The entire earth could be felt trembling. Most continents were already destroyed in Karyk's last battle, leaving only one. However, in that one remaining continent, another storm was brewing.
The space had been sealed, and over ten majestic stone gates emerged from the ground, creating a formation pattern of the Temple of Time.
An area as large as a country was covered in between the formation. The formation amplified the strength of Gabriel's enemies while, at the same time, restricting his abilities.
What was even worse was that all the doors were directly connected to the main Temple of Time, drawing their strength straight from the core, unlike the other formations that used the surroundings as the source of energy.
Far away from the battlefield, there was the Temple of Time which was very empty currently. Most of the people from the Temple of Time were already sent to deal with Gabriel.
Despite utilizing so many people this time, the Leader of the Temple of Time still hadn't stepped out. He was sitting on a throne in an empty hall, looking at the mirror before him, which showed everything that was happening.
Through the mirror, he could see the real-life situation. For now, he didn't know what kind of trap Gabriel could've had in place, so he didn't leave right away. Instead, he waited for the right opportunity.
If his men succeed, then good. But even if they failed, as long as they could force Gabriel to exhaust all his secret tricks, that was also worth it. From there on, he could handle the rest personally.
The Leader of the Temple of Time was the strongest in the Temple of Time. However, it was said that he was just too cautious for his own good! Even when dealing with a weakling, he was so cautious that at times, it embarrassed others.
Most of the time, it was the second in command who made decisions about such things.
"He had disappeared for a thousand years, and now he's back. There's no way; he doesn't have any secrets. What if the entire fight with the Upper Realm was a lie? What if he was trying to trick us? What if he had made up with the Upper Realm after that fight, and only then did he come out again?"
Sitting on the throne, the leader of the Temple of Time kept thinking of all the possibilities, no matter how unlikely and stupid they seemed. At times, he even wondered if the man was indeed Karyk or just someone pretending to be Karyk for fame.
If it were up to him, he would've taken decades to decide if he should attack Karyk after knowing of his return. Unfortunately, his second in command was much more eager.
The leader also didn't try to intervene too much and let him do as he pleased, even though he did try to convince his people to take more time to think about it.
In fact, if he weren't that confused and cautious all the time, he would've used the Orbs of Time long ago! He had the Orbs of Time for hundreds of years, but because of his caution and confusion, he never really used them.
It was also because of this uncertainty that his people didn't really think of him as a leader but as a coward. On the outside, his reputation was of a ruthless and cunning leader. But only he and the members of the Temple of Time knew just how much of a letdown he was!
Even over a thousand years ago, it was the second in command who finally forced him to use the Orbs of Time and execute their plans, saying that they had already wasted enough time as it was!
Unfortunately for them, it was also that time when Karyk came to know the secrets of the Temple of Time related to the Orbs of Time. When the Orb of Time was secretly being shifted to another destination for the execution of the plan, Karyk appeared, taking the Orbs amidst the weak security.
It was also at that time, the enmity between the two sides started. The second in command chased after Karyk, using every means possible to kill him and take back the Orbs of Time, even going as far as using most of the force of the Temple of Time.
Despite all that, he failed and even ended up dying. Unfortunately, the situation didn't change much. After his death, his little brother became the second in command with even more hatred in his heart.
The hatred between the two sides continued further. However, it didn't last long. Before the Temple of Time could attempt a second time, the news of Karyk's death came!
The one who was most furious at that time was none other than the man who looked like a little boy since he wanted to kill Karyk personally.
This time as well, he only came out when he heard the news about the appearance of Karyk's palace. He hadn't expected to get news about Karyk's return at that time! However, when he found it out, his eyes lit up! Finally, he had an opportunity to take revenge for his brother with his own hands!
"These two brothers... Just why are they both so alike? The older one died because he didn't listen to me, and now the younger one does the same." The leader of the Temple of Time sighed, glancing at the little boy in the sky who was holding on to a red gem firmly.
"Whatever, maybe this time, we'll end it all. If you make him exhaust all his tricks and make me convinced that he isn't that strong, I'll help you. But if he's scarier than I thought, I won't think twice before abandoning you all! That's what you get for not listening to me!"
****
"This is for my brother! Pay for his life with your life!" The second in command from the Temple of Time, known as Heriet, clenched his fist tightly, using the strength of the superior gem of time!
The red light in the gem started shining, covering his entire body in a mysterious light! He didn't care about sacrificing his life at the moment! All he cared about was getting revenge for his brother, who was his only family!
Thanks to the mysterious powers of the gem, the Heriet became even stronger than he was before! It was as if he was out of the bounds of time, freely able to manipulate time to some minor extent!
The time started flowing at least a thousand times slower for him before he finally made his move!
