Chapter 1006 Pulling the Curtain The transition from the present Kahn to the future Kahn marked a significant power shift. The future Kahn showcased an array of new and spectacular skills, many of which surpassed the capabilities of the current Kahn. Even with the various skills that had allowed Kahn to navigate through life-threatening situations in the past, he had not reached the level of overpowering his opponents with effortless one-shot attacks until this moment. The battlefield became a showcase of unparalleled strength, with the future Kahn unveiling skills that surpassed even the creative imagination of his present self. The discrepancy in power was evident, and the enemies faced an adversary whose abilities seemed to transcend the limitations of conventional understanding. The Apostle of War mode proved to be overwhelmingly superior to Kahn's Asura and Shura modes. Future Kahn effortlessly dispatched the resurrected saints with single moves, displaying a level of mastery that made his opponents seem like amateurs. Despite the immense power exhibited, the future Kahn had not yet unleashed some of his most potent techniques, such as the Dimensional Cut. Despite holding back, he effortlessly turned the tide of the battle, showcasing his dominance in combat. The contrast between the current Kahn's approach to battling saints and the future Kahn's effortless dispatching highlighted the vast difference in combat prowess. While the current Kahn relied on a combination of abilities, strategic thinking, and various tactics, the future Kahn showcased the ability to eliminate opponents with a single move, seemingly disregarding conventional restrictions such as ranks, elemental affinity, and bloodlines. It displayed the stark difference in combat and experience the future Kahn had along with the capacity to completely overwhelm his opponents in a fight where he was hugely outnumbered. ---------------- Kahn in his titanic form with a Wolf's head and Dragon Wings shifted his attention to the next saint called Neamon Stragvor, the 4-meter tall bare-chested brawler class warrior. This time, he simply pointed his palm towards the saint who flew in the sky 4 kilometers away. "Get over here!" he commanded. "And soon, despite being a 5th-stage saint himself, this brawler-class saint felt like his entire body was suppressed by an imaginable force. "Argh!" he screamed in fear. "Why can't I activate my domain?!" he exclaimed and looked at Anakin's direction. "Activate your domain? Are you an idiot? He is a 5th-stage saint himself who is providing his own world energy to keep you all alive and give you strength to fight. On top of it, he is using his Divine Weapon which eats a Hero's Soul Essence. Even as we speak, he is losing his levels and world energy drastically. And on top of it, his Domain of Chronokinesis is also active." revealed future Kahn. "This guy is expending so much of his energy that he can't even move from his place to assist any of you in this fight. Yet, you expect him to give you enough supplies to activate your domain?" explained Kahn. This was the true reason why the Hero of Time was only watching from afar and not directly fighting Kahn despite seeing him obliterate his party members. Using his domain and the divine weapon simultaneously had already constrained him to a degree that he was akin to an immovable object. "And this is why you shouldn't have resurrected them, Gideon. Using your Divine Weapon and Domain at the same time was already such an idiotic move. It's like you still haven't learned anything despite me beating you multiple times." said future Kahn in an admonishing tone. "If only had you focused on fighting by yourself instead of relying on your allies in this timeline. Besides, did you forget that I fought these losers and killed them the last time we battled? Hell, even the new version of me managed to kill them at Beginner Grandmaster rank when all of them were Semi-Saints. So what made you think that it would be any different than before?" mocked Kahn in a condescending voice, humiliating the Hero and his party members. "What… what does he mean by that? He has fought and killed us before? And what did he mean by 'new version of me'?" asked Knull as his gaze shifted to Anakin. "Tch! Tch! Tch… Gideon. You should have told them the truth already." said Kahn and declared to the rest of the Hero's Party. "He and I are both from the future. He used a spell to come back in time. Also, he already knows that every single one of you fuckers were just pawns of the imperial family. That Ariel, the priestess who pretended to be in love with him in the future was secretly fucking the Imperial Prince and was only using this fool because the prince wanted to get the Hero of Time on his side to gain an advantage in the race to become the next Emperor." declared future Kahn. "He also knows that in the future, many of you will betray and abandon him in dire situations despite him risking his life multiple times to save you morons. He does not see any of you as his