The ridiculing laughter rubbed more salt in the wounded pride of the Enforcers, making many among them grit their teeth in frustration.
They wanted nothing more than to rip those abhorrent grins off the faces of those they once called colleagues.
Sadly for them, the corrupted Enforcers were right. Even with all the strength they boasted of, they could not handle those void creatures.
No matter how they addressed or worded it, they had retreated into the safety net Alexander provided with his domain.
"As you can see…"
Azarion turned his wide grin back to Alexander. "Their strength does not amount to anything much. This is the false reality the Omnisoul has led you to believe. You are all nothing but puppets, a clueless mass of insignificant beings that the Omnisoul has no use for!"
"..."
Alexander narrowed his eyes at those words. He didn't know about the others, but what the corrupted Enforcer said was in line with some of the things he discussed with the Supreme One.
"Give it up, you can't win," Alexander replied, choosing to ignore their words. "Neither you nor your army of void creatures will make a difference. Your essence cannot beat mine. It's your loss."
"Perhaps… But the same can be said about you, Alexander."
"Your abilities surpass our expectations; that is true." They repeated what they said earlier. "But that is only if we come to you. Hahaha…!"
Alexander outwardly frowned, presenting a dissatisfied front. Although he wanted nothing more than to erase the remaining six, they were partly right.
Just like the corrupted Enforcers were helpless in his domain, so was he if he charged into theirs. He couldn't claim their space when they didn't want it.
'It was my mistake to make my domain and essence visible and interactive.' Alexander thought to himself, shifting his gaze to the void creatures at the edges of his domain.
'But that can be corrected with this new realisation. I've already seen enough of what an active version of the vile essence can do.'
Regarding Drakmor's plea, Alexander had nothing to give them. Allowing anyone to wield his essence meant they had to become his vassals.
The Enforcers were already the vassals of the Supreme One. A being could not have two masters, or at least, no such situation had risen before.
He also had no intention of taking anything from the Supreme One.
That meant…
'I'll have to take care of everything…' He glanced at the Enforcers and then looked back to the corrupted ones. 'Let's get this over with. I have a few things I want clarified. Time is no longer on our side.'
"You're right..." Alexander said. "I can't do anything to you guys with your essence around you. But there's something you misunderstood about me."
"Do enlighten us, Deviant One…"
SCREECH…!
"!!"
Everyone's attention was abruptly drawn to the void creatures when they suddenly let out wailing screeches from the depths of their being as white flames engulfed their bodies, reducing them to motes of white light.
'Since when?!'
Similar sentiments echoed in the minds of the Enforcers as they watched with disbelieving eyes.
The very creatures they had been struggling against were erased without anyone noticing!
Simultaneously, the corrupted Enforcers felt a sudden dread overcome their instincts. Without hesitation, they backed away, putting much distance between themselves and Alexander.
Right on cue, several large spears appeared in the spots they had just vacated.
Unlike the light spears with overwhelming purifying attributes, these spears were invisible and aura-less, seemingly non-existent.
"You…"
Azarion growled menacingly, the grin on his face replaced with overwhelming caution.
Had their survival instincts not been triggered, they would have been run through! Even then, they had no idea what Alex had done.
'W-What just happened?'
The shock and disbelief in the eyes of the watching Enforcers were palpable, understandable. They did not see or sense anything!
One moment, the void creatures were dissipating, then the next, the corrupted Enforcers had retreated, their grins completely wiped from their faces.
Wordlessly, they looked back at Alexander and then at the corrupted Enforcers in the far distance, farther away than before. At the very least, it was a mid-level universe's worth of distance!
'Just what the fuck is he?!'
The scene was so overwhelming and core-shaking that many of the Enforcers could not regain their composure. If they weren't sure before, they were now.
Existential fear, like they had never felt before, crept into their being as many of the Enforcers slowly backed away. Alexander's domain no longer felt like a safe space.
