man in black felt a slight twinge of surprise.

Has the Emperor fallen ill? the man in black suspected internally.

The Emperor coughed a few times after his question, confirming the man in black's inference. In response to the Emperor's inquiry, the man in black spoke coldly, "I bear you no personal enmity. It is simply your status as the Emperor of the Tianlong Empire. If you do not die, how can the balance of power among humans be broken? Only with your death will the human continent descend into chaos. Therefore, you must die."

Hearing the man in black's explanation, the Emperor replied in a hoarse voice, "Why? What benefit is there to human factions falling into chaos? That will only benefit the (Xenoculture/Alien Races). Are you not human yourself?" The man in black let out an unpleasant laugh at the Emperor's question and responded, "Do not compare me to you lowly humans; your noble status is beyond your comprehension. Since you won't live much longer anyway, I have no fear in telling you: I am the Nether Race that you humans have long sought to oppose. Only when your strength is depleted will it benefit our Nether Race. Now, do you understand why you must die?" Hearing the man in black's statement, the Emperor retorted with indignation, "So this is the conspiracy of your Nether Race! You Nether Race constantly accuse us humans of scheming, yet it seems all you know is how to plot!"

The man in black was not angered by the Emperor's words, merely sneering, "This is the experience gained from countless clashes between our Nether Race and you humans. You can only blame yourselves. Words are useless; prepare to die."

The Emperor, hearing this, also spoke coldly, "Is that so? Do you believe I will stand here obediently to be killed?" The man in black responded confidently, "Do not delude yourself that you have any chance. Judging by the current strength of your human continent, I doubt you could find any master capable of confronting me. Stop hoping for rescue."

The Emperor made no verbal reply, instead letting out a fierce shout and waving his hand. A streak of white light shot rapidly toward the man in black. While this speed might appear fast to ordinary people, to the eyes of the man in black, whose power approached that of a Sword God, it was akin to crawling. The man in black let out a dismissive cold snort, casually extending a hand and catching the white light. Upon inspection, he saw it was merely a small dagger engraved with symbols of Light Magic.

The white light was, in fact, the radiance emitted by this small dagger.

Seeing the dagger, the man in black spoke contemptuously, "You think these petty trinkets from the Church of Light can actually harm me? How naive. Even if you managed to strike me, it wouldn't wound me in the slightest."

The Emperor said nothing in response, merely raising his hand again. Another beam of white light flew toward the man in black, but this beam was much slower than the first, as if lacking power. After releasing this attack, the Emperor began to breathe heavily, his body convulsing slightly.

As the white light reached the man in black, it suddenly halted, stopping motionless in mid-air, creating a bizarre sight.

Seeing this, the man in black spoke triumphantly, "It seems you humans still do not grasp the meaning of true power. You have witnessed my Qi Domain, haven't you? Today, I will show you what a true powerhouse is."

No sooner had the man in black finished speaking than a sharp light flashed from his face, which was shrouded in black mist. The dagger bearing the symbol of Light instantly disintegrated into a pile of powder, vanishing completely.

Leaping to