“Dyon…” Ri and Madeleine had tears in their eyes. Why else would Dyon be so angry if not for them?
The bloody pulp of Femi’s former head was crushed between his hands. At the moment, Dyon was nothing more than a demon.
Ri and Madeleine didn’t hesitate in flashing forward.
Dyon’s roar was filled with such rage and strength that even with their cultivation, they felt it was almost too difficult to get close.
The powerful experts in the stadium didn’t know how to feel. How long had they cultivated for? And how long had Dyon? And yet his music will was clearly a hair’s breath away from a second level intent and even before that, he had already comprehended yet another intent!
No saint in this entire universe had comprehended more than one intent. And even among the celestial God clan heads, they had comprehended two at most. Maybe only the Royal God Clan heads and Kawa would know more than two. But even then, with the exception of them, the number who broke through to second level intents were nearly non-existent!
Dyon though could hardly care about their feelings right now. Femi’s lifeless corpse hung from his hand, but it wasn’t enough. He was too intelligent to think that Femi could coordinate this on his own.
“This I swear,” Dyon voice rang out, laced with incomparable malice, “The Aumen clan has made an irredeemable mistake today. I’ll lay waste to your entire planet.”
Femi’s body flew sharply through the air, crashing through the arrays protecting the Planet Deimos skybox.
King Aumen and his sons were stunned – much less mentioning Patriarch Geb and Horus. A child dared to declare war on an entire planet? Himself?
To them, it was only their right as the powerful to treat the weak as they saw fit. Dyon was in their way and he had no backing, so they had no issue with sweeping him to the side. If that meant dealing with his wives as well, so what?
King Aumen was embarrassed beyond belief. How many people had just seen him retreat from the roar of a mere child? He was thousands of years old! This Dyon was barely sixteen! How could he accept something like this?!
“King Belmont. If you don’t allow us to seek retribution for this matter in a prompt fashion, don’t blame my Planet Deimos for cutting all ties of cordiality.” He immediately appeared by his sons once again, reclaiming his previous demeanor and burying his previous fear. Now that he had calmed down, he knew that Dyon had made a massive gamble at attacking him like he did, and he also knew that Dyon wouldn’t be able to do it again because he would be prepared this time.
Truth be told, King Belmont was in a tough position. It wasn’t that he was scared of King Aumen – how could he be? His planet had the strongest existences in the universe if he didn’t count the recent anomalies of Planet Nix and Mino. But, there was a reason why he hadn’t campaigned to become a King God Clan in all this time. His goal was beyond this universe and toward the existence that loomed over all of their heads. If he diverted his attention in such a way, he’d waste away his years on something that was ultimately meaningless.
However, this King Aumen was truly taking things too far. What Celestial expert here didn’t know that Ode and Eboni had cheated? Despite their actions taking less than a split second between the onset of their techniques and the massive eruption, it would never escape their senses as true experts. And yet this King was pretending as though this hadn’t happened.
If King Belmont called King Aumen out on this, he would simply deny it. He would say there was no evidence, and then it would be a matter of he said she said. But, it would end up badly in Dyon’s favor because while Ode and Eboni cheating was up in the air, there was no doubt that Dyon had in fact killed them. Everyone was witness to it. Simply the act of killing without proof or within the confines of a match was grounds for severe punishment.
As for the other planets, what incentive did they have to step in? If Dyon died, that would be an extra possibility for one of their own to join the ranks of the top ten. In fact, they were all silently thanking Dyon for killing Femi.
“Is this really what you want to do, King Aumen?” King Belmont responded carefully.
“Did I not make myself clear?” King Aumen’s golden flames blazed, “Now tell me. Are you willing to have a falling out between planets for the sake of a cheating murderer? Or will you do the right thing in the eyes of the people and rule righteously?
For you to accept a citizen under your wing that so blatantly called for the destruction of our planet, does that not mean you agree with his sentiments? Maybe we should cut off all ties now!”
King Belmont’s brows furrowed at these words. It was indeed true that Dyon had just threatened them. Everything King Aumen said, to the laymen, was air-tight.
Below, Dyon’s body was severely trembling under the pressure of the second layer of Demon Emperor’s Will. He had no choice but to release it before dropping to a knee, breathing heavily.
