Cassandra stood in silence, calmly watching and listening as Alexander reprimanded the Chief Enforcers for their stupidity. She hadn't moved from her spot since the second wave of fighting began, as she had to stay close to Ross and Julia, even if it wasn't necessary.
The protection spheres around them made all three invisible and kept them out of sight, away from the raging battle area and prevented the void creatures from noticing them.
'Alex, oh, Alex…' Cassandra thought to herself, smiling softly. 'Beings of their level aren't used to being told they were wrong. But you — someone they would call a small-time Veilwalker — are capable of fearlessly standing up to them.'
A warm feeling arose in Cassandra's heart at that moment. She was glad, proud and fortunate to have met Alexander; she was proud to call him her friend. She was proud to know someone who would not compromise their ideals, regardless of who stood before them.
Perhaps it was because Alexander had the power to stand up to them. But as far as she knew, Alexander had always been this way. The Enforcers had nothing to say because they had truly messed up.
Despite all their power, pride and status, they could not offer anything in defence of what they did. Their solid stance from before was now crumbling under the weight of Alexander's words and the consequences that lay before them.
"What do you intend to do, Lord Alexander?" Drakmor found his strength to ask. Naturally, the obvious thing was to go after their corrupted colleague.
However, the dragon didn't want to rush Alexander. He had already resigned himself to follow Alexander's arrangements, regardless of what it was. Alexander was their only hope in stopping Zauren.
Hearing the dragon's question, Alexander turned around, taking another second to scrutinise the Enforcers standing in place like naughty kids who had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
His gaze shifted from the Enforcers to his friends, who were farther away from the group. Ross and Julia were invested entirely in their cultivation, while the catwoman looked back at him with a curt nod.
"First off…" His gaze fell back to Drakmor. "Take us somewhere my friends and I can go to rest. I want a quiet place to think and strategise. Also, I want to meet as many of your colleagues as possible."
"Of course, Lord Alexander." The dragon quickly agreed, although he was unsure as to why Alexander wanted to meet the others. "Whenever you're ready to leave."
The dragon shifted and appeared beside his companions. He tapped into the connection of the Chiefs and laid out Alexander's plans for meeting them, as well as where they would meet. Then, as swiftly as he tapped into the connection, he closed it.
There would be time for playing hundreds of questions. For now, however, he and the others waited on Alexander to give the word. His companions didn't like the direction the situation had taken, but the alternative was no better.
Moments after Drakmor returned to his colleagues' side, Alexander reappeared beside Cassandra, warmly staring at his friends who were lost in contemplative states.
The temporal fields he placed around them sped up time on a minute-to-year scale — he made a minute equate to one year.
Alexander had spent more than half an hour completing the purification process. That meant Ross and Julia had spent more than thirty years in an uninterrupted state of contemplation, grasping more of their given laws.
They were very close to the limits of the Immortal stage, left with grasping a few more percentages to cross the seventy-five per cent threshold required to become a demigod. Although a few, those last percentages weren't so easily grasped — without the proper guidance, of course.
"Guys, wake up." The sphere around them dissolved as Alexander called out. "I'm done here." Their eyes fluttered open moments after hearing Alexander's voice.
Julia's expression lit up as her eyes fell on her beloved, putting a radiant smile on her face. Without so much as a thought about her surroundings, she reached out for Alex, who opened his arms to receive her.
"How long have we been cultivating?" The Knight princess asked as she bathed in Alexander's warmth, her arms wrapped around him.
"Approximately thirty-seven years," Alex replied, exchanging curt nods with Ross. "I can see you had a fruitful session."
"Mm." Julia nodded enthusiastically, her eyes closed and expression serene.
The redhead turned away from the couple and looked around while extending his senses. Because the restriction reduced his senses to barely surpass one light-year in diameter, he supplemented the range with Alexander's Nexis Radiant, allowing him to spot the Enforcers.
It took a moment to reorient himself with his surroundings. When he did, his heart and core skipped a beat, shaken by what he experienced in that moment.
"So those are what you meant, huh?" He felt his senses devoured without hesitation, left blinded and shaken by the experience. Recalling what Alexander said about the abysses, a shudder ran down his spine, cold and unnerving. "It would be instant game-over, right then and there."
