Great Demon King

TLC: Hedonist

The bottom of the vast ocean was radiant blue. Countless creatures swam about all over the cradle of life. Soon after he submerged, an old voice rang in his soul and before he could react, a blue light shone from the water ahead of him before it expanded rapidly, consuming his two avatars.

He found himself looking at a bleak sky with dense, grey smoke obscuring everything. The horizon was nowhere to be seen. No elements nor edicts could be felt around this foreign space. As his two souls spread out to sense his surroundings, he found that he wasn’t bound by anything. It spread out far and wide seemingly without restriction, though he found nothing. It was as if he was trapped in an infinite expanse of nothingness.

“You’re finally here,” said the old voice that filled the entire space once more. All of a sudden, vibrant multicolor lights gave life to the desolate, monochromatic landscape as mountains rose from the ground. The smoke around them began to dissipate, revealing the countless lakes, trees, beasts, and other aspects of nature all at once. It was as though he was witnessing Genesis.

His two souls that had stretched out towards the unlimited bounds retracted back into his bodies. Now, he looked around in confusion. It was as if the world had been populated with life and nature in a single instant. It was a world of unbelievable realism.

“God of Space!” Han Shuo’s two avatars called out at the same time, with one looking towards the sky and the other towards the ground.

Gradually, a vague apparition formed from the grey fog. The ground cracked open as magma rose into the skies before causing a rain of fire to fall, igniting fires on the ground that lit up the lively world even further. The apparition’s shape grew more and more defined until it resembled an old, wrinkled face without a body – just empty, dark eyes that didn’t have a hint of life.

This world was his, a world he had forged with the edict of space. Within it, he was the

Back then in the Fringe, the Hegemon of Space also had his own realm, albeit an imperfect one that hadn’t the slightest sign of life within, which was why he fell prey to Han Shuo’s plans in the end. Yet, Han Shuo could see life within this world. Everything that could be found outside it was here as well. With a sweep of his consciousness, he was instantly able to tell that the world the God of Space had crafted was a resplendent one complete with all forms of life, giving him the shocking realization that in here, even the other Quintessence overgods would be powerless before him.

“That’s right. As you have imagined, here, even the Goddess of Destiny is bound by my rules. That’s why none of the other overgods have dared to come to my ocean directly to talk to me. They always choose other places,” the hovering face said with an eerie smile. “Nestor and the other two asked you to be the one to contact me because they knew that I wouldn’t do you any harm. Even if they knew that I was here, they wouldn’t dare come here themselves.”

“You can read my thoughts?” Han Shuo said, both his avatars wearing expressions of surprise.

“I already said that I am the sole god in this world. Any other lifeform that enters my realm will be bound by my rules. I can even read the Goddess of Destiny’s mind in here; yours is no different. Here, I am omnipotent,” he proudly declared.

It was no wonder the other three didn’t dare to come despite knowing its whereabouts. Han Shuo smiled and said, “What about the one who slumbers in Aethernia? Will you still be omnipotent if she enters your realm?”

The face’s expression turned sour upon mention of the Allmother. Sighing, he said, “This world is sustained with the Quintessence’s power. If she reclaims it, my world will be no more. That’s why I am suffering from the same plight as Nestor and everyone else. If she ever emerges, you and all twelve of us will not live to see another day.”

There was no way the Allmother would give up on the Quintessence nor let a practitioner of the demonic arts roam free. Han Shuo nodded and said, “So I assume you have been expecting me for long?”

“That’s right, far longer than you imagine.” The God of Space smiled as his eyes glowed. They projected various scenes. The first one depicted a tear in an endless sea of stars before switching to a young man at a grave. Then, the scenes showed his experiences at Profound Continent from the moment Han Shuo’s soul took over Bryan’s body, speeding through his magic academy years until his mind broke through to the Diablo Realm at the Fringe before stopping.

Han Shuo didn’t think that someone had been monitoring him since the moment he arrived in this universe. His every move had been within the purview of the God of Space, a notion that sent chills down his spine. “Are you a pervert? You’ve been spying on me this whole time?”

The scenes vanished from the God of Space’s eyes as he laughed in resignation. “You are our only hope, so I had to make sure to pay close attention to you and make sure that no real harm would ever come to you. I alone can watch your every move across time and space. However, it’s not like I monitor you constantly. I don’t watch when your life isn’t in danger.”

Han Shuo took a moment to recall the projections. He didn’t see any scenes of him frolicking with Phoebe and his other women, much to his relief. Clearing his throat, he said, “Alright, I’m here. What do you want of me? Opening Aethernia is also to my benefit, so I’ll do it even without you telling me. As for the battle of the gods, it isn’t something I can avoid participating in. So, there must be something else you want from me.”

The God of Space stared at him in silence for a long time. Then, he whispered, “I want to go to your universe!”

Stunned, Han Shuo stammered, “You... w-what?”

“I want to go to your universe!” he repeated, “All these years, I’ve been trying my best to escape this one, to no avail. I’m bound here. I can’t free myself from the chains linking me to this universe like that person can. I can’t escape it.”

He sighed and continued in a dejected voice, “Even I am unable to leave this universe. You are my only hope.”

As the God of Space, nobody else knew more about the nature of the universe than he did. If even he couldn’t use his powers to leave the universe, Gu Tian Xie really must’ve been quite powerful to be able to pull off this feat. So, the God of Space also hoped that Han Shuo would be capable of something similar as the successor of the Exalted Demonlord.

“Why would you want that?”

“Although I am unable to leave this universe, I can go to any plane I wish with a single thought. In my long life, I’ve seen, touched, and experienced everything this universe has to offer. With nothing left to be explored, every day is boring and dull. It feels as though I’m trapped in a prison – it may be a big prison, but a prison nonetheless. It is not a feeling you can comprehend,” he said in a forlorn manner.

To Han Shuo, this universe was endlessly vast. There were still many planes he had yet to visit. However, the vast distances of space meant nothing to the God of Space. He had seen it all, and could create everything he wanted in his own domain with a single thought. It didn’t take long for Han Shuo to understand the God of Space’s desperation to leave, but he couldn’t agree just yet.

“Given my power, I’m unable to help you leave this universe. Back then, that person was able to come here because he was at the peak of his cultivation. I am still quite far off, not to mention, the one that slumbers in Aethernia will awaken soon. I worry that I won’t survive that ordeal, let alone grow strong enough to help you escape.”

“That’s why we have to make sure she slumbers once and for all!” the God of Space said mercilessly. After a pause, he turned back to Han Shuo and said, “As long as you promise to help send me off when you grow powerful enough, I will aid you with everything I have. I won’t let anyone harm you and I’ll always stand by your side!”

“Will you trust me if I promise you that?” Han Shuo felt that it was an excellent proposal, but by the time Han Shuo grew powerful enough to fulfill the promise, there would be nothing that the God of Space could do to him if he then decides to not do it.

Surprisingly, the God of Space nodded. “I do! After spending so many years observing you, I know you better than anyone else. You are a man of your word who keeps your promises no matter what. So, yes, I will take your word for it!”

Han Shuo didn’t think the God of Space would know him to this extent. He pondered it for a moment: the offer seemed to come at literally no cost to him, so he swiftly agreed. “Alright, we have a deal.”