'Calyndra was right… We would die without even knowing how!'
'The kid is a freaking monster!'
Alexander ignored the subtle actions of the Enforcers, knowing what they were probably thinking. But to him, what he did was not that impressive.
He erased any and all properties of his essence, rendering it attributeless. Then he expanded his domain until it covered the void creatures and the corrupted Enforcers.
What followed next was expected. Fortunately for Azarion and his companions, their instincts sensed the threat, allowing them to escape with their lives.
Also, by removing all attributes, Alex could not restrict their movements without giving his essence away.
The Enforcers would have sensed the change in the surrounding void had that been done.
After all, the act occurred in their domain. The slightest change in the surrounding essence would have alerted them.
"You might know more about reality and the Omnisoul, but you don't know me. Don't make the mistake of assuming my essence is incomplete." Alexander coldly spat. "We are not the same."
He repeated once more, deepening the cautious look in the eyes of the Enforcers. Alex had been in control the entire time.
He simply feigned the weakness of his essence and domain.
"You win this one, Alexander."
"We have clearly underestimated the power of your will."
"Even so… you cannot win. Things have been set in motion long before you appeared, Alexander."
"Reversing it will be impossible…"
"You should know… For you have experienced it."
Azarion and his colleagues left these words before melding with the void, disappearing. No one could stop them, not even Alexander.
'Are you going to let them go like that?' Cassandra's question echoed in his mind.
'I can't invade their space, Cassandra. This is the best I've got right now.' Alex replied. 'My essence that reached them lacked any form of restriction; it was no different from simply looking at them.'
'...'
Cassandra sighed, momentarily closing her eyes. What Alexander had done once again proved to her that he was one of a kind.
'He's scary…' A shiver ran down her spine.
Many things confused her, especially how Alex handled the eight Enforcers, which remained her biggest mystery.
'How the fuck was he able to erase eight high-level Veilwalkers with a snap of his fingers? Was his essence that ruthless?'
It was easier to just ask Alexander, but for some reason, she could not bring herself to do so.
Unaware of the catwoman's thoughts, Alexander turned to the rest of the Enforcers, making most of them involuntarily flinch.
He ignored the looks they gave him and focused on the dragon. "Take us somewhere else. We'll need to talk."
***
It had been one roller coaster of movements since Alexander and his companions left their home universe.
From visiting the very first ruined universe to meeting the Chief Enforcers had been nothing short of jittery.
Although it felt like barely enough time had passed, Alexander could tell something was different.
His experience this time was different from the time he visited Universe Prime and the Supreme One.
It was why he wanted answers.
Perhaps he was being rash, but as the corrupted Enforcers said, time was no longer on their side.
Knowing what Zauren was up to placed a silent but draining pressure on Alexander's shoulders.
It was time to learn what he was missing, and hopefully, that would aid him in completing his ascension.
Drakmor and a few others led Alexander to another universe base, this one under Drakmor's jurisdiction.
The Enforcers had been able to recover once they had a bit of time to rest. Fortunately for them, the injuries they sustained came from 'ordinary' void creatures.
Arriving at the grand and majestic base took less than a couple of seconds. Like the previous one, this base was built with both aesthetics and functionality in mind.
"We can head straight to a conference hall to begin, or you can choose to rest first."
Drakmor turned to face Alexander and proposed. The group currently stood in a spacious hall with several vassals going around carrying out their duties.
Most of them were subordinate Veilwalkers to the Chief Enforcers, tasked with coordinating and assigning duties to their own subordinates.
Of course, most of that duty revolved around finding undiscovered universes.
"Rest first," Alex answered, shifting his gaze from the surroundings to the dragon. "My friends want to rest."
"Of course."
Drakmor nodded and led the way, signalling to those who accompanied him to retire as well. They were not tired, but they had been through a lot.
No one knew what would come next. It was best to relax as much as possible while going over what they had heard from their corrupted colleagues.