Chapter 4894: Storm V Expectant because he got a glimpse of just how powerful an Absolute like THE Primordial Paradox truly was. Based on this aura, based on the weight that pressed against his enhanced foundations, Noah currently felt that THE Primordial Paradox had to be hundreds of times grander in Immensity and power than what Noah had achieved. Hundreds of times. And this was just the aura, just the leaking presence of someone who hadn’t even finished emerging yet. This made him very much look forward to matching and exceeding it. It also made him even more cautious of the other members of THE Four. He truly could not underestimate THE Living Paradox or THE Creature if their power operated on similar scales. He was only beginning to play with Embodiments and Apophasis while they’d had the chance to do so for eons. The gap was immense. But gaps could be closed! That was what infinite potential meant. "..." As he was thinking all of this, not fully realizing his own grand feat of withstanding the aura of THE Primordial Paradox when even an Absolute had fallen to her knees and was trembling behind him, the emerging entity opened his eyes. The first thing THE Primordial Paradox saw was Noah. ...! THE Primordial Paradox blinked for a moment as if he was adjusting to Observable Existence after eons of compressed storage within THE Antinomia Prismatica. His obsidian eyes focused, sharpened, and then recognition bloomed within them alongside something that looked almost like relief. A smile spread across his face. He was grand and regal and majestic! His obsidian form had solidified into something more defined than Noah remembered from their journey through THE Prima Indifferentia, as if the time spent within the Antinomia Prismatica had concentrated his existence rather than diminished it. His crown of spinning paradoxes rotated above his head with authority that made the golden river beneath them ripple with uncertainty about whether it was a river at all. He gazed toward Noah and spoke with a voice that held the weight of one of THE Four. "It has been some time, Youngest." His smile held warmth that seemed at odds with the devastating aura still radiating from his form. "I had my doubts after you disappeared in that Crack within THE Prima Indifferentia. The method you used to escape was not one I would have recommended." He paused. "But... it is good to see you. It is good to be back." BOOM! The raging aura that had been spreading out of THE Primordial Paradox was reined in soon after, pulled back into his existence. He now only appeared like the regal figure that he was, his Immensity no longer leaking out to crush everything in the vicinity. But it had leaked out. And precisely because it had leaked out, because the signature of THE Primordial Paradox had blazed across THE Agora of Primordial Judgment like a beacon announcing his return, responses were coming. The auras of three Absolutes descended behind Glossikos. They materialized from spatial distortions of beings who had sensed something impossible and come to investigate with all the speed their foundations could provide. They were the other three Strategoi of THE Agora! Khaotikos arrived first, his chaotic form shifting between states of matter and energy as his essence refused to settle on any single configuration! Ontikos arrived second, his form radiating the calm weight of Existence itself. He was always immensely calm, always composed, always certain of his place in the order of things. But even he showed a trace of shock on his features, a widening of eyes that shouldn’t have been capable of surprise. Paradoxos arrived third, his dual faces expressing different variations of the same astonishment. One face showed fear. The other showed something that looked almost like recognition! The three arrived like titans of Immensity, their combined auras pressing against THE Mouseion with authority. They were looking toward the scene of THE Primordial Paradox and Noah with astonishment and disbelief. Noah looked at the newly appearing Absolutes with interest. THE Primordial Paradox did the same, a silent smile remaining on his face as he surveyed the beings. His gaze settled on Ontikos. Or rather, on the eyes of Ontikos, which were actually holding the gaze of another entirely. "O Creature." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺 THE Primordial Paradox’s voice was calm but held an edge of something that might have been amusement. "You will not welcome me back in person and only look through the eyes of your follower?" ...! Before these words even settled, before anyone could process the implications of THE Primordial Paradox addressing THE Creature directly through Ontikos’s borrowed sight, the ancient Absolute turned his head. He looked toward the visage of Paradoxos. His smile faded. What replaced it was an imperial gaze that held no warmth, no amusement, no patience for anything less than absolute obedience. Paradoxos’s dual faces became ashen. Both of them. Fear and recognition transformed into terror and submission as the weight of that gaze pressed against his existence. He took a step backward unconsciously, his massive form retreating from someone whose physical presence was smaller but whose authority was incomparably greater. "Kneel." THE Primordial Paradox said the word calmly. HUUM! In the next moment, as if the command had to be obeyed, as if the very concept of Paradox that comprised Paradoxos’s foundation answered to a higher authority, the titanic Absolute fell to his knees! The impact of his kneeling shook THE Mouseion. Paradoxos wore an expression of ashen shock, his dual faces both displaying the same horrified realization that he had no choice in this matter. The weavings of Paradox around his body fully obeyed THE Primordial Paradox because THE Primordial Paradox was the source from which his understanding of Paradox had flowed! A stream could not rebel against its river. A branch could not defy its tree. And an Absolute whose foundation was built on Paradox could not resist the one who had defined what Paradox meant. THE Primordial Paradox looked at this kneeling being as he spoke with calm that made the scene even more terrifying. "It doesn’t seem like my disciple is looking through your eyes like THE Creature is looking through this other one." His head tilted slightly. "Can he not spare any attention right now? I always told him to plan ahead many steps." He shook his head as if he was a teacher slightly disappointed with a student who hadn’t heeded his lessons. "Ah, well." He then looked at Paradoxos and asked calmly. "Who do you serve?" Paradoxos trembled beneath the weight of that question, his entire existence shaking with conflict that went beyond physical response. His dual mouths opened to answer. "I follow the Way of Parado..." "Hush." HUUM! Noah’s eyes shone brightly as he felt an oppressive unseen weight land on Paradoxos, silencing him mid-word with authority that sought no resistance. The Absolute who had been attempting to speak found his voice stolen, his declaration interrupted by power that didn’t need to be explained or justified. THE Primordial Paradox asked again. "Who do you serve?" The question was the same, but the weight behind it had intensified. It wasn’t asking for a philosophical answer about Ways and paths. It was demanding a declaration of allegiance that would bind the one who spoke it. The dual faces of Paradoxos became even more ashen as he lowered his head in submission that he couldn’t resist. "I serve..." His voice trembled. "Paradox. THE...Primordial Paradox." BOOM! The declaration settled over THE Mouseion. One of the four Strategoi had just declared his allegiance to a being who had supposedly been collapsed and consumed by THE Living Paradox. And that declaration couldn’t be taken back. THE Primordial Paradox nodded, accepting the submission with the grace of someone who had expected nothing less. His expression shifted as he turned back to Noah, the imperial coldness fading into something warmer. He smiled. "Youngest, what have I missed?" His voice held genuine curiosity. "It seems like there is much to be done." ...! Noah looked at the figure of THE Primordial Paradox with shining eyes. Within a minute of his revival, this being had forced one of the four Absolutes of THE Agora to kneel and declare allegiance. Within a minute, he had reestablished his authority over those who followed the Way of Paradox. Within a minute, he had reminded everyone present why he had been counted among THE Four for eons before his supposed collapse. One of the most powerful entities among THE Four had returned!