Azarax

Overview

“ I am Azarax the Mighty, the Plague of Steel, King of Kings, conqueror of a hundred thrones! Choose me, nephilim! I will guide you to the shores of the Underworld and through its dark expanse, back to the world of the living! You will need a powerful guide if you wish to escape! ”

― Azarax to Nephis,
Chapter 500 ...In the Depths of a Nightmare

Azarax is one of the two weathered skeletons cruelly nailed to the white bark of an ancient tree.^[1]

Personality

“ A champion of War God? No... why should I have bowed to a god? I, Azarax the Conqueror, have never bowed to anyone — or any thing. Countless realms bowed to me, instead. ”

― To Sunny,
Chapter 2855 Vessels of the Gods

Azarax is prideful,^[1] deeply prideful, confident in his own strength, and sees himself as far more fearsome than Eurys, despite Eury's reputation as a Godslayer.^[3]

He had looked a little pathetic, hanging on the tree, and his personality seemed overly domineering for someone who possessed true strength, since those who were truly strong did not usually feel the need to constantly assert dominance. However, once he regained his freedom, it became clear that he was truly a force to be reckoned with and an incredible ally to have, though that fact was also a little chilling.^[4]

“ THE SLAVE OF SHADOW! I'LL TEAR YOU AND YOUR MASTER APART, ACCURSED CREATURE! ”

― To Sunny,
Chapter 2853 Plague of Steel

He exhibits extraordinary strength and determination, straining against the silver nails impaling him and displaying demented fury, evidenced by his growls and attempts to free himself, which cause the skulls hanging from the tree to sway violently. Unlike the mindless Deathless, Azarax retains a degree of awareness and intelligence, though his sanity is uncertain, as he initially does not seem to notice the Shadow Legion surrounding him. He harbors intense hatred toward Sunny, perceiving him as a servant of Shadow God due to Sunny's Shadow Slave Aspect, while directing wrath at Nephis, whom he recognizes as a carrier of the Nightmare Spell and thus a chosen of Weaver.^[5]

He was an ancient king who had been imprisoned on a sacred tree since before the end of the Doom War and the fall of the gods. Despite being half-mad from thousands of years of captivity, he retained a keen and cunning mind, fully aware that the world he once knew was gone, though he regarded this change with indifference, typical of a Supreme. Azarax respected the Stone Saints and valued their presence, which made him willing to listen to Sunny and Nephis. Unlike Eurys, who sought a proper death before the curse of Shadow God could claim him, Azarax desired to be freed from the tree in order to become one of the Deathless, viewing the endless battles of the cursed warriors in the Nightmare Desert as a form of paradise. He considered being nailed to the tree and forced to watch the Deathless fight for millennia as a form of hell. He was characterized by his overbearing demeanor, contempt for carriers of the Nightmare Spell and gods' servants, and his desire for eternal conflict, yet he was willing to cooperate with those who could free him.^[2]

Aspect, Abilities & Flaw

Azarax kept most details of his Aspect hidden, revealing only fragments. However, his abilities could be partially inferred through observation in battle.^[4]

Show/Hide Aspect Abilities

Received in	Ability	Chapter Mentioned	Status	Aspect Abilities
Dormant	Dormant	2884	Active	His Dormant Ability was described as the foundation of his conquest. It allowed him to grow stronger every time he killed a living being. Over thousands of years of bloodshed, he had killed an incalculable number, resulting in strength that was the stuff of legends. His power could literally bring down a mountain with a blow, and the augmentation also increased the durability of his body or bones, making him almost indestructible.^[4]
Awakening	Awakened	2884	Active	His Awakened Ability earned him the title "Plague of Steel". It allowed him to turn every living being he defeated in single combat into his thrall. These thralls formed an ever-growing army, which he had been assembling for thousands of years.^[4] He made a very cynical choice each time he used this ability, deciding whether a being was more useful as a servant or as a source of strength through death. In the Nightmare Desert, this resulted in a rapidly growing army of undead warriors, eventually becoming a whole army of skeletal horrors that threatened to outgrow the Shadow Legion.^[4]
Ascension	Ascended	2884	Active	His Ascended Ability allowed him to amplify his presence and use it as a weapon. This presence created a suffocating, oppressive power that instilled dread and weakened enemies. It could also manifest physically as pressure capable of crushing his enemies into dust. Notably, he seemed to have possessed a powerful presence even as an Ascended.^[4]
Transcendance	Transcendent	2884	Active	His Transcendent Ability was unclear. He appeared capable of changing his size, sometimes becoming a towering colossus, but it was uncertain whether this was his Transformation or simply another application of his Will.^[4]
Supremacy	Supreme (Sovereign)	2884	Active	His Supreme Ability extended the boons of his Aspect to his vassal warriors. It allowed them to grow stronger by killing living beings and to emit an aura of dread that weakened enemies. Because these warriors belonged to his Domain, their increasing strength also made Azarax himself more powerful.^[4]

