Chapter 386 — Let the Chaos Begin
Nova stepped forward.
— I'll take care of Elvis.
The dragon slowly turned his head toward him.
His icy eyes gleamed.
— Are you sure you want to deal with me?
Valor raised his hand.
— Nova, leave him to the Great Valor.
Nova sighed.
— Sorry. But he's already reserved. Go find someone else.
Elvis tilted his head slightly.
— Why are humans so pretentious…
Nova drew his sword.
— I want to test the new moves I've created.
The next instant—
He vanished.
A shiver ran through the air.
Nova reappeared behind Elvis.
He sheathed his blade.
Silence.
Then—
Dozens of slashes appeared across the Frost Dragon's body.
Not normal cuts.
Slashes that sliced space itself.
Luminous fissures ran across his scales, as if reality had been cut before matter.
The ground behind Elvis fragmented into geometric lines.
Valor crossed his arms.
— Well… now what am I going to do?
He stepped forward, hands in his pockets.
Then he began to levitate.
Calmly.
As if gravity had signed a contract with him.
He descended slowly to face Bloodweaver.
— You'll be my opponent.
Don't disappoint the Great Valor.
Bloodweaver looked at him.
— I hadn't planned on impressing a narcissist today… but fine.
Haya cracked her neck.
— Then my opponent will be the naïve one.
A black staff materialized in her hand.
Black lightning covered her body, twisting the air around her.
Ryn summoned two daggers.
— Be ready.
Haya raised an eyebrow.
— You fight with daggers?
Did Lya influence you?
You're supposed to be an innocent support.
Ryn smiled softly.
— I'm an offensive support.
More precisely.
Her voice was calm.
Almost too calm.
Haya chuckled.
— We'll see what you're worth.
The ground trembled.
Scourges emerged from the earth.
Curses, chains of shadow, spectral hands tried to grab Ryn.
Ryn vanished.
The curses were cut mid-flight.
— Offensive support, I said.
---
**Meanwhile—**
Evans held his blade.
Lightning enveloped him.
— Lightning Blade.
He cleaved everything in his path in a streak of light.
The desert was split in two for kilometers.
Zahkariel blocked with his blade of forgotten words.
The impact hurled him back violently.
Sand exploded around him.
Evans followed up.
One strike.
Then two.
Then twelve more bolts.
Each strike split reality, leaving luminous scars in the sky.
Zahkariel retreated, blocking again and again.
His arms trembled under the pressure.
— Not bad… for a walking toaster.
Evans smiled.
He raised his hand to the sky.
— Judgment of Aetherion: Celestial Cataclysm.
The name echoed like a divine decree.
The clouds exploded.
Lightning fell.
Not one bolt.
Not ten.
Hundreds.
Columns of light struck the desert.
The heat vaporized the sand instantly.
The ground turned to black glass.
Gigantic craters opened, so deep the dimensional crust glowed beneath.
The air screamed.
The sky bore a luminous scar, as if someone had clawed the horizon.
Evans ran his hand through his hair, slicking it back.
Lightning coursed across his face.
His smile gleamed in the storm.
— That was just the warm-up.
The dust settled.
A figure emerged from the main crater.
Zahkariel.
His jacket slightly burned.
He exhaled.
— Well… that stung a little more.
Suddenly—
A sword strike.
Fast.
Brutal.
Evans parried.
But the force pushed him back for kilometers, carving a trench behind him.
He planted his blade into the ground to stop.
He raised his head.
Zahkariel stood tall.
His aura had changed.
Heavier.
Older.
— My turn to warm up.
---
**In the distance—**
Nova and Elvis prepared to resume.
Haya and Ryn clashed amid curses.
Valor was still talking about himself in the third person.
And Mister Mind observed.
Silent.
— Interesting…
Chapter 387 — The Nightmare Artist
While battles raged everywhere…
Mister Mind and Lya faced each other.
A quick exchange.
Sharp.
Precise.
Then suddenly—
Mister Mind stepped back.
He approached the monster Evans had eliminated upon his arrival.
The body still lay there, faintly smoking.
The narrator:
— Oh no… what's he doing now…
Mister Mind placed his hand on the corpse's head.
Silence.
Then—
He tore out its soul.
A luminous, unstable sphere emerged from the body.
He smiled behind his cracked mask.
Then he injected his dark energy into the soul.
The soul vibrated.
Twisted.
Deformed.
It grew denser.
