Chapter 189: An evil god king
The colossal serpent covered in nine colored scales had become completely motionless. The golden eyed ape had done the same. As a matter of fact, every soul beast within sight had frozen where it stood. Ancient eyes that had witnessed hundreds of thousands, and in some cases millions, of years all focused upon a single location. Their attention was locked onto the place where Alex and his group had appeared after stepping through the spatial rift.
There was no greed within those gazes. There was no desire to hunt. There was only fear.
Kremlin was the first to notice. His divine senses had been sharpened through centuries of battles and countless life and death encounters. Almost immediately, he detected a subtle change in the atmosphere. The hostile pressure that had surrounded them only moments ago was gone. The predators were no longer preparing to strike. They were waiting. Waiting to see what would happen next.
"What are they doing?" the Guild Master whispered. His voice was so quiet that it was almost lost in the silence.
Alex did not respond. His attention had already shifted beyond the giant serpent and the ape. His gaze moved past the glowing crystal forests and the flowing rivers of condensed soul energy. Something farther away had caught his attention. Something that caused even his normally calm expression to become slightly more serious.
"There." His voice was low.
Kremlin immediately followed the direction Alex was looking. A chain of mountains stretched across the distant horizon. Their peaks pierced the strange sky like blades. Among them stood one mountain that was completely different from the rest. It was taller. Darker. Unlike every other mountain in the region, it possessed no glowing crystals whatsoever. At its base was an enormous cave entrance. It looked like a wound carved into the world itself. And from within that darkness, something was waking up.
Then the nine colored serpent turned around. And ran. There was no caution in its movements. No dignity. The gigantic creature smashed through forests of crystal without hesitation, destroying formations that had likely existed for centuries. The golden eyed ape reacted at nearly the same moment. Its enormous body launched through the air with desperate speed. Every other soul beast within sight followed. A tide of million year monsters fled toward the distant mountains in panic. They were escaping from something they had not even seen.
"What in the gods’ names..." One of the Titled Douluo failed to finish his sentence.
The cave erupted. An invisible wave of absolute stillness burst outward and swept across the region. The moment it touched the fleeing soul beasts, everything stopped. The serpent remained suspended in midair. The ape froze in the middle of a leap. Every movement ceased. Every sound vanished. Time itself had stopped.
Alex’s eyes narrowed. The wave continued expanding. When it reached the Guild Master, he felt his consciousness stumble. His thoughts slowed. His soul rings flickered. Even maintaining control over his own body became difficult. The five Titled Douluo beside him froze completely. Terror remained visible on their faces.
Alex raised an eyebrow. What interested him was that the temporal wave had never touched him. It split apart before reaching his body, like a river flowing around an immovable stone.
The presence inside the cave immediately noticed. Naturally, it would.
A figure stepped out from the darkness. It walked upright. At first glance it resembled a humanoid lifeform. At second glance, it became deeply unsettling. Its proportions were wrong. Its limbs bent at impossible angles. Its body was too tall and too thin. Its skin resembled a fragment of the night sky itself. Countless stars drifted beneath the dark surface. Its eyes were entirely white. No pupils. No irises. Nothing except endless white.
"It has been a very long time since something entered my territory and remained unaffected."
Its voice was calm. Almost gentle. Yet every word carried the weight of countless ages. Those white eyes settled upon Alex. "Tell me, little anomaly." Its lips curved slightly. "What exactly are you?"
Alex met its gaze calmly. "I could ask you the same question." Then he spoke inwardly.
"System. Identify it." He could have activated the Eyes of Revelation. Instead, he wanted the system’s answer. A translucent screen immediately appeared before him. A moment later, the notification arrived.
[Ding! This is an evil supreme god king who is fleeing from the other god kings of the God Realm. Host is currently nowhere near capable of defeating it. Run.]
Alex felt his heart skip a beat. His core shook. His soul trembled. Even the faint traces of spatial authority within him flickered. For the first time since arriving in this world, genuine fear appeared within his heart.
"I am fucked up."
However his expression was calm. His posture remained relaxed. Only his thoughts were racing at terrifying speed.
