Kyle’s fingers, resting on the rough ground, twitched slightly as he watched Nathaniel, who was captivated by the flower. He had even forgotten to end his life—something he had wanted so badly just a while ago.
Nathaniel let go of the bloody body in his grip, his heart thrumming with exhilarating thrill as he straightened toward the flower floating within the wide-open large door.
Everything around him fell into a profound silence at that moment—the air, the distant sounds, even his own breathing. Reflected in his deep cyan eyes was only the floating flower as he stepped through the door and started moving slowly, reverently toward it.
It emanated a majestic power.
Exquisite and utterly dazzling.
Also, he could tell at a single glance that the force of the flower before him felt far more ancient, deeper, and graceful, as if it had existed long before lower beings, like mortals, had learned how to name power.
And to his shock...
It was untainted!
Completely untainted—without even the faintest trace of darkness clinging to it!
Drops of blood dripped from his hands, hanging at his sides, still slick with Kyle’s yet-to-dry blood, as he moved closer. The flower before him resembled a lily, pristine and luminous, its petals edged with a vivid crimson, as though dipped in fresh blood.
The sight of it made his breath hitch. He wanted nothing more than to devour it!
His instincts screamed with certainty.
If he absorbed this flower, he would finally break through the final boundary of the 7th stage of the Celestial Rank—the realm that had trapped him for so long—and step into a level of power everyone only dreamed of.
Maybe...
Maybe he would even find The End.
The End that had been lost alongside the fall of the very first three Celestials. Once he absorbed it, he, Nathaniel, would be the sole Ruler, standing above all others. Every being of the same rank would bow before him—even nature itself, which disliked him.
Every struggle, every cruel betrayal he had committed so far—would be left behind.
Once he stood at the very apex, no one could stop him. Then, no need to steal.
No need to fake being a saint. He would simply claim whatever he desired without pretense, and those suffering would have no choice but to cry and watch helplessly.
Unlike now, with foolish people daring to return, once he stood as the strongest, no one would think of revenge—for if they did, he could just erase them without a trace.
His body shook with laughter.
"Haha... finally! That Azazeal—or all the others I have snatched from in my life—could they even touch my feet then?"
"So what if they are back and near?"
"So what if they want revenge?"
"It’s all meaningless now!"
With those quiet words, his last thread of restraint snapped. Nathaniel broke into a run—forgetting he could simply teleport—with a crazy expression spreading across his face. The flower radiated a bewitching aura so powerful that it didn’t even need to exert its influence; merely gazing upon it was enough to awaken greed in anyone.
Such a bewitching presence—and he had thought there was no darkness within it.
Whether the purity before him was real or merely an illusion had yet to be revealed.
Outside, the remaining Rulers had yet to notice anything amiss. To them, it looked as though Nathaniel had simply stopped beating Kyle before stepping through the door that had burst open when Kyle’s body was thrown against it. They all felt nothing—no strange aura. It was as if the flower’s power were sealed within the door, hidden from the outside. Only those who crossed the threshold could feel its presence. Even Nathaniel had only noticed its presence when his eyes fell on its floating form.
On the other hand, Clan Leader Ares and Guardian Zami finally stopped screaming as the tremendous weight pressing down on their bodies suddenly vanished. It was as if its owner had forgotten to uphold it.
Ares looked at Zami. His amethyst eyes were clouded, his white hair drenched in blood. His body shook violently—broken bones and skin making it impossible for him to even move a bit, let alone stand.
So he couldn’t help but wonder: if he and Zami both were in this bloodied condition, what about Silver, Gvette, Jolie, Owin, and Tai—who were weaker than them? It would be a miracle if their bodies were still intact.
Let’s not mention Cassian. Ares could tell at a glance that the red-eyed man had lost it. Saving him seemed almost impossible.
Even his soul—after desperately trying to resist the pressure—appeared damaged.
Ares shut his eyes. His usually calm gaze burned with anger, hot enough to tear ten Nathaniel apart if only he were stronger.
But... but fuck it, he wasn’t.
Forcing his body to crawl despite the pain, he crushed the tiny crystals that appeared in his hands, absorbing their natural energy in hopes of healing himself a bit and saving at least one of his clanmates—if he could.
Even so, it was proving painfully difficult.
He feared that by the time he and Zami reached the others, who lay motionless in pools of blood, the Rulers floating above would notice them—and finish them off.
Ares exhaled a ragged, painful breath, cursing himself for being so, so weak.
’Why, why, why! Why am I so powerless? Even after living for so many years, why can’t I even protect my own people!’
He closed his fingers into fists, the sound of his broken bones scraping against each other echoing through the space, mingling with the faint whispers and laughter of the ten Rulers hovering high above the scene.
Ares’ bitter monologue was followed by a burst of light that erupted from the ground below, startling everyone present within the clearing. Before Valance and the other nine Rulers outside could react, they all saw Kyle—lying just moments before in the doorway that Nathaniel had entered—suddenly stand up straight despite the grave injuries on his whole body, lunging at Nathaniel’s back.
The speed and power behind his sudden movement was so blindingly fast that no one could track his form. All they saw was a flash of red, and by the time they blinked, Kyle had already hurled Nathaniel flying, leaving everyone in unbelieving silence.
Nathaniel groaned as his body slammed into another door in the distance, his cyan eyes—filled with burning greed—unable to grasp what had just transpired. Then he noticed the icy glow surrounding him and understood: Kyle had activated an array.
"This pesky bastard!"
"I should have killed you first!"
The Rulers’ jaws slackened in shock. Someone among them whispered.
"What just happened?"