Heavier.
More powerful.
— Interesting…
He molded the soul with his hand.
Like clay.
It transformed into a dark violet mace, surrounded by a corrupted aura.
The weapon pulsed, as if it breathed.
Behind the cracked mask, a smile spread.
— This monster had the power to increase its mass.
But with my energy… it gained two other interesting abilities as well.
He turned toward the soulless body.
He raised his hand.
And altered its nature.
The corpse rose.
Its flesh reconfigured.
Its bones rearranged.
It took on a humanoid form.
Now its body was covered in compacted sand, like natural armor.
Only its face remained visible.
Short black hair fell slightly over its forehead.
Its eyes…
Two deep violet orbs, crossed by luminous black fissures, as if darkness itself had learned to shine.
They seemed to absorb the light around them.
Mister Mind spread his arms.
— Look at this masterpiece.
The narrator:
— Is he opening a museum or are we in the middle of a war?
Mister Mind then raised his hand.
He summoned the souls he had absorbed at the restaurant.
Dozens.
Then he condensed them.
Fused them.
Then he invoked the soul of another hunter he had absorbed.
He merged it all into a single overpowered soul.
Lya stared at him.
— So you didn't eliminate those innocents for nothing.
Mister Mind tilted his head.
— There is no coincidence.
He tapped his temple.
— But I must admit… because of your attack earlier, some of the souls I absorbed died permanently.
Lya narrowed her eyes.
— Admit it.
You deliberately eliminated them.
— You guessed right.
— And that doesn't bother you?
Lya remained cold.
— What do you expect me to feel?
They're already dead.
I can't do anything for them.
Mister Mind stepped closer.
— You may have left Father…
but it's not too late to return.
You're like us.
You feel no compassion for them.
Come back to us.
Lya answered without hesitation.
— Don't even dream of it.
— Too bad.
It was a limited-time offer.
He infused his dark energy into the fused soul.
Then inserted it into the body he had shaped.
A massive release of aura exploded.
The sand around them rose.
The air grew heavy.
Then—
The body opened its eyes.
It looked at its hands.
Then at its reflection in a broken blade.
— I must admit…
I'm handsome.
The narrator:
— Oh no.
He's already talking.
Mister Mind smiled.
— He possesses the physical abilities and power of the monster…
as well as the powers of the hunter, reinforced by the souls I eliminated at the restaurant.
He levitated the violet mace.
— Nightmare.
Take the mace.
I forged it from the soul of the monster whose body you now have.
Nightmare grabbed the weapon.
Space vibrated under its weight.
— Not bad.
Mister Mind raised his arms.
— Now it's two against one.
Lya didn't move.
— No matter.
Nightmare swung the mace.
The ground cracked under the gravitational pressure.
— I was born ten seconds ago…
and I already want to hit someone.
— You adapt quickly, said Mister Mind proudly.
---
**Elsewhere—**
Valor raised his hand toward Bloodweaver.
— Show me what you're worth.
Or rather… show the Great Valor what you're worth.
Bloodweaver sighed.
— Do you always talk about yourself in the third person?
— The Great Valor does not mingle with ordinary pronouns.
The narrator:
— He's really going to get hit.
The wind blew.
Evans and Zahkariel prepared to resume.
Nova and Elvis still stared each other down.
Haya and Ryn exchanged black lightning and shining blades.
And at the center…
Nightmare stepped forward.
The sand beneath his feet turned into cosmic dust.
— So… who's first?
Chapter 388 — Lightning, Oblivion, and Clones Too Fast
Evans spun his blade, lightning dancing around it.
— You talked a lot earlier—
A hand suddenly grabbed him by the collar.
His eyes widened.
Zahkariel.
He hurled him violently toward the ground.
Then, in the same motion, disappeared and reappeared above him.
Kick.
Impact.
Evans blocked with his blade.
The shock fractured the air like glass.
He smiled.
— Thanks for the momentum.
He planted his sword into the ground and unleashed a massive discharge of electricity, using his blade as a conduit.
Lightning erupted in a column.
Zahkariel was struck head-on.
His body was engulfed in a torrent of white-blue electricity.
His clothes partially burned.
His skin smoked.
The sand beneath him turned to black glass for kilometers.
The desert became a massive incandescent crater.
Even the air remained charged with static electricity.
Zahkariel stepped back, his torso smoking.
Burns ran across his arm and side.
He exhaled slowly.
— …It's getting serious.
