The darkness screamed in terror as it realized the danger, then turned to flee.
This bastard... wanted to devour it!
It was not one of those natural laws!
It was a dark entity—with thoughts!
How dare this human even think he could just consume it?? Had he actually lost it??
Yet, as it cursed Kyle, wanting to tear him apart, it was horrified to find that it couldn’t escape the ice domain that still stood even after Kyle had lost his body. In the end, as it clawed at the ice, it was slowly dragged into the cold void. If Azazeal had witnessed the scene, he would have surely laughed bitterly at how the situation had reversed so easily.
Maybe, he would have even mused wryly that this was indeed the lucky bastard he knew—one who could always cheat death.
As for Kyle, due to the pain, he hadn’t even realized that this was possible. He had just released the last remnants of his power on instinct, trying to save his soul. So when the cold void appeared, he didn’t even notice it.
He only sensed a strong source of energy, giving off the aura of a fusion of dark laws nearby, and without thinking, just began to absorb and comprehend them to increase his strength. The cold crown atop his soul began to crack as the darkness struggled with all its might, refusing to yield. After all, how could it accept being dominated after having tasted the thrill of absolute control?
This realization alone filled it with dread and fury. In the end, it threw all caution to the wind and decided to destroy the void, even at the cost of sacrificing its power.
Anyway, it could feed on everything and regain its strength once Kyle was gone.
It was at that moment that the silver soul trembled with anger, as if it were annoyed at being unable to grasp a few mere dark laws while already enduring such torment.
In a fit of rage, it just extended its authority and attacked what could not be controlled within the void. After all, the void belonged to Kyle, who had long established his rule. Once a law entered, it could either submit to him or be destroyed. He had no use for power that refused to obey his commands.
Two days after Azazeal fell, the ice domain that had frozen a large part of the Celestial Realm finally shattered into tiny snowflakes under the gaze of the Celestials gathered around it. Someone among them shouted.
"Everyone, the ice is scattering!"
Seeing the snowflakes, no one paused to appreciate the breathtaking sight. Instead, they all rushed into the land that had been sealed within the ice for so many days. The snowflakes sparkled like crystals, dancing in the dark space, their beauty contrasting sharply with the devastation around them.
The land had lost all its vitality. The space was hollow and fractured, with faint pulses of impure dark power lingering in the heavy air, devoid of even a trace of natural energy.
Also, if one looked closely, they would see that the centers of the glowing snowflakes were dark, as if they had absorbed most of the darkness they had trapped for so long.
Celestials whose loved ones were trapped within the ice hurried in to find them. Those who were fearful stayed at the edge of the area to watch cautiously, while the curious, the brave, and the greedy—those eager to claim whatever remained from the battle that had raged in the ice domain—rushed toward its center, following the echoes of conflict that had persisted for many days.
Yet, what they all encountered wasn’t the benefits they were seeking, but corrupted beasts that had been freed from the ice.
Although the mass of darkness, filled with skulls spreading outward, had disappeared, everything else living that had been frozen in the cold remained in its original place.
As the Celestials eliminated the corrupted beasts—now weakened after the darkness and ice had vanished—they wondered why these dark creatures, which usually stayed in the energy-filled skies, had come down.
All around them, the Celestials who had been freed from the ice enveloping them looked shocked to see themselves alive.
Simultaneously, in the place where the earth-shaking battle had taken place, the first Ruler to open his eyes was Yizhe.
He blinked, taking in the scene.
"Am I dead..?"
Hearing his dazed and shocked voice, someone nearby muttered in disbelief.
"Why do I still feel so cold?"
Yizhe finally jumped to his feet, clutching his injuries with a bloodless expression.
The corners of his eyes were still stained red from crying before he had been frozen.
"I’m still alive!!"
He frantically looked around. The space was dark, but the pitch-black blanket that had once obscured everything was gone. Even the eerie dark tendrils had vanished.
The last thing Yizhe remembered was the bone-chilling cold engulfing his body before he lost consciousness. His voice trembled, carrying a mix of fear and exhilaration—he had actually survived! He had been certain that he, along with everyone the dark being who had come from the Layer of Ancients had captured, would have died. But against all odds, everyone—except for the ones the being had personally killed—had survived!
"Did..."
Yizhe’s voice trembled.
"Did Kyle... actually defeat all those formidable dark creatures?"
Just like Yizhe, every Ruler and Celestial around—though gravely injured—stood up. They were also scanning the scene. Shock, exhilaration, fear—a whirlwind of emotions flickered in their eyes. Even the middle-aged men who had bravely charged at Azazeal alongside his followers looked dazed, their courage momentarily frozen in disbelief.
Then they finally saw it.
Amidst the darkness filled with crystal-like snowflakes, a faint silver light was drifting down from the distant sky. It was so faint among the countless glowing snowflakes that, if not for their keen vision, they might have missed the descending light entirely.
The woman who followed Yizhe—the one who had told him to gather more Rulers to hunt Kyle before he became impossible to kill—was the first to point toward the light.
"Is that... a soul?"
All eyes fixed on the weak silver light.
Yizhe’s eyes widened.
"Is it... Kyle’s soul?!"
It was the woman who spoke that acted first. She rushed toward the soul with a solemn glint in her eyes but was thrown back by the middle-aged man who had wanted to fight Azazeal when everyone following Yizhe fled. He roared in anger.
"What are you trying to do!!"