He was truly too stubborn. Had he utilized his soul in fighting Femi, even if it was just to use his 6th sense, how could Femi had even touched him? Plus, he had insisted on attacking Femi’s gauntlet’s again and again, trying to shatter them completely. In the end, he had succeeded. But, it required a technique that was truly too taxing on his body.
On the other hand, had he not delved into what it meant to be a demon, his demonic will would have never evolved.
Ri and Madeleine rushed to his sides. A gentle ice and a comfortable purity filled him with a calm feeling. His red eyes cleared, and the pulsating of his muscles slowed.
Taking out a wet cloth, Ri wiped the blood from Dyon’s body, “You’re too reckless.”
“Definitely too reckless,” Madeleine added as she slowly healed Dyon.
The three of them seemed lost in their own world, oblivious to King Aumen’s threats.
At least, that was until a third party suddenly spoke out.
“Honestly speaking King Belmont, you’ve recently been shielding one too many offending parties don’t you think? You happen to have a Father and Daughter pair housed on your Planet Earth that my Planet Naiad wants dead. You wouldn’t want to have a falling out with two planets, now would you?”
In an instant, a man with flowing light green hair appeared in the air with a dignified expression. This man was none of than King Clyte. Patia-Neva’s mortal enemy.
During all of this time, Patia-Neva had been silently watching with a space concealment technique. He couldn’t reveal himself for the same reason Kawa hadn’t done so. Letting the Ragnor Clan and their other allies know of their power was a detriment to their larger goals. So, he could only watch as his first love continued to suffer.
At first, Patia-Neva had left his wife, naively pursuing the path of the absolute. He knew of their greater purpose, and thus he cast everything away for the sake of greater power. Because his path required coldness to one’s depths, or so he thought, he had severed even familial ties.
The problem with his decision was that his wife had been pregnant at the time, unknown to him. Because of his cold demeanor, and an inability to explain the situation due to the treaty, Patia-Neva’s former lover had thought that he wanted nothing more to do with her. So, she never told him about their child, lest he feel obligated to stay because of that.
Her love was youthful and naïve. Even at the risk of being a single mother for the rest of her life, she was willing to let Patia-Neva pursue the path he wanted. Maybe one day when Delia was strong enough, she’d be able to follow him.
However, Patia-Neva’s actions went further than anyone would have thought possible… He went so far as completely neglecting his clan, ignoring his duties as their first-in-line genius and then eventually, King.
How could a Royal God Clan survive without a mid-level celestial expert? After Patia-Neva’s father passed away, it was up to him to uphold until he reached that level of strength, but he had never tried to do so.
Seeing the clan crumbling, the current Queen Clyte didn’t know what to do. She knew of the temperament of the former Clyte God Clan, and current Clyte Royal God Clan’s, first in line genius. He had unceasingly pursued her in his youth, and now knowing that Patia-Neva was out of the picture, he would never let her go.
The problem was that Queen Clyte was already pregnant! Due to the turmoil of their Planet Naiad, she had used special treasures to prolong her term of pregnancy and slow Delia’s growth. But, that was only a temporary solution. It was only a matter of time before King Clyte found out and killed her child!
But, Queen Clyte had no hope in sight. She had no way of contacting Patia-Neva who seemed to have completely disappeared, and King Clyte was steadily growing more and more frustrated that hundreds of years had passed without her giving birth to his child.
As time continued to pass, King Clyte eventually began to completely neglect his Queen. It couldn’t be said that he ever truly loved her. The truth of the matter was that Patia-Neva was always a rival that stifled him throughout his life, and thus, he wanted something of his. The problem was that he never truly felt fulfilled because it was clear to everyone that Patia-Neva had thrown her away.
The constant sneers and talks behind King Clyte’s back were things that got to him in the beginning. But, as more time passed, he simply killed all those who offended him, eventually reaching a point where his Clyte Clan was the undisputed ruler and the Patia-Neva legacy was completely wiped.
Through all of this, Patia-Neva stood above his home planet. He watched as his people died. He watched as the love of his life lied with another man and cried herself to sleep every night. He let his emotions boil and rage, before they simmered and tempered. Eventually, his heart reached such a cold peak that his ice intent had torn its way all the way to the ninth level – a peak that not a soul in this universe could match. Even King Acacia had never reached such a level of intent. But, neither had he sacrificed so much either.
