Although he and Astarte didn't have much interaction, from Konrad's group, she was the one that gave him the best feelings. The least aloof, closer to the average person, straightforward and without a scheming mind.
Why then was it that she now laid deceased in a pool of her own blood? Why was it that her heart, that resolutely loyal heart devoted solely to her lord, now laid broken within that monstrous woman's hands?
Where was justice?!
But his roar of indignation caused no ripple within Ilkaalt's contended face, and as she turned toward him, she didn't forget to lick Astarte's blood off her hands.
"Hm. I know my essence controlling skills still need a lot of improvement. But I didn't expect I couldn't even keep a trivial Adept Knight under control for a full day. How disheartening."
She sighed and kicked Astarte's corpse to the side before stepping toward Qehreman.
Seeing this, his fury rose to another level, and without fear for consequences, he shot toward Ilkaalt!
However, he'd barely taken a step that she kicked him in the face, sending him spiraling into the air before crashing on the ground.
"Who do you think you are? The hero of a fairy tale? With your trivial cultivation, you even dare raise hands against me? How bold. Worms nowadays, no longer know the immensity of heavens."
Ilkaalt sighed before trampling Qehreman's face under her boot.
"If not for your marvelous anti-chthonian abilities, do you think you could live to this point? You better behave, otherwise, if you annoy me further, I might just end you. It's not like the colony would know what it missed.
Hahahaha!"
Ilkaalt burst into laughter while relentlessly stomping Qehreman's face, twisting it into a more grotesque shape than it already was. But though the pain nailed him onto the ground, it was that grating, humiliating laugh that fueled his indignation.
"You…do not…deserve to live!!"
Qehreman struggled to say between a succession of face stomping.
"Right? And who will kill me? You? Joke! There is no such thing as -deserve- or -justice.- There is only -I'm stronger; therefore you grovel.-
Hahahaha! Hahahaha!"
Ilkaalt's relentless laugh reverberated within the air, heightening Qehreman's outrage.
Rage, hatred, indignation. All burned within him, and set his soul ablaze, triggering a change Ilkaalt failed to see.
"Though, I'm curious. How can a worm of your caliber possess such an outstanding ability? Let's examine your soul."
Ilkaalt said in a loud, grim tone, aiming to scare Qehreman out of his wits. However, besides soaring ire, no emotion appeared on his face.
"How dull…"
She sighed and removed her foot to stretch her hand toward his face and use her soul power to investigate him. But when the force she released reached Qehreman's soul, it merged with his seething emotions to unlock a seal that should have remained untouched throughout his existence!
*BOOOOM*
A massive, world-shaking force erupted from Qehreman's body and sent the gloating Ilkaalt shooting across the sky before cratering in the ground.
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
But before she could reason on what just occurred, in a slow, but perfectly measured move, Qehreman rose from the ground with his eyes shut close.
"Indeed. In a world of free will, in a world of yearning, selfishness, and greed, cultivation, or not, there shall never be true justice. Again, I'm proven wrong. The weak forever will be preys for the strong. Such…is nature's law."
Qehreman stated, with his eyes still closed. And although his voice outwardly remained the same, to the attentive, it now appeared laced with ancientness, as if he no longer was a young man in his mid-twenties, but a primordial creature awakening from a deep slumber.
His eyes opened wide, and instantaneously, the world surrounding him and Ilkaalt stopped!
Yes, the entirety of the Ancient Crystal World…no, in the instant Qehreman's eyes opened, the entirety of the Three Realms was put to a stop! Beyond Ilkaalt and him, time no longer fluctuated!
"Im…impossible. Even a master of Time Laws can't accomplish this! Who…who the hell are you?!"
Ilkaalt stammered in fright and attempted to flee from her crater. However, she realized she couldn't move an inch. At that time, Qehreman's appearance changed, going from its grotesque shape to a short, 1.75 meters tall, slender youth with short, ink-like hairs held in a topknot, a perfectly carved, handsome face, and black eyes that seemed able to suppress deities with just a glance.
"Is my eminent identity, what a base and low ant can inquire?
How bold.
How insolent."
*BOOM*
With his hands crossed beneath his back, Qehreman glanced at Ilkaalt, and instantaneously, she burst into a blood fog!
Then shockingly, reformed to once again burst! In a flash, she died and returned to life more than thirty times!
"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
She howled in anguish as she felt her soul stabbed by endless waves of ethereal daggers! Still, the process carried on, and with each rebirth, her soul's sufferings heightened!
"Ants nowadays no longer know the immensity of heavens. Zenith ants? What a joke. Is an inferior breed of your caliber qualified to use the word -zenith?-"
Qehreman scoffed without stopping Ilkaalt's torture.
"I beg you…"
*BOOM*
"st-…"
*BOOOM*
"Forgive m-"
*BOOOOOM*
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
Three-thousands excruciatingly painful deaths and rebirths carried on before Qehreman lost interest and ended Ilkaalt's sufferings.
And as she laid broken on the ground, she really couldn't comprehend how such an existence could appear within a mortal world! Didn't the laws of the Mortal Realm prevent foreign deities from stepping in?
Baffled and bewildered, she no longer knew what to do or think!
At that time, a voice echoed within Qehreman's mind.
"Cloud, now that you've awakened stop your nonsense and return home."
Hearing this, Qehreman's eyes contorted into a frown.
"Night? Is that a way to address your elder brother?"
Qehreman replied with his lips curled into a smile.
"Cut your crap. In a few days, it will be Moon's birthday. Sister-in-law is furious. Was it not for eldest brother covering for you, she would have already snatched you from this world. But you should know that when Moon is concerned, even eldest brother's patience is limited.
If you don't return in time, no one can save you."
Night retorted with glaring indifference.
Hearing this, Qehreman's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Oh shit…"
Only now did he realize the gravity of the situation. Annoying his sister-in-law was acceptable, but getting on his eldest brother's nerves would only result in a fate worse than death!
In a flash, cold sweat filled his forehead, startling Ilkaalt, who couldn't comprehend why that supreme existence was suddenly undergoing such a startling change!
"Alright, I will wrap up things here and return. Just give me a few days to observe some events. I will definitely be back in time."
He assured.
"As you please."
Night replied before cutting the connection.
Qehreman's chilling eyes then fell back on Ilkaalt.
"Be grateful. Eldest brother doesn't allow us to take lives within the Three Realms. Therefore, you can keep your trash life. But henceforth, your existence is doomed to become a tragedy."
Qehreman stated and waved his hand, causing time to flow back and reality to change.
In this new reality, as Ilkaalt made her move, the sky darkened, and the earth shook, causing her to lose balance while dozens of thunderbolts dropped and slammed her where she stood!
Seeing lightning bolts drop at her back, Astarte spun and was shocked to see Ilkaalt charred by a deluge of thunderbolts!
"What…the hell?"