friends or allies anymore… No, he only sees all of you as expendable pawns that he is going to discard in the future. That's why he brought you all with him to kill me despite knowing that most of you would die by my hands anyways." his kingly voice echoed. This sudden revelation by Kahn left all the enemies asunder because now all of them started connecting the dots. Anakin Redfield, the Hero of Time held a meeting over 4 months ago where he forced them to comply during that gathering and also forced a contract seal on them which prohibited everyone from revealing this secret objective from the Imperial family. He had forced them to practice multiple ambush tactics and ways to counter certain attacks, skills, and abilities just so they could fight Kahn by saying that his Clairvoyance Divine Ability showed him glimpses of future. And now that the Hero of Darkness had pulled away the curtain, every single thing made sense to them. The only difference was that things did not go according to the plan as most of them were being killed for the 3rd time apparently. And the only one they could blame it on… was the Hero of Time. ---------------- As the battle continued in Babylon… a signal was lit up in a different plane of existence. In the realm of nothing but Death and Darkness, an imaginably huge being spanning thousands of kilometers, seated on a throne suddenly opened its blistering fiery red eyes. As soon as the future Kahn used the Authority of Hero of Darkness and opened the Gate of Abyss and used the Hellfire to kill Ariel, it acted as a beacon and awoke this transcendent being in the Eternal Abyss. "The Transcendent Rune of Reminiscence has been used. Kahn has returned." spoke this personification of Death and Darkness also known as… The God of Darkness. "Looks like the Dragon delivered upon his promise. Without him storing his soul along with Kahn's in the future, he would not have been able to return to the past even with the Rune since the rune itself only activates by the blessings of God of Time." spoke God of Darkness. And right beside him, was a being whose height was 10 thousand kilometers. This Knight-like being with two massive blades on his back and adorning a Black and Red ancient armor spoke in a stern voice… "Well, he was the strongest and noblest of them all in the history of Vantrea. Of course, he would keep his word." The being that responded was none other than Kravel, the War Deity. "So by now… the Hero of Time must be fighting the future Kahn." he stated. "Correct. But I'm more concerned about the task he gave us before we sent him to the current Kahn of this timeline through the transcendent rune." said the God of Darkness solemnly. "I have gotten Yama and Mors to accept 2 of the subordinates as their Apostle. However, the Deities that could bless Armin and Rudra are mostly from the enemy camps who serve the God of Life and Goddess of Knowledge. Originally, I wanted to propose Rudra as the main candidate to Mors. But when I got there, he had already found Jugram who was far more suitable because of his bloodline." stated Kravel. "I see. This seems like a better choice to me. Rudra… I have no hopes for him anyway. He will either be useful or stay like an expendable pawn in the future while others become far stronger. And he is no match for the Kahn of now no matter how noble his bloodlines are." spoke God of Darkness without much concern in his voice. But next, God of Darkness smirked but his expression couldn't be seen because of the skull he had for a face… "As for Armin… There is one deity though. She is most likely to take him as her apostle." he stated. "She? I do not think it will happen given how much she detests you, the Death itself." responded Kravel in an incredulous voice. "Yes, I know. But she loves this world. Her genuine concern for saving the world far exceeds her hatred for me. And did you forget about her falling out with the God of Nature 3 thousand years ago when we initiated the hero summoning for the first time?" stated God of Darkness. "I remember. She was the only deity who opposed bringing humans from other worlds whose souls allowed them to become a Demi-God in our world. Saying that they would break the great balance of life with their existence." replied Kravel. "Yes. And after how close we are to nigh destruction, she will be forced to act up in the form of choosing Armin as her apostle, especially since he is a walking-talking personification of both nature and sentient plant species." spoke God of Darkness in a devious tone. "Make use of her desperation." he spoke and commanded Kravel. "As you say, my Liege… I will contact Demeter." he responded and bowed. Finally, when Kravel was about to leave… "What do you think will be the result of the conflict?" asked God of Darkness. "Between Kahn and Hero of Time?" asked Kravel. "No, Between Kahn and… Kahn." spoke God of Darkness. "Because in the end, whether it is the Future Kahn or the Current Kahn..." said God of Darkness with a bemused and sinister tone. "Only one will remain."