The death of Damien Void wasn't an event that took the universe by storm.
At least, not at first.
While people clamored to find the answers to the great mystery of the Demigods' transference, it happened quietly, like a passing breeze.
The Dimensional Leaderboard changed.
The first-place position that was occupied by the greatest genius of the universe ever since his spectacular battle with the Saint King became empty, and every other individual present on the leaderboard moved up.
The first to notice was the younger generation, who then spread it to the elders of their clans and sects, who discussed it amongst themselves until the rumors became an unmistakable reality.
Either Damien's age suddenly jumped over 400 years and disqualified him from the leaderboard, he became a Divinity and ascended past it, or he was dead.
With that thought in mind, because the sudden and silent death of a supreme genius was so hard to accept, they checked the legacy leaderboard immediately in search of his name, but unable to find it, they were forced to look at the only remaining option.
Various reactions filled the universe when this information spread, and various forces connected it with the Demigod incident due to the timing, but this was a matter for several days in the future.
Currently, a meeting was taking place between the highest authorities of the allied force.
Luciel headed it, and present with him were several Holy Masters such as Iris and Sterling Asterin, the Fallen Star Holy Master.
And surprisingly enough, given the privilege to listen in on the meeting from the side were the highest officials of the Judgement Order, including Rose, Ruyue, Elena, and Su Ren.
The topic of discussion was the same as it had always been.
The endless war they were currently fighting.
"We have lost 30% of the Infernal Realm, but they do not seem to be pushing as hard as they were before. Has information come from the other side?" Luciel asked, guiding the meeting.
"Yes," a Holy Master stood up.
"Our spies found that the Karmic Emperor's forces have been moving strangely in recent days. It seems they will make a big move soon."
"Is there any solid information?" Luciel pushed.
"Not much, however…"
The Holy Master hesitated for a second, but under the burning gazes of those around him, he folded and sighed.
"It has been confirmed. Members of Blood Asura Holy Land have been secretly communicating with the enemy forces for at least a year. Their betrayal is evident."
"Dammit!"
Luciel banged his fist against the table.
If one looked at Immortal Blood Asura's personality, while he was abhorrable and evil, he wasn't someone one would expect to turn traitor.
Mainly because of his pride.
As a man who always stood alone and forced others to respect him, to make a move like this was essentially throwing away his pride.
Either that, or the allied forces had severely estimated how twisted his mind was.
"How is Elyssa?"
The member who stood up this time was different.
Two years ago, a contact appeared spontaneously among the allied forces.
She was a woman named Elyssa Bloodlock, and according to her, the Bloodlock Clan had long been subordinated to the Nox.
At first, her information was doubted for its credibility, which led to a year-long investigation that was finally yielding results.
This woman, who was just an ordinary disciple in comparison to the status of the rest of the room, was the individual in charge of keeping up with her and passing her messages along to the rest of the group.
"Everything the contact said has been verified. Not only have they been sacrificing their own citizens for reasons unknown, but the majority of those in Blood Asura Holy Land have been corrupted into Nox servants."
"They have managed to hide well due to Immortal Blood Asura's interference. According to recent news, he has a deep cooperative relationship with the Karmic Emperor, and the members under him have been given the means to hide their corruption in order to accurately deceive our vision. The length of this cooperation…if we are estimating properly, is over a decade."
The woman continued to elaborate on the situation, listing much more information she received from Elyssa Bloodlock.
There wasn't much they could learn about the nature of the Nox's next move, but just by seeing the troop distribution and their movements, it was clear that their plan was going to shake the universe's very foundation.
"If we can find a way to suppress the Karmic Emperor, it will become much easier, but he has remained hidden even while staying in our universe. It's quite frustrating…" Luciel muttered with a sigh.
He was the main contributor to the most difficult problems. As long as he could be removed from the equation, their forces would be able to launch the counterattack they'd been preparing in secret for the past three years.
"Alright," Luciel said.
"We must strike preemptively. If they are allowed to regain momentum, it will be difficult for us to stop them."
A heated discussion began among the meeting members.
Plans were being finalized to bring this war into its final stages and finally chase the Nox out of their universe for good.
However, at this moment, something strange happened amidst the observers.
Rose's eyes widened.
As did Elena's.
They suddenly froze in place.
Their hearts practically stopped beating as their minds were thrown into chaos.
"H-huh?"
Ruyue sat with widened eyes.
She reached up and touched her face.
Were those…tears?
Her countenance was icy as always. Her expression was cold and locked away the feelings in her heart, disallowing others from understanding her inner thoughts.
It was a factor that added to her beauty. There were countless men who swooned after her, not that she paid attention to them.
But the charm she possessed was laced with a freezing touch.
Yet, at this moment, this exact indifferent facade was unsettling.
Something snapped within her.
It wasn't like before.
It wasn't a matter of something being lost temporarily.
It was gone.
She couldn't find it.
It didn't exist anymore.
It caused extreme pain to envelop her body and soul, but she was too shocked to even register it.
Her soul…
That piece of her soul that she left with her beloved as a symbol of their love…
It was gone.
It shattered.
That…
There was only one situation that could cause that. No matter how much time passed, even if she herself passed away, that piece of her soul would always be with him.
Until…
It was hard to breathe.
It was hard to think.
She sat there as an impossible truth dawned on her mind, frozen like a statue.
Everything went silent.
Everything became blurry.
A messenger rushed into the room, hurriedly reporting information about the disappearance of the Demigods that just took place.
The entire meeting hall was filled with noise as Iris and several others disappeared, and the rest contacted outside forces to understand the scale of this phenomenon.
But she didn't hear it.
Neither did Rose or Elena.
It was all drowned out.
Leaving only the sound of crystal tears shattering against the cold, lifeless ground.
