CHAPTER 229: CHAPTER 228 - ETHER AND DESTRUCTION.

The moment Omni materialized in Raven’s grasp, the world shuddered.

Not the domain but the world itself.

The black-red chains of Voidfire that had been wrapping and wrestling the Destruction flames flared wide, shattering into sparks.

Raven staggered, and the destruction roared back with twice the hunger, spreading toward his chest and face now.

The problem was that he wasn’t very proficient with Voidfire. If he were, then that fire would have been strong enough to push back the destruction and let him take control.

Now, however, Omni had stepped in.

The sword pulsed.

Not just with light.

With something deeper.

Something that didn’t belong to the elements.

Something that preceded them.

The blade shimmered in a silver hue that wasn’t just color—it was conceptual. Not radiant like divine light, nor void-like like space.

It was something older.

It was Ether.

Arietta’s eyes snapped wide.

"No..." she whispered, taking a step back despite her vast divine pressure. Her teacup, untouched and forgotten, shattered on the table behind. "I thought... I thought that was just a theory..."

Graye blinked. "Wait, what’s happening now? He got a shiny upgrade?"

Jessy’s swords twitched in the surroundings. "I can’t feel it. It’s not mana. It’s... like it doesn’t exist."

Rufus was wide-eyed, glyphs stuttering across his rebooting suit. "Not even my suit can detect this. What the hell is Omni made of?"

Even Siris, who could now control an element like Cryovoid, could tell that the light Omni was shining with was something beyond her element.

Clara clenched her fists, realizing that despite growing as strong as she was right now, she couldn’t be of help to Raven, while Selena stepped forward, shielding them instinctively. "That’s not an element."

"It’s before elements," Arietta said numbly. "It’s the energy that gives birth to them. Ether..."

Everyone turned.

"Ether?" Lia asked, frowning.

"The source," Arietta breathed. "The breath of creation. The medium through which the laws of reality exist. It’s older than gods. Rarer than divinity. Untouchable by mortals."

Alex blinked, and Jake also leaned forward. "Okay, but like... is that good or bad?"

"It’s illegal," Arietta said sharply. "That power isn’t meant to be wielded at all."

In the center of the storm, Raven didn’t hear any of it.

He only heard Omni.

"You feel that?" The sword rasped, now glowing with that silvery essence, his voice slower and... quieter. "That’s me bending some rules for you, boss. Not supposed to be doing this. But..."

The blade trembled with a hum that shook the Destruction itself.

"I chose you."

The ether-infused light extended from the blade like threads—gentle, shimmering, weaving through the black Destruction fire crawling up Raven’s torso.

Then, for the first time, the fire paused.

It didn’t retreat. But it shivered.

It recognized what it saw.

Ether was a power that even destruction couldn’t destroy.

As anyone would expect, Ether didn’t fight Destruction.

It unwrote it.

Like reality rewriting its code, the ether laced into the destruction flames and began transmuting them—not suppressing or sealing, but harmonizing.

Bringing them into balance.

It was turning a raw, rampaging force... into a part of Raven.

"Holy crap," Alex whispered. "The fire’s turning... normal?"

"No," Arietta said in awe, breathing slowly. "It’s becoming his."

Even if she were the strongest god in this realm, there were things beyond her control.

Even if she could manipulate most of the elements that exist, there were some that she couldn’t even dream of controlling.

Ether was one, and Destruction was another.

Both of them were now in the hands of the man she came to love.

She didn’t know what to say, but she was happy—for herself, because she now knew that Raven would reach heights no mortal could dream of, and for him, as he could now protect everything he wanted to.

Soon, the platform beneath Raven re-formed.

Grass returned.

The devoured area stopped decaying.

Raven stood straighter. His body still cracked with glowing fractures, but they pulsed gently—no longer from pain.

His eyes glowed red, gold... and now, faintly silver.

But something was wrong.

Omni’s voice... was slowing.

"Boss..." He said, words beginning to slur. "Listen... this ether... not mine to use yet. Ain’t part of our contract. So, uh... there’s a cost."

Raven’s eyes widened. "What?"

"Not... dying or anything." A weak chuckle. "But I gotta shut up. My system says I overstepped."

The blade shimmered brighter, flickering like a fading star.

