They knew about the existence of the Devourer of Chaos, but how was it possible?
"How do you know about the Manual?" Atlas asked, finally confirming their assumptions once and for all.
"How do we know? Well... the Devourer of Chaos is the supreme manual that has brought fear to countless lives... and the magnificent power held by the wanderer!"
Atlas had heard that title in that book. Actually, they had another name, Prismatic Exilium.
"Have you ever heard the name Prismatic Exilium?"
What followed Atlas' question was silence. Falerra and the Dragon looked back at each other for a while and then sighed simultaneously.
"So... you received his inheritance..."
"The inheritor..."
They knew a lot more than him about this story. It was evident by their reactions.
Atlas had thought and fantasized a lot about this mysterious existence and couldn't let this opportunity pass him by.
"Who is him?"
"It looks like you don't know much... but surely, you got connected to more than one simple secret of this world..." Falerra sighed again and then explained: "It will be difficult for you to understand since you were born in this little world, but Oblivion is nothing but a place created for us refugees. A temporary location used by us to escape from doomsday."
"What are you talking about? And how is this matter related to them?"
The young man was unaware of all this. He had heard legends about his world, but nothing related to this story.
"Oh... It all started with him, as he was the ruler of our original home. A unique place where countless lifeforms from all over the universe coexisted."
Atlas knew nothing about the universe, but he could imagine what those words meant. That world was basically a miracle.
Falerra had given him several pieces of information, but they contained many parts that caused the young man to open his mouth again.
"You said... refugees... what do you mean?"
"Hmm... sooner or later, you will find out the truth, as you will come in contact with more secrets, so are you sure that you want to know them now?"
Those words made him think a lot.
He thought about Nihilir, the mysterious existence that had granted him a new life...
He thought about his mysterious past...
Of his arrival in this world...
And of his mother on the other side of that teleportation portal.
This matter had struck his heart harder than Falerra, and the dragon could imagine, as he wasn't born in the world of Oblivion but from another place. Probably the same place they were so secretly talking about.
Hearing his words, it was simple for him to connect the dots now, and surely, he couldn't hold back his desire to know the truth.
"Yes!!"
A simple word escaped from his lips. Still, he showed them his determination.
"Well, such being the case, sit down and listen well, as only the remnants from our words know what I am going to tell you."
Atlas followed his words and listened carefully.
It was a long story related to a distant past of tens of thousands of years.
A story about two worlds connected but then separated.
Falerra, the Eternal Nine-Horned Dragon, and many others were creatures from another world ruled by one of the few Prismatic Exilium existences.
They lived for countless years safe from the universe's greedy and vicious hands, yet one day, beasts from the outside invaded their world, and to save them from the inevitable death, the world of Oblivion was created.
Under the protection and lead of the Progenitors, countless escaped death, but not all of them could survive, as the threat was beyond what they could have imagined.
The few survivors escaped from their homes and crossed the endless space through Teleportation Formations spread all over the world.
As for the world of Oblivion, that place was an immaculate land where they could restart their lives, but in the end was only a temporary dwelling.
Chaos Energy was thinner than it was in their world, and it surely couldn't sustain for too long the sudden appearance of millions of lives with cultivation realms higher than Sage and even God stages.
Fortunately, they were given a chance of survival and a promise that they could have returned back.
With such a promise, they endured for a hundred years, keeping the population in check and rebuilding another place that could be called a home for that period.
New and old sects were erected.
Some of the ancient Empires reestablished their powers.
The population, even if limited by the new world, grew, and when the deadline came, the descendants of the refugees became the new owners of the world of Oblivion.
Indeed, when that time arrived, the Progenitors, who had remained behind to protect their home using their lives, returned and gave them a choice.
They could have stayed or gone back to rebuild their homes.
Clearly, even if safe, Oblivion was more a cage than a dwelling, and so the one originally from there returned, leaving behind only the descendants or the ones who wanted to stay.
Atlas listened to Falerra until the end.
He gave him a lot of information, but other than the origin of Oblivion, there wasn't much more.
What about the Prismatic Exilium?
Why did those beasts invade their homes, and who were they?
They were saved by the Progenitor, but what kind of existence were those beings?
