Hades saw the Neo-Demon returning to the Beta Heavenly World, and a complicated expression appeared on his face. He always considered himself a genius, and rightfully so, as he managed to reach Rank 9 relatively fast before his fall, but against Zatiel, he was just too inferior.
The first time they met was less than one thousand and five hundred years ago, when Zatiel was still a newly advanced Rank 4 life form.
Now the Neo-Demon was at Limit Rank 6, and his battle power did the impossible, jumping more than a Rank, surpassing the Limit Void Creator!
"Ahh." Hades sighed at Zatiel's might and vanished from the void.
The duo stood above the Underworld Forge, and Zatiel waved his hands, releasing the Neo-Demons from his space ring. None of them discovered anything and kept cultivation and training.
"Back when we first met, I promised that I would release you once my power rose to a level where you would not be a threat anymore. That day is not far away as my advance to Rank 7 will happen very soon, but now I have a new path for the two of us." Zatiel saw how his words affected the Ancient Being of Laws, but he acted as if nothing had happened and continued.
"I plan to fuse your existence into the Neo-Demon Realm Artificial Intelligence, a sort of World Consciousness of the realm. You will act as a catalyzer, allowing the realm's force to be displayed in the Prima Universe."
Hades was shocked by those words, and a blast of monstrous killing intent immediately emerged from him, like a pillar that reached the firmament.
"Who would have thought you would be so shameless as to go back on your word after all the help I provided for you and your people. Good, very good, but do you really think you can enslave me!" A death force capable of consuming a world emerged from the Ancient Being of Laws as he stared at the Neo-Demon.
This death force could have easily extended over the entire surface of the Beta Heavenly World. Still, for some reason, Hades limited its radius of ten meters, only containing him and the Neo-Demon.
Zatiel's vibrant and almost infinite vitality effortlessly fought back the death force. He expected such a response from the Ancient Being of Laws, and a smile appeared on his face as he saw that despite Hades' rage, this one made sure that the force would not harm the other Neo-Demons in the continent.
Of course, had things gone differently, Zatiel's left eye was ready to nullify the Ancient Being of Laws' power and protect everybody. It was another test, and the Ancient Being of Laws passed it flawlessly.
Regarding the fact Hades's death force attacked him, he did not have a problem with it. Actually, if Hades had not done so, the Neo-Demon would have been disappointed.
"I am not someone who tells his plans to his enemies. Had I wanted to trick you, you would have never seen it coming." Zatiel spoke with a calm voice as the death force surrounded him. He waved his hand, making a magic crystal appear, and then deposited in it a stream of information before sending it to the Ancient Being of Laws.
Hades' rage diminished as he heard those words and saw the serenity in Zatiel's eyes. He focused on the magic crystal, and after seeing nothing odd with it, he analyzed its information.
Less than five seconds after examining the information, a sense of utter awe permeated Hades' soul. The magic formulas and theories in it were beyond anything he had seen before in his entire life.
"My current power will allow me to fuse you with the NRAI without affecting your personality and ego in any way, allowing you to become the unique World Consciousness, not burdened by any form of guidelines. Of course, I will leave some restrictions and a failsafe, making it impossible for you to harm this place or its people, and that would warn me if you attempt any form of betrayal."
Hade took his sight away from the magic crystal and looked at the Neo-Demon before giving a soft nod.
The Ancient Being of Laws could not negate the might of the magic formulas he saw, and while he had a tough time deciphering their power, he was sure that Zatiel's words were correct and that his ego and independent thinking would remain intact.
As for the restrictions and failsafe that would ensure the safety of the Neo-Demon Realm and the Neo-Demons, the Ancient Being of Laws found that obvious. He would have found it stupid if Zatiel handed him total control of the realm to him.
He focused again on the magic crystal and kept going through the information. As he approached the end, something drew his attention.
"Realm Avatar Technique?"
"Yes, it is a unique Avatar Technique. It will allow you to create a physical body, one capable of interacting with the laws and cultivating, similar to Archdevils and Archdemons."
"Amazing!"
As a previous practitioner of the Gods Path of Power, Hades was used to avatars, but Divine Avatars were flawed. Not only was their energy limited and impossible to replenish on their own, forcing them to return periodically to the Divine Kingdom to recharge, but they also had crippled senses.
For a God, controlling a Divine Avatar was like a child with a video-game character. He could make it act according to his wishes, but it was useless when deciphering the laws or practicing new spells and techniques.
Archdevils and Archdemons, on the other hand, were different. They have fused their souls with their respective hells and layers' origin, making their physical bodies avatar capable of exploring the universe and growing stronger.
Many powerhouses and even Primarchs have attempted to decipher this ability, but no one successfully replicated it until now.
"Karma." Hades saw that was the key component in the magical formulas behind Realm Incarnation. He was familiar with the concept, but there was no such power in the Prima Universe, at least not at the level that could allow such marvelous Avatar Technique.
Zatiel had previously also done some research on the unique ability of Archdemons and Archdevils, with some moderate success in the form of the Immortal Avatar True Doomsday Body.
It was only now that he obtained his Alpha-Omega Samsara King Bloodline and True Name that he could fully replicate it, replacing the power of Baator and Abyss' origin core with his own.
The Neo-Demon waited in silence as Hades thoroughly examined every piece of information in the magic crystal. It was only after half an hour that the Ancient Being of Laws finished.
"If I follow this path, will I become one of your people?" Hades saw how Zatiel nodded, and his eyes wandered off to the thousands of Neo-Demons in the continent.
Before meeting Zatiel and the Neo-Demon Race, Hades' mentality was like that of almost every other Being of Laws, that all those still bound to their lifespan were ants.
Although that mentality could be considered cruel, Hades saw how those who belittled that coldness behaved exactly the same as they grew stronger.
That was people's nature, and he could not do anything about it. For Hades, it is better to be considered evil than to be a hypocrite.
However, Neo-Demons were different. They all worked together for a sense of greater good, always willing to give a helping hand to someone in need regardless of status or power.
Through the years, he saw how more and more Neo-Demons of all ages came to the Beta Heavenly World to train, and they would always show him respect and admiration despite not needing to.
A tender light appeared in Hades' eyes as he remembered a minor "incident" that occurred a few hundred years ago. Sometimes, parents would bring their children to the continent, and once there was a young girl who sneaked up to him.
Unlike the way everybody looked at him in his past life, there was not even a pinch of fear in the girl's eyes, only curiosity, like everybody else in the realm.
Hades ignored her and kept cultivating, but all of a sudden, the little Neo-Demon climbed the Underworld Forge and even his own body to touch the goat skull head.
The Ancient Being of Laws was utterly shocked by that, but the next second, the child's mother grabbed her and started to apologize as she reprimanded the girl.
Once again, he saw no fear in the child or the mother, only some embarrassment in the latter, and noticed how everybody else only giggled at the incident.
The feeling they gave him was something the Ancient Being of Laws thought he would never experience again, the unconditional love and trust of a family.
Hades stared at Zatiel as a genuine smile appeared on his face, telling the Neo-Demon his answer.
"Ok, let 's start."
