Chapter 363: Chapter 363: Welcome Chapter 363 – Welcome Evadam was silent, looking at Noah, doing all he could to keep his expression frozen in time and not let any of his excitement slip through the cracks. It was not easy, though. There was always something wondrous, something deeply profound, about finally seeing the guiding light that could make your dream real. Most of the time, dreams were just that... dreams. They were stars in the sky you longed to reach, and you hoped that simply reaching out your hand would somehow shrink the distance and let you grasp them. But reality was often disappointing. And more often than not... despairing. Evadam had felt that despair. He had felt it pulse through his immortal body the way a fever grips a mortal. It made him sick. It made him weak. It made him... unable to do anything to change his situation. Added to that was his inherent fear...the fear of watching his own creations destroy themselves again, the fear of failing once more as a Progenitor, the fear of failing in his pursuit of Wisdom. He was poisoned. Poisoned by his own fear. And thus came the words he always liked to whisper to himself, in the times when only drones and machines surrounded him: Fear is poison. Because he knew. Because he felt it. But in life, there was always a way out of any situation. Life might be cruel, but in the end... it was just a test. And every test had a way to pass it. You just needed to look for it. Evadam might have found one for himself, given enough time. But one came to him willingly. Noah Vaelgrim. The Third Abomination, as he knew him. Not realizing he was far more than that. He was The Blasphemer. He who controlled Providence. He who had the affection of The Records. He who grew stronger through Love. And love... he had in abundance. It was that man who came to him, showing him a way, a path where he would no longer carry the burden of responsibility, where he could study alongside his own children, seeking a method to make them gods without mana. Study. Experiment. Fail. Learn. Experiment. Fail. Learn. Experiment... Succeed. And then... Knowledge. Then... Wisdom. Ah... In the end, he failed to control his face, as an open smile spread across it — a smile that illuminated the entire room, brightening the atmosphere, making brown flowers burst from the air itself, swirling gently around them, filling the space with warmth and calm. This... this was the simple manifestation of a man’s joy. A Progenitor’s joy. "You are good with words, Noah," he said, then glanced at Virgo. "Something I already noticed, to be honest. But still, your tongue is dangerous." Virgo blushed, though you wouldn’t have noticed it. Noah, meanwhile, simply smiled. "In that regard, am I not more human than you, Progenitor of Humans?" Evadam cackled. "Indeed, indeed, Noah! You remind me of my children...those of the Firstborn." His laughter echoed, more joyful than Noah had ever heard before. "I remember them... oh, I remember them. They were as shrewd as you. Some even more so, like that boy, Loki." Noah and Virgo smiled with him. They couldn’t help it, they were infected by his joy. What a curious thing. After a few seconds, Evadam finally stopped laughing, wiping away tears of joy from the corners of his eyes. Looking at him now, you would never have believed this was the same man who had spoken a minute ago. It was different. Completely different. It was as if a massive cloud of darkness that had been hovering over him for countless years had been pierced, then shredded apart by a light too bright to ignore. And with that, his fear disappeared like mist swept away by a howling wind. With that, his hesitation melted like salt dissolving in boiling water. With that, hope arose in his heart, like the sun rising after a wrenching winter. With that, his joy bloomed within him, like a sunflower blooming beneath the golden light of dawn. All because he had finally let go of the responsibilities that had been weighing him down... and chose to let this abomination take over. How human. How fitting of him. "Will you keep your word?" Evadam asked, looking deeply into Noah’s pale eyes. "I am many things," Noah began, "but not a liar." "They all say that at the beginning...until keeping their word no longer benefits them, and they find a way to twist it," Evadam retorted, then smiled faintly. "But I will believe you, Noah Vaelgrim." Noah raised an eyebrow. "Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate this show of confidence in me, but..." he tilted his head slightly, "...why is that?" Evadam shrugged. "Hope," he said simply. "Hope." Noah echoed, rolling the word around in his mouth as if tasting it, and only then muttered, "What a nasty word." "On this, I can only agree," Evadam chuckled. A sudden silence settled over the room. It was not a tense silence, but one filled with ease and warmth. Noah spoke again, his tone softer than usual. "Then I guess Earth is mine now, Ancestor?" At that, Evadam finally voiced the question that had been trotting through his mind since the beginning. "Why do you call me Ancestor? And now that I think about it..." he arched an eyebrow, "...how do you know the lexicon of Earth?" Virgo also spared him a curious glance, wanting to know as well. Noah only smiled nonchalantly. "Why Ancestor? You know my power. I am whimsical. I like to say whatever whispers through my mind. Don’t try to understand." "And how do I know your lexicon, well..." he stopped for a moment, then continued, "let’s just say I’ve been enlightened in the ways of your world through a dream. A very short dream I barely recall anymore." Both of them looked at him strangely, eyes blank with disbelief. Finally, Evadam sighed. "A secret then?" he asked. "We all have one, don’t we?" Noah retorted. "True enough," Evadam said with a shrug, and another silence blanketed the room. Virgo was comfortable enough to open a chest of candy beside her, casually eating while secretly buying all kinds of games without using any points — thinking she was fooling Evadam, not realizing this was his doing all along. "So, when will you start?" Evadam asked as he stood up from his chair, the drones around him following faithfully. He walked toward a nearby wall, and the wall shifted, transforming from steel to glass, revealing the view outside... into the void. And there, just before them, floated a blue planet orbiting peacefully. Beside the blue planet hung a sun and a moon, both at a safe distance, moving gracefully within their own paths. The sight was majestic. Noah and Virgo stood in unison, walking forward until they stood beside Evadam, their gazes fixed on the mesmerizing view. Noah, especially, felt something stir violently within him. His soul trembled, shuddering in pleasure. That soul, the one that had once been born of this very blue planet and moon, was quivering in joy and excitement. It knew. It recognized. It was standing before its origin. It was... standing before where it all began. "Before starting the process, I would first like to visit Earth," he said softly, his voice trembling with anticipation. "With my siblings and Virgo." He could barely hold himself back from breaking through the glass. Evadam nodded. "You will have to seal your power, then. Earth is not strong enough to bear even a wisp of it. It would be destroyed." Noah nodded in understanding. "We will do so." "As for the process..." Evadam began slowly, "what do you mean when you say Earth will be your heart?" Noah smiled faintly. "Exactly that. I will make Earth my heart. I will rip out my current one... and make Earth the new one." He turned his head slightly and saw Evadam staring at him as if he had lost his mind. "How is that possible?" Evadam asked, incredulous. Noah shrugged. "I will make it possible, Ancestor." His pale eyes locked deeply onto Evadam’s brown ones. "I will make a world my heart." The Progenitor held his gaze for several seconds, then let his shoulders rise and fall in resignation. "As you wish." "Now go do your visit," Evadam muttered, already distracted. "My minds are being attacked by numerous inspirations. I need to start my experiments soon." As he spoke, a flickering panel appeared before him, and a pen etched itself across his hand as he began to write. "What are you doing?" Noah asked curiously. "Never trust your memories, lad," Evadam said, suddenly adopting a sagely tone. "Never trust them. Everything you have in your mind, write it down. You hear me?" He then turned to look at him directly, his expression sharpening. "Always write it down. Now..." His face twisted into a snarl. "GET OUT, GODDAMN IT!" Noah’s laughter boomed through the room, his voice echoing through the void. "I’ll take my siblings and Virgo with me, Ancestor! Wait for us!" And with that, he vanished, taking his companions with him. Finally... Welcome back to Earth, Brandon. Welcome to Earth, Noah. —End of Chapter 363— A/N: Aye. Thanks for the GT and Super Gift! 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖 I bow down to you all!