There were so many unresolved questions that Atlas couldn't stay silent.
He asked them many questions to get more details. Alas, the ruler of the world, the wanderer, the one called Prismatic Exilium, was a mysterious being who had never shown himself, even when his world was at its end.
They knew that the Devourer of Chaos was his creation, but nothing else other than what they had already told him.
Since he couldn't get more about him, Atlas tried to ask about those beasts.
"What do you know about those creatures? Why did they invade your home?"
"Well... They are called Primal Abyssal Amarok. They are immortal beasts from the outside… from the universe."
"Immortal beasts..." Atlas repeated that term and felt a sense of dread.
In Oblivion, chaos creatures existed in the realm of Saint, Sage, and God, but he had never heard of or witnessed such monsters.
"Are they creatures that had reached a realm higher than a God?"
"Of course... As I told you before, this world has limitations, but the universe and our original world doesn't... there are monsters out there that you can't even imagine. In fact, I won't tell you more about them as it will bring you nothing knowing more."
Clearly, Atlas was contrary to this but didn't delve deeper and instead switched the discussion over another matter: "What about the Progenitors? Falgnis told me something about Nekrium and Sulestia. I met even Sulestia's chosen one and know about the one related to Nekrium..."
As they listened to Atlas' speech, Falerra and Deus's eyes flickered strangely but let him finish.
"... From the story, they look like protectors of that world, so why did his Chosen corrupt this world with those evil spirits? This doesn't make sense unless something happened to Nekrium or his Chosen is out of his control."
Atlas had kept those thoughts to himself since his last encounter with Falgnis and wanted to discuss this matter with Nihilir. Alas, Nihilir never answered his call, and Atlas was left with no choice but to seek the truth from Falerra and the dragon, who seemed to know a lot.
"Those are my assumptions after Falgnis revealed that the Progenitor cannot meddle with this world."
"Huu... that's true... the Progenitors can't meddle in this world. But they had left behind a small presence in some of the arrival points. Their powers are limited to that place, so they can only act through their chosen ones."
Hearing Falerra's confirmation, Atlas sighed, elated by the result.
"Good... but what about my speculations? Could they be right?"
Silence followed his question as Falerra and the dragon looked back at each other.
"He may be right... I thought of the same too..."
"Well... don't look at me like that... I spent the last thousands of years in hibernation, so I'm pretty ignorant about the current state of the world. Actually, I didn't even know about them before this... when did those chosen appear?"
"Oh... I understand now why you didn't appear at that time..." Falerra gave out a long sigh at the dragon's response and then added, "It all started with the appearance of Nekrium's chosen one. Almost one thousand years ago, that fellow arose from nowhere and, with his devious powers, brought destruction to the continent. Luckily, with the coalition of multiple races, his devious plans were stopped, but sure, he is still out there waiting for the right opportunity to strike again."
"So... it all started after my last evolution... damn him!" the dragon cursed him loudly, "What about you? Who killed you?"
Fallerra didn't tell Atlas the truth and was still hesitant. Surely, the situation was entirely different from before, and he had already planned to reveal everything to Sarruma, so after giving it one more thought, he decided to tell them about that day: "It happened a few years after the appearance of that bastard. With his vast army of evil spirits, he invaded the continents and killed countless souls before they could stop him, and unfortunately, I was one of them."
"That's absurd... Why did he do such a reckless thing?"
"Well... I was surely a major threat to him."
Silence followed, and it lasted until Atlas added: "Falgnis is hiding, too, from him. Probably, even your brothers are in the same situation."
"That's possible. Actually, they could have met the same fate... and only have left behind a remnant soul."
Another secret of the past was revealed, giving Atlas a deeper understanding of the shadows moving stealthily through the world. Still, he wanted to know more.
What about those formations connected to his world of origin?
Since it was somehow related to his past, he sought them out once again and explained the details of his encounters, leaving behind the matter of his origins.
"Initially, I thought they were connected to other worlds... but after hearing your words, it's evident that they are the ones used by you back them. Do you think I can use them to travel back?"
Luckily, Falerra was quite accommodating about those matters and gave him a sincere response: "Those formations were indeed connected to our home, but I don't think you should use them, as many things could have happened after so many years."
