[Goodbye.]
The [Blade of Destiny Wielder] swung its weapon down with such overwhelming force that, for a moment, it felt like the entire world shattered apart.
SLASH! BOOM!
The blade cleaved straight toward the [Hatred Demon], a strike so absolute that escape was impossible.
Worse yet, the demon was restrained, unable to move or defend itself, it had no choice but to take the full brunt of the attack.
A brilliant light exploded through the chamber, engulfing everything in a radiance so intense that it burned Alex’s eyes despite his resistance to such things.
“Holy shit…” he muttered under his breath.
This power… this was on a whole different level than before.
He had used [World Cleaver] once already, yet this time, the force felt almost divine.
Was it because last time, he had slashed at the Abyss, a concept rather than a physical entity?
Or was it simply because he was standing so close to the impact zone?
In the end, it didn’t matter.
The truth was simple: the wielder of this blade could not miss, ever.
The figure turned back toward Alex, its glowing eyes calm.
[It is done,] it said before bowing slightly.
Alex smirked, “Good job.”
And just like that, the spectral warrior dissolved into shimmering golden particles, fading back into his mind.
The light that had filled the room began to subside, fading away second by second until the darkness of the chamber returned.
And once the blinding glow had diminished enough, Alex saw him: Lord X, still kneeling on the ground, his entire body frozen in shock.
The leader of the [Hatred Sect] looked at the now-empty space where the [Hatred Demon] had once stood, his breathing erratic.
His pupils shrank as realization set in.
“LORD!!” Lord X suddenly roared, his voice filled with both rage and desperation, “FUCK!”
Even he, the one who had dedicated himself to the [Hatred Demon], knew the truth.
There was no way anything could withstand such an attack.
Not when it had been forced to take the entire hit head-on.
[World Cleaver] wasn’t just a powerful strike.
It cut through everything, objects, beings, even concepts.
Immortality? Meaningless.
Regeneration? Impossible.
The moment the blade touched something, it was gone.
Which meant only one thing: it was over.
Alex began to step forward, his claws gleaming under the dim light.
“You’re the only one left,” he said as he approached Lord X, his tone was calm, almost relaxed, “Once you die, this ends.”
Lord X was the last surviving member of the [Hatred Sect].
Once he was gone, that was it.
With each enemy he struck down, Alex moved one step closer to his ultimate goal: wiping them all out.
After this, only the gods, the Primordial Dragon, and the Lich remained as true threats.
But as Alex walked closer, Lord X’s expression suddenly changed.
His lips parted slightly, his brows furrowing as his gaze drifted forward, but it wasn’t fear, it was confusion.
“…What the hell?”
Alex raised a brow, “Scared?” he asked, still moving toward him, only a few meters away.
Lord X didn’t even look at him, his eyes remained fixed on something beyond, “…I just have one question.”
“Go ahead,” Alex allowed it.
Two meters away.
Lord X swallowed hard, and his hands trembled.
“Do you really think…” he whispered, his voice eerily calm, “…that it would die like that? Without fighting back?”
One meter.
“Huh?” Alex’s eyes narrowed as he raised his claws, “Stop spouting nonsense-“
But the moment he brough them down…
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
A crimson explosion erupted directly at Lord X’s location, the force of it so devastating that Alex’s body was reduced to nothing in an instant.
It was as if the entire space around him had been swallowed by an inferno of pure destruction.
[You have died.]
Alex’s vision snapped into darkness.
“What?!” His mind reeled, “WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED?!”
Without hesitation, he activated [Destiny Shift].
[Undoing Alex’s movements…]
A moment later, time rewound, and Alex’s body reformed exactly where he had been standing before he approached Lord X.
And there, at the center of it all, the [Hatred Demon] was standing.
“…How…” Alex’s voice came out as a whisper, his mind racing.
This wasn’t possible, it had taken a World Cleaver strike head-on, it shouldn’t be here.
The creature didn’t react to his words.
It simply reached down, grabbing Lord X by the neck and hoisting him into the air with a single hand.
“#?@#!!#?” It spoke, but the words weren’t meant for Alex.
It was a language, one so ancient, so incomprehensible, that even with his knowledge, he couldn’t make out a single syllable.
Lord X’s legs twitched violently, his hands clawing at the demon’s grip.
Blood dripped from his lips as he gasped out a final, broken sentence.
“B-Becoming p… part of the L-Lord is… my… sole w-wish…”
CRWISH!
The [Hatred Demon] crushed his throat in an instant.
And then, its mouth, already twisted and deformed, opened wider.
A deep red glow shimmered from within as something strange began to happen.
A red line of energy slithered from Lord X’s corpse, flowing into the demon’s mouth.
Alex watched, horrified, as the essence of Lord X was drained away.
His entire being, reduced to pure energy, devoured in mere seconds.
And once it was done, the demon casually tossed the empty husk aside, right toward Alex.
BOOM!
A small explosion erupted as the lifeless body hit the ground.
“Holy fucking shit…” Alex clenched his fists.
Alex wanted to wonder how the [Hatred Demon] had survived [World Cleaver], it was quite literally impossible normally, and he wasn’t even warned about the fact it survived.
He wanted to ask how it was possible, but he couldn’t.
Not because he didn’t have the ability to, but because he couldn’t afford to.
Worse yet, it had just absorbed Lord X.
And it wasn’t stopping.
The [Hatred Demon] turned its grotesque gaze toward the rest of the chamber.
Its mouth stretched open again, far beyond normal limits, and then—
FWISH! FWISH! FWISH!
It started draining not only the other [Guardians of Hatred], but also… the other members of the [Hatred Sect].
The Hatred Demon was draining them all.
Even worse, those threads weren’t just reaching toward the bodies in the room.
They extended far beyond, past the chamber walls, past the doors, even past the hideout, stretching into the very world outside.
It was devouring every last member of the [Hatred Sect].
For what purpose? Alex didn’t care to find out.
“DESTINY SHACKLES!” he roared.
Golden chains erupted from the ground, wrapping tightly around the demon’s body.
And the reason for that was simple: [World Cleaver] had an effect.
If, somehow, its target survived, they would be bound by [Destiny Shackles] for sixty seconds.
While under that, they would be no regeneration, no skills and no resistance.
It was now or never.
A bead of sweat rolled down Alex’s temple.
He didn’t know how the demon had survived, but he did know one thing: if it finished absorbing all that hatred…
It would be stronger than in his past life.
Stronger than it was ever supposed to be.
He couldn’t allow that.
[You have selected the “Orb of Cataclysm.”]
Alex tightened his grip.
He was about to throw every last orb he had at the demon.
It was the only way to make sure it stayed dead, and for the world to not fall under its powers.
Because otherwise, if he ever faltered before it, he felt like that not even himself could save humanity.