Inside the pyramid, four massive sarcophagi stood before the statue of Apocalypse.
Yellow sand surged toward the four stone coffins, enveloping them completely. A gold-like liquid spread across the ground, flowing over the sarcophagi and filling every carved line with gleaming metal.
As time passed, cyan energy lingered on these golden markings, continuously pouring into the ancient containers.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
One sarcophagus began to shake violently. Dull thuds erupted from inside, as if something desperately wanted to break free.
The sarcophagus shook more and more intensely until it vanished from the pyramid, wrapped in swirling yellow sand.
Outside, Marcus had just finished destroying the last of the stone statues. He leaped across the pyramid's stone pillars, rushing toward Apocalypse as he floated in the air.
BOOM!
A black stone coffin wrapped in yellow sand materialized on the stone platform outside the pyramid. The impact echoed across the battlefield.
BOOM!
The yellow sand enveloping the coffin was violently shaken away as countless cracks appeared across its surface.
CRASH!
With an explosive sound, the stone coffin shattered. A massive figure emerged on the high platform—a beast-like warrior with midnight-black skin.
"ROARRR!!!"
The warrior slammed his fists together, sending cracks through the hard stone pillars around him. His deafening roar scattered all sand and dust in the vicinity.
"The Black Knight serves his master!"
With one hand pressed to his chest, the Black Knight dropped to one knee before Apocalypse.
Spotting Marcus rushing toward Apocalypse, the Black Knight launched himself forward like a raging bull. He slammed his legs against the platform and shot toward Marcus like a cannonball, his fist cocked back to strike.
Faced with this beast-like warrior's attack, Marcus had no choice but to abandon his assault on Apocalypse. He swung his energy blade at the Black Knight instead.
Clang!
The energy blade collided with the Black Knight's fist. The warrior's gauntlet glowed with a golden sheen, somehow blocking the energy of Marcus's blade. With tremendous force, the Knight's blow sent Marcus flying backward.
This was the first opponent Marcus had encountered who could overpower him with pure strength, blasting him away with raw force.
Stabilizing himself in midair, Marcus surrounded himself with Void energy and transformed into Titania, entering Razorwing mode.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
Bullets from the Dex Pixia flew toward Apocalypse. Marcus knew this brutally strong warrior must be one of Apocalypse's summons.
Despite the incoming fire, Apocalypse made no defensive movements, as if the attack wasn't even worth his attention.
Yet Marcus still couldn't hit his target. A massive boulder suddenly appeared before Apocalypse, blocking the stream of bullets.
Several more boulders rose into the air. The Black Knight leaped up, kicking the first boulder with incredible force. The massive rock shot toward the source of the bullets like artillery fire.
Though the Knight couldn't see exactly where Marcus was, attacking in the direction of the bullets was a sound strategy. The remaining boulders were similarly launched toward the gunfire.
These massive projectiles forced Marcus to dodge, though he maintained continuous fire with the Dex Pixia.
Inside the pyramid, another sarcophagus began vibrating before vanishing, wrapped in yellow sand. The remaining two sarcophagi began frantically absorbing more cyan energy.
On a high platform opposite the Black Knight, a gray stone coffin wrapped in yellow sand slowly materialized.
When the Black Knight saw this gray coffin, his pupils contracted, and a smirk crossed his fierce face. He broke a stone pillar beside him and hurled it skyward.
Hummm~
The gray stone coffin emitted a growing hum. The stone pillars around the platform cracked under the vibration until the coffin itself exploded as if overwhelmed by its contents.
A powerfully-built man with gray skin appeared. Though similar in build to the Black Knight, what drew the eye was the fluctuating energy pulsing around his hands.
BOOM!!!
The Gray Knight struck at the incoming stone projectile. A visible shockwave erupted from his hand, instantly pulverizing the stone pillar thrown by the Black Knight.
Faced with such an attack, Marcus's body glowed with energy as he transformed into Limbo and entered the Rift Plane.
The moment he shifted dimensions, the violent shockwave passed through his incorporeal form and continued onward, dispersing clouds in the sky.
"Another one..."
Marcus landed on the ground, frowning. Like Apocalypse, these warriors emerging from the sarcophagi had completed their corruption.
Though their transformation wasn't as pronounced as Apocalypse's, the faint golden aura surrounding their bodies proved they had been similarly affected.
Their strength had been dramatically enhanced through corruption. Both the Black Knight's raw power and the Gray Knight's shockwaves possessed devastating destructive capability.
"This is going to be a difficult battle..."
In their corrupted state, they could resist the suppressive effects of Void energy, and their strength had increased significantly.
Under these conditions, Marcus's combat effectiveness was severely limited. Fortunately, he didn't rely solely on Void suppression in battle.
Since Void energy suppression was ineffective, he would need to switch to offensive frames to deal with these threats.
Just as he prepared to transform, another change occurred at the pyramid.
A stone coffin appeared on a third platform. This one was deep red, and it radiated such intense heat that it melted the yellow sand surrounding it.
The air itself began to distort under the extreme temperature. The red coffin glowed brighter and brighter until it suddenly broke apart like flowing lava, revealing the figure inside.
A woman emerged, her entire body wreathed in flames. Like the Gray Knight before her, she pressed one hand to her chest and knelt respectfully before Apocalypse.
"The Gray Knight serves his master!"
"The Red Knight serves her master!"
As they spoke, the final stone coffin vanished from inside the pyramid and slowly materialized on the remaining platform.
This white stone coffin opened differently than the others. The surrounding sand gradually floated upward as the coffin separated in midair, revealing a woman wearing a golden crown.
She inclined her head slightly toward Apocalypse, her face bearing a serene smile:
"The White Knight serves her master! All hail the true god!"
Following her words, the surrounding stones lifted by an invisible force, repairing all the damaged sections of the pyramid.
Seeing all four of his knights reborn, Apocalypse's expressionless face finally changed.
His previous lack of engagement was deliberate—he had been combining the divine power of the pyramid with the remaining Void energy in his body to resurrect his former knights.
Now that his most loyal servants had been revived and empowered like himself, his plans could finally move forward.
Slowly descending from the sky, Apocalypse raised the scepter in his hand, pointing it toward Marcus and the X-Men in the distance.
"Kill them!"
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