The structure of a Nox city, wasn't it quite curious?
These people who never got along with each other even when they did, just how could they live cohesively in an area without problems?
The answer was that they didn't.
It was regular for conflict to overtake an entire city as the Nox fought amongst themselves, but because Higher Nox were valuable, they weren't allowed to kill wantonly.
There were two mechanisms in place to make sure they followed the rules.
The first was a battle arena. A life-or-death stage that was supervised by nine revolutions Nox and would allow one to kill their enemies existed in every city, but there were several restrictions on its use so it couldn't be abused.
The second was a collection of Supremes. They acted as a deterrent force and the highest level of authority that kept the people in line through fear.
These two worked quite well together, and for the most part, wanton destruction wasn't a common occurrence.
However, harmony wasn't either.
The streets weren't empty as people had to go about their business, but there wasn't an air of friendliness or community present among them. Instead, it was as if all of them were walking through a den of enemies.
Their eyes darted side to side, they bumped into each other and provoked each other, and even the owners of food stalls and the likes would regularly beat people and force them to pay what they owed.
The longer Damien spent on Al'Katra, the more it felt like a post-apocalyptic world.
Nevertheless, his purpose wasn't to engage in cultural exchange with them.
He didn't care about the food they ate, which, as he found, was disgusting, and he didn't care about how they acted when they were in the safety of their homeworld.
He didn't care that they used Nox blood as currency, nor did he care about the ongoing tournament in the battle arena.
After using some of his extensive supply of Nox blood to get himself accommodations for the night, Damien quietly spread his senses through the city.
'There are…6 Supremes. It's annoying since they're so spread apart, but this distance should still be possible.'
Since he was here for work, he didn't plan to waste any time.
He immediately teleported out of his room and covertly arrived in the residence of one of the six Supremes.
'At my level, they aren't a problem anymore.'
Damien smiled.
Shik!
His arm went through the Supreme's neck.
That man didn't even notice his presence when he was right behind him.
'Give me your memories quickly so I can move on.'
Damien rapidly devoured the man and teleported away again.
He couldn't check them yet.
The Nox were connected in a hivemind. They couldn't see the exact cause of death, but the information that this Supreme was dead would transmit to the rest soon enough.
Before that, he had to clear this city and leave.
And that's exactly what he did.
Regardless of their power level or how close they were to Divinity, it was simple fact that there no longer existed a Supreme who could stand up to him, especially after his league was increased by the Universal Core.
It was a bit difficult since most of his power was sealed. Using only corrupted spatial laws, he had to get very creative with his methods.
However, his base strength was already at a level where he could defeat his peers with a single law.
The rest…
Well, they would be saved for a more appropriate opponent.
One by one, the Supremes fell without realizing how they died. Their memories flowed into Damien's spiritual world and created a black mass that he had yet to absorb.
And after the last one was killed, naturally, Damien had no more use for the city.
'I have the urge to just slaughter them after doing that for so long, but I should keep them alive for now. I still don't know how many of these guys will be useful in the future.'
That was his thought as he teleported away.
He didn't look for a new city right away, but instead landed somewhere deep in the abyssal deserts that the Lesser Nox occupied before concealing himself again and delving into his mind.
'Right, let's see what's up.'
Nox memories were always fragmented. No matter what he tried, he couldn't find a way to extract a full memory stream from a Nox being.
His original assumption was that it was a matter of the Abyss' environment, but after the truths he'd learned in the Abyss itself, his thoughts changed.
This mechanism was absolutely designed by the Nox's creators.
And it was incredibly annoying!
Luckily, the stronger Nox had more complete memories, and since he had the fragments of six Supremes in his hand, he gained as much as he could hope for.
According to these memories, cities like the one he found were rare in this world. They were strongholds within the Lesser Nox waves, mainly used by those who still wanted to grow and hadn't overcome their basic desires yet.
He learned quite a lot about Nox society despite his apparent disinterest in it, and he couldn't say it wasn't fascinating to understand how these beings lived.
After all, those Nox that were such a mysterious enemy for the people of the universe were now being unraveled to him in full.
But the culture was just a piece of memory he spent a brief time viewing.
In fact, while cities did exist all over the world, the strongest experts were concentrated elsewhere.
'This…this is….'
Damien's eyes widened in shock.
He only saw it for a single second, but its appearance was deeply entrenched in his mind already.
A massive facility the size of several worlds. It would've been impressive on its own, but majesty was totally overshadowed by the "thing" it surrounded.
It was built in a circle. That circle was much larger than a world on its own, if he had to guess, it took up a tenth of the entire surface area of Al'Katra, and it…
It was a massive pit.
A pit filled with blackness deeper than any other form of the concept.
That pit radiated an aura that terrified Damien to his core, almost giving him a feeling of reverence.
How long had it been since he felt this?
This kind of fear towards an unbeatable enemy.
Even the Nox Emperors were only stepping stones in his eyes at this point.
So what was that place that could terrify him so?
'The Demon Abyss.'
That was its name.
Considering its gait, it was quite the modest name.
However, this place held more significance than anything else.
'This is what I came here for.'
The Demon Abyss only had a single purpose as seen by the Nox.
That place…
That was the place that created them.
The Demon Abyss was precisely the reason for the Nox's infinite numbers.
It was a machine that pumped out Lesser Nox in the millions and billions and spread them across the world.
If it was that place…
'If I can destroy that…'
'...their numbers will become finite.'
…he could finally make a difference.
The Nox's greatest card, their greatest advantage over the universe…
Damien didn't need to think about anything else.
That was his aim.
He would wipe the Demon Abyss off the map.
Even if he had to risk everything he had!
