No one in the Empire of Aetherlight would forget that night, a night as radiant as day itself, especially for those dwelling in the inland regions.
They witnessed vast armies of Association Lore Cardians marching toward the residences of imperial officials while the imperial Lore Cardians themselves lapsed into eerie silence, as though nothing had happened.
Of course, overthrowing an ancient system was bound to be chaotic, and those like Azrael were rare indeed.
With their residences surrounded, the vast majority of officials harboring ulterior motives naturally refused to sit idly by. However, before they could act, blazing white beams descended from the sky, reducing all who resisted violently to charred corpses.
A small number quickly realized that the Empire had changed, that the imperial court was now a relic of the past.
However, there's an old saying: failure is a coup, success is a revolution.
Soon enough, they were ready to embrace the new order.
The morning felt ordinary, save for the unusual absence of workers commuting to their jobs.
Nearly everyone in the Empire of Aetherlight stayed home, watching the live broadcast on their televisions and phones, civilians and Lore Cardians alike. Some remained at their posts, of course. Certain outposts of the Northern Defense Army and secret observation posts needed manning at all times.
Even the demons were likely terrified.
"Good morning, everyone in the Empire of Aetherlight."
"I'm Lord Lioren."
A pale, thin man smiled at the camera, flanked by two men and a woman.
Everyone recognized their identities immediately.
Lord Lioren, Master Lucian, Master Tempest, and Master Fujimaru.
Four figures towering above all Lore Cardians in the Empire sat in a spacious hall.
Sharp-eyed viewers had already spotted the dragon throne in the background.
Unfortunately, the Forbidden City remained closed, so even with their suspicions, they couldn't confirm whether the four Association leaders were actually where they thought.
But Lord Lioren quickly resolved their doubts.
The frail-looking man coughed lightly before smiling. "Some of you should have guessed where we are."
"Yes, we are now in Fengtian Hall."
As he spoke, the camera gradually zoomed out, capturing the entire hall.
Even so, most people still didn't know what Fengtian Hall was. After all, it was merely a later reconstruction, and the Emperor's power had been steadily waning. The last time it was used was when Aramaki ascended the throne, and that coronation wasn't even broadcast.
However, a small number of viewers watching the livestream had a bold idea forming in their minds.
"Could it be that Lord Lioren plans to become Emperor himself?"
They weren't surprised to think so. Although Aramaki's presence had been minimal, the people of the Empire were aware their country had an Emperor. And after what happened last night, the Emperor hadn't appeared on the throne.
As if anticipating the thoughts of those watching, Lord Lioren let out a soft chuckle. "Don't misunderstand, I have no intention of becoming Emperor."
"And the Empire of Aetherlight doesn't need an Emperor anymore."
His words instantly silenced everyone watching the livestream.
For a moment, they struggled to process the idea of not needing an Emperor.
For millennia, the people of this land had grown accustomed to the existence of an Emperor, even though his influence had dwindled with the emergence of Lore Cardians.
But Lord Lioren didn't give them time to digest the information. Instead, he continued, "Not only will there be no Emperor, there will be no imperial court either."
"From now on, all affairs will be handled solely by the Association."
The man's words detonated like a bomb on calm waters, instantly shaking the entire Empire.
For those living along the coast or near the border, this might not pose a problem, in those areas, the imperial court had always been relatively invisible, and it made little difference to them.
But for those inland, this was a world-shaking event.
However, this was one advantage of living in an extraordinary world. In the world before Azrael's transmigration, any attempt to do something like this would have faced immense resistance from all sides, potentially making the entire world hostile.
But now? It was simple.
The four most powerful fighters in the entire Empire were on screen. Anyone with objections could go directly to them.
But no one would likely take it seriously, as most of those with objections had already gone underground to protest, permanently.
"That's all I wanted to say."
As Lord Lioren finished his words, the livestream signal suddenly cut out.
Azrael couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as he watched the screen go dark. He knew exactly what his teacher was planning today, so he felt no surprise, only a certain satisfaction. After all, the downfall of the mastermind who had always annoyed him was something worth celebrating.
While Lord Lioren and the other three might have looked composed on camera, the situation was far more complex behind the scenes. After issuing a nationwide announcement, they still needed to re-establish the Empire's institutions.
Master Lucian had wanted Azrael to participate, but he declined.
The young man wasn't interested in bureaucracy and regulations.
He could handle fighting, but for dealing with government affairs, creating a Zhuge Kongming card would be more reliable.
Lore Cardians were indeed versatile, after all, there were certain things they lacked talent for that could be solved with cards.
Just like how Azrael had previously left most of the Association-related matters in Donglai to Retsu and Fubuki.
Thinking of this, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I wonder what the teacher plans to do with me."
"Velkairos, right?"
The young man thought so because he was also tasked with uncovering Jin's plans, and Velkairos, as his target, was clearly the most suitable location.
"Is this a glorious return home?"
After a moment of wandering thoughts, Azrael returned his focus to his own realm.
After crushing the old Sheng family patriarch to ash last night, he had already reached the Diamond level.
"Who would believe this promotion speed?"
He casually complained to himself.
Frankly, Azrael now felt that being a transmigrator alone was no longer enough to explain what was happening to him.
But after thinking about Shiraori's bizarre [Immortality] trait, he had a vague suspicion, it was definitely related to the World Consciousness.
The specific reason wouldn't be known until he reached the Master level. At the very least, he had to contact the World Consciousness first.
Although it seemed Master Tempest and the others couldn't communicate with it either.
