The situation came to a natural end there.
While Damien was swept away by his allies for a myriad of conversations, the aftereffects of the passing storm showed themselves in various parts of the universe.
Firstly, Damien's reputation didn't suffer as much damage as Immortal Blood Asura wished.
Within minutes of the ordeal's end, Damien's information was revealed and spread across the universe at impossible speeds.
The feats he'd accomplished before fighting the Saint King or appearing at the Grand Assembly were now clear to all. The fact that he'd been fighting on the frontlines without any desire for recognition swayed the hearts of many.
When combined with the fact that Damien gave the universe a victory this time, it was hard to view him as someone who would betray his people.
Therefore, the words Damien spoke during his trial were granted credibility.
The fact that he likely had a reason for letting the Saint King live was understood.
Of course, there were still those who chose to hate him regardless of the facts. Their number wasn't small at all.
However, the amount of actual traction their opinions could gain was negligible.
Damien Void was a true warrior of this Grand Heavens Boundary. This much could not be denied.
Zara's matter was also positively influenced by this perception.
Yes, Zara had Nox blood. Immortal Blood Asura's proof didn't just show Damien and Zara interacting, they made it clear without any room for negotiation that Zara was descended from the enemy.
Her identity was validated by Damien and Luciel, so once the adrenaline rush of the situation died down, most of the suspicion against her diminished, but it was hard to completely rid the people of their prejudice towards the Nox and those related to them.
If there was one thing to celebrate, it was that Zara's human form was not revealed in the information.
She would still be able to conceal herself as long as she learned how to disguise or transform her aura and mana.
At least, for the short term.
Damien was able to get by without actually accumulating too many scars. He didn't have much status on his own, but his connections were monstrous.
They weren't many in number, yet each of them stood at the peak of righteousness, and their words held mountains of weight.
With their influence, as long as Damien fulfilled the Oath he made, he would be able to escape this calamity in the long run.
The only problem was surviving long enough to see the long run.
'No Return Pass…'
Damien heard much about it, but there were no memories of it in any of those he'd devoured. It's reputation wasn't for nothing.
'It's a good place to hone my skills. Besides, I won't be totally disconnected from the outside world.'
His main worry in this situation would've been his wives and close companions, but it wasn't difficult to give them access to the Sanctuary, which would both protect them and provide them with a means of communication.
'Theavel's Army can be mobilized through the girls. With the way the Void Library has grown in the past few years, I'm excited to see what kind of skills they can show.'
His main purpose in raising them was…not in Grand Heavens Boundary, but they were a huge trump card he could use if the situation called for it.
'Haa…'
He sighed to himself. The entire thing felt hollow.
His fated duel ended how it should have, but it was unfortunate that this was not a matter he was allowed to put personal feelings into.
'The proper resolution I wanted couldn't happen because of all the eyes. He should've escaped safely by now…I can only hope he understands my intent.'
Instead of worrying about the past, he needed to focus on the future.
'2 years. It'll be relatively smooth, all things considered, so I should use this time to make my final preparations.'
He needed to prepare countermeasures against many things, he needed to improve himself, and most of all, he needed to make the most out of the time he had remaining with his people.
'They're probably worried as hell right now…'
Damien smiled wryly. He'd been feeling the signals from the Sanctuary for a while now, but he couldn't entertain them because he was busy with the experts around him.
Alucard, Commander Huo, Pandora, and the rest finally left a minute ago, and while Tian Yang was still present, he wasn't an outsider.
Plus, he already knew about the Sanctuary, albeit not its current form.
Damien rejoiced in the small pleasure he could anticipate from the old man's reaction and pulled him into the Sanctuary.
Well, it was to be expected that Tian Yang was stunned in a stupor. There was an actual universe in the place he once saw as a single continent!
Stars and planets formed solar systems, galaxies formed galaxy clusters, it was unimaginable that such a structure was in the hands of a single person.
Tian Yang was left alone and frozen in the starry sky to deal with his thoughts while Damien was dragged to Theavel and sat down by a group of women and a few men.
The conversations there were not much different than those he had on the outside.
Tsunamis of concern and earnest care for his well-being overwhelmed him, and he could only quietly accept them.
He wanted to tell the girls about what actually happened with Bai Yumo but now wasn't the time. That conversation could wait until they were on the road.
There was just one final task for Damien to finish before they set off.
Not only was it good for him, it would be a blow to Immortal Blood Asura's ego.
'Another old man whose face is going to be hilarious when he finds out. I can't wait.'
Damien reappeared in the vast emptiness of the starry sky.
He teleported incessantly until he crossed out of the Divine Realm and into the spatial distortion field around the Human Domain.
Even Demigods couldn't pry on what he did here.
'They worked well in the time I was gone. Now…it's time to reap the rewards.'
Damien closed his eyes and connected to a relatively new power in his body.
[Law Controller]
"GAH!"
Damien was instantly assailed with a wave of terrifying pain. He was safe from it in the Severed World, but now that he'd come back and reestablished the connection, he was feeling the pain of those worlds being destroyed.
His mind was clear, however, and so was his purpose.
'Shatter and be reborn.'
The Corrupted World Cores that the Nox worked so hard to cultivate…
…they weren't that important, right?
***
VOOOOOOOOOM!
Six ominous pulses of mana rippled through the starry sky from the six Corrupted World Cores patiently waiting in space.
The starry sky trembled. A horrific aura of Nox Mana spread and corrupted all things in the surroundings, directly killing the guards keeping watch over these lone structures.
The wriggling black cores expanded in unison, their lights shining so bright they could be seen from each other's locations.
Luxurion immediately went into a frenzy.
This was an emergency situation.
Their activation happened within a single second, but the force being emitted was enough to blow a rupture through an entire sector.
Those Corrupted World Cores were exploding.
If they were allowed to explode…!
The number of deaths couldn't be counted in millions or billions. At least several trillion lives would be lost.
It happened so fast that not many were able to witness what was going to be the first cataclysm of the war.
With no means to stop such an unexpected event, even those all-powerful Demigods were forced to watch with dark expressions.
And under their watch…
Wap!
Space twisted.
The rippling space reverted to its normal fluctuation.
And the Corrupted World Cores disappeared.
All six of them.
The universe went silent.
The cataclysm had been…
…avoided?
