Damien was confused for a moment, wondering what the boy was talking about. The boy saw the apparent confusion on Damien's face and said, "Before I tell you anything else, you can call me Al-run...that is my true name. It feels like an eternity had passed, and I might even forget my name. What is your name, mortal?"
Damien reined in his thoughts and replied respectfully, "My name is Damien. May I know how Senior Al-run ended up here?"
Al-run sighed as a complicated light flashed in his eyes as if he suddenly remembered some bitter memories. However, after taking a good look at Damien, he was slightly surprised that Damien didn't ask him what he was and how he didn't seem astonished for too long.
He replied with a sigh, "I have been here for more than a million years, and the memories of the past are nothing but mere shadows in my soul. A past which I have been trying my best to forget and would have forgotten if it were not for the mission my forefathers gave me."
'A mission? Did he come here on purpose?' Damien wondered.
Al-run explained, "This dimension we are living in is known as the Aether dimension. And all mortals and diving beings were protected and guarded by a single god...the most powerful one and supreme out of all gods...titled as the Ethereal God. We have never seen him, but we could always feel his boundless power and his protection.
"He guarded all the realms, and peace was maintained with his divine presence or through his heralds. Even divine beings like us and other gods and demons alike worshipped the Ethereal God sincerely for looking after us for eons."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Al-run's expression then became solemn as he continued, "But one day, a terrible calamity happened. Our dimension suddenly tore open in half, and a dark and hellish being with an aura rivaling the Ethereal God came out of it. We couldn't see him since the differences in our power were too vast even to catch a sight of his visage. But his presence alone in our Aether dimension disrupted and stifled the life of all living beings. There was complete chaos and destruction happening in all the realms, and the clash between our Ethereal God and the Nethereal God as we named him made our Aether dimension tremble and shake with each of their strikes.
Damien drew in a cold breath of air as countless speculations ran through his mind, and even Luna became strangely silent.
"Countless realms far away got destroyed, and even almost all the divine beings died by the time the Ethereal God sent me here to this mortal plane to lie in wait for someone...a mortal who would later completely destroy the remnants of the Nethereal God. The Ethereal God's divinations were always on spot, and never had he ever been wrong. So, no matter how surprising it seemed to me, I followed the almighty's wishes and stayed here despite being injured. If I was not sent here, then I would have surely died just like my brethren and others."
Even though Al-run's voice seemed emotionless, Damien could notice the lament and regret in his tone for being the only and last survivor of his people.
He wondered if this innocent-looking spirit would kill him if he came to know that he inherited the legacy of the very god who killed his people and caused chaos and destruction in the Aether dimension.
He had no idea why the Nethereal God did it, nor did he have any hard feelings since he didn't suffer anything because of it personally. In fact, he wanted to thank the Nethereal God enough for gifting him with his inheritance. Otherwise, he doubted he would have even lived till now in such a bloody world.
He didn't know if the spirit couldn't detect the Origin Seed inside him because of Luna or because he couldn't relate his Origin Seed with that of the Nethereal God due to various factors.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"}) However, he could feel Luna's aura becoming heavier and heavier as if his soul was about to be crushed.
"Luna?" Damien called out inwardly with trepidation. He couldn't read the actions of this unpredictable goddess inside him at all.
To his relief, the pressure disappeared, and a cold snort sounded out inside his mind, "Hmph, ask him what happened to that so-called Nethereal God."
Damien sighed and asked Al-run the obvious question, "What happened to the fight between them and who won?"
Al-run shook his head slightly, "I don't know. I was here before the battle between them even came to an end. But considering that this plane still exists, our Ethereal God should still be alive. Otherwise, without the presence of the almighty, our Aether dimension would become unstable and crumble down. So, probably the almighty one prevailed and defeated or drove back the evil Nethereal God...but at a great cost, I presume...otherwise, I wouldn't be still here and would have felt the almighty one's aura. I don't even know how many survived and if the divine plane still exists."
A sound of tongue clicking in frustration sounded inside his mind, and he could feel that Luna's mood was quite sour. In fact, he could even detect a faint amount of killing intent radiating from her!
This was the first time Damien ever saw Luna becoming so pissed off, and he well knew that a part of the object of her hatred was inside him.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})After all, even a fool could see the true identities of this Nethereal and Ethereal God...the Anti-God and the Ethereal Goddess. But even Damien was surprised to hear this retelling of ancient events coming from Al-run.
Although he was not 100% sure about the identities of the gods mentioned by Al-run, putting the details he knew together, he couldn't make any other guesses.
He never expected that the primordial god who entrusted him with his legacy was the one who made Luna end up in her pitiful state...to have her lifeline tied down to a mortal.
Even though he wasn't a god, Damien could only imagine the humiliation and shame a proud and lofty goddess like Luna would feel.
He thought of having his life tied to the life and death of a mere ant, and even he couldn't tell how dark his feelings would be regarding it. If someone steps on that ant, then that's it. No one would even know how the end of their proud and mighty progenitor even came to an end.
Although Luna couldn't remember everything, she was angered to hear that she probably got done in by an entity from another dimension.
However, a cold grin hung on her lips, thinking that the Nethereal God already died and the proof was already inside Damien's ethereal core.
She then wondered whether she underestimated herself the first time she took a good look at Damien's Anti-God Arts. However, her instincts were telling her that things couldn't be that simple, and she decided to think about it later.
After all, who could this Ethereal God be other than her? She was the strongest existence in the universe...that fact she already remembered since she was the one who breathed life into the Aether dimension; only the events after that was blank to her.
Damien felt complicated about this whole thing and felt as if he got pulled into a fight between two omnipotent existences.
In the end, all he wanted was to find his long-lost wife and reunite with her. He had absolutely no interest in getting himself involved with anyone else's fight or bearing the consequences.
In fact, if he finds Sofie, he would just take her and his lovers along to a quiet and peaceful place where he and his lovers could live happily ever after.
Although his dreams seemed far-fetched and unrealistic, he didn't mind pursuing them to make them a reality. In his book, there was nothing impossible as long as he put his mind and heart to it. At least, he wanted to give it his best instead of giving up.
So, the last thing he wanted was to involve himself in things that were out of his league. So, he asked in a thoughtful tone, "And what was this mission you were sent here for?"
Al-run closely scrutinized Damien from top to bottom as if he was studying him once more before replying, "You are still not ready for it. I don't know how a mortal like you is going to affect the machinations of fate, but I believe in the almighty one. So, if you are indeed the mortal chosen by the Ethereal God, then come and find me when you are ready."
Saying this, Al-run raised his finger, and a profound light flashed from his fingertips before entering Damien's glabella.
Damien tensed up for a moment, but Luna assured him that it was fine and nothing more than an imprint to let him know when to come back and meet Al-run.
Damien didn't know what he got himself involved with, but he decided to go with the flow and think later for the time being. He then asked, "Is there any reason why you sealed off this forest?"
