You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

A gigantic fist descended from the sky, slamming into the ground like a meteorite. The immense force caused the hard earth to ripple outwards like liquid, and the seemingly tiny ripples created waves tens of meters high!

The revolutionary army, which had already surrounded the palace and was about to capture this core of power, had countless people blown away by this one punch, looking from a distance like ants being swept away by a tornado...

Finally, amidst the howling wind, a colossal figure, as large as a small mountain, rose up, draped in a majestic cloak and covered in incredibly hard armor. It was none other than an armored Imperial Arm, similar to [Demon Possessed] and [Noble Chariot].

The only difference is that its image is not that of a "general", but rather that of an "emperor" who is more authoritative and even insurmountable!

Furthermore, it is many times larger in size, literally a steel mountain... It is indeed armor, but it is not for the user to wear, but for the user to "operate".

"This is?!"

Esdeath's eyes changed instantly. She sensed unimaginable power from the two attacks just now, which, in terms of destructive power alone, even surpassed that of her and Iori!

"Could it be... an Imperial Arms hidden by the imperial family throughout the ages? Iori, you knew all along, didn't you?"

Her beautiful eyes fixed on Iori, and then she smiled confidently and arrogantly: "Thank you for letting me have this prey!"

"Go ahead." Iori stretched out her hand, and before she could finish speaking, Esdeath had already leaped down from the city wall and charged towards the massive steel giant.

Meanwhile, the Imperial Arms continued to attack the surrounding Revolutionary Army. Tens of thousands of troops were meaningless to it, and even Imperial Arms users and soldiers were no match for it. None of them could threaten this supreme ultimate weapon!

In just a few dozen seconds, the Revolutionary Army's most elite forces were completely crushed, their previous arrogant demeanor, which seemed poised to overthrow the regime at any moment, was completely reversed in an instant!

But ultimately, we cannot allow this behemoth to continue its rampage—at least Iori cannot allow it to cause large-scale casualties among ordinary people outside the Revolutionary Army.

Boo!

A massive ice pillar rose from the ground, pressing against the giant's chest and suppressing it. Then, a tall, icy blue figure descended, summoning countless ice spears that poured down on it like a torrential downpour!

Will, Bright, and other powerful Imperial Arms users who had already arrived nearby instinctively stopped in their tracks upon seeing the Queen's imposing attack.

"With her around, we won't even be needed..."

It's not that simple.

Although the massive Imperial Arm was temporarily suppressed on the field, Iori, who was watching the battle, knew that this was only the beginning, and the destructive power of that Imperial Arm was far more than that.

In fact, if the operator wasn't inexperienced, even Esdeath at full power would have had a hard time defeating it.

A nation-destroying, all-encompassing Imperial Arms capable of both offense and defense—this is the ultimate trump card that the first emperor left for his descendants!

It is said to be the first and strongest Imperial Arm, both the origin and the pinnacle, and is known as the "Supreme Item".

Legend has it that it possesses abilities comparable to those of gods (and this is not an exaggeration in terms of destructive power), and only those with imperial blood can use it.

General Budo's unwavering belief that the young emperor could stabilize the empire once he came of age stemmed primarily from this Imperial Arm:

The emperor possesses the military power to annihilate a country single-handedly, enough to make any rebel despair!

Of course, no matter how powerful the Imperial Arms are, they are still inanimate objects. As long as we can prevent the young emperor from entering the "Gundam" cockpit, we can resolve the battle from outside.

But he did not do so, and at this moment, looking at the heavily wounded revolutionary army, his eyes narrowed slightly:

Now the Revolutionary Army's high command should feel enough fear and be deeply shocked by the power of "Gundam"...

Unlike the situation in the original work where almost all of the high-end combat forces were wiped out and the Revolutionary Army had no opponents, they now face a huge threat from someone called "Masked Reaper Aizen Iori".

In the original story, they were complacent and sent the young emperor to the guillotine to appease the people. But this time, in order to fight against Iori, they will probably have to pin their hopes on the "Supreme Throne" and try to turn the young emperor into their puppet.

This is quite a... for Iori.

What a great thing!

If the chaos is quelled by force, many opportunists will inevitably hide in the shadows. They will not confront Iori directly, but they will still harbor resentment and dream of returning to the wonderful era when they could act with impunity.

Without a banner, these people are a mob, but at the same time, they are a cancer spread throughout the country.

They were unwilling to accept this, but they would not take any action and would only silently wait for Iori's lifespan to come to an end (under normal circumstances, no one would think that the emperor was immortal).

Then, when Iori dies, they can become active again and seize the power that originally belonged to them.

This is the normal procedure, except they don't know that someone's lifespan cannot be predicted using common sense...

This invisible force undoubtedly needs to be eradicated, but they are as adept at hiding as rats. To get rid of these pests, we can only make them inevitably come out on their own.

Ordinary bait isn't attractive enough, but what if the Revolutionary Army takes control of the old dynasty's emperor and uses the Supreme Imperial Arms to gather allies?

