Scott stared at the blackened message, his brows furrowing. Nihilithians? He vaguely recalled the system assigning him that race once, but he knew little about them. Why is everyone trying to offer me their inheritance now? While he accepted the fact that he wasn’t ordinary, Scott wasn’t delusional enough to believe there wasn’t something else at play. The real question was—what?
Now that I think about it… I’m not being given a choice here, Scott’s frown deepened. Normally, the system would provide a clear “yes” or “no,” granting champions free will to decide their fate. Yet, the blackened window simply announced the Nameless One’s intent to bestow the inheritance of the Nihilithians upon him.
The Nameless One has stopped watching you!
That’s it? The system window vanished, but Scott’s expression remained tense. I really don’t know what that entity is thinking… He exhaled softly, his features relaxing a bit. At least I’ve purged whatever that bastard of misfortune deposited in me. I wonder if the others have been cleared too.
Curiosity gnawed at him, and Scott activated the imprint of madness once more, but only Orion appeared in the subspace. As he did, a new system message popped up:
You are not allowed to do that!
“What?” Scott blurted out, his gaze narrowing. “Why?” he muttered.
It would violate the continuity of several timelines! All restrictions will be lifted once you emerge in any timeline of your choosing!
The message hung in the air, and Scott found himself speechless. Though the notification was direct, it revealed something he hadn’t considered.
Orion, noticing Scott’s sharp, somewhat stunned expression, approached in measured steps. “What’s got you so rattled?” he asked, glancing around as if expecting to see something. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you just saw a ghost.” The mage positioned himself next to Scott, his eyes drawn to the hovering system message.
Orion’s smile vanished, his brows furrowing as he leaned in to get a closer look. “Wait… wait, wait, wait...” he stammered, glancing at Scott, who returned the look.
In an instant, both came to the same unsettling realization.
“We need to leave this place—immediately,” Scott said, his tone grim.
Orion nodded firmly. “I agree.” He straightened up, glancing at the surroundings. “I thought this was just an isolated zone, since it severed my connection with my clones, but it might be worse than that. Who knows how much time has passed since the others saw us? For us, it could have been hours. For them, it might’ve been decades—or centuries.”
As Orion’s words lingered, Scott snapped them both out of the subspace, and the familiar scene of the assembled crowd from earlier reappeared.
“Let’s go. We have no time to waste,” Scott said, moving toward the path Orion had previously chosen.
Although Scott had expelled the remnants left behind by the lesser god of Misfortune, he couldn’t be certain that was what the Nameless One had alluded to when the black system message appeared. Unwilling to take any unnecessary risks, Scott believed it was best to exit the bridge through a natural gateway to a timeline.
Orion trailed behind him, his expression mirroring Scott’s. The two walked silently toward the gathered champions, causing a ripple of movement. Some hastily retreated into different pathways, while others watched the duo approach with a mix of defiance and apprehension. Scott and Orion ignored the reactions, moving steadily toward the path they had chosen earlier.
Just meters from the entrance, both men halted abruptly. A massive whirlwind with devastating cutting force slashed through the spot they would have been standing in. Subtle tremors followed, and all the nearby champions turned instinctively toward the disturbance.
Giants, clad in fur and wielding enormous axes, emerged from another pathway. Their appearance sent the remaining champions fleeing into neighboring pathways. The giants were grotesque, deformed entities with elongated limbs, muscular bodies, and oblong head-like structures. They lacked facial features and reeked, their foul clothes stitched from the carcasses of unidentifiable creatures.
Without hesitation, the Chains of the Abyss uncoiled from Scott’s arm, and the pendant transformed into the war hammer of the Mad God. The ominous weapon let out a baleful screech as it manifested, blackened flames instantly coating both the hammer and the expanding chains. Scott tightened his grip, the flames racing up his arm, forming a series of intricate, glowing patterns.
The giants, now numbering over a dozen, paused, but more could be seen advancing from deeper within the pathway. The remaining champions quickly vanished, retreating as the battle began to loom.
Orion, however, seemed disinterested. He gave a casual glance to the approaching giants, then mentally muttered, “I’ll be waiting for you at the entrance. Have fun,” before departing without further comment.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
Scott, undeterred, stepped forward. The chains rattled ominously in response. Suddenly, the giants hunched over, a sickening crackle filling the air as their midsections split open. Amoebic forms covered in bubbling liquid and thick miasma were revealed. Without hesitation, the giants charged, their flailing arms tightening around their weapons, but their grotesque midsections remained exposed.
The amoebic entities let out a piercing shriek, their ghastly cries unleashing devastating sound waves. The air vibrated with the frequency, as more giants screamed, their misery amplifying the cacophony. Miasma and bubbling chrome liquid coalesced in front of the giants, forming massive globs that shot forward, intent on consuming everything in their path.
The Chains of the Abyss, wreathed in blackened flames, expanded, forming an intricate matrix as they embedded into nearby walls with a rapid, unearthly speed. They intercepted the coalesced bubbles with ease, dispersing them. But the sound wave barrage followed instantly, the shrieks growing even louder, overwhelming the air with their force.
The chains, unwilling to be outdone, rattled fiercely, their flames flaring brighter in defiance. The two forces clashed, and a sudden, piercing silence fell over the area—a low, muffled hum vibrating beneath the quiet.
