[Huh?]

Bewússtsein, Arthur, and Evan all froze in collective disbelief.

For a brief moment, silence hung heavy between them, each of them too stunned to speak.

After all, who wouldn't be thrown off if their ally or enemy suddenly cut off their own head in the middle of a fight?

The confusion would only grow when the headless body of said opponent casually plucked its severed head from the air and hurled it straight at them.

[What the fuck?!]

Bewússtsein cursed, summoning a wormhole to intercept it, but the mischievously grinning, flying head morphed into a wolf's with gaping jaws.

|Aspect of the Wolf: World-Devouring Jaws.|

An unseen maw crashed down where he stood, but Bewússtsein twisted his upper body away at the last possible moment, barely escaping, though the price was steep.

Everything from the elbow down on his already-damaged left arm was obliterated.

His right arm hadn't regenerated after being destroyed by Evan's earlier attack, and his left arm, still battered from Arthur's strike, was now completely gone, leaving him with no functional arms.

As Bewússtsein stumbled back in fury, Jamie's headless body slashed him with the Galaxy Sword, sending him flying. A second later, the severed head teleported back to Jamie's hands, and he casually set it back on his neck and reattached it.

At the sight, Evan, who had been temporarily immobilised by the soul damage he'd taken earlier, pushed himself to his feet and glanced at Arthur.

"This guy's just showing off his immortality," he muttered while activating a skill.

"Tell me something I don't know," Arthur replied, rolling his eyes as he silently commanded gravity.

Jamie glanced their way, his amused expression more than enough proof that Evan's comment wasn't wrong.

"Less jealousy, more attacking."

To that, Arthur chuckled. "What do you mean?"

"We've already attacked," Evan finished, pointing behind Jamie.

And they had.

Jamie turned just in time to see Bewússtsein being pulled toward the centre of a raging gravitational maelstrom, along with hundreds of the Fallen Deity Corpses he had summoned.

He began to turn back to Arthur and Evan when a flicker of Life energy caught his attention. His gaze snapped back to the maelstrom just as destruction energy erupted from its core, breaking the gravitational hold.

Bewússtsein burst free, clutching the severed hand of a Fallen Deity corpse, which he pressed to his shoulder and fused in place with Life energy, having already done the same for the other that Jamie had bitten off moments earlier.

There were, of course, downsides to this, which was why Bewússtsein preferred absorbing the corpses to regenerate lost mass.

But he didn't have the luxury of choice now.

One drawback showed immediately as his arms moved stiffly, barely quick enough to deflect Jamie's Spatial-Destruction shots.

Evan lifted his hand and activated Burst Cannon, firing fist-sized bolts of flame in rapid succession, a barrage that Bewússtsein struggled to fend off.

The energy flow in his newly attached arms lagged, too sluggish to properly reinforce them, and escape via teleportation was impossible with Jamie locking down the space.

Bewússtsein's frustration erupted as he unleashed a torrent of Slaughter, Death, and Destruction laws, the energies weaving together while his voice thundered through the Core Dimension.

[Todesmarsch-Unheil!]

The ground split as black tendrils erupted upward, writhing and spreading into a colossal vortex of destructive energy, its core twisting with grotesque flesh, screaming faces, and clawing shapes.

The fabric of space shredded as the vortex expanded, devouring everything in its path.

Roaring, he hurled it toward them, the Core Dimension itself trembling as it advanced. He didn't let up, flooding the ground with Death as Fallen Deity corpses rose once more, their decayed bodies strengthened by his technique.

The undead swarmed behind the vortex, a tide of death meant to crush the trio beneath the weight of his Calamity technique.

At the sight, Arthur poured power into his sword, readying his 'Chaos' slash, but before he could strike, Evan shot forward, charging headlong into the oncoming storm.

'Mesarthim: Indigo!'

The coloured flames engulfed his right arm, coursing upward and solidifying into a spear as Evan's pupils seemingly turned to flame motifs.

|Calamity Queller!|

He hurled the indigo spear with all his strength, a blazing trail marking its path as it tore through the air and struck the black vortex, piercing straight into its chaotic centre with an explosion of energy.

