Chapter 699: A World Without ‘Life’
Cattleya Vaughn’s Destruction Energy could NEVER directly harm her son, Arthur.
However, this protection didn’t extend to the catastrophic explosions, spatial ruptures, or the continent-shattering devastation the energy unleashed.
To shield himself and the others from the fallout, Arthur activated the Stellar Guard, consuming a charge without hesitation.
The four teenagers were sent hurtling through the air, crashing to the ground hundreds of kilometres away as the shockwaves from the explosion tore across the land.
Even with their durabilites, the distance and the intensity of the blast would have left them battered and bruised. It did just obliterate half a continent and vaporized the nearby oceans, after all.
But thanks to the Stellar Guard, they were A-OK.
Now, only four charges remained.
As a towering pillar of magma and energy erupted into the atmosphere with the force of a geyser, Evan turned to Arthur, his expression a mix of disbelief and confusion.
"...what the fuck is THAT?!"
Naturally, he was referring to the compact barrelled weapon with reinforced plating and intricate energy circuits in Arthur’s hands.
"A grenade launcher, what else?"
"...since when did grenade launchers do THAT?"
Evan gestured dramatically toward the distant explosion, the intense heat waves rippling across his face. Arthur’s response was matter-of-fact.
"Since my mother found out what grenades were."
"..."
Evan stared at Arthur, visibly processing the statement. It took him precisely one second to categorize this as something best ignored to avoid unnecessary headaches.
In the next second, his gaze shifted to the distant explosion, narrowing as he asked.
"That guy’s done for, isn’t he?"
Though he posed the question, he had an inkling the situation wasn’t so simple. Arthur’s response only confirmed his suspicion.
"Don’t let your guard down, Evan. Nexus Events aren’t so straightforward."
"?! Nexus Event?! Are you saying we’re in one right now?!"
Evan’s eyes widened in shock as he exclaimed, but almost immediately, his expression smoothed into calm neutrality and he spoke.
"Oh well, I figured things weren’t gonna end so easily. Even now, my Danger Sense skill is going wild, sending me warnings from all directions.
It’s almost as if—"
"—just being on this planet is a DANGER to us."
A familiar voice cut him off and both boys snapped their heads toward the source, meeting the sight of a groaning Artemisia being helped to her feet by Beatrix.
"Arty, don’t push yourself!"
Unlike Artemisia, who seemed more focused on the Nexus Event issue, Beatrix’s priority was her friend’s well-being.
Wiping the blood trickling from her nose, Artemisia grabbed Arthur’s arm, her voice trembling.
"We need to get off this planet. NOW!"
"Easier said than done, Artemisia. Creating Interplanetary Cosmic Gates takes time, and I have no idea when we can get at-!"
Arthur’s words were cut short as a sudden, overwhelming sensation crawled up his spine.
The hairs on his arms stood on end, and at that moment, his perception of time slowed to a crawl.
Without hesitation, his right hand released Lostvayne and wrapped around Artemisia’s arm, yanking her away. Simultaneously, Evan shoved Beatrix aside, summoning his Gazebind Aegis shield with his left hand.
A split second later, a fist, aimed directly at Artemisia’s skull, collided violently with the shield.
**BOOOOOMMMM!!!
The initial impact of the fist against Evan’s Gazebind Aegis sent out a deafening shockwave, a rippling pulse of energy that tore through the air like a tidal wave.
The resulting blast obliterated the ground beneath them, cratering the landscape and sending molten debris spiralling skyward.
The force was catastrophic, scattering everyone but Arthur like leaves in a hurricane.
Evan’s shield, remarkable as it was, could only do so much.
Despite tanking the brunt of the blow, the sheer power of the strike turned every single bone in Evan’s left arm to dust—not cracked, not splintered, but reduced to powder in an instant.
His muscles ripped apart like overextended threads, and his flesh shredded into ribbons under the destructive energy.
Blood sprayed across the scene, yet the momentary defence he provided was enough for Arthur’s grenade launcher to aim.
*THUM—!
"??!!"
Arthur’s eyes widened as the man, now cloaked in a crimson sheen of cosmic destruction energy caught the shot in his hand with no change in expression.
It was rendered inert in an instant and though it tried to explode, its destructive energy only gave a weak resistance as it was completely overwhelmed by the man’s cosmic energy, nullifying any chance of detonation.
Arthur fired another, but the man’s other hand shot forward and snatched the second one mid-flight. Once again, its destructive law energy was neutralized in mere moments.
The man’s cosmic energy surged within his body, about to spill out in a retaliatory strike.
But Arthur pelted him with two more shots to the face before that could happen.
This time, the combined explosions unleashed waves of chaotic destruction. The destructive energy collided with the man’s barrier of cosmic energy, the resulting detonation warping space and unleashing a shockwave that shook the skies.
Another charge of the Stellar Guard was consumed, enveloping Arthur, Evan, Artemisia and Beatrix in a cosmic energy shield that absorbed the brunt of the destruction and prevented their immediate deaths.
It shielded them from the collapsing space around them, but even it couldn’t stop the aftershock from throwing them all into a spatial crack torn open by the cosmic energy in the blast.
The group tumbled helplessly through the rift, the void threatening to split them up. Sensing this, Arthur instantly activated his Spatial Pseudo-Authority, linking them together and ensuring no one was left behind.
They couldn’t afford to get separated right now.
Moments later, they hurtled out of the rift and slammed into solid ground. The impact left a web of craters as their bodies skidded across the shattered earth.
Arthur staggered to his feet, scanning his battered allies and the unfamiliar surroundings. He clicked his tongue in frustration, eyes narrowing as he checked his weapon.
The grenade launcher...