— Imperial Flash.
Evans vanished.
An electric trail split the desert.
He reappeared before Zahkariel and struck with a devastating kick.
The impact created a circular shockwave that lifted mountains of sand.
Then Evans followed up.
He attacked from every direction.
Front.
Behind.
Above.
Below.
Each strike was devastating.
Each blow carved luminous scars into space.
The ground fragmented.
Dimensional fissures briefly opened before closing again.
Zahkariel was overwhelmed by the speed.
He parried as best he could with his blade of forgotten words.
His arms trembled under the pressure.
Then—
— Bite of the Storm Dragon.
Evans cloaked himself in an aura of colossal electric dragon.
The dragon roared.
Then lunged at Zahkariel.
At that instant—
Zahkariel raised his blade.
— Slash of the Sworn Oblivion.
He cut.
A single motion.
The blade released a black, silent wave.
No explosion.
No sound.
Just a dark line that erased everything it touched.
The electric dragon was severed instantly.
Evans' aura was split in two.
A massive gash appeared across his torso.
Blood gushed.
His energy scattered violently.
He leapt back, reappearing farther away.
He dropped to one knee.
— If I hadn't disengaged and left my attack behind…
he would've cut me in half.
A smile spread across his face.
— Interesting.
He inhaled deeply.
Lightning began circulating through his body again.
But this time, it didn't escape.
It stayed inside.
It stimulated his cells.
Each electrical impulse accelerated cell division, burned dead tissue, and forced muscle regeneration.
Nerves reconnected.
Fibers resealed.
The wound closed under a bluish glow.
A thin luminous scar lingered for a few seconds… then vanished.
— Electro-cellular self-stimulation.
I should patent that.
Zahkariel stared at him.
— Did you just invent regeneration mid-battle?
— Yes.
I'm creative under pressure.
---
**Elsewhere—**
Haya moved almost instantly.
She struck Ryn with her staff.
Ryn blocked with her two daggers.
The impact produced a shockwave that fractured reality around them.
Dimensional shards fell like invisible glass.
Ryn boosted her speed.
They exchanged blows.
The ground exploded beneath each impact.
Haya raised her staff.
— End of the game.
She struck.
A hyper-powerful blow.
The air compressed.
Then exploded.
A black wave deformed the desert for kilometers.
Sand was pulverized.
The ground sank dozens of meters.
Ryn blocked.
But she was violently repelled.
Curses rushed at her.
She raised her hand.
— Purification.
A massive burst of light erupted.
The curses dissolved instantly.
She accelerated, leaving a luminous trail behind her.
Haya accelerated too.
But behind her, residual images remained.
Then those images attacked.
Ryn barely dodged.
Haya smiled.
— They're not just afterimages.
They're speed clones.
Each image is a version of me slightly offset in time.
I can even swap places with one of them to move backward.
Nova, from afar:
— Ah. So she's cheating.
Ryn raised her daggers.
— Luminous Cut.
She slashed.
The clones exploded into shards of energy.
But—
Haya was already behind her.
— Dark Tentacles.
Shadows burst from the ground and lunged at Ryn.
She cut them down instantly.
Haya applauded.
— Not bad.
But let's see how long you last.
— Long enough.
---
**Meanwhile—**
Nightmare charged at Lya.
He raised his mace.
— Try dodging this.
He swung.
The mace passed through Lya.
She had turned intangible.
The strike continued.
It hit the ground.
Explosion.
A massive crater formed.
The desert was ripped apart for kilometers.
A gravitational wave even distorted the horizon.
Nightmare blinked.
— …Oh.
Mister Mind sighed.
— Be careful.
She can turn intangible.
Nightmare stood up.
— Ah.
So I have to aim when she exists.
The narrator:
— He learns fast.
That's worrying.
Lya reappeared behind him.
— Exactly.
The battlefield trembled.
Lightning roared.
Curses screamed.
Speed clones exploded.
And at the center—
The war spiraled out of control.
Chapter 389 — Conductor of Chaos
Brakk was sitting on a rock.
Arms crossed.
While the desert literally exploded around him.
A mountain leapt.
A dimensional rift opened behind his back.
He didn't even move.
— It's exploding everywhere…
What should I do now…
A shockwave passed behind him.
Still motionless.
— That damn lizard… he ruined all my plans.
Because of him, Zahkariel has a body now.
He no longer needs me as a host.
So I won't be able to absorb his power…
He narrowed his eyes.
