An immense explosion of purple fire and white lightning illuminated the Astaroth continent, generating shock waves that level entire mountains.
The Neo-Demons and Magi that escaped the stronghold saw the might of that explosion with wide eyes and shocked hearts. None of them could understand how someone could display such power in a plane that limited battle strength beneath Rank 4.
Numir and the rest of Daybreak Clan's members were all filled with an immense sense of pride and admiration. While their brothers and sisters' demise still hurt them, that display of power made them understand the might of the Ancestor.
Samuel's expression was also one of mixed emotions. The close encounter with death and the feeling of defeat when he faced the monster affected him, but a burning desire for strength appeared in his eyes as he saw the lightning and flames flooding the sky.
Less than five seconds after the explosion, all the Neo-Demons' tadpoles glowed, and they received a message in their minds.
"The threat has been neutralized. All Neo-Demons must return to the Magi World as soon as possible."
The order came as a surprise, and many Neo-Demons would have preferred to remain in Gods' Tomb despite the danger. Still, since the order came from the Ancestor, none of them even thought of refusing and immediately began to prepare to journey back to the portal.
Numir, as the Daybreak Army's leader, received more information than the rest.
"Lady Numir, since the Asura Archangel is no longer available, you must return along with every other Neo-Demon. While the possibility of another creature of that level appearing is low, the chance of mass casualties is unacceptable. Drones will be left to take control of the terrains you have secured." Dante's voice made a pause before speaking the following phrase with a sharp tone. "This order comes directly from Father."
Those last words made Numir clench her fist as an expression of anger and frustration appeared on her face. The number of deaths the monster's onslaught left was more than all those she had lost in the past decade.
Even if she knew there was nothing else she could have done, and with someone else in charge, the casualties would have been worse, the feeling of regret and rage did not vanish.
She initially thought of sending the rest of the Neo-Demons back to the Magi World according to Zatiel's command and remaining to kill more Divinity World's warriors. Nevertheless, Dante's last words made clear that it was not a possibility.
Not even the Sky Breakers could defy a command from the Neo-Demon's Ancestor, much less Numir.
"Have the drones scatter through the ruins to retrieve our people's remains. We will march toward the portal and leave once all our warriors inside the Transitional Plane have gathered."
After giving that order, Numir felt a hand over her shoulder and turned to see Shiyu. The women looked at each other, and although they said no words, both made a silent oath to become stronger, so this would not happen again.
...
Ezequiel and Zatiel opened their eyes inside the mountain range's cave once the connection with the Asura Archangel's broke. The first's eyes were still overflowing with wrath, but the second had a solemn expression on his face.
King in Yellow's presence in the Prima Universe bothered him. If he had the power, he would have marched directly into the Divinity World's and carved a bloody path until extinguishing his enemy's existence, but he was still too weak.
'Originally, I didn't plan to get myself too involved in that man's revenge, but I must change my approach. Overgod, Tyr, and Satan are not useless fools, but since they follow the Path of Gods, there is no way they could have resisted the King in Yellow's schemes.'
The waves of killing intent woke up Zatiel from his analysis, and he focused on Ezequiel.
"You should calm down. Your wife is safe as most of our people. I thought we were overly paranoid with the safeguard put in place, but it turned out very helpful. Not only we avoided losing many of our geniuses, but we also discovered a critical piece of information about our enemies."
Ezequiel took a deep breath and calmed his emotions, but still, the sorrow did not leave his eyes.
"We lost many Neo-Demons due to that individual's actions."
Zatiel sighed when he heard that, and sadness appeared in his eyes for an instant before being replaced by tranquillity.
"We can do our best to protect our loved ones from it, but death is something every warrior must face in their paths. It is reasonable to feel sad or angry, but you must not let your heart's attachments affect your soul and will."
There was a deep meaning in those words, and Ezequiel nodded, signaling his understanding. Once he completely put his heart and will at ease, questions began to flood the Supreme Neo-Demon's mind.
"Master, I am curious about the connection between the Path of Gods and the Eldritch Universe's True Self. And also about that entity, King in Yellow."
Zatiel stared at Ezequiel, and after a moment of consideration, he decided to share the information.
"What I am going to tell you is considered taboo as all Gods have sworn to kill any mortal life form aware of it. If they find out you knew it, they will hunt you down relentlessly since it is their greatest shame."
Many would have been frightened if they knew the users of one of the main Paths of Power of the Prima Universe would hunt him, but Ezequiel showed nothing but disdain to that threat, making Zatiel smile.
"Unlike the True Soul that is made entirely of our Primordial Essence, the True Self is made by fusing the eldritch's soul with a piece of the Eldritch Universe's Will. This True Self works as a type of altar, where the individual can offer sacrifices like people or heavenly objects. Part of that raw energy will enter the eldritch's life form, making them stronger, while the rest will go to their universe."
After hearing that, Ezequiel understood why the True Self enhanced bodily strength while also providing great spiritual defenses. The eldritch's souls were not entirely theirs, as they shared it with their universe's will.
"The Path of Gods mimics the True Self, making you the receiver of the sacrifices. However, they only can accept Faith Power, and they must fuse their True Souls with a piece of the Prima Universe's matrix, making them subjects to the laws instead of their controllers."
A flash of enlightenment crossed Ezequiel's eyes once he understood the connection between the Path of Gods and the True Self.
"No wonder the Magi World's Leader agreed to support a war against a Principal World when the final battle against the Eldritch Universe could happen at any moment."
"That is right. Gods are cowards, and the chance of them helping face the Great Old Ones is small, if not null. And even if they were willing to assist in the battle, who would accept to fight alongside someone who could backstab them or lose control of their minds mid-battle?"
Zatiel was a great war commander, and he understood that an unreliable ally is much more dangerous than a mighty enemy.
"Regarding the King in Yellow, I don't know too much, other than he is an Eldritch Universe's life form who managed to enter the Prima Universe, and he hides using the identity of The Sage. He must have many Rank 6 Avatars but limited himself to that level inside our universe to keep his cover. While the Universe's Will doesn't pay too much attention to life forms bound to their lifespan, it keeps an eye on every single immortal existence."
Ezequiel's expression became solemn when he heard that. King in Yellow was capable of infiltrating the enemy universe, a feat not even Zatiel could achieve. As for his power limited to Rank 6, sometimes wits were all you needed to generate catastrophic damage to your opponent.
With the situation on Gods' Tomb handled and solved Ezequile's questions, Zatiel analyzed the state of his Earth Grade Chaos Stones.
One stone became dust, and the other had very little power left. The Neo-Demons have trained nonstop for seven years, equalling one hundred and forty years without the Chaos Stones' help.
Although he lamented that such valuable resources lasted so little, Zatiel was happy when he felt that the law runes already entered deep into his muscles. He, along with Ezequiel, reached the 2nd Engraving Stage.