Putting his doubts aside for now, Azrael began thinking about his next card production plan.
Unlike Emerald level, he didn't have many cards that could be promoted to Diamond, so if he wanted to build up his combat power, he had to create new cards.
However, the most important thing was quickly assembling the Soul King.
"Three Diamond-level Venue Materials!"
But the thought of three Venue Cards gave Azrael a headache.
"And I have to create at least one Ichigo in the present world, otherwise [Karakura Town] won't be able to be created at all."
"What a daunting task."
The young man sighed silently, then pulled out his communication device.
[Azrael: Senior Brother, does that Diamond-grade material you mentioned still count?]
[Jacob: Of course it does.]
Jacob, receiving Azrael's message, was initially confused, but then a look of astonishment crossed his face.
His fingers danced rapidly across the screen.
[Jacob: Wait! You're Diamond level?!]
[Azrael: Yeah.]
Jacob opened his mouth, unsure what to say after seeing Azrael's curt reply.
After a long pause, he finally sent a message, filled with mixed emotions.
[Jacob: Then come find me in Gaza Town.]
Seeing this, Azrael put away his phone.
"Now I'll just have to wait for the teacher to come back."
He wasn't in a rush to find his senior brother, after all, a single Diamond-level material wouldn't be much use.
He was ready to go find Jin.
But before that, Azrael had to check in with Master Lucian.
Not long after, the white-haired old man appeared inside.
Azrael greeted him. "Thank you for your hard work, Teacher."
Lucian nodded, instantly noticing his young apprentice had reached Diamond level.
He was silent for a moment before saying dryly, "Azrael, are you ready to go?"
Azrael was taken aback by this, but he quickly understood what his teacher meant.
He nodded.
Seeing this, Lucian sighed deeply. "Be careful."
This had nothing to do with the Empire, the old man, as a teacher, was simply concerned for his student's safety.
But Azrael wasn't actually nervous. With his current status within the Crimson Oath Society, there was little chance of his identity being exposed.
Unless Jin had some free time and wanted to play around with his subordinate's tasks.
"Yeah."
Azrael nodded silently and disappeared from the room, leaving Lucian standing there, slightly hunched.
Jin frowned, wiping the blood from his hands.
"Strange."
"What's missing?"
After receiving detailed information about the demonization experiments, he had recently conducted experiments on many of the Crimson Oath Society's Lore Cardians.
Most had failed.
Only a few had merged with demons.
Even these were far from successful, still a far cry from the experiments within the demon army.
"Tsk..."
"Could it be that there's something wrong with the information Six gave me?"
Jin momentarily suspected Azrael had tampered with the data.
But then, remembering that the young man had even backstabbed Master Lucian, he dismissed the thought.
"It can't be that my operation is flawed, can it?"
The old man began to wonder if it was his fault.
Just then, a sudden wave of movement in his mind interrupted his thoughts.
Jin muttered to himself in surprise. "Six is Diamond?"
As he spoke, he had already returned to the place where he had met Azrael.
Not long after, a slender figure pushed open the door and entered.
It was, of course, Azrael.
Seeing Jin, he bowed respectfully and called out, "President."
Hearing this, Jin's eyes darted up and down. "I didn't expect you to rise so quickly."
The old man now felt that his casual move had been a masterstroke.
He hadn't expected that the once-small Bronze-level Lore Cardian had reached Diamond in such a short time.
"It's all thanks to the Society's training."
Azrael said calmly, offering the expected flattery.
However, Jin wasn't fooled. He simply gave a strange laugh. "Don't give me that."
"I still remember how much support the Society gave you."
So far, the Crimson Oath Society had provided Azrael with a fair amount of materials, but not too much either, enough to make three or four cards, at most.
But Jin wasn't one for carrot-and-stick tactics.
The old man trusted his contract more than anything else.
Sensing the connection between himself and the young man before him, a smile crossed his face. "You've been doing well lately. I promised you a great gift."
As he spoke, a piece of material suddenly appeared between his index and middle fingers.
The old man waved it in front of Azrael.
"I won't break my promise."
He tossed it to the young man.
Azrael grabbed it, his pupils constricting as he examined the information.
It was a Venue material.
Diamond-level [Decisive Battle Ground] (Red).
Azrael had never imagined that one of the three Venue Cards he'd been agonizing over not long ago would already have a clue.
He didn't hide his delight, saying cheerfully, "Thank you, President."
Azrael was playing the whole game, it was impossible for him to be so transparent. He was now impersonating a Crimson Oath Lore Cardian who had let down his guard.
Seeing this, Jin raised an eyebrow. "It seems you've already made up your mind."
Before Azrael could explain, the old man moved on to the next topic, clearly not intending to delve into it. "Time flies! It's been a long time since you joined the Crimson Oath Society."
"You must have been curious about why I asked you to hide your identity?"
Azrael nodded silently, but his mind was intensely focused.
It was clear that the old man was about to reveal what he was trying to uncover.
Jin smiled and continued, "Remember the demon diary you handed in earlier?"
"The answer lies within."
Hearing this, the young man began to search his memories.
He quickly recalled what Jin was referring to.
To date, Azrael had obtained two demon diaries: one from the Sword Lake in Velkairos, and one from Pixar.
He had submitted both to the Crimson Oath Society.
Tentatively, Azrael asked, "Four Evil Gods?"
"That's right." Jin's face took on an adoring expression. "I want you to help them descend upon Velkairos."
Azrael's heart trembled at the words.
If he remembered correctly, the Four Evil Gods were at the Palace level.