Chapter 226: Primordial Gods and Demons
"Don't worry, I have a way." Leon's voice was calm, almost confident, as he met Lord Shaun's anxious gaze.
"What are you doing!" Leon nearly dropped the gemstone in fright, barely managing to catch it before glaring and snapping, "You may be an Essence Relic, but acting so panicked—what kind of behavior is that?"
Without another word, he flipped open the Death Tome. The seven runes etched in his mind spilled from his lips, and in an instant, space around him twisted. A planar path shimmered into existence, beckoning him forward.
"Get rid of that thing in your hand, now!" Lord Shaun barked, voice trembling.
Leon shook his head. "I can put it somewhere safer." With a measured step, he entered the planar path. Reality warped, and when it stilled, he stood upon the barren soil of the sub-plane.
"Are you kidding me? This magic gemstone is worth at least a few million gold coins. You want me to throw it away just like that? Are you going to pay me back those millions?"
Two months had passed since Leon last set foot in the sub-plane. Nothing had changed—the silence, the desolation, like a world on the brink of destruction. But he knew the difference: Northend World was dying, while this place was only just born.
"I'm not joking. That thing in your hand... it's not a magic gemstone. It'll only bring you disaster..." Lord Shaun's words hung heavy in the air. "Are you saying the Soul Fragments Prince Barov and I possess came from the same Primordial God-Demon?"
Leon glanced around. The sub-plane was still in its most primitive state, untouched since its creation.
"Oh?" Leon chuckled at that. "Lord Shaun, sounds like you know something I don't, huh?"
Lord Shaun's voice was laced with terror. "Enough questions! Everything about the Primordial Gods and Demons is forbidden. Seeking answers will only bring disaster upon you!"
But Leon knew the sub-plane could change, given enough resources and power. Like the legendary Starcaster Agalon, he could reshape earth, water, fire, and wind—create worlds, birth life, transform this silent wasteland into an independent realm.
"No!" It was just a probe, but Lord Shaun reacted as if he'd been caught red-handed, denying it in a hurry. Then, as if afraid Leon wouldn't believe him, he stammered, "N-no secrets, really. Just listen to me and get rid of it. It'll only bring you disaster."
The Bond of Dominion between Leon and Lord Shaun pulsed with magical tension—a reminder of the long, arduous journey to world creation, one that demanded patience and introspection.
"Forget it if you don't want to talk." Leon instantly understood—Lord Shaun definitely knew something but wasn't going to share. "But, Lord Shaun, have a little sympathy for me, will you? You know that Doombringer Staff in my hand is like a bottomless pit, easily swallowing dozens of Soul Mana Crystals. And you, old man, you're no pushover either. That Soul Mana Crystal is almost digested, isn't it?"
Of course, to reshape the four elements—earth, water, fire, wind—required the power of a Title Archmage. And to birth a world, perhaps only a mage of Heavenly Rank could even attempt it.
"There's... still a bit left..." Lord Shaun's voice betrayed his guilt. That Soul Mana Crystal really was nearly used up, and he'd been plotting how to get another one from Leon these past few days.
But there's no rush...
"A bit..." Leon laughed and shook his head, then pointed at Hubert's neck. "And this glutton—you know as well as I do, Dragonblood Orcs cast spells entirely by burning through mana crystals..."
Still, even if he could instantly turn the sub-plane into an independent world, he wouldn't be able to wield its true power until he reached Heavenly Rank.
"But..." Leon hesitated for a moment, then made up his mind. For now, he'd use the sub-plane as a warehouse. There was no need to rush.
With millions of gold coins at stake, how could I just toss it away? Leon thought bitterly as he carefully stored the Soul Fragment, then retraced his steps back to the forest clearing, the air thick with the scent of moss and ancient bark.
"That thing will only bring you disaster..." Lord Shaun repeated the warning for the hundredth time, stubbornly refusing to elaborate. Leon rolled his eyes, half amused, half exasperated.
For a moment, Leon really had no way to argue with him. With a sigh, he shrugged and asked, "Alright, let's put aside the whole disaster thing for now. If it's not a magic gemstone, then what is it?"
"It's a Soul Fragment..." Lord Shaun finally admitted, after a long, heavy silence. "A Soul Fragment of a Primordial God-Demon..."
"Ashan Dynasty." The moment Lord Shaun spoke those words, Leon drew a sharp breath, torn between awe and a strange, possessive reluctance to part with the fragment.
Legends of the Northend World spoke of the Primordial God-Demons who founded the Ashan Dynasty—a true Golden Age when gods walked the earth, wielding unfathomable magic and limitless power. With a gesture, they could tear the sky asunder, crush the land beneath their feet. Under their rule, all races flourished in peace, and the world brimmed with vitality.
Now, no one truly knows what kind of disaster it was. The oldest records hold only vague hints: the Primordial God-Demons fought against the calamity, saving Northend World, but at a terrible cost. The survivors exiled themselves forever, vanishing into the fractures of time and space.
That era is remembered as the Golden Age, or sometimes, the Mythic Age...
After the Golden Age came the Silver Age, when elves and dragons ruled the land together. Millennia later, Charles the Conqueror shattered the Throne of All Things, the myths faded, and Northend World entered the era of mortal rule—what people now call the Bronze Age.
Empires rose and fell, and even the Third Dynasty founded by Charles the Conqueror has vanished into the river of time. The Ashan Dynasty is even more remote, its echoes found only in epic poetry and myth.
Even at the height of magical civilization, when mages wielded unimaginable power, scholars endlessly debated whether the Ashan Dynasty had truly existed.
Never in his wildest dreams did Leon expect to find a Soul Fragment of a Primordial God-Demon beneath an ancient tree in Four Seasons Gorge...
Truthfully, Leon knew the safest way to deal with a Soul Fragment of a Primordial God-Demon was to put it back in the hole—as if he'd never been here at all.
But he couldn't bear to part with it...
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