— But he said he likes controlling me because I'm his thing.
Silence.
A dimensional meteorite fell in the distance.
— …Hmm.
He tapped his chin.
— Maybe that's not such a bad thing.
A slow smile appeared.
— All that's left is to enjoy the situation… and overturn everything.
The narrator:
— There you go. He's been sitting for five minutes and he's already plotting betrayal.
Far away, Míster Mind slightly turned his head.
Their gazes met.
Behind his cracked mask… he smiled.
— He's thinking.
Interesting.
He raised his hand.
A new soul appeared.
He compressed it.
Twisted it.
Transformed it.
It became a weapon.
A long double-bladed staff, like a two-headed spear.
The blades vibrated with unstable violet light.
His aura intensified.
— Follow me, Nightmare.
He spun his weapon elegantly.
Then dashed in a violet streak toward Lya.
Lya blocked.
The impact split the ground beneath their feet.
— I would have bet you'd turn intangible.
She didn't answer.
She stared at him.
Cold.
Very cold.
Míster Mind raised his hand.
— Hear this melody…
Screams of the Damned.
He partially released hundreds of souls.
It wasn't a sound.
It was a mental wave.
An invisible pressure.
A vibration crushing the mind.
The sand around them trembled as if it felt the pain.
Nova, in the distance:
— I don't like when it sings without music.
Nightmare appeared behind Lya.
— End.
He increased the mass of his mace.
The weapon grew so heavy that gravity bent around it.
Space warped.
He struck.
The ground collapsed.
But—
Lya was already behind him.
She pointed her finger.
A small black orb appeared.
Dense.
Silent.
— Shadow Sphere.
She placed it point-blank.
Implosion.
Time warped.
Space twisted.
A temporary black hole formed.
It swallowed sand, light, dimensional fragments.
An entire portion of the desert vanished.
Erased.
Nightmare was hurled away.
His sand armor cracked.
His unstable violet eyes flickered.
The narrator:
— That's what we call "a polite reply."
Míster surged forward.
He struck.
Lya parried.
Two streaks clashed.
One black.
One violet.
Each collision destroyed reality around them.
Dimensional shards rained like meteors.
Then—
Lya suddenly slowed.
Míster passed through her.
A monumental explosion erupted behind her.
He turned—
Too late.
Several shadow spheres exploded on him.
Space-time was crushed.
A vast portion of the desert collapsed into temporary void.
Míster Mind was violently repelled.
His cloak torn.
His chest marked with dark burns.
His aura flickered.
He planted his weapon into the ground to stop.
A trench several kilometers long carved itself.
He rose slowly.
— …Interesting.
Nightmare appeared beside him.
Smoking.
Cracked.
— She hits hard.
— Yes.
Míster placed his hand on his cracked mask.
He lifted it slightly.
No one saw his face.
But—
The instant the mask was raised…
An overwhelming presence spread.
Reality seemed to recoil.
Physical laws hesitated.
Mental pressure became suffocating.
Even space-time contracted around him.
The fighters turned.
Evans blinked.
— …Ah. That's new.
An invisible mental wave spread.
Instantly.
Míster entered the minds of all the monsters in the desert.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
Beneath the sand.
In the rifts.
In the ruins.
He commanded them to yield.
To come.
To serve.
The desert trembled.
The sand rose like a living sea.
Monstrous silhouettes emerged everywhere.
Colossal creatures.
Bone-covered beasts.
Twisted forms.
Nova looked at the horizon.
— We were already in trouble…
now it's a surprise DLC.
The narrator:
— Update 2.0: "Infernal Horde."
Míster Mind raised his arms.
— This is going to be a slaughter.
The narrator sighed.
— He really said that like it was an invitation to a barbecue.
Far away—
Brakk smiled.
— Oh… now it's getting interesting.
Zahkariel burst out laughing.
— That's it!
Now that's an atmosphere!
Evans cracked his neck.
— Well.
Are we scaling up again?
Nova raised her sword.
— I hope no one expects us to clean all this up.
Valor looked at the monstrous army.
— The Great Valor accepts this challenge.
Bloodweaver:
— Nobody asked you.
Elvis, arms crossed, sighed.
— I said the Earth had become larger.
I never said it had become calmer.
The entire desert vibrated.
The monsters roared.
The sky cracked.
The war had officially leveled up.
And somewhere—
Brakk watched.
In silence.
Calculating.