Battle Ability

Summary

There were three main qualities that made Azarax fearsome: his skill as a warrior, his refined mastery of Will, and his Aspect. Together, these made him a terrifying existence and an existential menace of the ancient past.^[4]

Azarax was ferocious, vicious, and devastating, moving like a raging storm, while also being deeply cunning and eerily astute, guiding his destructive power with surgical precision and cynical malice. He was a storied conqueror and a veteran of the Doom War, possessing a wealth of combat experience that others could not hope to match.^[4]

Will

Reveal

Azarax wielded his Will with a level of refinement that others could not replicate due to the vast difference in age and experience. If his claims were true, he had been Supreme since the latter part of the Age of Heroes, meaning he had spent thousands of years learning to wield his Will. As a result, he could bend the world to his will to a far greater degree, with more varied and refined expressions.^[4]

A visible example of this was he simply Willed the sand to be pressured into an incandescent liquid which solidified into nearly indestructible glass shards, forming both armor and a great axe. This was only one observable application, with other uses of his Will remaining unseen.^[4]

Nature

Azarax's Will possessed an innate affinity that is unlike those tied to external concepts such as death or desire. As a Supreme being, his Will expresses only one concept, and that concept is himself. The natural affinity of Azarax, the Plague of Steel, is to be nothing more and nothing less than Azarax himself, meaning his Will is entirely self-referential and centered on his own existence. Rather than embodying or aligning with any greater force, element, or universal principle, his Will is bound solely to his own being.^[6]

This nature is further explained through his disposition—he is portrayed as too arrogant and full of deadly ambition to connect himself to anything beyond himself. In his view, there is no force or element greater than him, and all of existence, including every element and force within it, is meant to submit and bow before him. As a result, his Will does not personify an external concept but instead reflects complete self-centralization, where Azarax himself is both the source and the embodiment of his power.^[6]

Background

“ Don't you know where you are, abominable creature?! I am here because I led my armies into the great war, slaughtered a myriad of souls, and was punished for my strength and my pride! ”

― To Nephis,
Chapter 500 ...In the Depths of a Nightmare

He led his army into a great war and was punished to be nailed to a tree for an unknown time.^[1]

Azarax is known by titles such as "Azarax the Mighty, King of Kings, the Plague of Steel, Conqueror of a Hundred Thrones", reflecting his formidable reputation. He fought in the Doom War on the side of the daemons and retains hostility toward the servants of the gods. His actions demonstrate both immense physical power and a deeply ingrained vengeance, making him a potentially dangerous and volatile entity.^[5]

In Chapter 2855, it was revealed by himself that he was not a champion of War God, insisting that he had never bowed to any god and that many realms bowed to him instead. However, he stated that his own empire was eventually destroyed by a champion of War God, after which the War Empire was built upon the ruins of his empire and in its image, ruled by an avatar of War. The empire prospered for a thousand years until Eurys killed the avatar of War God and sealed the empire's fate; consequently, when the Doom War began, an avatar of War God was nowhere to be seen.

He recounted in Chapter 2856 his experiences of conquest, describing how his unstoppable horde was ultimately destroyed by a War Maiden protecting a city, which led to the collapse of his empire.

The War Maidens were described as an ancient order of warrior priestesses who had once served a previous avatar of War God in a bygone era. Although that avatar was long gone, the covenant between War God and the War Maidens remained intact. They were formidable defenders, capable of halting even the unstoppable conquest of Azarax's armies. One particular War Maiden was responsible for protecting a city, and her actions ultimately led to the ruin of Azarax's great horde and empire. After defeating her, she was cast into Hell for breaking the divine covenant.^[7]

