Chapter 1499
Leon gazed at the ancient scales motif on the first page of the Death Tome, and couldn't help but recall the Equilibrium Codex he had obtained earlier. The codex, with only six core offensive rules, could nonetheless bind the two most advanced meditation laws—and even forcibly add a new core formula to the Heart of Elements. This was the power of balance: seemingly useless, yet possessing a terrifying, irresistible might.
The first chapter didn’t radiate any overwhelming aura, yet it suppressed all the chapters that followed. Back when Leon obtained the Magic Device Components, he hadn't considered this. The components were integrated into the Death Tome in the order they were acquired, but that sequence had no impact on the tome’s power—or on the components themselves.
But now, it was clear that the sequence did matter. The Chapter of Balance was the foundation—the strongest Magic Device Component, and the key to suppressing all others that followed.
With the emergence of the Chapter of Balance, the chains on the surface of the Death Tome vanished completely. The chains that the tome had once conjured on its own were now obsolete. As long as the Chapter of Balance was present, no matter how rebellious the Magic Device Components inside became, they would be utterly suppressed—leaving no chance for chaos.
That strange soul, which previously could barely protrude—at least forming a small cluster of light on the tome’s surface—was now like a rigid, abstract oil painting stamped onto the page: not a single trace of its former turbulence remained.
The Chapter of Balance had just appeared; Leon hadn’t even had a chance to test its powers when a burst of intense light suddenly flared across the Death Tome’s surface. The light flickered—and in that instant, Leon vanished, leaving only the tome floating in place.
The Death Tome snapped shut on its own, drifting quietly in midair. Ripples—visible even to the naked eye—spread outward from the tome, as if a new world was forcibly being carved out right there. The tome remained, but no one could reach it.
Leon was enveloped by the light, startled at first, but quickly regaining his composure.
When he reappeared, he found himself in a void—an expanse of absolute nothingness. In that emptiness, a beam of light slowly emerged, and from within it stepped a humanoid figure. With each step, the figure’s form changed: first a skeleton, then a zombie, and finally, on the third step, a living person radiating a strong aura of life. The figure looked eighty percent like Leon, but its gaze was as deep as an abyss.