The night sky trembled.
Fluctuations of blazing red energy burst from the body of the man with curly hair, piercing the air like roaring surges that shook the heavens. The night instantly shifted into a crimson sky. The wind blew heavy, carrying heat that stabbed the skin.
His eyes scanned the surroundings, finding no exit. "This man set up a barrier. We cannot escape!"
Lucifer narrowed his eyes, his voice holding tension that was close to breaking. "Why did you suddenly ask about his Mom? I do not even know you."
The man scratched his head slowly, as if he did not care about the overwhelming aura shaking the atmosphere.
"Ah, forgive me. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Avorius Vermillion. Crown prince of the Vermillion Empire, one of the Divine elites from the Divine Realm."
"Divine Realm?!" Chloe whispered, her eyebrows tightening. "This is bad. This man is not an ordinary God. Be careful when speaking to him."
"We never heard of that realm," Gabriel said.
The corner of Avorius' mouth lifted. "Of course you have not. The Divine Realm is the realm of the strongest Gods who have already reached the cultivation level of Divine, no longer merely God."
Avorius pointed his finger directly at Enatur. "Now then, young man, tell me the name of your Mom."
Silence. The only sound was the rustling energy that resembled wind inside an enclosed space. Their mouths remained shut, their eyes fixed on Avorius.
The air stiffened instantly.
There was no sound except the faint echo of their heartbeat. Avorius stood firm, his red eyes burning like embers searching for truth behind lies.
"So that is how it is, you refuse to answer"
"Perhaps you simply mistook us for someone else." Enatur cut him off quickly, his voice calm but clearly trembling. "My name is Enatur Gremory. I grew up in an orphanage and chose the job of an adventurer."
"That is correct, Lord Avorius," Lucifer added quickly, his jaw tightening. "We are just ordinary adventurers. Have we offended you in any way?"
Avorius grinned. "Then explain why this young man has Vermillion blood. Even his eyebrows are red. Although mine are not the same shade."
His fingertip pointed at his maroon eyebrows, while his hair was bright red.
Their blood seemed to stop flowing. Cold sweat slid down the side of Enatur's face. Then the pressure came.
Red aura erupted from Avorius' body, rising into a violent storm of energy.
The gravitational effect pressed down on their bodies until their knees bent. Lucifer tried to stay upright, but the pressure made the muscles of his back stiffen.
Only Enatur remained standing, though his body shook. Avorius walked through the air, each step creating waves of energy that reflected red light onto the ground below.
Avorius changed his tone, cold. "I really hate liars."
Enatur's face turned pale, his body trembling.
Avorius exploded his energy, the surging fluctuation rattling the air. The surge flung them several meters back. Avorius teleported and appeared directly in front of them.
Lucifer raised his voice, eyes widening. "Enatur, run!"
The wave of energy unleashed by Avorius shot forward like a crimson storm, striking Lucifer, Shadow, Gabriel, and Chloe, hurling them far away. They crashed onto the ground, dust scattering everywhere.
Their bodies landed harshly, but they managed to stand again with wounds on their faces and hands. Lucifer and Gabriel pulled their swords from their storage space, spiritual light trembling along the blades.
They leaped, swinging their swords simultaneously. The clash of metal and spiritual force rang deafeningly, sparks of red light bursting into the air. Avorius blocked both of them with his bare hands.
Enatur snapped his fingers. From behind Avorius, a portal opened, and Shadow emerged in his Weredog form.
He growled lowly, swinging both of his sharp claws. Blood splattered from Avorius' back. His body was pushed forward.
Enatur jumped, using Avorius' head as a foothold. His body shot upward, then he opened a dimensional portal above.
"Everyone, get into the portal!"
Lucifer, Chloe, Gabriel, and Shadow leaped inside immediately. Only a few seconds before Enatur followed, Avorius' hand grabbed his leg.
Time seemed to slow. Enatur's jaw clenched, his pupils shrinking. His hand stretched forward.
Lucifer tried to grab him, their fingertips almost touching.
But the dimensional portal closed shut, swallowing the light, leaving nothing but silence and the two remaining figures, Enatur and Rein.
---
The dimensional portal opened in the mansion courtyard. They landed roughly. Lucifer instantly stood up, his face pale, his breathing heavy.
"We need to go inside immediately. Mom is waiting for us!" Lucifer said.
They ran into the mansion. When inside, their footsteps echoed along the corridor. Their voices vibrated through the empty hall.
"Mom... Mom!" Lucifer raised his voice.
Yunia descended the stairs with sharp eyes. "What is it, Lucifer? Where are Enatur and Rein?"
Lucifer lowered his head; his words came out heavy, as if dragged from his throat.
A few minutes later...
Yunia's eyes sharpened. Her spiritual aura burst lightly, shaking the air.
Her fist clenched so tight that blood dripped onto the floor.
"Enatur stored the dimensional portal coordinates at the scene. We must hurry, Mom!" Gabriel said, her tone panicked.
Yunia extended her hand, trying to open a portal, but nothing happened.
"That Avorius sealed the access to the dimensional portal. Because it is a different Realm, my access to the Dark Realm is limited. To open a portal, I must store the spatial trace first." Her tone was quiet, holding back rage.
Lucifer suddenly stiffened, remembering something. "Enatur once said he stored a spatial trace in the Wild Fairy Forest!"
"In that case, let us depart. Chloe, rest here. I will deal with the man named Avorius myself!" Yunia said.
Chloe nodded. "Please be careful."
This time, Yunia managed to open a dimensional portal. Yunia stepped in, followed by Lucifer, Gabriel, and Shadow. They headed to the Wild Fairy Forest.
