Chapter 623 - Chrollo (I)

Zatiel was soothing the Virtual Force that skyrocketed after evolving the Virtual Dream Path of Power into Rank 7 and making sure his Astral Black Holes Genesis carried on without a problem when he noticed the expressions that appeared in Issac, Ivar, and Hades. 

The way the Magi's mouths moved gave an idea that the duo was enjoying something very delicious inside the Virtual Dream Universe. And when Zatiel saw the smile on Hades, he could not help but feel a little embarrassed.

Hades' lewd smile told the Neo-Demon that he enjoyed another type of food in the Virtual Dream Universe. There was nothing wrong with that. It's just that the Ancient Being of Laws went straight at it, unlike the Magi that showed more composure, despite him being the oldest one. 

Of course, Zatiel would not disturb Hades' fun. As long as people followed the Dream Rules, they could do whatever they wanted inside the Virtual Dream Universe. 

However, the Neo-Demon would make sure to remind Hades to hide it better. After all, his guard could not go around with a lewd smile.

Zatiel did not lose too much time watching the trio and focused on finishing his Astral Black Holes. The nine stars and the dodecahedrons have already fused into a single entity by this point.

Each Astral Black Hole resembled a thirty-three face black dice, which did not release any form of light. To advance through Rank 7, 8, and 9 of the True Doomsday Body Path of Power, he will have to ignite these dice.

If there were a word to describe the essence of the True Doomsday Body Path of Power, it would be: devour. At the Soul Realm, Neo-Demons needed to seal stars inside their bodies, and at the Law Realm, they needed to ignite those black holes. As for igniting them, it was simple: find heavenly bodies, artifacts, or life forms and confine them into one of the Astral Black Holes.

Those Astral Black Holes were perfect megastructures that would not allow any form of energy to escape. In theory, one could gain a certain level of control over Omega Laws if they chose to capture people, but that path was incredibly difficult. 

Unlike when Neo-Demons were at the Soul Realm, they did not have the help of the Neo-Demon Realm putting their targets to sleep. A sentient life form's willpower and soul force at Law Realm were mighty. Many would choose to kill themselves rather than eternal imprisonment, especially those capable of reviving through their Omega Laws. 

Less than two days after his Virtual Dream Path of Power entered Rank 7, Zatiel's Astral Black Holes Genesis ended. Ezequiel also finished by this point, but he remained in a meditation state as he had yet to achieve the first level of Return to Origin.

Zatiel noticed that the Supreme Neo-Demon's aura was about to explode, so he chose to wait.

Nineteen hours later, Ezequiel opened his eyes. His bloodline force exploded, and a massive amount of World Strength converged in him. 

From the white lightning inside Ezequiel's Bloodline, billions of atom-sized runes emerged and fused with his body.

"AHHHHH!" The Supreme Neo-Demon roared as his power increased tremendously, as did his body.

Zatiel felt something special about the augmentation Ezequiel triggered. He pushed his eyes to the limit to see those changed, and awe assaulted him.

Ezequiel's body grew stronger, but it wasn't something so simple as tempering his flesh and blood. The very essence of his body was evolving, not generating enhancement but amplification.

If a skill enhanced your body at Rank 7, while it would make you stronger, at Rank 8, the improvement generated would be negligible. 

However, amplification was different. It would increase your power regardless of the Rank. And Ezequiel could even stack it, meaning that the next level of Return to Origin would multiply with the current one. 

Zatiel saw how Ezequiel's body grew from five meters to ten, just as his strength enjoyed an amplification of two. The Neo-Demon Ancestor was amazed by the ability a First Order Law Bloodline would get access to.

His Alpha-Omega Samsara King Bloodline did not awaken an ability when he entered the Law Realm, not because it was weaker than the Primordial Bloodline but because it was stronger. Unlike Ezequiel, who only needed to enter Rank 7, Zatiel's bloodline required him to do it in both the True Doomsday Body Path of Power and True Soul Path of Power.

Once Ezequiel finally completed the first level of Return to Origin and took his first step in creating a Pre-Epoch Body, his bloodline force became purer, and a silver star materialized floating around his head. 

Zatiel was surprised by the sudden materialization of the silver star. He knew they were characteristic of Primordials due to his encounter with the Ninth Star Consciousness but did not know how they would emerge. 

'I guess there is no way to hide it anymore. How annoying.' The Neo-Demon Ancestor sighed as he turned to the Magus Primarch.

Issac's placid expression vanished the moment he saw that silver star. The aura it unleashed was the same that the one released by the warriors of the Alpha Universe.

Before anything, he analyzed all the available information and immediately discarded the idea of Ezequiel being an Alpha Universe's spy. 

When the Magus investigated Zatiel, he also did some digging on the supreme genius, always by the Neo-Demon's side. He was sure that Ezequiel was a life form naturally born in the Magi World. Not to mention that as a Rank 7 life form, the Universe Will now focused on the Supreme Neo-Demon, making any form of disguise futile.

However, he was also sure there was a connection between them, most likely by bloodline. That did not necessarily mean there was an actual relationship. After all, there were countless worlds in the Prima Universe populated by humans, but how many of them could be said to be on good terms or even know each other?

"We need to have a proper conversation." In the end, the Magus Primarch took a deep breath and spoke to Zatiel.

Issac's ultimate goal was to protect the Prima Universe, a cause he would not hesitate to give his life for, but he did not let that obsession affect his judgment. 

Zatiel was a little surprised by the Magus Primarch's words. He smiled, and a positive light appeared in his eyes. 

Not letting fear, bias, or paranoia guide your actions may not sound hard, but it was actually extremely difficult, especially when the destiny of an entire universe rested on your shoulders. Issac keeping a cold head in such a height stake situation was proof of his immense willpower.

"That is fine." Zatiel agreed to the Magus' request. "You have done an excellent job tempering your willpower. Keep doing that, as it will open a path for you."

Issac's eyes widened when he heard those words, and his mind began spinning. How could Zatiel have known that the Flame Imperator, an existence believed to be above the Law Realm, expressed a similar message to the Magus? 

Suddenly, a cold light appeared in the Magus Primarch's eyes as he made his energy explode and flashed toward the duo at their maximum speed. 

Hades and even Ivar frowned when they noticed Issac's behavior. Going back on his word and attacking without proper reason, especially with people you risked your life a few days ago, was not something worthy of the Magus Primarch's fame.

On the other hand, Zatiel's smile vanished, but he did not activate Space-Time Heaven. The reason was simple, while he felt that someone was targeting him, it was not the Magus Primarch, but someone else far away from their current location.

The Flawless and the Ancient Being of Laws soon understood what was happening as they saw Issac standing in front of Zatiel and Ezequiel, protecting the Neo-Demons.

Issac was like an unmovable barrier guarding the Neo-Demons as his perception captured the source of the threat. It came from a metallic heavenly body countless light years away from their location, near the portal connecting the Alpha Universe and Prima Universe. 

That metallic heavenly body was the headquarters of the Alpha Universe's forces inside the Prima Universe. A black-haired young man emerged from it, and his eyes seemed capable of ignoring space-time as he stared at Ezequiel.

A sharp light appeared in his eyes, and the shadows around him began to condense, transforming into mighty black lightning.