It could be said that King Acacia had reached the extremity of the absolute path. With his methods and the help of the ice belt, he could be said to be unrivaled in the ice will cultivation among those below the dao formation level.
And yet, he was empty.
He felt a constant itching, a doubt that wouldn’t leave him be. His methods and sacrifice had succeeded, but why did he feel as though he was missing something? Why couldn’t he evolve his intent into a dao?
Pain. He decided. He needed more pain.
But where would this pain come from? Hadn’t he already given up his everything? He couldn’t even form new relationships to tear apart, his heart was too cold… Too broken.
All he could do was continue to observe, trying to decide whether he should bloody his hands with his love’s blood. If he killed her, would it be enough? If he looked her in the eyes, and gave her the glimmer of hope that he had returned, before taking her life away, would that be enough?
In his heart, Patia-Neva had already decided that he would do it if it was his final resort. But, the problem was that this was his last chance. What if it didn’t work? What if he killed her and his intent remained at that level? He only had a single one of her lives to use, he couldn’t afford to squander it.
He didn’t even notice when he had stopped seeing her as his love. Somewhere along his path, she had become a tool for his cultivation – a life he could end whenever he wanted.
But then, after even longer of lying in wait, trying to decide whether to make use of her, he finally saw a glimmer of something he could make a solid bet on.
Queen Clyte, after so many centuries, had lost her ability to continue to hide her pregnancy. If she pushed it any further, Delia would die. But, if she gave birth to Delia, King Clyte would know immediately that she didn’t share the Clyte bloodline. She had reached a dead end and Patia-Neva was nowhere to be found.
As the days passed, Delia’s lifeforce continued to grow, and who else but Patia-Neva would have been the first to sense this? Who watched over Queen Clyte more than he did? And who could be more powerful than he was in this universe?
‘My child?’ He thought. To have hidden such a thing for so long, Patia-Neva was impressed. But, at the same time, he had found his opportunity.
If he killed both his wife and his child, that would be enough… Right?
On a fateful night, Patia-Neva moved. He had no fear of King Clyte detecting him. The Clytes were too weak. They had only become the new Royal God Clan by default. King Clyte himself was only marginally stronger than a normal God Clan head, only being at the peak level of the first celestial stage. So, even if he did detect Patia-Neva, what could he do?
Queen Clyte could not have been more hopeful in seeing Patia-Neva descend into her room. There were a mere few days before she gave birth to Delia, and here came her past love at the perfect time. The only way she had held out for this long was because King Clyte had continued to completely neglect her, instead choosing to toy with his other wives.
Patia-Neva watched coldly as Queen Clyte rushed to him with tears in her eyes, begging him to take their child away.
“Ramiro,” Sofia pleaded, “I know you want nothing to do with me anymore, and I tried to protect our child to the best of my ability. But, I can no longer do so. Please. Not for me, but for the sake of Little Delia. Please take her away.”
Sofia didn’t care where her love had been, all that mattered was that he was here now. With her having lived for so long, her cultivation had reached a high enough level for her to be able to tell that somehow, Patia-Neva was far stronger than King Clyte.
She cried tears of happiness. Happy that her Ramiro had succeeded in his cultivation path and the path he had chosen had worked for him. And, even more happiness that with his strength, saving Delia would be easy.
She didn’t dare to hope that he would take her away. She saw herself as a tainted woman. Someone who had laid with a man other than her love, simply for the sake of survival. She had done so to save her child, but she only wanted the best for her love… And she felt like she wasn’t it.
Patia-Neva only nodded to this request, spending the coming days simply meditating in the corner of Sofia’s room.
These days were the happiest that she had had in centuries. She had begun turning away all of her maids for decades in preparation for this day, so when she continued to do so, no one found it suspicious. They simply left her alone.
Patia-Neva didn’t speak a single word the entire time, but Sofia happily narrated things lovingly. She kept speaking about how with Ramiro took Delia away, that she must treat her well. How girls were different from boys and needed a gentle hand early on, before a more firm guidance later in life. She laid out all of the little dresses she had sown for Delia in her decades of seclusion and she spoke about how much she would love for Delia’s favorite color to be green, like her mother.