"But what if I need to go back?! Is there any assurance that it would be a safe trip?"
"Don't do it unless you can get a deeper comprehension of the space power. Furthermore... with the ability of the Nihility Dimension, you should be able to travel back and forth between this world and the outside. Maybe there are portals even for our old home."
Atlas thought about the few portals inside the Nihility Dimension and nodded: "Indeed, they are connected to other places, but I don't know if they are part of that place or the universe."
"Well... you should check it out, but only when you are strong enough. After all, who knows what you can find out there... Those vicious beasts could have attacked again, for what we know."
They kept thinking of various things until Atlas's curiosity halted their thoughts: "You know about the stigma and its powers. Falgnis even helped me unlock the Nihility Dimension. But how is that possible?!"
Falgnis had not given him a proper explanation for this, so he could only ask this again.
The dragon looked back at them, confused for the second time. He had inherited memories about the dagger but knew nothing about those things.
"Well... we met its previous owner. Actually, he was the one selected by the Progenitors to lead us here in their stead. So, we managed to uncover a bit of information."
"You met the previous owner?" Atlas asked, seeking confirmation.
"Indeed... It was called Gobul, a great leader and undoubtedly our savior, but a mysterious existence that had appeared and disappeared right after our migration."
Atlas had thought that he would have said another name, one that was greatly imprinted in his mind, yet the name of Nihilir didn't escape from his lips.
As for Gobul, he had never heard of him, not even from that underground place or from the mysterious cave inside the Nihility dimension. But, surely, it was a mysterious being, and at this point, the only one who could know more was Nihilir.
Falerra and the dragon let the young man digest all of the information, pitying him a bit. They knew how much this matter could change a person's life.
Half an hour passed in silence, and finally, Atlas opened his eyes again: "So... little dragon, what will you do from now on?"
Knowing the truth didn't change the fact that his life had to continue.
Atlas had a lot going on in the world, so he turned the subject to where it all began.
"Since he has chosen you as his inheritor... I will follow you and help in case you absolutely need it."
"Great... What about you, Falerra? Even if you are only a remnant of your past, your soul is still pretty strong. Maybe we can find a solution?"
"I would like to follow you too... But I can't!" Falerra sighed sadly but then continued: "Actually, I have an idea..."
"What do you mean?" Atlas asked.
"I would like to borrow this little fellow's body for a while and visit my brother's island. Maybe he knows more than I do about recent years. As for this fellow, he is more than happy to help me."
"If it's fine for him, then no problem... But I can't follow you there because if I cross one of those portals, the temporary connection with this place will be lost. And I can't waste so much time."
This was another limitation of the Nihility Dimension. Atlas learned about this from the old book.
"Don't worry about that... I can go there alone... It's just that you can't summon this fellow for a bit."
"That's fine... but before that, let me conclude with him..."
Turning his gaze back to the dragon, Atlas looked at him with a weird smile: "So, are you ready?"
"Of course!"
"Good... What should I call you then? You should have given yourself a name already, right?"
"Indeed... I won't let you choose my name... that's certainly."
The dragon's attitude was surely arrogant, but Atlas didn't dare to scoff at him for this because he deserved more respect than the little bear.
"Well... then?!"
"You should call me... Deus!"
Heard his name, Atlas placed his hand on the creature's head and recited: "Human and Creature may be different, but their heart could still be connected... The bond must be consensual, as nature dictates... When these prerequisites are valid, the Soul Ethereal Pact will bind the Human and Creature for eternity..."
The area around Atlas and the dragon shook as if space was going to shatter.
It was utterly different from Uranus's case.
Indeed, the energy around them was so shaken that some parts of the cave were hot like hell, and some were cold as the purest ice.
Constricted by the strange phenomenon, Atlas found it difficult even to speak, yet after a while, a single word came out of his mouth: "Deus!"
Saying the name, time stopped for an instant, as if immortalizing that moment for eternity.
|||
Just when the pact was stipulated, somewhere very far from them. The prophecy of the Sun Child started to spread all over the universe.
The one with the Immortal Beasts...
The Bearer of Good Fortune and Immense Misfortune…
The one who would have ruled countless worlds like the Primordial Sun of the beginning...
But this was a story for a distant future.