Chapter 1623 A Fiery Galaxy Author's Note: Unedited Chapter ----------------- "Yeah, yeah, you're superior. We get it. But here's the thing—when time is your weapon, nothing is truly beyond reach." Endric's voice was steady now, filled with cold satisfaction. The being's glowing form dissolved into a smaller, humanoid shape. The shimmering light vanished completely, leaving behind an alien figure with pale, translucent skin and wide, fearful eyes. It looked up at Endric, trembling. "No! Please! You've reduced me to my former self! I—" "Exactly," Endric interrupted. "You're not a cosmic superior being anymore. You're just... whatever you were before. Not so untouchable now, are you?" The other two cosmic superior beings watched in stunned silence. For the first time, their confident auras wavered. One of them eyes narrowed dangerously as it spoke with a tone of anger and anguish. "You dare? Do you understand what you've done? You've defiled one of us! You will pay for this!" The crystalline realm began to shimmer as the two remaining beings prepared to unleash their power. Reality itself began to warp as their presence caused the ground to crack and the air to pulse with energy. Endric raised a hand as he spoke with a calm voice laced with authority. "Try it, and I'll make sure you meet the same fate as your friend here. I'm sure you'd love to go back to being powerless mortals." The two beings hesitated. Though their power far surpassed Endric's group, the display of the Ultimate Reverse had shaken them. They glanced at each other hesitantly. Endric continued with a cold tone. "I'm taking the sword. You've lost. Deal with it." The cosmic superior beings didn't move, but their glowing forms dimmed slightly, a sign of reluctant acceptance. Endric, Sersi, and Ria slowly began to retreat, keeping their eyes on the beings. The pale, trembling figure of the reverted cosmic superior being collapsed to the ground, clutching its head in disbelief. "You will regret this, mortals," one of the remaining beings hissed as its voice trembled with suppressed rage. Endric smirked. "Maybe. But not today." The group reached the edge of the crystalline realm and the shimmering walls of the dimension began to ripple as they prepared to exit. Endric's time clone merged back with him and the memories of everything flooded his mind. As the portal to leave opened, Ria muttered, "That was way too close. I don't ever want to fight one of those again." Sersi, though limping slightly, gave a weak smile. "Speak for yourself. I kind of enjoyed it." Endric glanced back at the beings one last time as his green rune glowing faintly. "This isn't over. But for now, you stay out of our way, and we'll stay out of yours." With that, the group vanished through the portal, leaving the crystalline realm behind. The remaining cosmic superior beings stood in silence as their forms flickered with rage and uncertainty. As they reappeared in the vast emptiness of space, Sersi sighed heavily. "That was... insane. Unc, I don't know whether to thank you or yell at you for getting us into that mess." Ria chuckled. "Let's go with both. Definitely both." Endric leaned against the wall of their spacecraft as it materialized around them. He closed his eyes briefly and sighed in exhaustion. "We've got what we need. The sword's location. Now we just have to get there before anything else happens." He had bluffed to get them out of there unscathed but they needed to leave before the cosmic superior beings realized that he was completely spent and couldn't pull another Ultimate Reverse. ... ... The galaxy Gustav had entered was unlike any he had traversed before. Planets resembling molten orbs of fire orbited chaotically around a massive, sun-like star that emitted waves of intense heat. The fiery light bathed everything in hues of orange, red, and gold, casting a perpetual glow across the region. Gustav's spacecraft began to groan as it adjusted its shields to withstand the intense radiation. "Second to last vestige… one step closer," Gustav muttered as he analyzed the readings from his system. The vestige's presence was clear—it was within one of the molten planets directly ahead. He furrowed his brow as he eyed the fiery orb. 