Let alone after Iori's death, even during his reign, there would be a large number of foolish old-fashioned people who would choose to support the young emperor.

Is there any flag that embodies greater righteousness than this?!

Keep trying, keep struggling!

They gather strength with all their might, like moths drawn to a light, just to overthrow the shadow of "death"!

Then, when necessary, Iori can easily extinguish this flame.

Chapter 81: Might makes right!

Screams, cries, shouts, and rebukes... all sorts of sounds mingled together, becoming the noise of the battlefield. The Revolutionary Army officers who survived the firepower of the Supreme Imperial Arms looked up in despair at the towering giant.

He couldn't understand it; his mind had stopped working. He couldn't accept the reality before him and didn't understand why things had turned out this way.

Just moments ago, they held an absolute advantage and were poised to capture the palace and usurp the throne. But in the blink of an eye, their most elite force was crushed by ruthless brute force, and the revolutionary army became the hunted...

They were able to oppose the imperial court for many years and eventually lead a large army to conquer the capital. Even if they took advantage of the empire's strategic mistakes to a large extent, it must be admitted that the high command of the revolutionary army was also quite capable.

They had made ample preparations, winning over the hearts and minds of the people, turning the army against them, forming alliances with other ethnic groups, and uniting the disgraced nobles suppressed by Ernest, thus continuously expanding their power. When the variable of Iori appeared, their actions were cautious and reasonable; even if they failed to win her over, they did not push Iori to the opposite side.

While trying to curry favor with Iori, they also actively contacted Anningdao, hoping to figure out the secret connection between Iori and the sect, but were simply brushed off by the cunning sect leader.

After learning that Esdeath had been subdued by Iori, they further encouraged the northern barbarians to move south in order to restrain Esdeath, weaken Iori's potential power, and ensure that the Revolutionary Army would still maintain a dominant position in the cooperation.

...They really have done everything they could, and the situation is gradually developing in their favor.

Today, nearly half of the governors and prefects in the land are their people, and the remaining half are under the control of Anning Road (Iori).

As for the others, they were in a fence-sitting state and could not be considered enemies at all—they might not like the Revolutionary Army, but they hated Iori even more!

The Revolutionary Army might at most weaken their power, but Iori might just take their lives!

Those insects who are only keenly aware of political trends had no reason to hesitate when faced with such a crucial issue of right and wrong; they all chose the revolutionary army based on their own self-interest.

As a result, the revolutionary army expanded at an unimaginable speed, but even so they did not become complacent. Instead, after the defeat of the northern barbarians, they immediately reorganized their elite troops and marched to Kyoto, intending to end the war by decapitation strikes.

Judging from Iori's past behavior, he is a pure "good person" who cares about the people. If the world is at peace, he will not take the initiative to start a war, and therefore will not give Esdeath the opportunity to intervene.

—They have taken into account all the factors involved and formulated the most efficient battle plan.

Logically speaking, they should have been able to overthrow the empire smoothly, and then use appeasement to win over Iori and Anningdo, thus unifying the world.

But who would have thought that when they led their troops to attack the palace—the palace actually “stood up”!

The surviving senior officer could see clearly that the enormous, mountain-like steel giant did not emerge directly from the ground, but rather destroyed part of the building complex, cleared away the obstacles covering it, and stood upright from a huge void.

Such an amazing thing is hidden in the palace, yet no one has noticed it in normal times... Well, no one would suspect that the "ground" under their feet is the ceiling of the hangar!

The Revolutionary Army had considered the possibility that the Imperial Family might have hidden strength, but to be honest, they had seriously underestimated the first emperor from a thousand years ago... This thing is completely different from other Imperial Arms!

Despair, utter despair!

The revolutionary army cadre considered himself a hero of the time, probably ranking among the top three in the organization, or even higher than Najenda, who had the [Night Raid] squad. This time, he was even appointed as the front-line commander and almost made a name for himself.

However, even so, facing an enemy that could destroy a street with a single blow, easily wipe out an army, kill thousands and demoralize tens of thousands in the blink of an eye, and whose weaknesses were completely undetectable.

He was still plunged into deep despair, unable to imagine how to fight against such a monster.

The revolutionary army has been planning for so many years, accumulating hundreds of thousands of troops, but they will probably all be destroyed by this steel giant...

"Might makes right"—that's just unreasonable!

However, just as he closed his eyes to await death, a steep iceberg rose up from the ground, blocking the pursuit of the Supreme Throne. Then, countless ice spears fell from the sky, washing over the steel giant like a torrential rain. The crisp cracking sounds rang out in a dense chorus, and the giant's movements were involuntarily slowed down.

It's Esdeath!

The revolutionary-level executive had extremely mixed feelings. He never expected that the person who saved him at the critical moment would be the former Imperial General, his current and future rival... But in any case, it was probably only a strong person like Esdeath who could stand against the Imperial Arms!

Then the officer witnessed the ultimate clash of violence. Every attack by the two sides was accompanied by earth-shaking aftershocks, and the thunderous roar made the remaining soldiers on the battlefield cover their ears in pain.

