Titan King: Ascension of the Giant Chapter 1452 Grazing Grounds

"Ascetic Cyrion has made his way back to the Divine Kingdom. The Port Caelwyn diocese lies in total ruin. The culprits point to the notorious Hellscream group."

The shadow's countenance showed no emotion, his tone even and remote, as though reciting a simple daily forecast.

"In capturing these heretics, we'll need the complete support of the Guardian Knights from the affected dioceses," the shadow went on. "Their numbers are overwhelming. We must ensure not a single one escapes the trap to reach other territories."

The shadow had at last revealed his intent. True, the Inquisition held the power to pursue heretics, but they operated like a blunt instrument; to weave a precise snare, the assistance of local Guardian Knights was essential.

"Those rebels..." Maelric's words carried a chill. "Are they truly heretics? Or bandits? Raiders? Perhaps even the innocent?"

Maelric understood the reality. Much of the Hellscream faction included those driven to desperation by the insatiable avarice of the Holy Order—corruption frequently linked straight to Inquisition members.

"The fate of the faithful is your responsibility," the shadow shot back, interrupting him. "My focus lies solely on heresy. No heretic shall breathe the air blessed by the Holy Light."

It represented a conflict between obligation and morality. Maelric's features stayed locked in a grim frown, yet he remained silent.

To the shadow, that quiet meant agreement. It meant approval.

The shadow pivoted, ready to dissolve into the gloom once more.

"One additional detail," the shadow noted, halting at the doorway. "The Inquisition's assessment suggests Hellscream has reached out to a Dark Deity. Maelric... our territories are under surveillance."

With that alarming revelation, the shadow disappeared, abandoning Cardinal Maelric to solitude.

Maelric gazed upward at the stunning fresco gracing the primary wall. It illustrated the Goddess's Descent, the timeless founding legend of the Holy Order.

This served as Maelric's pillar of faith. He remained a devoted follower of the Goddess. In Her likeness, his sole desire was to redeem the world.

Yet the irony stung deeply. As he labored to rescue the world, a rival branch of the Holy Order toiled to subjugate it.

Maelric frequently grappled with deep bewilderment. Why did compassion and cruelty so often entwine?

The South, Westreach Trench.

The sea churned in chaos. The waves had shattered their usual pattern, raging fiercely over the shorelines. Far below, a colossal wave gathered strength.

On the ocean floor, tremors warped the currents.

Two titans clashed fiercely. Each impact unleashed enormous bursts of water exploding from the depths.

The scheme devised by Orion, Leonidas, and Kraken had worked flawlessly. They had provoked Thalryssa, the Siren Archlord lurking in the trench's abyssal core.

Yet a minor issue arose.

Archlord Thalryssa arrived mounted on a enormous sea serpent of Archlord rank.

Right now, Kraken—in his enormous octopus guise—had ensnared the serpent with his tentacles, limiting its actions. But from her perch on the serpent's crown, Thalryssa sensed the anomaly.

"You aren't some instinct-driven primordial monster!" she exclaimed. "You hold intelligence. You're no native here!"

The depths teemed with bizarre terrors. Certain ancient beings wielded vast might yet preferred slumber, devoid of any cunning. Upon awakening, they fed, and once sated, they rested anew. Thalryssa had believed the assaults on her kind stemmed from such a creature.

She never anticipated peering into the giant octopus's gaze and spotting the clear spark of thrill—the expression of a predator who had cornered its quarry.

"Outsider! Speak! Who are you? From whence do you hail?"

Thalryssa clutched her dual-tined harpoon, a relic embedded with jewels that doubled as scepter and sword. She sealed her lips, her striking, wide eyes fixed on Kraken.

Abruptly, a gill slit near her throat expanded, swirling like a whirlpool.

"Outsider... speak... who are you... from whence do you hail?"

A duplicate voice—laden with enchanting sorcery—issued from the swirl. This auditory assault proved so intense that even Kraken, an Archlord in his own right, experienced a momentary daze in his thoughts.

Exploiting the distraction, the sea serpent thrashed wildly, attempting to escape Kraken's grasp. Regrettably for it, Kraken's arms featured twisting suckers. Once latched, release became impossible.

"Fascinating," a calm voice remarked. "That sound wave... it bears hints of a Divine Art. And that visage? Utterly divine in quality."

"Bro, shall I handle her, or do you want the turn?" Leonidas inquired, his manner aloof.

"I'll claim her," Orion's voice boomed. "She piques my interest somewhat."

As Orion uttered the words, the Abyssal Dreadfin's avatar emerged right overhead of Archlord Thalryssa.

A gigantic shade plunged down, trailed by utter blackness.

That marked the final sensation for Thalryssa.

Upon regaining consciousness, she discovered herself confined in an organic emptiness—the processing chamber in Orion's belly.

"Yield, or perish."

The voice rang cold and uncaring, reverberating throughout. Thalryssa understood her total restraint. Her Transcendent Power stood sealed. The Body of Faith inside her faced suppression from an awe-inspiring, overwhelming might.

She recognized this might. She had encountered it previously.

It embodied the essence of a Demigod.

It's finished, she mused, hopelessness flooding her. She surveyed the viscous, throbbing barriers of the processing area. She commanded a comparable inner realm; she comprehended precisely what transpired within.

Beyond, having engulfed Thalryssa entirely, the Abyssal Dreadfin redirected its assault. It sank its fangs straight into the sea serpent's throat.

Through tormented convulsions, the sea serpent got ripped asunder and consumed, chunk by chunk, by the Abyssal Dreadfin and Kraken. Nothing, not even a splinter of bone, survived.

"Squiddy, you drew the raw deal," Leonidas shouted, leaping from the crystal craft onto a tentacle of Kraken. "You handled the bulk of the struggle and devoured half the flesh, but the Big Guy took the Body of Faith. That's the prime prize."

"You ought to extract a favor from him for that!" Leonidas pressed, fanning the flames.

"Boss," Kraken muttered, "I craved it too, but I couldn't process it!"

Theoretically, an Archlord's Body of Faith could be integrated by Kraken, though it demanded seclusion to gradually assimilate over many months. Amid their territorial conflict, such leisure evaded him.

Orion differed. Housing the Demigod phantom, he could effortlessly purify the creature's Body of Faith.

"So, brother," Leonidas queried, widening his eyes theatrically toward Orion. "What's your strategy for the Siren? Incorporating her into the roster? Or alternative plans?"

"Should she recognize her best interest, I'll dispatch her to oversee the seas of the Divine Kingdom," Orion answered. "Should she not..."

He left the thought hanging, though the meaning hung heavy. Thalryssa languished in his processing chamber, shackled by Divine Power. Refusal to yield meant digestion.

"Exercise caution, brother," Leonidas cautioned, his voice sobering. "That Siren could bear a Divine Pact. Her abilities hinted at Divine Art shadows."

"Fear not," Orion assured, his assurance pulsing through the depths. "Pact or no... should a Demigod's manifestation protect her, it departs this life no more."

The statement rang audacious, yet Leonidas viewed it as justified prowess. His brother possessed the might to enforce it.

"Very well, let's advance with the scheme."

Leonidas directed Kraken back to their concealed lair. Kraken flailed his limbs, surging his immense form swiftly across the sea.

Soon after, the trio of plotters melted away into the trench's shadowy crevice, poised for the subsequent disturbance in the currents.