'In it? Of course. Nothing's ever straightforward.' As Gustav descended onto the planet's surface, the temperature outside was unlike anything most life forms could endure. Lava rivers snaked across the terrain, and geysers of molten rock erupted sporadically, sending embers into the thick, ash-filled atmosphere. The ground trembled under his feet, radiating waves of unbearable heat. Gustav barely flinched as his body adjusted automatically to the conditions. His enhanced physiology rendered the deadly environment harmless. "System, confirm the vestige's exact location," Gustav commanded with a calm look despite the infernal chaos surrounding him. [ Vestige located approximately 60,000 feet beneath the surface. Warning: Hostile entities detected. Proceed with caution. ] "Hostile, huh? Nothing new. Let's see what they've got." Gustav began moving forward as the molten ground solidified beneath his steps while his cosmic energy radiated outward, cooling the immediate area around him. However, as he approached the coordinates, a thunderous roar echoed across the fiery plains. From the shadows of towering magma-encrusted rocks figures began to emerge. The beings that surrounded him were towering creatures. Their skin appeared like molten rock, veins of glowing lava coursing beneath the surface. Their eyes burned like embers, and their voices were guttural and deep, resonating like the rumble of an earthquake. They carried massive weapons forged from the planet's magma, and their movements were deliberate and menacing. "Human? No... outsider! Intruder!" one of them growled, stepping forward. Its molten blade rested on its shoulder, dripping fiery liquid. "I don't want to fight. I just need something that's buried here." Gustav's voice was calm but firm. He stopped walking and crossed his arms as he scanned the growing circle of enemies. The largest of the beings stepped forward with its molten chest glowing brighter as it emitted waves of heat. "Your kind is not welcome here, humanoid. Leave now, or be reduced to ash." Gustav sighed while tilting his head. "Listen, I'm in no mood to deal with this. I need what's buried beneath your feet, and I'll take it one way or another. Trust me, you don't want the other way." The creatures exchanged glances as their glowing eyes narrowed. "We do not care for your words. Your presence alone is an affront to our sacred grounds. Prepare yourself, outsider!" Without further warning, the largest being lunged at Gustav, swinging its molten blade with enough force to cleave through the toughest of steels. The air hissed as the blade descended, but Gustav didn't move. At the last moment, he raised a single hand and caught the blade effortlessly. His fingers clamped around the molten weapon as if it were made of paper. "I warned you," Gustav voiced with a low and dangerous tone. The creature roared in frustration, attempting to yank the weapon back, but Gustav's grip was unyielding. With a casual flick of his wrist, he shattered the weapon into molten shards, sending the giant creature stumbling backward. The rest of the creatures roared in unison and charged. Their massive forms shook the ground with each step. Gustav remained still, watching their approach with an almost bored expression. "Alright, guess we're doing this the hard way," he muttered. As the first wave of creatures reached him, Gustav's body emitted a faint glow. With a single sweep of his hand, a powerful shockwave of energy erupted outward, knocking the attackers off their feet and sending them tumbling across the molten ground. Some crashed into rocky formations, causing magma to spill out, while others were hurled into the rivers of lava. "This is pointless," Gustav called out as he watched the creatures struggle to rise. "None of you can hurt me. And I'm definitely not leaving until I get what I came for. So why waste your lives?" One of the fallen beings growled as it's molten face twisted in defiance. "You will not defile our sacred grounds! Even if it costs us everything!" The creatures regrouped, summoning pillars of fire and molten projectiles from the ground. They hurled them toward Gustav with unrelenting ferocity. The air was soon filled with the sound of crackling fire and roaring magma. Gustav stood his ground, raising his hand as the projectiles came within inches of him. "Enough," he said. With a single clap of his hands, a shockwave of energy exploded outward. The fiery projectiles disintegrated mid-air as the ground beneath him solidified, and the creatures were thrown back once more. This time, the force of the shockwave left them dazed and disoriented. Gustav stepped forward, radiating with an aura of unparalleled power as the ground trembled beneath his feet. The creatures, now battered and clearly outmatched, began to falter. The largest among them, the one who had first attacked, staggered to its feet and raised its glowing hand in a gesture of surrender. "You... you are not of this world," its voice trembled with a mix of awe and fear. "What are you?" "I'm someone you don't want as an enemy," Gustav glowing eyes locked onto the creature as he replied.