I had no doubt about what James Grant said. I followed behind him, moving through the corridor, heading toward Division 106.
In this world, aside from someone as powerful as James Grant, I have yet to witness just how strong Emperor God and the other two creators truly are.
If we want to find Rachel Lan, and locate Lily Wu and Nathan Li, what stands before us are the three creators. If we can't break through them, we won't accomplish anything.
"Ethan, you've seen the training beneath my Base One, haven't you?"
I nodded. Thinking back, I couldn't help but feel a sting in my heart.
James Grant gave those people tremendous hope. Looking at their faces, they worshipped him with fervor. I don't know the specifics of the training, but Crimson Night, under James Grant, is like steel—impenetrable. The members of Crimson Night take pride in those who died during missions.
"I lied to them."
For a moment, I stopped. James Grant turned around. In the darkness of the corridor, his face was innocent and smiling. I had already guessed this much.
"It has always been this way throughout history. Although I came to this world long ago, through those who arrived later, I learned a lot about the living world and human history. Every ruler is the same: they give hope to those below, make people believe in them, and twist it all into an unbreakable rope. Only then can you overthrow a regime."
"You told them that after death, they could be resurrected, didn't you?"
As I spoke, a smile appeared on James Grant's face. He nodded slightly.
"That's exactly right."
I felt a bit uncomfortable inside. Risking your life for something with no real basis, and using such deception so that Crimson Night's members could gladly choose death the moment a mission failed.
Like the two sides of a coin, I began to understand what Eli Lear had said before.
"Behind hope, there is always such a cruel side."
I couldn't refute James Grant's words. I didn't have the strength to do so.
"You've probably experienced that moment when hope shatters and turns into despair. No matter how much hope you hold, how strong your faith is, when despair comes all at once, there's nothing you can do."
After hesitating for a while, I slowly nodded, then quickly shook my head.
"No, Mr. Grant, maybe I would have agreed with you two years ago, but now..."
I gripped the necklace at my throat and smiled.
"No matter when, even in darkness, I've never given up hope."
"Is that so? My apologies, Ethan."
James Grant said this, then laughed and sighed.
"You can't hate the world just because it gives you pain. It's something like that, Ethan. On you... I'll find a way—even after death, to resurrect. In this place, since the three creators can create people and other things, as long as I find the key, the lie I told will become reality."
I stared blankly at James Grant. His eyes were full of passion. I nodded and continued to float along with him.
We could go faster now. James Grant seemed to know every corridor by heart. Watching his back, I couldn't help but smile.
"What's wrong, Ethan?"
"You and Luna Quay really are one person. You're the soul, and he's your body."
"Is that so? If I could go back, I'd really like to see what my corpse looks like. We..."
With a thunderous crash, the corridor ahead suddenly collapsed. Dust filled the passage, and in an instant, I sensed someone in the swirling haze. James Grant's expression turned serious.
As the dust gradually settled, a trace of gold appeared. Slowly, I saw the outline of a burly figure becoming clearer—a man who looked about fifty, with long golden hair, dressed in an ornate, wide golden and black robe. His face was furious, with two golden mustaches.
"So I finally found you, James Grant. Heh, I'm not a patient man. A few days ago, I sensed your movements, so I came here today. I didn’t expect to actually catch you."
The man before me radiated an incredibly powerful aura, and as he approached, it only grew stronger.
"Is that Emperor God?"
I asked, and James Grant nodded, forcing a stiff smile.
"Emperor God, you've been chasing me for quite some time, haven't you?"
"Not that long, heh. This time, you won't get away, James Grant."
Emperor God's eyes never left James Grant. He completely ignored me, as if I were invisible.
"Your Crimson Night has caused me quite a bit of trouble. Let's go up—it's too cramped down here."
With that, Emperor God shot up through the collapsed section. James Grant floated after him. Only then did I notice a hole, just big enough for a person to pass through, as if something had burrowed out.
"We still..."
"We can't escape, Ethan. The moment Emperor God appeared, we were already in his world."
My heart lurched. I followed James Grant up through the hole. As soon as I emerged, I was stunned—a vast expanse of yellow earth, nothing around, the whole world eerily silent.
"This time, there won't be any loopholes for you to escape, James Grant. It's been over a hundred years since I last caught you."
With a swish, I drew Belle. There was nothing left to say. My heart raced with excitement, but waves of fear surged up. Emperor God stood before me, like a world unto himself, and I felt so small.
"Charm, malice, and darkness—all these powers inside you, kid. With so much chaos in your body, it's a miracle you're still alive."
Emperor God was already right in front of me. I was completely unprepared, and malice kept spilling out from around my body.
"Just stay out of the way and watch."
In an instant, all my malice vanished. Belle clattered to the ground, and Emperor God was already before James Grant. With a bang, I saw the moment they clashed—a surge of immense power rippled out, pushing toward me.
I immediately raised both hands. The force felt like it would tear me apart—my clothes and even my skin were scraped by the power, and black blood dripped from every part of my body.
Emperor God stood tall, while James Grant was already half-kneeling on the ground, clutching his chest, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
"A bit stronger, James Grant. Looks like I can have some real fun with you."
I tried to release malice, but couldn't. The air was so dense with Yin energy I could barely breathe. My power was suppressed inside my body.
"Ethan, stay back, or you'll die."
James Grant shouted. Though I didn't want to, I gritted my teeth and turned to run.
"Oh, so these are the ones Xu Fu cares about. Pretty ordinary, really. They have instincts, but they're too plain, and their darkness is too weak."
Emperor God spoke. I turned to glare at him. James Grant slowly floated up, raising his hand. I saw Yin energy visibly sparkling in the air, faint blue light like particles gathering in his hand, forming a long halberd.
Once James Grant gripped it, he roared, and the particles swarmed toward him.
With a swish, James Grant lunged straight at Emperor God's head. Emperor God dodged, then immediately swung the halberd.
In an instant, lightning flashed and thunder roared. A storm whipped up around James Grant. I was already hundreds of meters away from the two, but still had to stab Belle into the ground, gritting my teeth. The immense suction nearly knocked me off my feet.
Not a single one of James Grant's furious attacks landed on Emperor God. I couldn't see clearly anymore—how many strikes did he make in a second? All I could see was a figure glowing with soft white light, constantly shifting attack stances, the white shadows overlapping. Emperor God stood motionless in the air, letting James Grant attack as if he were striking a shadow, his eyes proud as he watched James Grant.
I was nearly at my limit. Belle was halfway buried in the ground, and I was swept up by the raging air currents, pulled toward the area where James Grant was attacking.
"Haa..."
Suddenly, I heard a loud shout. With a clang, I crashed to the ground. Looking over, I saw the earth behind Emperor God crack and rise as if struck by a massive earthquake, dust billowing everywhere.
White hair floated quietly in the air. James Grant gripped the halberd with both hands, but as he thrust at Emperor God, the weapon stopped—Emperor God had caught it between two fingers.
"You..."
Despair filled James Grant's eyes.
"So you were never fighting me seriously?"
James Grant roared, and Emperor God simply uttered one word.
"Yes."
"Some real heavy hitters have arrived in this world. Phantom Sage's premonition has never been wrong, so it's best to catch you, the one who's always scratching our itch, first."
I stared wide-eyed and shot toward them. James Grant threw his head back, blood spraying, and the halberd in his hand dissolved into a stream of energy, slowly fading away.