---
Avorius threw Enatur like a ragdoll. His body spun through the air, but he twisted and landed lightly.
Avorius stared at him, his eyes glowing blood-red.
"So it is true. You are the child of my eldest sibling, Enatur Vermillion. I never expected that my sibling actually held that title. Truly irritating!" Avorius clenched his jaw, veins bulging across his face.
Enatur grinned. "How pathetic." He stood firm. "After throwing my Mom away, now you come looking for me and her?"
"That means your father believes you are unworthy to become his successor."
Avorius seemed provoked, his gaze flaring, the veins in his hands throbbing.
"Watch your mouth, boy!" he glared sharply at Enatur.
"Relying only on yourself?" The corner of Enatur's lips curled sharply.
Red aura wrapped Avorius' entire body. Enatur opened a portal behind him. Avorius gathered his spiritual energy in his right hand, then swung a massive fist-shaped energy blast toward Enatur.
The colossal fist shot forward at extreme speed. Enatur jumped backward into the portal. The portal closed quickly, leaving the strike to smash only the ground, creating a crater twenty meters wide.
Fifty dimensional spaces opened, filling the area inside the barrier, surrounding Avorius. Dagger chains shot from each dimensional space, targeting Avorius. A spiritual circle opened, and his hand reached inside to pull out a whip sword.
Avorius drew the whip sword from the spiritual circle. The metallic screech echoed sharply.
He swung his sword, deflecting several chains as red sparks burst. But the chains kept coming, circling and attacking him.
"Tch! What an annoying brat," he grumbled.
With minimal movement, just the necessary swings, he continued to deflect hundreds of dagger chains. He leaped, shifting his body left and right to avoid the rain of chains.
Avorius tilted his head up slightly, noticing several dagger chains entering one dimensional space and coming out of another. Dozens more continued chasing him.
He swung his whip sword again, once more deflecting the chains. His patience began to dry up, ignited by rage and frustration.
His jaw lowered and tightened, Avorius growled so hard that veins bulged on his neck beneath the skin.
"You damn brat!"
"HIIIYYYAAA!" He exploded with red spiritual energy.
The enormous fluctuation repelled all the dagger chains backward. A spiraling wave of spiritual energy expanded throughout the entire barrier area.
---
Yunia and the others had already reached Sandy Dracule. They accelerated. From afar Yunia saw a dome-shaped barrier.
They arrived. A cloud of dust covered the inside of the barrier. Yunia narrowed her eyes, searching for Enatur.
"What is happening?" Lucifer asked.
"Enatur is most likely fighting Avorius." Yunia said flatly.
Shadow bared his teeth, growling, holding back his fury. In his Weredog form, he punched the barrier, but it had no effect.
Yunia touched his back. "Shadow, calm down. A barrier created by a Divine is not easily destroyed."
The dimensional spaces created by Enatur collapsed due to the explosion of Avorius' spiritual energy. The dust cloud slowly thinned, revealing a figure standing tall: Avorius.
"Oi boy! If you really have guts, face me directly. Do not use cowardly tricks like these," he said coldly.
His eyes scanned the entire area, but Enatur still did not appear.
Fifty dimensional spaces opened again above his head, each one producing strange objects.
"Huh, the same trick will not work against a Divine!" he shouted arrogantly.
Yunia immediately formed a cube-shaped black protective space, sealing the scene from outside.
The fifty objects exploded simultaneously, releasing a shockwave of blinding white light. The sound wave roared like a storm.
"HIYAAAAA... MY EYES!" Avorius covered his eyes with his hands.
His vision flickered, his sight turned completely white, burning red with injury. His ears rang violently, blood pouring heavily from them.
"What did you do to me, you damn brat?!" he shouted, his jaw clenching.
"He is clever," Gabriel said. "Using fifty flashbangs to weaken his eyes and ears."
"Rather than clever, it looks more like he is using a dirty trick," Lucifer commented.
"If this involved normal humans, it would cause severe injury or death, physical and structural damage. Survivors would suffer deep psychological trauma as a result of the experience," Shadow said.
A dimensional portal opened, and finally Enatur stepped out. "I finally got out safely. It would be too dangerous if I faced you directly."
Avorius snorted, his left eye still squinting. "I do not know what you mumbled, boy, but my left eye can still see, even if blurry." His left eye glanced toward Enatur.
"Icy Hammer!" Enatur formed an ice weapon, ready to attack.
"That is better. Face me with full courage!" Avorius grinned.
Enatur's heart suddenly pounded violently, a burning sensation in his stomach. He fell to his knees. Black liquid poured from his mouth and nose.
"Enatur!" they all shouted. Anxiety seeped rapidly into their minds.
Yunia's jaw loosened, her eyes widening. "This is bad, the side effect of the Soul Core curse has relapsed again, he must be treated immediately!" she said in panic.
Enatur felt the burning sensation again in his stomach, his body convulsing, his eyes trembling, his hands gripping the ground.
"I do not know what is happening to you, but this is my chance to kill you!"
With staggering steps, Avorius approached the helpless Enatur. His whip sword screeched. He swung it hard.
Enatur still managed to snap his fingers. At the same moment, a dimensional portal opened. From inside the portal, a metallic hand grabbed the whip sword tightly.
A robotic armor emerged from the portal, mechanical eyes glowing purple, purple radiance shining in the center of its chest. The robot armor had the form of a woman, and it was controlled by...
Rein.
"If you dare lay a hand on my Master, I will crush every bone in your body!"