“I want her to be as firm and determined as you are,” Sofia continued, a bright smile on her beautiful features, “But, I want her to her to have a little piece of me too. I won’t be able to be by her side, but I hope you teach her some of my family’s sword techniques. We were never too strong, but that was our one pride. And –“ Sofia frowned, bringing her hand to her large belly. A strong contraction sent waves even through her powerful body as the backlash of years of repressing her pregnancy hit her all at once.
Liquid fell as she stood abruptly, holding her stomach as she stumbled to her bed. She didn’t have anyone to rely on, she had to get through this on her own. But she refused to allow herself to pass out, if she did, wouldn’t her child die? How many centuries had she spent protecting Delia? She wouldn’t give up in the final moments.
Patia-Neva immediately noticed this change, and he opened his eyes from his meditation and watched silently as Sofia pulled a basin of water from her private bathroom before waving her hand to fill it with her water will, lacing it was its innate healing properties and many herbs she had prepared for this moment.
Hours of screaming agony passed as Patia-Neva silently watched, his cold expression never wavering.
The years of suppressing her pregnancy had truly taken its toll. But, at the same time, Sofia didn’t dare to output too much of her power in healing herself so she didn’t alert anyone to her labor. Plus, even if she could, giving birth put even martial women in such a vulnerable position that controlling their energy was nearly impossible. If Sofia used even a strand of saint energy, it could very well kill Delia!
Soon, it became clear that she couldn’t hold on any longer. Even as the days of agony raged onward, Sofia just couldn’t manage to push past her final hurdle, and she knew that if she took any longer, it would be Delia that suffered.
“Ramiro, please. Cut her out of me. Don’t care for my life,” Tears streamed down Sofia’s cheeks, “It’s not worth living anyway…” The emotion of her child’s birth had completely torn her outward resolve. How could she continue to hide the pain in her heart now? It was too much.
Patia-Neva walked over, slowly lowering his hand to Sofia’s large belly. His eyes were so cold that Sofia couldn’t even find it in her to continue crying. Was this really the love of her life? Was this the same man he cried over every night?
With one swift motion, Patia-Neva did exactly as Sofia had asked. It was but a moment before the cries of a new born child filled the room. Bloodied? Yes. But very much alive.
Seeing this, Sofia could no longer hold one. Centuries of fatigue washed over her as she passed out, her lower stomach bleeding profusely. In a few more moments, she would lose too much blood for even a saint to continue living.
In one arm, Patia-Neva held a blood covered baby as he looked down at his past love. She lay with her head at the end of a tub of water, but a dark red was very quickly thickening the once herb filled liquid.
Patia-Neva looked on before raising his hand to the still crying Delia, ‘Kill.’
Delia’s large hazel eyes blinked as she looked up curiously at Patia-Neva’s hand. Her wails had paused for a moment, but when a faint energy started accumulating on the tips of her supposed father’s fingers, her fit of tears came back fiercer. Her large eyes flickered, going back and forth between a warm hazel and a cold blue.
Patia-Neva hesitated. The cries of his daughter hadn’t gotten through to him. But, the flicker of warm to cold reminded him of a Patia-Neva mantra that he had long since thought he had come to comprehend.
Warmth blanketed in cold… Hazel flickering to blue… A leaf covered in snow…
It suddenly dawned on Ramiro that the child in his hand was a Patia-Neva. The only Patia-Neva in existence other than him. Everyone else was dead. He had watched them die. He had the power to stop it all, but he had just watched. And now he was about to actively end his bloodline himself.
Patia-Neva turned to his past love as she continued to bleed out, a content smile on her face as tears somehow still streamed down her cheeks.
‘Did I misunderstand?…’ He felt his whole world crumbling. He didn’t know what to think. His cold heart felt like it was shattering, crumbling apart as each moment passed.
His cultivation began to plummet. His peak intent rescinded itself, falling to the 8th level, and then the 5th and then the 1st, until it once again became a will before dissipating completely.
The pain was excruciating. There was no doubt that Patia-Neva was undergoing a cultivation deviation. His path had gone awry… He didn’t know what to trust anymore…
He roared in agitation, blasting celestial energy through the roof of this palace transformed prison.
How could King Clyte not have sensed something at this point? The birth of a God Level constitution was already impossible to hide. And now Patia-Neva had gone into a rage!