A massive iceberg falling from the sky like a meteorite, energy waves that pierced the heavens, fist gusts that swept through the entire palace, dozens of ice spears hundreds of meters long that appeared out of thin air...

This is a battle that defies common sense. Ordinary soldiers would die on the spot if they were caught in it, and even average Imperial Arms users would be unable to intervene. The difference in strength can crush any ambition!

I believe that anyone who has witnessed this battle would, like the revolutionary cadres now, completely abandon their original ambitions and feel that it would be enough to simply survive this terrifying battlefield.

As time went by, the situation gradually tilted in Esdeath's favor, because the steel giant seemed to be restricted in some way. Despite being humanoid, it could not move freely. It could only move its arms and head to its limit, let alone perform any difficult movements... It couldn't even leave its spot from beginning to end!

In comparison, Esdeath was much more agile. She created sturdy ice walls to block the Titan's fists, restricted its movements with huge ice spikes, and then easily dodged the deadly beams.

It is clear that the Titans were designed with "war" in mind, with wide-ranging attacks and moves that can cause great damage, but that seems to have no effect on the agile Esdeath.

wrong……

To conclude that the Imperial Arms are weaker than Esdeath's based on this is too arbitrary.

Judging from its fighting style, this Steel Titan should be paired with some highly capable individual Teigu users as wingmen to restrain agile enemies like Esdeath and create space for the Titan to unleash its full power.

Secondly, this giant should also have a mode of movement—otherwise, are those two legs just for decoration?!

Ultimately, [Demon Manifestation] has the strongest user in history, while [Supreme Throne] is the opposite; the current user is probably the weakest in a thousand years...

Esdeath is going to win now—that's how the executive judged it.

However, just as he was regaining his composure, a bolt of lightning suddenly struck from the sky, sending the unsuspecting Esdeath flying.

"Oops!"

Seeing General Bude's unexpected intrusion into the battlefield, the cadre felt a chill run down his spine:

The wingman has arrived!

Chapter 82: Offering Up the Sharp Blade to Slay the Dragon

Given Thunder's speed, it would be difficult for anyone to dodge it, let alone be suddenly attacked in the midst of a fierce battle.

Even Esdeath didn't realize it beforehand. Only her battle instincts warned her that something bad was about to happen, but she thought it was some hidden move by the Iron Giant. It wasn't until the hairs on her body started to sting that she hurriedly constructed a layer of ice shield to block the sky.

Although the power was somewhat weakened, it still knocked her off the icicle, sending her crashing to the ground in a sorry state.

The Iron Giant, of course, wouldn't let this opportunity slip by. The young emperor, already bloodthirsty, didn't hesitate and slammed down a punch, while Esdeath could only barely extend her hand in mid-air—

boom!

The thick ice layer shattered into countless fragments. The punch landed solidly on the ground, and steam spewed from the joints straight into the sky, as terrifying as the roar of an evil dragon. The ground was also churned up like liquid, with countless bricks, tiles and other building remnants swept in and thrown around!

The revolutionary army, already suffering heavy casualties, was hit with another major loss. Almost all the wounded who hadn't had time to evacuate were blown away... On this land, no more rebels could be seen; only the enormous mechs symbolizing imperial power stood tall in the setting sun!

That punch practically wiped out the entire area!

call……

A gentle breeze blew by, and on the half-overturned iceberg, a masked figure suddenly appeared, carrying a tall and beautiful woman in a princess carry.

"Cough... I can't believe you saved me... Cough, put me down!"

As the one being protected in the hero-saves-the-damsel-in-distress scenario, Esdeath showed no hesitation whatsoever, and Iori readily agreed to put her down.

"It was so close... I never expected that the dignified Imperial General would resort to such underhanded tactics!"

The Ice Queen's sharp gaze fell on a point in the air, and then Bud's imposing figure descended, landing precisely on the shoulder of the High Throne.

The soldier, a man of pure conscience, wore a hint of shame on his face, but his attitude remained unwavering: "As a soldier, such behavior is naturally despicable, but as a soldier, I must protect His Majesty's safety by any means necessary. As for traitors like you... there's no need to talk about morality!"

"Rebellious ministers and traitors..."

Iori and Esdeath were both speechless.

It's not that I have any problem with the way it's called, it's just that things have developed to this point, and Bud is still talking about it, making it seem like the two of them are in the wrong.

In a world where the winner takes all, what's the point of talking about "ruler and subject"?

"Bud, open your eyes and look around. The empire is finished."

Iori said to him slowly, "Even if you block us here, what can you do? The capital will still fall, and the empire will eventually come to an end... All your efforts now are in vain."

Do you think you have victory in the bag?

Bud was not convinced at all. Instead, he said condescendingly, "His Majesty is still His Majesty. He is the rightful heir to this country. My family has always regarded serving the emperor as the highest honor."

Today, no matter how rampant the rebels are, I will escort His Majesty out of the city!

"Does it make sense?" Iori frowned.