"...out of ammo."
’I didn’t reload it after the last time!’
The last time he had used the weapon was over six months ago on Zefesh, during an ambush by Aramisian Transcendents.
Its maximum capacity was 14 rounds, and nine of those had been expended in that heated skirmish. Afterwards, he’d hastily stowed the launcher back in his subspace as he retreated and hadn’t touched it until now.
And now, the remaining five shots were gone.
While Arthur had more shots in his subspace, the problem was that reloading a grenade launcher wasn’t something he could pull off with one hand.
For those few seconds it would take, his both hands would be occupied and unable to wield his sword. If he was attacked in that window...
He couldn’t risk it.
Besides, there were far more pressing matters than reloading the grenade launcher at the moment.
"Evan!"
Arthur dashed to where Evan lay, immediately activating his Time Pseudo-Authority.
Props to the Gazebind Aegis for mitigating the majority of the damage, along with the malignant factor of destructive law energy that would have otherwise made the wound unhealable.
"And here I thought your sword was the only Deity-level gear you had..."
"Haha... The sword and shield came as a set..." Evan replied weakly, forcing a grin despite the pain.
"Then thank whoever created that set, because it’s the only reason the source code of your arm wasn’t obliterated."
Arthur muttered as he worked his time laws. But as he rewound the damage Evan’s arm suffered, his expression darkened.
[...Master...]
Celestia’s voice rang out in his head. She was about to transmit Lostvayne’s words to him but Arthur cut her off before she could.
’I know, Celestia. I do.’
Between the devastating attack that had nearly destroyed Evan’s arm and the ease with which the unknown enemy had neutralized two grenade rounds, Arthur’s confirmed it—The power of their unknown assailant.
And the situation was NOT good for them.
"Ugh! Why the hell do I feel the pain in reverse?!"
Evan groaned as Arthur’s Pseudo-Authority restored his arm, along with the artifacts worn on it, but Arthur ignored his whining and reached into his subspace.
He swapped the grenade launcher for a small circular disk etched with visible etheric circuits.
It had been stated multiple times that Cattleya had given Arthur a ’Survival Kit’ when he left Hell. But until now, he’d only used two items from it—the grenade launcher and Creusery’s healing flames.
This would be the first time he touched anything else.
Without hesitation, he slid the disk beneath his shirt and pressed it against his chest. The device activated, its protrusions embedding into his skin and linking to his blood vessels and energy circuits.
It was an Output Amplifier.
As the name implied, it amplified both the quantity and quality of energy Arthur could release at once.
Why hadn’t he used it during his past year in Valmone? Simple: the strain it caused his energy circuits.
Overuse could cause irreparable damage to the circuits.
But right now, whether he wanted to use it or not was irrelevant—he had to.
He couldn’t afford to take any chances.
"...not in this situation where our opponent...has Deity-level power."
Arthur’s voice was grim as he analysed the situation.
The energy radiating from their enemy was unmistakably of a power comparable to a Deity’s. Lower Existences couldn’t be Cosmic Beings, after all.
Besides, Arthur could sense that the man’s Destruction Authority surpassed his own.
"However, there’s something wrong with his power output..."
As he got to his feet, Evan overheard Arthur’s murmuring and asked.
"Power output?"
"Yes. If he could output Deity-level power, your arm wouldn’t even exist anymore, Evan."
Arthur replied, laying out the scary truth and Evan’s expression darkened at his words.
Pressing two fingers to his temple, Arthur continued trying to deduce why their opponent wasn’t unleashing their full power.
"...is he not trying to kill us?"
No, that couldn’t be it. The strike Evan had blocked would have instantly killed Artemisia if it had landed. Moreover, the cosmic energy Arthur sensed building up was even more lethal.
’Then why?’
Arthur reviewed everything that had transpired since Artemisia’s incapacitation.
His mind flashed back to his first grenade shot, which had obliterated their enemy’s body—yet the man had reappeared unscathed, launching a surprise attack.
"...It was a clone!"
Arthur voiced the only logical explanation for their opponent’s diminished power output and apparent invulnerability.
But just as the words had left his mouth, Artemisia’s voice rang out, correcting him.
"It’s not a clone. He has multiple bodies. I don’t know how many, but I’m certain he has more."
Arthur turned to face her, her words confirming the conjecture he’d had since the chase on Aramis.
"...you’ve glimpsed part of his past, haven’t you?"
Artemisia nodded, and without being prompted, she revealed their attacker’s goal.
"He wants to absorb our souls and take our powers."
Pointing to each of them in turn, she elaborated.
"Beatrix’s Spatial power.
Arthur’s Time and Destruction powers.
Evan’s Flames.
And finally, the catalyst to unify everything—my Evolution powers.
It’s all part of his plan to break free from his limitations and become an independent existence."
"?!"
"..."
The group reacted with varying levels of shock and unease upon learning their enemy’s true intentions.
Since the enemy had brought them to this planet to achieve this, Arthur assumed he had taken measures to avoid detection.
That’s when a chilling realization struck him—triggered by remembering Artemisia’s earlier words about how simply being on this planet was a danger to them.
’There’s no life...’
Arthur’s spatial perception, which spanned millions of square kilometres, registered no signs of life beyond their own.
No birds in the skies, no animals in the forests, no humanoids in the cities.
Everything was eerily vacant.
Though the facilities showed clear signs of use, it was as if their inhabitants had vanished without a trace.
While Arthur was deep in thought, Evan silently slid his left hand into his inventory. He didn’t withdraw anything; his hand simply stayed there, as though gripping something just out of sight, ready to bring it out at a moment’s notice.
His other hand remained firmly on his sword as he scanned their surroundings, eyes sharp and wary.
