Divine Emperor of Death



"…"

Davis stared at the purplish-black sphere that encased the Apocalyptic Flame Essence with a dumbfounded gaze. He had been like this for the past minute because it already had been like this for more than half an hour,  leaving him astounded.

He was unable to imagine what was happening inside, but the fact that the heavenly tribulation was still going on meant that the Apocalyptic Flame Essence was still alive, leading him to believe that it was still holding on somehow!

Lea and Eldia were also unable to say a single word. They had never seen this kind of tribulation, so they didn't know what it entailed.

They couldn't imagine what kind of attacks the Apocalyptic Flame Essence was facing, and with a lot of time to contemplate, they even wondered if the heavens were brainwashing it as it tried to take it back or even let it go and plant a seed in their group, but they didn't think the tyrannical and mighty heavens would go as far as to be deceptive.

Davis was of the same thought, but after what Clara went through, he was unsure as heaven's influence was a major headache for him to erase.

Even now, he hoped that Evelynn could arrive at a treatment that would free his little sister of heaven's influence, allowing her to live freely and happily.

*Rumble!~*

Suddenly, the purplish-black sphere that appeared to be like a black hole in the skies trembled, releasing a quaking sound that caused space to reverberate.

"Careful!"

A huge shockwave swept throughout the skies and the land, pushing every being away from it, causing Davis, Lea, and Eldia to be sent flying. However, he caught them with his soul force, allowing him to protect them, although they flew a few kilometers before regaining balance.

"…!"

When they looked up at the skies, their eyes shot wide.

They saw the purplish-black sphere rotating slowly as it started shrinking. It was as though it was compressing, trying to crush the Apocalyptic Flame Essence once and for all, causing Davis to flinch and step forward.

"Don't!"

Lea grabbed his hand, but even before she caught his wrist, he came to a stop, clenching his teeth and starting at the skies with anger. However, he looked away, knowing that this was his fault for being too hasty in allowing the Apocalyptic Flame Essence to face its heavenly tribulation.

Still, when he raised his head to return the gaze, he saw the heavenly sphere pulsating as though it was going to break, or perhaps trying to break the Apocalyptic Flame Essence as it was still enduring.

He staunchly believed that the Apocalyptic Flame Essence would survive since it was way stronger than its tribulation, but this unknown tribulation didn't let him be confident in his calculations. However, the most frustrating thing was he could not move to help the Apocalyptic Flame Essence, as he knew he was dead meat if he did so.

It was going to die because of his hasty decision.

"Fuck!"

He stomped the ground, causing a loud bang to echo along with the thunderous sounds of the clouds to resound, their symphonies clashing with enmity. Following the impact, the ground caved, and the surface was painted with spider-like webs. He clenched his fist, feeling the helplessness drive him crazy as it was a foreign feeling to him.

Even if he felt helpless, he would have Fallen Heaven to rely on, but at this time, it had thoroughly hidden itself. Besides, even if it was present, he lamented what exactly he could do to go against an Empyrean Stage Tribulation that would totally fuck him up.

He didn't blame Fallen Heaven one bit but blamed himself heavily.

*Fsssh!~*

Suddenly, the entire world went silent.

The purplish-black clouds dissipated, and the crimson clouds started to disperse, leaving behind dark clouds that radiated a gloomy aura.

Davis's lips parted as he saw the space where the purplish-black heavenly sphere completely vanished. It appeared as though it disappeared from the face of this realm, causing not only him but also Lea and Eldia to be shocked.

*Whoosh!~*

With Fallen Heaven back in his soul sea, Davis knew the tribulation had ended, causing him to quickly move and appear at the location where the Apocalyptic Flame Essence had been struggling to break out. His senses floored the space, even breaking through the layers of space as he used Space Laws to search for the Apocalyptic Flame Essence.

His senses twisted and churned within the layers of space, causing him to furrow his brows in pain.

However, even after searching for half a minute, he was unable to find the Apocalyptic Flame Essence. There was nothing left to search for, not even a trace of its aura, as it seemed to have been fully crushed by the heavenly tribulation.

"Dear…"

Lea appeared behind him and placed a hand over his shoulder, causing him to shudder ever so lightly.

His expression couldn't be seen properly as he had his head lowered, but that only served to make Lea more teary-eyed. The pain of losing a close companion was awful and heart-ripping, but she couldn't see him feeling that same pain over a sense of responsibility.

After all, he was a responsible man, and he created that life. Although anyone might argue that they hadn't even bonded yet, she knew he was experiencing the terrible emotion of being unable to protect that little life.

Perhaps he would try to resurrect it? Was that even possible, considering it got crushed by the heavenly tribulation itself?

"Let's go."

As Lea was thinking, Davis spoke coldly.

It made Lea shudder as she saw that he didn't even sigh, which he usually would for anything he was willing to forget about or brush past as though it wasn't anything big to care about. Right now, she wanted to comfort him with words or even intimacy, but he didn't say anything to her and just grabbed her hand and absorbed Eldia back into his soul sea, shooting towards the distance.

She stayed silent throughout their return journey.

The Feral Beasts that tried to attack them didn't meet a good end. They simply become extinguished off the face of the realm. The slightly smart Feral Beasts, who had extreme instincts, knew not to provoke him and stayed away, so the entire journey was peaceful and calm yet eerily overbearing.

When Davis made it back, many noticed the change in his aura, especially his women. His aura was unusually unreceptive, as though telling them to stay away from him, cold and suppressed like a volcanic mountain that was about to erupt.

They creased their brows at him, wondering what had happened, but then they saw that the Apocalyptic Flame Essence wasn't with them.

"Mas-"

Nadia was just going to report her hunt and get some praise from him as she wagged her tail upon his return, but noticing his aura and even his emotion through their soul connection, she chose to become silent. She watched him walk straight towards Myria before opening his mouth.

"Do you know what the Empyrean Stage Tribulation for a heaven-tier spirit entails?"