"My consciousness is going to be sealed. No wisecracks for a while."

"No," Raven said sharply. "There must be a way to—"

"Too late," Omni said, his voice now distant. "Just do me a favor. Use this power. Tame that destruction. Become the beast I know you are."

Then—

A final shimmer.

A final pulse of ether light carved a perfect glowing rune across the hilt.

Then silence.

Omni’s voice was gone.

The blade dimmed, still solid, but now... it was quiet.

Lifeless.

The group stood in silence.

Even Nibbles, now out of signs, held up a blank one.

Clara stepped forward first, reaching Raven’s side. "...Is it over?"

Raven exhaled.

Then nodded.

"...Yeah," he whispered. "It’s mine now. The Destruction obeys me."

Siris came next, brushing the cracks on his chest. "You’re not hurt?"

"Hurts like hell," Raven muttered, cracking a smile. "But I’ll live."

Selena leaned in, her voice soft. "Omni?"

Raven glanced at the sword.

Still glowing faintly... but dormant.

"Gone," he said. "Sleeping. Paid the price so I could survive this."

He didn’t like Omni at first since the sword spoke a lot, but he grew to like him in no time.

Now, realizing that the voice in his head was gone, he felt a bit empty.

Arietta finally approached, her divine glow dimming back to a mortal radiance. Her expression was unreadable.

"You knew," Raven said.

"I suspected," she admitted. "A weapon like Omni—too powerful to be ordinary. But ether? That... changes everything."

"What is he?" Siris asked. "Like... where does a sword like that even come from?"

Arietta looked at them all and answered quietly.

"He’s a god-slaying sword forged from ether. The core of all creation. He shouldn’t exist... but he does. Now—" she looked at Raven, "—he’s bound to someone who is slowly becoming equally absurd."

Graye scratched her head. "Does this make Raven, like... the elemental anti-hero protagonist now?"

Jessy raised a brow. "He already was. Now he’s just got a more overpowered resume."

Rufus held up a board like Nibbles. "Raven: Job class updated. Reality-Breaking Fire Hazard."

"You aren’t Nibbles," Raven deadpanned at the guy. "Stop trying to copy others."

Rufus lowered his head, scratching his head. "It’s the first time I tried to copy some—"

"Did you forget that time when you were trying to learn how to be quiet from Jake?" Jessy asked from the side, her brow raised.

"Uh..." Rufus now had no words.

Alex, on the other hand, looked sheepish. "I still feel like this was my fault."

Everyone turned.

Selena, Clara, and Siris said in chorus, "It was."

Alex nodded solemnly. "I’ll accept that."

Nibbles held up a sign: "SILENCE HIM WITH FERN."

Siris handed Deris the fern over with reverence. "Go, my chlorophyll champion."

Alex screamed as Deris smacked him in the face with a leaf.

Everyone burst into laughter—exhausted but relieved.

Raven, still aching, looked up at the now-restored sky.

Omni was silent.

But his sacrifice had given Raven something more than power.

It had given him control.

It had given him an element with limitless potential.

While others laughed, Raven glanced down at the dormant blade, now pulsing gently with that faint etheric glow.

Without a word, he raised his hand and let the blade dissolve into particles of black light—like ash being taken by a soft wind.

The light spiraled inward, condensing into a tribal tattoo on Raven’s hand.

’Sleep for now, partner,’ Raven whispered inwardly, his voice softer than breath. ’I’ll be waiting when you wake up.’

Then, with a deep breath, he clapped his hands once.

The sound cracked through the group like a spark of lightning.

"Alright!" Raven called out, voice steady despite the wear. "Don’t get lax so soon. The second phase of our training isn’t done yet."

Everyone blinked. Siris straightened, Clara’s eyes lit up, and Selena gave an approving smirk.

"We’re resting for a while... because, well, I need some rest," Raven continued. "Then... we’ll start experimenting with our elements."

Jake gave a silent nod. Rufus saluted with a nerdy "Aye, Captain!" while Nibbles raised a "LET’S GOOO" sign.

Graye pumped her fists like she’d just won a championship. "I’m so ready I could punch a sun!"

Alex flexed like an idiot. "Bro, I’m ready to become the sun!"

Jessy groaned. "Can’t we train in our dreams instead...?"

With that, another day passed in the divine realm.