The spear tore through the explosion's aftermath and slammed into Bewússtsein, his eyes widening as it pierced his chest, indigo flames searing his flesh and hurling him into the distance like a meteor.

As the smoke cleared, Evan turned to Arthur with a grin, shouting over the winds.

"Hey, Arthur. Let's make it rain!"

Arthur caught on instantly, smirking as he sprinted to Evan's side. Law energy flowed into his tongue as he commanded the law of destruction.

|False Destruction Authority.|

Evan raised his hand, the Akashic Page materialising in a flash, pages flipping until the target spell revealed itself.

|World Magic: Spell Number 5.|

In perfect unison, they shouted, wide grins spread across their faces.

||Armageddon!!||

The Core Dimension quaked as spatial walls fractured, cracks glowing across its ceiling with molten light before erupting. From the fissures, blazing meteors rained down, each one charged with destructive energy, crashing across the battlefield in a storm of fire that obliterated the undead horde and left nothing but ash and ruin.

The inferno reflected in Bewússtsein's eyes as he staggered, clutching the seared wound on his chest, life law energy flickering weakly against the pain.

His teeth ground together as his mind raced, running through options, strategies, and counterattacks, discarding each one as quickly as it appeared.

'Wait… that Evolution girl!'

Bewússtsein's thoughts turned to Artemisia, his gaze snapping upwards as though he were staring toward the planet's surface.

'They left her with those demons on the surface. These three are too dangerous, so I couldn't pay attention to her, but with the number of walking dead I left behind, they should have fallen to the swarm by now.'

Just as the thought formed, he remembered the swarms of Fallen Deities he'd been sending at Arthur, Evan, and Jamie.

'No… I concentrated more of my death power here because of these three. Factoring in that demon's cosmic weapon, the remaining walking dead on the surface might not be enough to deal with them.

But even so, their power should be completely drained by now. I can just finish them off.'

With that realisation, Bewússtsein's vision split in two.

His left eye tracked the trio charging at him, their weapons ablaze with law energy, while his right scanned the surface of Cruotis Prime for Artemisia, Beatrix, Alvey, and McEnda.

It didn't take long to spot them, but the sight he saw made his eyes widen in shock.

[What the hell?!]

He shouted, leaping aside to evade Jamie's spatial slash and unleashing a surge of destruction energy to counter Arthur and Evan.

He'd expected them to be weakened and barely standing, and indeed, they had expended much of their power.

But the sheer number of walking dead they'd killed didn't make sense!

All around them lay the dismembered corpses of hundreds—no, thousands—of undead. The weaker ones were decapitated or dismembered, while the stronger were obliterated entirely.

Yet, despite all this, the trio still had a substantial amount of power left, something Bewússtsein couldn't understand, even considering Alvey's Cosmic Weapon.

It was then that he saw a giant undead strike at McEnda, only for the Archdemon to block it with a strange shield.

'That's a Deity-Level Artifact!'

The realisation dawned instantly.

During the attack on Plomux, McEnda had used this same shield, gifted by his father, to block the attack from the Aramisian Forces' Supreme Commander, but back then, a single use had left him drained.

Now, with his strengthened soul, he could wield far more of its power and use it repeatedly.

Right after McEnda blocked the giant's strike, a brilliant flash lit the area, and the undead was instantly shredded to pieces.

'What the fuck!?'

Bewússtsein cursed, stunned at the sight. The giant had been instantly destroyed, and the one responsible landed behind it, gripping a sword wreathed in dark light.

It was Alvey, wielding his Rule Breaker, the Morphic Edge. The sword was lending him its power, allowing him to unleash bursts of strength comparable to his original Deity Level.

Naturally, drawbacks and repercussions awaited him, but the key point was that he would survive.

'No, I can't let this be.'

Bewússtsein acted immediately.

He couldn't channel much of his power to the surface without one of his special bodies to host it, but there was another way to target the four directly. The method carried risks, but he was willing to take them if it meant seizing Artemisia's power, boosting his strength, and turning the tide against the three attacking his main body.

