Chapter 668: The Brothers' War (Patreon)

One day later.

The underground chamber, previously an industrialized room filled with various mechanical parts, had been transformed into a macabre operating theater overflowing with flesh and blood.

Countless splatters of blood, bone, and flesh were scattered haphazardly across the room, looking like shredded scraps of garbage. Most of these remains belonged to Mishra's subordinates.

Facing Yawgmoth, the guards stationed nearby possessed absolutely no means of resistance. They were effortlessly reduced to piles of indescribable minced meat.

As for the primary target, Mishra, his current state was even more wretched. He hung silently from a rack, resembling an air-dried specimen.

His abdomen had been sliced wide open down the middle, like an unlatched suitcase. Most of his internal organs were already gone. In their place, numerous delicate mechanical Artifact components were forcibly sustaining his life.

With his lips sliced apart and having endured a prolonged, agonizing modification, he no longer even had the strength to scream. Exhausting his final ounces of strength, he could only weakly croak:

"Who... are you?"

Faced with this dull question that he was fast growing tired of hearing, Yawgmoth first casually made an incision on Mishra's liver. He embedded several miniature, gear-like objects into the gaps between the blood vessels before replying nonchalantly:

"I am partly responsible for the creation of that Weakstone you're holding. Take a guess at who I am."

Hearing this, Mishra's groggy and fading mind instantly flashed with countless pieces of information.

As someone whose rise to power relied on the Weakstone, Mishra had naturally studied Thran history in depth. He knew the general truth behind the destruction of that mighty civilization. Within those records, heavy emphasis was placed on a madman—a crazed, ruthless lunatic who directly caused the downfall of the Thran Empire.

It was said that the creation of the Mightstone and the Weakstone was directly tied to that madman and another Thran genius.

Looking at the man before him, and especially considering his sadistic methods, Mishra felt both astonishment and sheer disbelief. After a moment of hesitation, he uttered a name with trembling uncertainty:

"Yawgmoth?"

Yawgmoth's expression didn't change in the slightest upon hearing his name. He simply sighed dismissively:

"It seems my reputation has held up quite well in the old lands of the Thran Kingdom, even after thousands of years..."

As he spoke, he retrieved dozens of slender metal spikes from a nearby toolbox. He ruthlessly hammered them into Mishra's various joints. Next, he picked up a peculiarly shaped instrument and slowly began measuring Mishra's skull, clearly preparing to perform a craniotomy.

And, naturally, he wasn't going to use any anesthetics.

Hearing the tacit admission and witnessing the horrific scene, the victimized Mishra could feel nothing but infinite despair in his heart. He knew very well that he stood no chance against this madman named Yawgmoth—not now, and not even if he had been fully prepared.

This was one of the most infamous geniuses in the history of the Thran!

He also finally understood why the control over the Artifacts and Artifact Creatures he had built had been usurped without the slightest resistance. Bluntly speaking, the technology he wielded was merely the fragmented scraps left behind by the ancient Thran civilization. It was naturally impossible to use it against Yawgmoth, who possessed the superior, foundational technology!

What welcomed Mishra next was eternal despair...

His brain was forcibly pried open, his soul extracted, and his sense of self forcefully rewritten...

Two days later.

Everything was over. The underground chamber returned to silence.

In this blood-soaked environment, Mishra stood back on his feet, looking as though he were perfectly intact. Merely judging from his outward appearance, it was impossible to spot anything wrong.

However, if someone were to peel back his skin, they would instantly discover that at least seventy percent of Mishra's body had been replaced by specialized metallic structures. Various magical circuits, energy cores, and artifact components had replaced the internal organs he once relied on to survive.

And his own will had sunk into eternal darkness beneath an irresistible force, turning him into Yawgmoth's obedient servant.

"Do not disappoint me. Fulfill the tasks I have arranged for you."

As Yawgmoth's figure gradually faded away, Mishra—now transformed into a half-artifact creature—knelt on the ground and responded with fanatical devotion: "I obey your will."

He sounded exactly like a zealot who had just heard the divine edict of his God.

Subsequently, guided by Yawgmoth's will, the fundamentally altered Mishra began to frantically absorb the corrupted knowledge of Phyrexia. Using this as his foundation, he continuously expanded his forces. In the face of Mishra's terrifying technology and his tireless, fearless army of Artifacts and Artifact Creatures, ordinary factions were completely powerless to mount an effective defense...

Decades later.

Having expanded his empire to a certain magnitude, Mishra encountered a familiar figure once again.

His older brother, Urza.

Just as Mishra now ruled over countless mortals, Urza had also successfully come to rule a powerful kingdom. And so, after many years apart, the two clashed once more.

Only this time, the scale of their conflict was no longer a petty squabble. Driven by their wills, millions of Artifacts and Artifact Creatures engaged in utterly brutal warfare, swarming like locusts that blotted out the sun!

The two blood-tied geniuses revealed their terrifying power to the entire world of Dominaria... Countless mortals could do nothing but tremble beneath their feet.

Even those of transcendent strength marveled at their supreme technical mastery. Aside from this awe, no suspicions were raised. Everyone simply treated this as a conventional, internal war within the world.

Only Urza, currently fighting Mishra, relied on his professional expertise to notice something amiss, though he couldn't quite put his finger on what the problem was.

He saw that his brother and all of his subordinates were riddled with traces of body modification. He completely failed to understand why Mishra would turn himself into an Artifact Creature. But after some thought, he merely assumed his brother had strayed down a twisted, divergent path.

He didn't specifically suspect any deep, overarching conspiracy. Because he was certain of one thing: the man opposing him was indeed his brother!

It was just that Mishra's personality had undergone massive changes compared to the past. And those changes were subconsciously rationalized by Urza as normal shifts brought about by the passage of time; he didn't give it any deeper thought.