A blast of violent white light, carrying with it a scorching heat that could incinerate all things, surged toward you.
Your brow furrowed slightly.
Your only thought was that this person had absolutely no manners.
You raised the white jade sword in your hand to block.
The shockwave from the collision of blade and sword flattened every shred of matter in the surrounding space.
The entire star system that had been enveloped by IX was, in that single instant, reduced to nothingness.
Seeing that his first strike had failed, Zephyro transformed into a raging cyclone that swept through the star system, surging toward you.
You frowned faintly as you looked at your hand, now covered in cracks.
Though it repaired itself in less than a moment, you still felt that this was somewhat troublesome.
“You don’t want dignity anymore, huh?
Fine—now I’m going to give you some dignity!”
To be ambushed for no reason at all—even with your patience, a genuine fire had been kindled.
Aside from yourself, no one had ever beaten you to such a state!
The halo behind your head began to crack and splinter.
A violet-black sun, far surpassing any ordinary star in size, manifested above your head.
“Nihility Infection Equation—Zeroth Rated Output!”
Violet light shone through your meridians.
The violet-black sun above your head blazed with an even more intense purple radiance!
An extreme concentration of “Nothingness” transformed into a man-eating beast, cascading down upon Zephyro.
This frenzied, boundless Path energy drew the attention of virtually every high-order Pathstrider and even Emanators across the entire cosmos!
Interastral Peace Corporation Headquarters, Pier Point.
“That direction…
is it the shadow that IX cast not long ago?” One of the Board members spoke, his tone laced with uncertainty.
“According to intelligence relayed from the Astronomical Society, beneath the shadow of IX, two beings of immense power, both deeply tied to Nihility, are locked in fierce battle.” Another Board member’s expression was grim.
“Can we confirm their specific identities?”
“…Only one of them can be confirmed.” The Board member paused.
“He is the Lord Ravager who ignited the New Bethlehem sun approximately two hundred years ago—Zephyro!”
“Over a dozen star systems on the periphery of that shadow have suffered varying degrees of collateral damage.
We have no time to sit here playing armchair philosophers.” With these words, the Board member shut off his virtual projection and departed the meeting.
“It seems he’s off to painstakingly maintain that philanthropist persona of his once again.”
“At least he’s maintained it long enough.
From that perspective, he is undeniably a philanthropist.” The other Board member shot the speaker a sidelong glance.
“Rather than wagging tongues here, how about doing something of actual substance?
For example…
transferring the administration of your Thousand Star City over to my name.”
“There’s no point in arguing further.” That Board member had no desire to quarrel.
Shaking his head, he too withdrew from the meeting.
Xianzhou Alliance.
“Marshal, as observed through the Cloud-Peering Mirror, of the two individuals clashing within the Nihility, one is none other than a Lord Ravager serving under the Ruin Author, Zephyro!
As for the other…
there are no records of him anywhere in the cosmos.
His face is obscured by a veil of mist.
We cannot see it clearly.”
The general of the Yuque spoke, his eyes heavy with gravity.
“However, I have discovered something.
That violet-black sun carried by the unknown powerhouse—aside from its dense aura of Nihility—also carries an intensely concentrated aura of Abundance!”
“The Devourer of Worlds, Rahu?!!” Huaiyan, the General of the Xianzhou Zhuming, seemed to have suddenly pieced something together.
The words burst from him in shock.
As soon as the name was spoken, the faces of every general present grew dark and grim.
Over the past several centuries, the six Xianzhou ships had never ceased their search for the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu.
Yet it had vanished without a trace—as though it had evaporated from existence entirely.
Within the six ships, the usual division between conservatives and radicals existed.
But when it came to the matter of the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu, one could say—the radicals thought the conservatives were too radical, and the conservatives thought the radicals were too conservative!
In that year long ago, the Xianzhou Cangcheng had been destroyed.
The greater half of Cangcheng’s Realms had been swallowed whole by that very Activated Planet.
And countless Xianzhou natives, under its interference, had prematurely succumbed to Mara.
To this very day, the survivors of the Xianzhou Cangcheng were few and scattered.
That was an entire Xianzhou ship!
Hundreds of billions of people are dead, just like that!
Who among the Xianzhou could not feel the burning sting of hatred?
“Observe and wait.” The Marshal tapped the table lightly.
“Any Xianzhou ships approaching that region are to keep their distance as much as possible.”
In truth, all of them could see it clearly—the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu, had already been turned into a weapon.
But the one who wielded that weapon…
they could not confirm who he was.
No one could guarantee that this human was not a consciousness spawned from the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu itself.
Furthermore, the sword in that man’s hand…
it carried the unmistakable aura of the Hunt.
This only further confounded their understanding.
It was impossible to determine whether he was friend or foe.
Among the scattered geniuses across the stars, none paid it much mind.
For one, most of them already had their own research projects at hand.
Even putting that aside—considering the question of whether one could enter the shadow of Nihility, step onto that battlefield, and still retreat unscathed—the risks and rewards were far from proportional. This chapter is updated first at novelping.com.
They had no interest in seeking trouble for its own sake.
And besides…
There was also the matter of the strongest Lord Ravager—the one who took destruction itself as a form of aesthetic beauty, who favored instantaneous, painless physical annihilation, who believed that finality was the purest form of all things.
None of them felt inclined to cross paths with such misfortune.
[Year 743.
After an entire year of wrestling against Zephyro, you began to feel your strength waning.]
Your body had been blasted apart countless times.
Even that violet-black sun had been shattered on multiple occasions.
But to your credit, Zephyro was not having an easy time either.
By relying on that Nihility Connection Equation you had personally devised, you made sure the enemy before you could find no way to deal with you.
He could neither kill you nor keep you down.
Your combat technique and sheer power only rose continuously over the course of battle.
And worse for him—every single time he made contact with you or the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu, that concentrated “Nothingness” would cling to him like a vengeful wraith, steadily eroding his will and grinding away his memories.
This negative effect reached its absolute peak whenever he blasted you or the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu apart.
In those fleeting instants, he would even forget how to swing his sword.
He would forget why he was fighting at all.
If you had known what was going through his mind, you would have started cursing and stomping your feet on the spot—How the hell would I know why you’re fighting?!
Are you insane?!
You just showed up and started beating me for no goddamn reason!
If I don’t peel a layer of skin off you today, I’m your grandson!!!
After blasting you apart yet again, he cast one deep, lingering look at you—instantly restored as always—and then turned and departed.
You lingered in place for a while.
Only after confirming that he had truly, undeniably left did you stow the Devourer of Worlds, Rahu back into your sword.
Perhaps it was because this was the first time you had seen a living person.
Even though this person had fought you for an entire year without so much as a word of explanation, your heart still became somewhat restless and animated just from having encountered another human being.
“Fresh out of the beginner’s village, only to run into an over-tuned monster.
Gave it everything I had, still couldn’t overcome…” Your grand wish to render the universe imperishable—to envelop the entire cosmos within the shadow of Nihility—had been cut down before it could even begin.
You felt a little sad.
Your head felt somewhat dizzy.
You looked around at the surroundings, now utterly reduced to nothingness, and thought…
well, nobody’s going to come bother me if I sleep here, right?
So…
“Thunk—” Your head knocked against the sword with a crisp, ringing sound.
Just by the sound alone, one could tell it was a fine head.
Young people really are something else—asleep the moment they lie down.
But shortly after your consciousness sank into the depths of slumber, a violet figure appeared before you.