Both Rogge and Nergal were necromancers.

But when Rogge tried to summon powerful overlords from distant star domains, all of them hesitated to get involved in the Magus Civilization’s mess.

But when Nergal himself performed the summoning, none of those foreign overlords dared to openly refuse, even if they wanted to.

Unusual spatial fluctuations began to appear across the overlord-level battlefield.

Guided by the summoning arrays Nergal had long prepared, a total of seven overlords answered the call.

None of them appeared immediately, but the spatial distortions gave away each of their distinct auras.

These overlords, hailing from other star domains, wanted to know exactly who Nergal was fighting.

Some had already heard rumors of the full-scale war between the Magus Civilization and the Gallant Federation.

Yet this Rank Eight being before them, radiating the fierce energy of death law, did not look like someone from the federation.

“Half a billion top-grade soul essences! You’ve struck it rich, Nergal?” The first to speak was an overlord that looked like a ball of flesh.

Being an early-stage Rank Eight itself, it did not show Nergal any excessive respect.

In the framework of summoning magic, Nergal and it were considered equals.

Among the seven summoned overlords, only two had reached Rank Eight.

The Meatball Overlord’s question made Nergal chuckle.

But then, a discordant voice cut through.

“T-That... That’s a Pharaoh of the Amenkha Empire?!”

A Rank Seven overlord suddenly recognized the Seventh Pharaoh at the center of the battlefield and cried out in shock. Its body resembled a strange mix of dragon and deer, with one horn missing.

Despite being a mid-stage Rank Seven, fear crept into its voice the instant it realized who they were about to fight.

Before Nergal could react, the Iridescent Dragondeer Overlord burst into a flash of multicolored law light, vanishing from the battlefield in an instant.

The battle had not even begun, yet the reputation of the Amenkha Empire alone was enough to send an overlord fleeing!

Indeed, the strength and prestige of the Amenkha Empire far surpassed that of most world civilizations.

“Hehehe, the Iridescent Dragondeer Overlord is really getting more and more timid. I’m surprised it has even survived this long,” Nergal commented.

He turned his attention to the others.

“What about the rest of you? Have you decided whether to join this fight? If we take him down, I promise the loot will be split evenly!”

“A mid-stage Rank Eight Overlord’s haul is bound to be quite substantial, don’t you think?” he continued, coaxing the summoned overlords from other star domains.

Even if most of them had never faced the Amenkha Empire directly, its reputation was well known.

Since the Iridescent Dragondeer Overlord had fled, two more overlords quickly departed one after another.

Nergal did not regret losing the help from these two Rank Seven overlords. He simply turned his gaze to the remaining ones.

Finally, a Rank Seven Overlord stepped forward and accepted Nergal’s invitation. It was clad head to toe in black iron armor, with only a pair of glowing red eyes visible.

“Amenkha Empire? Never heard of it. But taking on a Rank Eight overlord—that’s an opportunity most beings never get in a lifetime. I’m in! But I want seven hundred million top-grade soul essences, or energy crystals of equal value!” the Iron Armor Overlord said.

Nergal’s laughter grew even darker at the bold demand.

“As expected of a renowned challenger from the Nethersoul Star Domain—I accept your term! I don’t have that many energy crystals on hand, but I can provide as many soul essences as you need!” he said.

With the Iron Armor Overlord committed, another late-stage Rank Seven Overlord who had been lingering nearby finally agreed to join after some hesitation.

This one demanded a whopping one billion top-grade soul essences. Considering its slightly greater strength, Nergal accepted the higher price.

The creature was a large, white-feathered bird with a bulging belly. Nergal called it the “Holy King of Drifting Clouds.” 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

“Holy King” was the honorific title given to overlord-level beings in this bird’s star domain and the surrounding civilizations.

That star domain was simply too far from the Magus Civilization; even Nergal had never set foot there. He had only met the Holy King of Drifting Clouds by chance during cross-star-domain exchanges, and the two had made only a handful of deals so far.

The Holy King of Drifting Clouds had clearly heard of the Amenkha Empire’s fearsome reputation; otherwise, it would not have hesitated so much.

Perhaps because the Amenkha Empire lay so far from its own star domain, making any conflict between them highly unlikely, the bird overlord was ultimately swayed by Nergal’s generous offer and agreed to take on the dangerous mission.

Of the seven overlords summoned, three had already departed, while two agreed to join after securing higher payment.

That left two more overlords yet to respond. Both were Rank Eight beings and among Nergal’s most valued allies.

“What about you, Big Meatball? You interested in lending a hand?” Nergal asked, eyeing the Meatball Overlord.

“Uhhh... the Amenkha Empire isn’t one to mess with. Back in the day, I fought with one of their Rank Seven Pharaohs,” the Meatball replied.

“Hmm... If I’m stepping in, you’re not paying me just one billion soul essences, are you, Master Nergal?” it asked with a grin.

Nergal had initially offered only half a billion. Faced with the Meatball’s sudden price hike, he paused briefly before replying, “I can go as high as two billion—but that’s all I have on hand right now.”

Unexpectedly, the Meatball shook its head. “What would I even do with that many soul essences? Let’s just stick with the half a billion you originally offered. But... in addition to the soul essences, I want that overlord heart you once produced.”

The Meatball Overlord’s eyes glinted with greed as it continued, “That purple heart you refined using your secret method.”

Nergal had many valuable items, but he had no idea which heart could make this early-tage Rank Eight overlord from a distant star domain so obsessed with it.

The Meatball Overlord’s request made Nergal cackle.

That purple heart was worth far more than 1.5 billion top-grade soul essences. More importantly, it was the only one Nergal possessed—he had no second piece.

Yet, after a brief pause, Nergal agreed to the Meatball Overlord’s demand.

No matter how valuable the purple heart was, it could not possibly compare to the heart of the Rank Eight Pharaoh standing before him.

With the Meatball Overlord’s demands settled, Nergal finally turned his attention to the last summoned entity.

It was an elemental overlord without a fixed form. It seemed to wield the power of storm laws.

Among all the overlords Nergal had called forth, this one was the strongest—already at the mid-stage of Rank Eight.