...

Shin’s gaze remained fixed on Immortal’s body.

His attention was not drawn toward the pair of sinister demonic horns growing from the latter’s forehead.

Instead, it was the aura surrounding him that made Shin’s expression gradually become solemn.

It was a power he was all too familiar with, the ’Power of Corruption.’

During the First Demonic Invasion at the ’Repelling Era’, the Demon Race had left behind countless blessings and curses throughout the Atlas World before their eventual defeat.

Those blessings became inheritances for their future followers.

Those curses tainted the very mana of the world.

After countless generations, these remnants gradually fused together, giving birth to an entirely new form of power.

The Power of Corruption.

It was originally created from the tainted mana left behind by the Demons themselves—a seed prepared for the day of their inevitable return.

The believers of the Corrupted Cult merely inherited that legacy.

Generation after generation, they refined it, modified it, and strengthened it—until the once crude demonic taint evolved into an independent power system entirely its own.

Despite that evolution, Shin knew that it still shared the same origin as the Demonic Power wielded by the followers of the Demonic Churches.

Both were descendants of the Demon Race’s original authority—one represented corruption born from tainted mana while the other represented the pure demonic power inherited directly from true demons.

However, there were always exceptions.

The true leaders of the Corrupted Cult had already pushed that corrupted mana beyond its natural limits.

By continuously refining and evolving it through countless forbidden rituals, they eventually created a higher form of mana.

The ’Sigil of Corruption.’

An authority capable of overwhelming ordinary corrupted mana while possessing an incomparably stronger affinity toward corruption itself.

Immortal had once been one of those chosen individuals.

As one of the’ Messengers’ of the Corrupted Cult, he had successfully inherited the ’Sigil of Corruption’ long before betraying the organization for his own ambitions.

Shin had already learned about that truth during the previous events that the latter had been involved in.

He also knew that shortly afterward that Immortal had secretly formed an alliance with the Demonic Churches through the information network that they had.

But, even with all that knowledge, Shin had never imagined that the man standing before him would accomplish something this absurd.

The crimson-black aura surrounding Immortal silently distorted the surrounding mana.

Corruption and Demonic Power, the two higher forms of mana, coexisted within a single body without rejecting one another.

One originated from corrupted remnants left behind after the Demons’ defeat, while the other was the pure demonic authority possessed only by true descendants of the Demon Race.

No ordinary being should have been capable of wielding both simultaneously, yet Immortal stood there as though he had completely rewritten that rule.

"So..." Shin muttered beneath his breath. "You’ve been busy doing impossible things these days, huh?"

His voice was barely louder than a whisper, but Immortal heard every single word.

A faint smile slowly appeared on his pale face. "You say that as though you’re in any position to judge."

His calm voice echoed across the battlefield. "You are hardly the only person capable of achieving the impossible."

His crimson eyes remained fixed on Shin, pausing briefly before continuing. "You wield more than one Higher Form of Mana yourself."

"In that regard..." A faint chuckle escaped his lips. "...you are far more of a monster than I am."

Shin remained silent. He couldn’t deny it.

Leaving aside the numerous Elemental Powers granted by his contracted Elemental Spirits, his own Transcendent Race already possessed two Higher Forms of Power—the Power of the Brilliant Sun and Power of the Abyssal Moon.

Each one stood at the same level as the ’Sigil of Corruption’ and the pure ’Demonic Power’ currently dwelling inside Immortal.

Not to mention, the ’Power of Eclipse’, which was a special power born after perfectly fusing the powers of the sun and moon into a single existence.

Even his ’Primordial Lightning’ Elemental Powers were also formed based on it.

Compared to the average Transcendent, his own foundation was already absurd.

While Shin was still organizing his thoughts, Immortal suddenly spoke again. "I should be thanking you, actually."

Shin’s brows lifted slightly underneath his mask. "Me?"

Immortal slowly raised one hand, making the crimson-black mana quietly gather above his palm before condensing into a rotating sphere.

The intertwined Sigil of Corruption and Demonic Power constantly devoured and merged with one another, producing an oppressive aura that silently distorted the surrounding space.

"It was after observing your fighting style..." Immortal continued while playing with the two powers on his palm. "...that I realized two incompatible powers didn’t necessarily have to reject one another."

"They simply needed something capable of bringing them into equilibrium." His smile widened ever so slightly. "So, in a way... you inspired this power."

Shin’s eyes narrowed.

Immortal slowly raised his other hand, and a second sphere gradually formed above his palm.

Swoosh...

Unlike the crimson-black mana surrounding his first hand, this one was pitch-black.

It carried no demonic aura, nor did it resemble the Sigil of Corruption.

Instead, it radiated an authority that felt strangely familiar. The surrounding mana instinctively retreated from it. Even the purified Elemental Essence drifting across the battlefield subtly trembled in its presence.

Shin’s pupils contracted. "That power..."

"It resembles the authority possessed by those Elemental Anomalies..." His voice gradually became heavier. "No... It is far denser... far purer... and far more dangerous."