Trivia

Azarax became the Plague of Steel after killing his Supreme father.^[8]
According to Eurys, the Shadow God cursed individuals like him, Azarax, Kanakht, and a few others. They were banished from death, unable to die.^[9]
In Chapter 2853, Azarax appeared again still cruelly nailed to a sacred tree with snow-white bark and scarlet leaves as a weathered skeleton.
In Chapter 2854, Azarax provided information about the Hell of Ariel, explaining that it was a desolate, isolated realm once turned into a prison for shadows that were denied death, later becoming a battlefield for the Demon Legion and the Divine Host. Despite its proximity to the Underworld, he noted that most participants never reached the Realm of Death.
Azarax is knowledgeable about the workings of the mortal and divine realms, and he is keenly aware of the nuances of godslaying and the Path of Ascension, noting that even vessels of gods must cultivate themselves before achieving Divine Rank.^[3]
In Chapter 2858, Nephis and Sunny freed the ancient tyrant Azarax from the sacred tree in exchange for his guidance to the Tomb of Ariel, despite his ominous warning that he would one day kill them.
Azarax was possibly the ruler of an empire that predated the War Empire and had existed since the Age of Heroes.^[4]
In Chapter 2884, despite his immense power, Azarax showed signs of decline. His bones were slowly changing color, making him resemble the mindless Deathless he fought. Additionally, he seemed to be regressing little by little, losing awareness after each night. This deterioration made his growing strength and army a source of tension and wariness rather than reassurance.
- Being branded by the curse of Shadow God, did more than simply make those branded by it deathless. Sunny initially believed that Azarax would deteriorate slowly, using Eurys as a point of reference, but this assumption proved incorrect due to Azarax's comparatively weaker mental fortitude. Although Azarax is characterized as an eldritch menace that even the ancient people had deeply feared and astoundingly adept at wielding his Will, he is explicitly noted as not being equal to Eurys in resolve.^[10]
- Only weeks after being taken off the tree, Azarax is already showing signs of succumbing to the curse of Shadow God. Physically, his bones, once flawlessly white, have turned entirely black. Mentally, while his mind was still sharp, he has become a little strange, and most notably, his memories seemed to be fading, even if he himself was not aware of it. His behavior also reflects subtle instability, as he is seen giving Saint a long look before wandering away to hide in the shadow of a protruding black boulder.^[10]
In Chapter 2886, Azarax scorned Sunny and Nephis for holding hands, calling them pathetic and an offence to the very idea of a Supreme, and claimed that two Supremes could not coexist without one killing or conquering the other.
In Chapter 2887, when Sunny and Nephis recount their experiences killing Cursed beings, Azarax reacted with silence, staring for a few moments before avoiding the question directed at him.
In Chapter 2907, during the journey toward the Tomb of Ariel, he had been forgetting more and more of himself, gradually losing the ability to speak and reason with others. Despite this mental decline, he emerged from this ghastly death march relatively unscathed, and if anything, his power was far greater now than it had been at the start of their journey. He commands a steadily increasing force, with thousands of undead warriors following him by now, including some powerful enough to give even Sunny and Nephis pause. This slowly growing Deathless army serves as a crucial asset, acting as a moving armor for the remains of the Shadow Legion and eventually becoming the main and only fighting force of their daring expedition.
- In Chapter 2909, he finally succumb to the Shadow God's Curse.
Azarax's fear is revealed through his reaction to the manifestation of the Soul Devouring Tree. When Sunny summoned its shade, Azarax stumbled, came to a halt, his shoulders trembled faintly, and turned slowly as if overcome by a sudden, inescapable fear. The source of this fear is tied to the memory of spending thousands of years nailed to a sacred tree, powerless, defeated, unable to escape, which was stated to be enough to rattle him and shake his uncompromising, tyrannical Will. The Soul Devourer is explicitly described as the shadow of what Azarax dreaded most, and his own personal nightmare.^[11]
It was mentioned in Chapter 2912 that Sunny retrieved the Dollhouse from the Jade Palace and later sealed in the underground hall of the Nameless Temple due to it being too dangerous to be left in a city as populous as Ravenheart — or any city where mundane humans lived.
- Sunny regarded the Dollhouse as a last-resort solution against Azarax, calling it the next best option or rather, the next worst option. One of the creatures it contained was the original Ash Tyrant.^[12]
- Azarax battled the Ash Tyrant and two Ash Beasts released from the Dollhouse in Chapter 2913.

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 ^1.4 ^1.5 Chapter 500 ...In the Depths of a Nightmare
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Chapter 2854 Ariel's Hell
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 Chapter 2856 Palace Slave
↑ ^4.00 ^4.01 ^4.02 ^4.03 ^4.04 ^4.05 ^4.06 ^4.07 ^4.08 ^4.09 ^4.10 ^4.11 ^4.12 Chapter 2884 Ancient Menace
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 Chapter 2853 Plague of Steel
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Chapter 2893 Empty Deity
↑ Chapter 2856 Palace Slave
↑ Chapter 2127 Act of Defiance
↑ Chapter 2123 Courting Death
↑ ^10.0 ^10.1 Chapter 2885 Dying Flames
↑ Chapter 2911 Mind Killer
↑ Chapter 2912 Next Worst Option