CHAPTER 41: LEON’S PAST!

Then he remembered—the notifications.

He quickly pulled up the system log, eyes narrowing in focus.

┏━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━┓

[You have finished the LVL 7 Dungeon (Nightmare Mode) within 1 hour and 40 minutes.]

[You will be granted 10 stat points + Mission reward for finishing 10 minutes early.]

[Mission Reward:]

• 10,000 Gold Coins

• 30 Stat Points (to distribute freely)

• Ability to choose dungeon mode

• Starter Pack

Total Rewards:

➤ +40 Stat Points

➤ 10,000 Gold Coins

➤ Starter Pack

➤ Dungeon Mode Selector Unlocked

Next Nightmare Mode: LVL 50

┗━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━┛

Leon blinked, stunned.

Joy swelled up in his chest, but it quickly mixed with something else... confusion.

’Wait... the starter pack? Shouldn’t I have received that when I got the system?’

A half-smile pulled at the corner of his lips.

’Tch. This system really is stingy...’

But far away—in the soul subspace where the crystal rested in silence—it stirred.

It had heard every word.

And more importantly, it had felt his emotions.

It sighed softly to itself.

’I was so happy... so excited to finally meet him after all these years... that I forgot my place. Forgot the rules.

Now the restriction is fully active. I can only guide him when he reaches the appropriate level.

Until then, I can’t say more... not without triggering the lock.’

A sad ripple flowed through its consciousness.

’He doesn’t even know who he is... He thinks he’s just the son of some SSS-Ranked freak. He doesn’t know what blood flows through his veins.’

Its voice dimmed into silence—lost in ancient memories.

Far beyond dungeons, across the borders of mortal perception...

A semi-dark realm.

And in its center—a floating throne.

A silver-haired man sat upon it. Golden robes draped around his form like royalty carved from starlight. His long, glowing hair was tied into a warrior’s tail—ancient cultivator style.

His presence alone illuminated the vast black void around him.

But what lit the shadows more than his glow... was the mana.

Not blue.

Not green.

But red—dense and overwhelming, as if the very air was saturated in divine authority.

He wasn’t just in control of the mana.

He was the mana.

His light-blue eyes stared into nothing.

Calm. Cold. Eternal.

He looked middle-aged. But his soul?

Billions of years old.

Below him, ten meters down, hovered a lone crystal—the crystal.

The one now fused with Leon.

It shimmered quietly, as though sleeping in wait.

And beneath that?

A colossal temple.

Lined up in endless formations were creatures—beasts, humanoids, hybrids. Billions of them, each standing ready in terrifying silence.

Those with humanoid forms held weapons not forged of metal—but sculpted from condensed red mana.

Their bodies glowed faintly. Eyes burned with crimson will.

And in their chests... tiny crystals. Just like the one above.

A divine army, waiting for one word.

Then the man on the throne finally spoke.

His voice rolled like thunder.

"The other Nine High Gods are here again... and this time, they come prepared."

He didn’t smile. Not anymore.

"Fools. All of them. They still think they can stop me with this?"

He shook his head, the weight of boredom dragging down his words.

"No one among them is a worthy opponent. Not anymore."

He slowly rose to his feet. The air trembled.

"They fear me because I defy Dao Law? Because I am the God of Mana? Because I am unbound?"

"Let them fear me. Rules are for the weak."

His voice became a whisper, sharper than any blade.

"Go. Destroy their armies."

"Leave the gods to me."

At once, the army roared. Not with sound—but with will.

Their presence cracked space itself.

In a flash, they vanished.

Faster than light.

Faster than thought.

Gone—without a single footstep.

Then, beyond the veil of silence... came the clash of godsteel against godsteel.

War had begun.

Only one being remained—the crystal.

The man turned his gaze toward it, gaze unreadable.

He raised his hand.

The void cracked.

Two crystal daggers surged forward—ripping space itself to obey his will.

They didn’t float. They didn’t hesitate.

They rushed to him—one to each hand, like lost children flying home.

The crystalline weapons hummed. Alive. Ready.

And for the first time in eons, the man smiled.

Then he said, voice deep with power and prophecy:

"It begins... at last."

...

"Raze... Lumen... can you see how foolish they still are?"

The man sat with a calm yet disdainful expression, his voice low but resounding like distant thunder.

"It hasn’t even been a century since I disciplined them, and now—here they are again. Begging for a lesson..."

He glanced at the twin crystal daggers beside him—floating faithfully at his sides.

Raze pulsed with a faint crimson glow, always eager for carnage.

Lumen, on the other hand, shimmered softly in icy blue, quiet, patient... calculating.

"And you two... bloodthirsty as always," he muttered, lips curling into a smirk.

"They want to bind me with ’Dao Law’? That nonsense applies to Qi-wielders. I am their superior... I don’t follow rules—I define them."

His eyes darkened.

"Though I stand among them... I am still the strongest. If only it were that easy to kill them, they’d have long become ash. But no... their resurrection techniques are a pestilence."

He clenched his fist, and a pulse of mana cracked the air around him.

"I’ve created a counter to their cycle... but it requires rebirth. Reincarnation. Growth from scratch through a path none of them could ever conceive—a method that only I know."

He paused, eyes narrowing.

"But time... I’ll need at least a million years. They’ll become suspicious if I vanish that long. Might even dare defile my temple in my absence."

He scoffed.

"If I were a cultivator, I could just say I’ve gone into seclusion. But I’m not. And I will never be one... I hate cultivators!"

He rose to his feet, power cascading off him in waves.

He turned to the twin daggers.

"Stay here. I’ll have words with you when I return."

In a flash of red-gold light, he vanished.

***

A/N:

If you’re still confused, this is a backstory of Leon’s past...