The giants reached the chain matrix, their elongated limbs hurling axes toward the flaming chains in a desperate attempt to hack away at the otherworldly weapon. Metal clashed with metal, yet only the muffled low-pitched hum remained. The giants continued their relentless assault, their limbs bulging with increased muscle the more they hacked at the chains. Still, no sound echoed, and no mark was left on the flaming chains. Instead, chips began forming on the blades of the axes. Yet the creatures pressed on, their attacks primitive and unyielding.
The amoebic entities and coalesced globs joined the fray, adding to the giants' arsenal. But their grotesque attacks left no more of a mark than the axes had. The creatures, however, remained undeterred, attacking with even greater vigor.
Then, without warning, the giants' collective assault halted. Shadows—darker than tar—stretched from the depths of the pathway where the giants had emerged, creeping up and engulfing their feet. Confusion rippled through the faceless creatures as they struggled, unable to free themselves from the all-encompassing darkness.
In that moment, the sound of rustling chains broke their stupor. Before they could react, the flaming chains snaked around their bodies, tightening with terrifying precision. What followed were maddening screams, echoing through the entire area. The giants thrashed wildly, their cries reverberating with an otherworldly misery that seemed to come from the very depths of their souls. Despite their agony, their flesh remained whole, untouched by any visible wound.
Scott’s feet glided across the darkened path, his presence ominous as he approached the writhing, screaming giants. He stopped amid their torment and spoke with chilling calmness.
“Seek,” he declared, his voice a command.
Instantly, the screams ceased.
“The fervor of he who shall be enthroned on the highest peak,” the creatures responded in eerie, unified reverie.
“Offer,” Scott continued, his tone powerful, almost enchanting.
“The entirety of our beings; the origin of our souls, the reason for our existence to the throne!” the creatures chanted, their forms vibrating violently, teetering on the edge of destruction.
“Eternal,” Scott said, his voice now deeper, more sinister.
“Is the madness of the throne!” they screamed in a final, feverish chorus. “Only Madness is eternal!”
A sickening crack followed as the faceless heads of the creatures exploded one after another, releasing a foul, viscous liquid into the air. At that same moment, the darkness stirred, and the limp bodies of the giants began to sink into the void. The Chains of the Abyss uncoiled, releasing their grip, and in an instant, the corpses disappeared into the abyss. The chains, now free, coiled themselves back around Scott’s arm, the blackened flames still flickering along their surface.
Scott took a step forward, the darkness beneath him gathering at his feet, then dissipating with each step until only his normal shadow remained. All traces of combat, all signs of the creatures’ existence, vanished as though they had never been.
As Scott continued forward, a system notification suddenly appeared:
You have slain numerous members of the Waikis! You have yet to attain the minimum requirements to be named in the territorial ranking!
Scott stopped in his tracks, frowning at the rogue message. Territorial Ranking? What the hell is that? he thought to himself.
“Orion, do you know anything about a territorial ranking?” Scott asked mentally.
“Oh, did you get in too?” came Orion’s amused reply.
“Wait—you knew about this? Why didn’t you say anything earlier?” Scott retorted, heading toward the pathway where Orion stood waiting.
“There wasn’t much to talk about,” Orion replied casually. “I got a number when I was fending off those zealots who tried to stop the inheritance, but I fell off the rankings pretty quickly after.”
Scott narrowed his eyes. “What rank did you receive?” As he moved, he noticed champions emerging from neighboring pathways, but none dared approach the voidweaver. They merely stared, wary.
“I was ranked around 1000 or so,” Orion answered with a smile. “Why do you ask?”
Scott’s brows lifted slightly. He killed over a thousand people while I was out, and that was only enough to reach rank 1000? His thoughts drifted as he tried to imagine the kind of bloodshed it must have taken for the champions in the top hundred ranks to claim their positions. The sheer scale of it was staggering.
Before he could dwell further, Orion’s voice echoed in his mind. “I thought you were itching to use your authority. That was the perfect opportunity—why didn’t you?”
“Too many eyes watching,” Scott replied without hesitation, nearing where the mage waited.
“I see. That’s a valid reason,” Orion chuckled, then shifted the conversation. “Still, I wasn’t expecting you to use the Confession of the Mad Throne. Impressive. You already know it. Just what else are you capable of?”
Scott stopped in front of the inquisitive mage. “Can you still sense the same undulations from earlier?”
Orion nodded.
“Let’s go,” Scott said simply, walking past him.
Orion rubbed his chin, a wry smile forming as he watched the voidweaver’s back. If he’s already using the confessions, then he must be able to manifest that zone. I’m glad I chose to follow him. I wonder what else he’s hiding. Stifling the urge to laugh, Orion fell into step behind Scott, his measured pace easily matching the voidweaver’s. Within moments, the two of them disappeared down the pathway.
----------------------------------------
Not long after Scott and Orion’s departure, a gigantic monkey with flaming, curved horns and gleaming armor exited an adjacent pathway. It paused in the spot where the Waikis had been devoured by the Nihilistic Zone, its fiery gaze turning toward the path Scott and Orion had taken. Wordlessly, the creature followed, disappearing just as quickly as it had arrived.