Julia opened her eyes at that point, but did not leave Alexander's embrace. She looked in the direction everyone was looking and extended her senses, her eyes widening the next second. Subconsciously, she hugged Alex tighter and retrieved her senses.
"Indeed…" Alexander nodded. With a glance at Cassandra, he gestured towards the Enforcers. "Come on, we're getting out of here."
Still with Julia in his embrace, Alexander melded with the void and disappeared with them, reappearing before the Enforcers. Drakmor stood at the forefront while the others stood behind him, the aura around them uneasy and cautious.
The redhead was quick to read the situation and broke into a small smile. 'They've finally realised Alexander is not someone they can mess with.'
Naturally, Drakmor's companions did not like the smug smile that appeared on the boy's face. It was the same as what they saw the first time they met.
Unfortunately for them, they could no longer afford to mess with him if they didn't want a vengeful Alex to erase them without so much as a warning.
With one final glance at the abysses, Alexander focused his gaze on the dragon, nodding for him to proceed.
Drakmor returned the gesture, and a moment later, everyone disappeared. The preparations on Drakmor's side had already been taken, so there was no need for detours.
***
Although it was short notice and many of the Chief Enforcers were spread out, most responded to Drakmor's summons about Alexander's desire to meet them.
Naturally, some were not convinced by what their companions said about Alexander and wished to meet him in person. Others simply did not bother to attend, arguing that they were not mere subordinates a small boy could call whenever he wanted.
Then there were those who could not abandon their location, regardless of what was transpiring. The Supreme One had assigned commanding roles to some of the Chiefs at the border between all universes and the multiverse's heart.
Reality's barrier was weakening and required Enforcers to keep an eye on things in the absence of the Supreme One.
Although reality's barrier had weakened and was complemented by the Supreme One's barrier, they were the only things preventing absolute chaos in the multiverse.
Regardless of the divided opinions about Alexander, the numbers that showed up at the set destination were in the hundreds. More than the reason behind Alexander's summons, the Enforcers were interested in seeing the wonder boy.
Take, they were not convinced. After all, strength varied even among the Chiefs.
The meeting location was set in a high-level universe used as a base for the Chief Enforcers and their subordinates. In the centre of this universe's expanded landmass was an ambitiously grand and elegant base spanning several thousands of kilometres in size.
Atmospheric lights bounced off the sleek-looking walls and towers. Designed and built a Veilwalker using the advanced and technologically astute plans of several universes brought together, the base was the embodiment of supreme power and status.
In the open courtyard of the base, right in front of the entrance into the grand meeting hall, were the Enforcers who responded to Drakmor's call.
The Enforcers conversed amongst themselves as more of their colleagues appeared out of thin air, soon joining in on the conversations.
Naturally, the Chiefs were not the only ones gathering in wait for Alexander. The base itself was watched and catered for by Enforcer subordinates, a few of whom Alexander would be familiar with.
As a gathering place for Enforcers from different universes with different biologies and cultures, the Enforcers had unanimously agreed to take on humanoid forms with a maximum height of three meters.
But not all Veilwalkers favoured the human appearance. Some clung to their bestial features or simply remained in their true forms, but kept the height agreement.
Furthermore, they had to hold in their auras at all times, as one high-level universe could not support so much existential weight.
"What do you make of Calyndra's assessment of the boy?" One of the Chiefs asked a colleague standing nearby.
"Personally, I think they're exaggerating his abilities a bit too much." The Enforcer replied. "While I don't doubt his unique energy, he is still a kid from a low-level universe. His physical prowess would be a poor match for us. We are all Veilwalkers, but we aren't the same."
"Agreed…" The Enforcer nodded but then shifted his attention upwards, his colleagues doing the same."They're finally here…"
"!"
Space above the base warped for a fraction of a second before ten beings appeared in the spot. Almost immediately, everyone frowned when they felt a neutral energy wash over them.
The scan itself was the problem, as they too unleashed their senses as soon as Drakmor and the others appeared with the boy.
'I-I couldn't stop it?'