The creature’s white eyes narrowed. The stars beneath its skin moved slowly. "Oh?" Its voice carried amusement. "Thinking about escaping?"
Alex remained silent.
"Who are you?" the creature asked. Its grip tightened around Kremlin’s throat."Where did you come from?" The white eyes sharpened. "Are you from outside this verse?"
Alex cursed internally. Villains really do have perfect instincts. His instinct revealed an unpleasant truth. The surrounding space had been completely sealed. Reality itself had frozen. Escape was impossible.
"System." His thoughts became urgent. "Running is not an option. Give me another solution."
[Ding! Host may access the remaining power left behind by the Angel of Creation. However, doing so will permanently bind host to the Angel of Creation’s karma. Host will inevitably become involved in conflict against the Chaos Clan once sufficient strength is obtained.]
Alex nearly swore aloud.
"Why did you not tell me this sooner? I will take the karma. I was going to destroy those bastards eventually anyway."
Then another thought appeared. "How much power are we talking about? And for how long?"
[Ding! Host may temporarily access power up to the Absolute Reality Realm. Duration depends upon the selected level.
Multiversal Level: 1 day.
Megaversal Level: 12 hours.
Hyperversal Level: 6 hours.
Outerversal Level: 3 hours.
Omniversal Level: 1.5 hours.
Meta Existence Level: 45 minutes.
Absolute Reality Level: 5 minutes.]
Alex read every line carefully. His gaze stopped at one option. Megaversal. Twelve hours. The same level as the monster standing before him.
"System." His thoughts remained calm. "Can this realm withstand anything beyond Megaversal output?"
[Ding! Negative. The structural integrity of this realm collapses if Hyperversal power or above is released. Megaversal output is the maximum safe limit.]
Alex almost laughed. Perfect. Matching the enemy’s level would be enough. Anything stronger would destroy the entire world.
He slowly lifted his head.
Vorkoth tilted its chin. "Have you finally gone insane, little anomaly?"
Alex ignored the question. "What is a little God King doing in a lower realm?"
Vorkoth froze. The stars beneath its skin stopped moving. Its white eyes widened. Its grip loosened. Kremlin fell to the ground and desperately drew breath. "Who are you?"
For the first time, genuine tension entered Vorkoth’s voice. "Are you one of those old bastard’s dogs?"
Alex stepped forward. His movements were casual.
"Enough nonsense." His voice remained calm. "Tell me where the ancient soul beasts are."
Vorkoth flickered. For an instant, something vast and horrifying seemed to exist beneath the humanoid shell. Something capable of devouring gods. Something capable of destroying realms. "You dare?"
"I dare plenty of things." Alex stopped several meters away. "You are a God King. You were chased out of the God Realm. Those old bastards you are talking about hunted you down. And now you are hiding inside a lower realm like a rat."
The white eyes blazed. "I am not hiding." The creature’s voice became cold. "I am waiting."
"For what?" A smile appeared on Vorkoth’s face. "For my strength to return. For the pursuit to fade. And then I will return." Its aura darkened. "I will reduce their precious God Realm to ashes."
"How long have you been waiting?"
"A very long time."
Alex nodded. "That is a long time to spend hiding in a hole."
"You dare mock me?"
"I am stating facts." Alex crossed his arms. "You are a Megaversal existence. A supreme God King. And yet here you are, feeding on soul beasts at the bottom of the ocean."
Vorkoth’s aura erupted. The entire pocket dimension screamed. Cracks spread across the sky. Rivers of soul energy evaporated instantly. Mountains collapsed. The five Titled Douluo crashed onto the ground while blood poured from their noses and ears.
"You go too far, insect."
"Perhaps." Alex did not move. "Or perhaps I am exactly what you should fear."
Vorkoth laughed. The sound alone shattered the ground. "Fear you?" Its eyes gleamed. "You are merely a mortal standing at the peak of a tiny world."
Alex slowly raised his hand. "System." His voice echoed clearly. "Activate the remaining power of the Angel of Creation." His gaze locked onto Vorkoth. "Megaversal level."
[Ding! Activation confirmed. Host will possess Megaversal level power for twelve hours. Upon expiration, host will return to original strength. Karma connection with the Angel of Creation has been established.]
