Only he slowly moved towards it, as only this path seems to be right for him. Seeing this, others were shocked and confused, even the crown prince Lucifer, and the other eternal god felt surprised, but they could not stop him.

Apollo stopped before the rift. The distorted air shimmered faintly, swallowing the light around it, its surface rippling like a mirror of black glass.

He turned his head slightly, his calm gaze meeting Lucifer's. "Hopefully," he said softly, "we'll meet again."

Before anyone could respond, he stepped forward.

There was no flash, no explosion of power — only a quiet distortion, like a drop of ink vanishing into water. The space rippled once, then stilled.

Apollo was gone.

Lucifer and others were stunned for a moment, but they also, after this, moved forward and entered the first two paths. They didn't know whose choice was right, but whatever it was, they just had to face it.

The place became silent, and the eyes of the statue of the six-winged angel seemed to move before it slowly started to fall down, crumbling.

Apollo didn't know what happened outside, but the moment he entered the distorted path, the silent system voice rang in his mind.

「Ding!」

A cold, emotionless tone resonated deep within Apollo's mind.

[Conditions have been met... Chapter is being matched...]

[Chapter Two - First Sword]

[Chapter begins]

"Hey, what?" He didn't get the chance to understand more, as he instantly seemed to disappear from the current space-time.

"Boom."

The moment he opened his eyes, he once again felt a weird sensation like he didn't belong here and had a mild headache.

"Damn it again. "Fuck, where the hell has this system sent me this time?" He cursed and looked around.

He stood on a wide, windswept plain. A grey horizon stretched endlessly, cracked earth veined with faint threads of light that pulsed like the heartbeat of a dying world.

Apollo pressed his fingers against his temple. The dizziness eased, replaced by a prickling awareness—this place was extraordinary.

[You have entered the Remnant Domain of the First Sword.]

[Objective- Find the severed origin of universe]

Apollo's expression turned grave. "Find the severed origin of the universe…" he muttered under his breath. "System, what the hell is 'severed origin'? At least give some hints."

No reply came. Only the low hum of the wind brushing past his ears—except it wasn't mere wind. It carried intent. Every wisp sliced faintly at his skin like invisible blades.

He looked closer at the horizon. The veins of light across the cracked earth pulsed in rhythm, like something enormous was sleeping beneath the world. Each pulse released a faint sword aura, ancient and pure—so sharp that space itself seemed to flinch.

"What kind of place is this?" He murmured, feeling a bit shocked. But just as he tried to carefully understand the power of swords here, his eternal sword rule seemed to burst out on its own.

It was like it was excited, but that wasn't it; the entire world seemed to resonate with his sword rule and seemed to trigger a natural phenomenon.

The entire place was already filled with countless sword auras of different kinds, but the moment his eternal sword rule came out, it was like a dragon swallowing the heavens. It started to absorb the numerous swords' power, which became his fuel to increase his sword rule understanding.

Streams of sword light poured into his body, merging with his own understanding. Each pulse burnt through his meridians, tempering his soul and mind with unbearable sharpness.

"Ahh—!" he exhaled through gritted teeth. His body shook violently, but he didn't resist. The more the Eternal Sword Rule absorbed, the clearer and purer it became—its resonance deepening, expanding, and evolving.

It was as if his sword rule was breaking a boundary—climbing further and further towards the sword's true essence.

The world trembled with him. The winds turned into countless spectral blades, swirling around his body in reverence rather than hostility, and bowed before him—acknowledging his sovereignty over the sword.

Apollo slowly opened his eyes. His pupils gleamed like swords, sharp enough to split reality itself. "So that's how it is…" he whispered.

He seemed to have understood the sword more deeply and to have reached the peak of the third layer of his eternal sword rule. Now he is only a step away from stepping into the fourth layer and truly becoming a transcendent sword master.

But although he can feel dominant sword rule in the air, he still needs to find out about this place. He can be pretty sure something dangerous is going to happen, as otherwise the system wouldn't send him here.

"This won't be simple…" he muttered. "The 'Origin of the Universe'—just the name itself sounds like something that shouldn't exist in a place like this."

He followed the faint pulsing veins of light beneath the ground. They seemed to form trails—old pathways or battle scars—guiding him deeper into the heart of this realm.

The farther he went, the more distorted space became; at times, the horizon seemed to fold in on itself, and the faint silhouettes of swords shimmered briefly in the air before vanishing like mirages.

After walking for an unknown span of time, Apollo finally saw movement.

He saw humans who seemed to be fighting the creatures, which was familiar to him.

"Abyssal creatures." He instantly noticed the disgusting aura, which he would never forget.

The sight of them brought an instinctive reaction; his body tensed, and killing intent flickered deep within his gaze.

Abyssal creatures.

He would never mistake that stench. That chaotic, corrosive power that devoured life and will alike—he had seen it before, in the Black Flame sovereign realm.

The memory hit him like a blade through his chest—flashes of collapsing skies, screams of dying rulers, and oceans of black fire devouring cities.

And now… he was seeing it again.

Ahead, a band of swordsmen fought desperately against the encroaching tide. The creatures were grotesque—flesh warped by dark weird energy, some with too many limbs, others little more than dripping shadows with eyes like molten blood. Their presence seemed to corroded the land, eating through light itself.