The pain in Patia-Neva’s head was too much to bear. He could barely hear himself think as he felt everything he had built up shattering. He knew he needed to leave. In a state like this, even a lower saint could kill him.
He had every mind to throw the child in his arms away. He could barely protect himself now, let alone a newborn! But, something in him snapped when he saw his past love’s content smile… She had fought so hard and for so long…
“Sofia…” Patia-Neva croaked.
In that instant, King Clyte burst into the room, his eyes burning with fury when he witnessed everything.
“PATIA-NEVA! IF I DON’T KILL YOU, I’M NOT A MAN!” Whirlwinds raged as King Clyte boomed.
But, Patia-Neva simply disappeared.
How had he spent so long observing without being discovered? His second most proficient will was his space will. In his centuries of cultivation, he had managed to evolve it to an intent, which allowed him to hide himself in space – although this was also due to yet another treasure he had been brought to courtesy of Kawa and Edrym. While his ice will had completely crumbled, his other wills were intact.
King Clyte could only roar in agitation, blasting the walls and destroying the once elegant palace. He killed anyone who got close, washing this day clean from history.
He stomped forward, picking up Sofia’s naked and unconscious body by its neck. “YOU WANT TO DIE?! WELL IT WON’T BE SO EASY! I’M GOING TO MAKE YOU WITNESS THEIR DEATHS FOR WHAT YOU’VE DONE TO ME!”
Patia-Neva only continued to flee, holding a still bloodied baby in his hand as he tore his way toward the Elvin Kingdom, the only place he could be safe…
No one would feel bad for Ramiro Patia-Neva. To many, he would be more malevolent than even the worst of enemies Dyon had met till now. A man who was willing to watch his family suffer horrid lives and deaths just for the sake of power… Only to watch it all come crumbling down around him…
In the coming years, he was withdrawn and contained… To make himself feel better, he had even fed Delia lies, even to the point of giving her fake memories of the past…
To Delia, her father was a weak man that had met the cruelty of the Clyte God clan… But, in reality, he was a man who had brought all of this upon himself. A man solely responsible for all of the suffering of his daughter and past love.
It had been a decade and a half since then. There was no doubt that Ramiro hadn’t reached the same heights of cultivation he had in the past. In fact, it was only recently through the success of his little girl that he was able to see that there was a path in the absolute… He had just chosen wrongly.
He was prepared to forever lose the favor of his daughter. Prepared to never have the right to be called her father again. In fact, he almost wanted that level of punishment. The guilt tore him apart more everyday… He didn’t know if he could handle a smile as warm as the one Sofia had given him… He didn’t deserve it.
In his spatial pocket, Patia-Neva watched King Clyte coldly. Without his cultivation going berserk, Partia-Neva knew he could kill this man as easily as waving his hands. But, he also knew he couldn’t show himself.
That said, how many centuries had Patia-Neva spent sacrificing for duty? For a strength to fight along side his allies? How many had he given up all in vein?
If this King Clyte dared to make a move against his daughter so publicly, he wouldn’t hold back. He was almost begging for an excuse to show himself although he knew how detrimental it would be.
“I dare you.” Patia-Neva seethed.
King Clyte stood in the air leisurely, with his hands clasped to his back. “So, King Belmont. Are you going to give us Planets face? Or not.” He sneered.
Dyon stood, rolling his neck as a blaze of purple gold flames danced around him. He pushed his aurora to the max as he speedily healed his external wounds and some of his more severe internal wills.
In an instant, arrays appeared below both Ri and Madeleine, shuttling them to his tower.
Then he looked off to the distance at Delia who was currently sitting within the Demon Sage area Dyon had refined.
Ri and Madeleine were startled as the tower moved under Dyon’s control, landing before the area and covering it in a protective sheet of energy.
Dyon knew the story behind Delia’s story. Or, he knew the fake story Patia-Neva had fed her. But, that was enough. With the slight of hand he had just used, he had already sent a 75% clone under a concealment array toward the Planet Naiad area. With King Clyte moved out here, saving Delia’s mother was a simple task. He just needed to stall for time, something he was happy to do.
“It seems a lot of you so-called Kings are intent on offending me today.” Dyon said faintly.
Dyon’s wings burst from his back, propelling him into the air and beside King Belmont.
“One of you insists of lying. And the other likes to steal wives.” Dyon covered his mouth, pretending his words had been an accident, “Ah, oops. My bad.”