Without hesitation, he transferred a portion of his soul and consciousness into one of the special Fallen Deity corpses he had set aside, controlling it like a puppet and wielding the power of his Destruction Sigil through it.

He had no intention of attacking Alvey or McEnda, only Artemisia.

However, the moment he reached a distance sufficient to manipulate the planet's gravity and pull Artemisia toward him, Beatrix's eyes snapped to his Corpse Puppet.

"ALVEY!"

She screamed, and before she could even finish, Alvey was already in front of her, his sword descending in a powerful arc toward the Corpse Puppet that Bewússtsein was controlling.

'Damn it, her time power!'

Bewússtsein realised instantly that Beatrix had foreseen the future where he attacked Artemisia beside her.

But even as Beatrix called out to Alvey and the demon responded almost instantly, swinging his sword at hypersonic speed to cleave the Corpse Puppet, Bewússtsein twisted his body aside, narrowly dodging the strike.

"?!"

Alvey's eyes widened at how easily his fastest attack had been avoided. His sword slashed through empty space before crashing into the ground, carving a fissure that split the continent beneath them, proving the strike's immense speed and power.

Yet that power meant nothing if it missed, and worse, Bewússtsein was preparing a destructive counterattack.

At that moment, Artemisia's voice rang in Alvey's ears.

"Remove Stat Limiter: Agility!!"

Alvey's body felt lighter, the world seeming to slow as his overall speed spiked. Leaping back, he avoided Bewússtsein's counter, but the Rogue Consciousness reformed his destructive energy and launched a punch aimed to obliterate Alvey's head.

Just before the blow landed, a staff wreathed in corrosive darkness struck Bewússtsein's hand, redirecting the attack and missing Alvey entirely.

Seizing the opportunity, Alvey swung the Morphic Edge with blinding speed, white flashes filling Bewússtsein's vision as the sword slashed his body, spilling rotten blood. The mix of the Morphic Edge's cosmic energy and Alvey's demonic energy seeped into the slashes, making the wounds irreparable without a superior Authority of Life.

Simultaneously, McEnda, having thrown his staff to deflect the attack, emerged from its shadow, grabbed the staff that had crashed onto the ground, and spun it with tremendous force toward the Corpse Puppet.

"Remove Stat Limiter: Strength!"

Artemisia's voice sounded again, weaker in pitch, but her command was still effective. McEnda's muscles bulged as his staff whirred through the air and struck with devastating power.

**BAAAMM!!!!

Darkness law energy erupted on impact, sending the Corpse Puppet flying kilometres away. Almost instantly, McEnda's muscles returned to normal, and the boost in strength drained from him, leaving his arm temporarily weakened.

His gaze instantly snapped to Artemisia, and his eyes widened as he saw her collapse to her knees, blood trickling from her nose as she struggled to breathe.

"Arty!"

Beatrix's voice rang out as she rushed to Artemisia's side, activating her Unique Skill: Light of Restoration, trying to heal her.

But the blood kept trickling from Artemisia's nose, and her sclera had shifted from white to gold, golden blood seeping from the corners of her eyes.

All evidence that her body was under immense strain.

This was expected since she was the cornerstone of their survival.

Not only was she constantly buffing Alvey and McEnda, both over 300 Levels above her, but she was also using her 'Limit Break' to amplify their already enhanced Stats and removing the natural 'Limiters' on their Stats.

Every being within a given Realm had a maximum Stat threshold, and the two demons, currently weakened to Transcendence, had already hit the Cosmic Limit, but Artemisia's Evolution power forcibly overrode that cap, allowing them to surpass it.

Her body and soul were naturally under extreme strain, but she remained conscious for three reasons.

First, Beatrix continuously healed Artemisia faster than her body broke down.

Second, the bloodstained Grimoire she clutched, given by her father as a self-defence measure, acted as a magic battery, sustaining her buffs.

All her buffs and Limit Breaks required Energy, specifically magic, since her divinity would harm Alvey and McEnda rather than help. Letting go of the Grimoire would cancel all her buffs, as she didn't have enough energy to sustain them on her own.

The third reason was the Incarnation of the Valmone Universe's will, floating beside her, imperceptible to the other three.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.