Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
All the trolls present held their breath, their minds blank.
They could only bear witness—unable to think, unable to resist.
They watched, wide-eyed, as the colossal claw extending from the God Realm's gate slowly descended.
"Thud!"
The sound of its landing wasn't deafening, yet it carried a heavy, heart-stopping quality, as if the very earth had sunk an inch beneath the immense claw's descent.
The claw firmly planted itself on the ground, and immediately after, the thick limb connected to it, the massive torso, the mountain-like, majestic draconic head, and finally, the long, colossal tail, successively "rose" from the opening void-gate, looking like a monstrous beast emerging from the deep sea.
In mere seconds, the towering Dragonborn Divine Emissary had fully descended!
Behind him, the God Realm's gate, composed of a kaleidoscope of profound "blackness," had not yet closed.
A few bolder believers, in extreme reverence, couldn't help but look up, only to see that inside the gateway was not the fiery hell they imagined, but a boundless, vast void.
Within the void, several colossal, sharply angled stone platforms floated silently.
Just a fleeting glimpse, and that scene, beyond mortal comprehension, was etched into their minds, bringing a deep stirring in their souls and an inexpressible sense of insignificance.
The Divine Emissary stood majestically on the plaza, like a colossal tower forged from Obsidian and molten gold.
Thick black scales covered his entire body, shimmering with a cold, eerie luster under the holy flames.
His powerful arms hung naturally, his talons like the sharpest blades.
Though he had no wings, the knotted muscle lines on him exuded a primal and immense sense of power.
Most striking was his enormous head.
Sharply defined, his dark-gold, narrow vertical pupils resembled flowing molten gold, yet held a cold gaze, looking down upon the kneeling trolls below.
The Divine Emissary slightly turned his head, his cold gaze slowly sweeping across the entire plaza.
Wherever his gaze fell, every troll felt as if their outer shell had been stripped away, completely exposed to his scrutiny.
This scrutiny not only penetrated flesh but delved deep into their souls—discerning their beliefs, fears, desires, and loyalty.
Even if that gaze merely swept past, their most secret thoughts had nowhere to hide.
Toka felt his blood freeze, and he could only clutch the emblem on his chest, that faint warmth becoming his sole support.
After surveying, the Divine Emissary seemed to confirm something.
His massive maw did not open, yet a grand and low voice boomed directly in the mind of every troll present:
"My name is Ka'Ignas."
"By the command of the Dragon God Obsidian, I inspect this place."
"Your devotion rises like a flame, clear and discernible."
"Piety shall surely be answered—",
"My Lord's gaze shall forever reside here."
"Like an unextinguished flame, like a constant shadow."
Every word was imbued with heavy divine might, hammering upon their souls, both a commendation and an undeniable declaration.
Having spoken, the Divine Emissary Ka'Ignas lingered no more.
His colossal claw lifted, taking the first step.
"Thud!"
The earth responded with another dull thud.
He disregarded the plaza and the trolls beneath him, which seemed as tiny as a sandbox, and strode directly onto Ital'ruk's main road that traversed the entire city.
His immense body moved with the steady sense of a mountain shifting, each step covering an astonishing distance.
The Divine Emissary began to fulfill his duty upon descending—to patrol the city on behalf of the God!
At this moment, besides the overflowing pride and glory, a faint, peculiar feeling flickered through Ka'Ignas's mind.
He felt as if, in some extremely distant past, he had visited this city?
But the thought was fleeting, no longer important.
Because now, only one thing mattered most: fulfilling the God's mission.
As he reached the outskirts of Ital'ruk, away from mortal structures, the radiance around him suddenly intensified—he no longer needed to suppress his power.
Thus, when his colossal claw landed again— "!"
A deep footprint was seared into the frozen ground, its edges charred black by an invisible, intense heat.
The Divine Emissary began to circle the city, leaving a trail of sulfur-scented, charred footprints.
His massive body obscured the starlight, casting a suffocatingly enormous shadow.
His cold, dark-gold vertical pupils swept over city walls, watchtowers, houses, shacks, irrigation canals—everything in his gaze, all structures appeared fragile and minuscule in comparison to the Divine Emissary.
Inside the city, all trolls who witnessed this scene, whether they were core believers participating in the ritual or ordinary citizens hiding in their homes, all faced the direction the Divine Emissary was moving, bowed their heads, and knelt on one knee.
No one dared to make the slightest sound; only their bodies trembled uncontrollably from excitement, reverence, or pure fear.
The Divine Emissary's steps were not fast, each one incredibly steady, as he measured this land enveloped by the Dragon God's glory.
For a time, the heavy footsteps and the rustling of scales became the sole symphony under the night sky.
This sound crushed the frozen ground, and also crushed the spine of every prostrate worshiper.
Finally, the Divine Emissary's heavy footsteps returned to the edge of the plaza, and the invisible divine might that enveloped the entire city receded with him.
All the trolls remained motionless, still kneeling on one knee.
Ka'Ignas's gaze slowly moved through the crowd, finally settling on the edge of the plaza—where two figures dressed in ordinary troll attire had their heads deeply bowed, their bodies trembling very unnaturally, completely out of sync with the devout, silent atmosphere around them.
They were like sheep mistakenly wandering into a wolf pack; every tremor betrayed their disguise.
Their clenched fists were deathly tight, knuckles white, as if desperately trying to suppress something.
The Divine Emissary raised one colossal claw, pointing towards the two trolls, and his voice, directly exploding in their souls, was like thunder:
"This is an illusion! What are you hiding?!"
Every syllable of this accusation heavily struck the hearts of all the trolls, causing their minds to shake violently, making it difficult to breathe!
Especially the two who were pointed at, they trembled even more violently.
"No! Great Being, you misunderstand!"
One of the figures suddenly raised their head, their face contorted with extreme fear, but still forcing out a defense, their voice sharp and piercing:
"We are merely… merely shaken by your supreme majesty! We are devout believers!"
"Yes! Great Dragon God's Emissary! Please forgive us!" The other also looked up, revealing a female troll's face.
Her hands were tightly curled within her robes, trembling even more severely.
However, there was not the slightest ripple in the cold vertical pupils of the Divine Emissary Ka'Ignas.
The next moment, the tip of his dragon claw, pointing at the two, trembled slightly—
Not divine magic, nor spellcraft, but purely the physical force agitating the air, a highly compressed air blast shot out like a cannonball!
"Whoosh—bang!"
A piercing shriek accompanied the sound of tearing cloth!
The air blast precisely struck the female troll's robe, instantly tearing it to shreds!
Her hands, which she had desperately hidden beneath her robes, were immediately exposed to everyone's gaze—in such a hurry, she had no time to interrupt her spellcasting, and pale purple arcane light still flickered at her fingertips!
The entire plaza fell into a deathly silence.
Then, the surrounding troll commoners finally came to their senses, scrambling away in terror as if fleeing a plague!
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