King Clyte’s fury rose, “What did you just say?”
King Aumen, though, remained calm, “As you can see, King Belmont, he doesn’t seem intent on reflecting on his actions. Younger generation members like this should be weeded out to begin with. This tournament is meant to decide the future leaders of our universe. How can someone like him lead?”
“King Belmont, you don’t need to worry about much, to be honest. Since I said I would be destroying Planet Deimos. I will be. But first, shouldn’t I make it clear to everyone why the deserve such a punishment?”
King Belmont turned a gaze over to Dyon. He kept aggravating the situation, and he was unremorseful. How were they going to get anywhere? These celestial experts had been geniuses in their own right, or else they would have never become celestial experts in such a trash universe! So their pride didn’t lose out to Dyon’s at all.
“How could you possibly make such a thing clear? We’ve already heard your lies. But now, you’ve killed not two, but three of my subordinates. You will pay for it with you wives and your life.” King Aumen replied coldly.
Ur Aumen, Tau’s younger brother, sneered. “Making an Aumen repeat themselves should be ground for death already.”
Dyon turned a gaze to the boy who much have been somewhere between ten and twelve years old. To win the foundation stage competition at that age was quite impressive. But, not impressive enough.
“I’m not a fan of bulling children,” Dyon said, “But, I do have a seven-year-old little brother who would have placed first in the meridian formation rankings. Let along your foundation stage rankings. You Aumen’s are a bit too prideful, tsk tsk.” Dyon mused.
“Nonsense!” Ur raged. But, Dyon had already stopped paying attention to him. If he got angry arguing with a kid like these Kings did, wouldn’t that make him one of them?
“You know I asked you if you were sure you didn’t witness any cheating. And you answered yes. Problem is, that was pretty stupid of you, because now you’re on record.” Dyon smiled lightly.
“All anyone has been saying since the start of this world tournament is that I’m some wold famous array alchemy expert who abused his skills to shoot himself to the first-place spot. And yet, when it come to everything else, you conveniently forget about these skills of mine? Tell me, did you just come out seeking to get your face slapped?” Dyon laughed lightly as his eyes glowed with gold.
The crowd watched attentively. Just what was he going to do?
King Aumen began to feel uneasy. This was something he shouldn’t have forgotten, and yet he had.
He snorted, ‘What can array alchemy do to help you.”
Suddenly he froze at Dyon’s next words.
“Do you know how monitors work, shit King Aumen? Ah, don’t answer that, I’ll explain. In the mortal realm, it’s a series of pictures interwoven using three colors: red, blue and green. Using a combination of these colors, it’s possible to recreate nearly everything to perfection.
In the martial world though, they use arrays. They’re able to record even the laws of the universe used, and project images that look so realistic, it’s almost as though you’re there.
Luckily for you, it’s quite easy for me to rewind these arrays,” Dyon grinned, “Isn’t that exciting?!”
Suddenly, every monitor in the stadium began replaying the one second long event in the slowest of motions to catch everything.
Anyone with eyes could see Ode and Eboni both discretely pull out a treasure and activate them before pillars of light filled them saint energy.
King Aumen could only watch helplessly as this all unfolded. Even King Clyte could only frown. The momentum he had come in with was completely squandered. Instead of helping a potential ally, he had stepped into a mess.
The crowd almost didn’t dare to boo. This was a Royal God Clan head, after all. And yet, he had been completely thwarted by Dyon.
“A Celestial expert couldn’t see through this? I find that quite interesting.
Trust me. I killed Femi because it was convenient for me to do so, not because I was scared for my life. I could have chosen to show this whenever I want.”
Dyon turned and started to leave, his mission complete. “I’m sure this should be evidence enough, no? It’s unfortunate that the Clyte and Aumen have Kings that can’t even sense the movement of saint energy. That’s a shame. Hey, maybe your younger generation will be better. Fingers crossed.”
Tau Aumen’s eyes sharpened as he looked at Dyon’s back. He had just disrespected Planet Deimos to the extreme. And in the end, there was a little they could do. Before, they at least had the semblance of hierarchy. But, now….
In the Pakal Clan skybox, Patriarch Pakal looked toward his son. “Alright. This has concluded along with today’s events. Let’s go see this Dyon.”