"As expected of you." Immortal nodded in satisfaction.

"This..." He lightly rotated the black sphere resting above his palm. "...is the power that I obtained from our friend sleeping beyond that ancient gate."

His gaze briefly shifted toward the colossal, chained gate standing behind them.

A hint of regret quietly surfaced within his expression. "What a pity..."

"I lacked just enough time." His fingers slowly closed around the sphere. "If I had succeeded in completely corrupting that Ancient Elemental Being..."

Shin’s eyes narrowed as several seemingly unrelated pieces of information instantly connected inside his mind.

"So that’s why..." he muttered. "No wonder you kept stalking Leviathan during that time."

"You weren’t just interested in backstabbing Leviathan to steal the Demonic Orb from him." His gaze gradually sharpened.

The atmosphere between the two instantly turned heavier.

"You planned to obtain it the moment Leviathan finished corrupting the sealed dimensional gate." Shin continued speaking as his thoughts rapidly pieced together the entire chain of events. "The Demonic Orb..."

"Then slaughter energy gathered through ritual of the Demonic Church of Terror under Dragulia’s lead..."

"And finally..." He slowly glanced toward the gigantic, chained gate behind them. "...the Ancient Elemental Being."

"They were all pieces of the same puzzle," Shin added with a heavy tone.

Immortal’s smile widened slightly. "Amusing, isn’t it?"

His calm voice echoed across the ruined battlefield. "Everything has been progressing exactly as I envisioned."

He slowly spread both arms as though presenting the battlefield before him. "Every piece, every actor, every stage—they have all faithfully performed the roles I prepared for them."

His gaze then shifted toward Shin.

Only this time, the smile on his face gradually disappeared. "Except for you."

"You always appear at the final act!" A trace of genuine annoyance flashed through his crimson eyes. "And every single time, you insist on rewriting the ending!"

The surrounding mana subtly distorted.

"A pity." Immortal slowly lowered his arms. "There was only one thing my plan lacked."

"The final catalyst." His fingers curled around the pitch-black sphere floating above his palm. "Without it... I could only steal fragments of our friend’s authority."

The black sphere quietly pulsed. "Enough to forge another Higher Form of Mana."

"But..." He looked toward the gigantic, chained gate once more. "Not enough."

"Not enough to completely corrupt that Ancient Elemental Being, nor enough to free it from its prison as the perfect vessel I had envisioned."

"The grand finale..." He sighed softly. "...had to be postponed."

A brief silence followed.

Then—

"Once again..." His crimson eyes slowly lifted before locking onto Shin’s figure in the distance. "...because of you."

The disappointment on his face gradually disappeared before being replaced by an icy calmness.

Without another word, Immortal slowly closed his fingers.

The pitch-black power floating above his palm quietly sank back into his body, disappearing without leaving behind the slightest fluctuation.

Only then did he straighten his posture and carefully study Shin once more.

Neither of them moved.

The mountain fell into complete silence. The raging winds had long since disappeared. Even the purified emerald particles drifting across the battlefield seemed to slow their movements.

The two simply stared at one another.

Both silently measuring the other.

Both instinctively calculating the outcome should they decide to fight.

The atmosphere became so oppressive that it felt as though the slightest movement from either side would immediately ignite another earth-shattering battle.

After a long while, Immortal slowly shook his head. "What a shame. I had intended to personally verify the power I obtained today."

"And you..." His gaze rested briefly upon Shin. "...would have made the perfect opponent."

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

"But..." He slowly turned toward the gigantic, chained gate. "Our friend has already awakened."

The overwhelming authority still lingering throughout the mountain quietly answered his words.

"The slaughter energy no longer clouds its consciousness, making it remember what it truly is." He lowered his gaze toward the black authority dwelling within his own body. "If I attempt to use this power while standing beneath its gaze..."

He chuckled softly. "...I would merely invite my own death."

For someone who had meticulously planned every move, such a risk was meaningless.

His objective had never been to defeat Shin here. He had already obtained what he came for, so everything beyond that could wait.

Swoosh...

A pitch-black portal silently unfolded behind him. The surrounding space distorted before stabilizing into an endless corridor of darkness.

Immortal took one final look at Shin. "We both know that this is far from the end."

"When the other stage is finally complete..." His smile returned. "I’ll be waiting for you."

Without another word, he turned around. He disappeared into the portal step by step before the spatial passage quietly folded upon itself and silently vanished as though it had never existed.

The mountain returned to silence once again.

Only Shin remained standing before the gigantic, chained gate was left.

His grip around the [Yamato] never once loosened because he knew that the battle they had just avoided today would become inevitable in the future.

Shin remained standing in silence for a few moments after the portal disappeared. His eyes never left the empty space where Immortal had vanished.

The wind quietly swept across the ruined battlefield, carrying away the last emerald particles purified by the Ancient Elemental Being.

Then, the corner of Shin’s lips slowly curved upward.

"Waiting for me, huh?" he muttered before letting out a faint chuckle.

The excitement in his eyes could no longer be hidden. "You’d better not disappoint me next time."

...