The explosion was far worse from the outside.

While Aaliyah and Thaddeus were able to avoid it because of Plaguelord’s artifact, the forces fighting to block the star destroyer weren’t so lucky.

Countless warriors lost their lives.

But with their sacrifice, they saved countless more.

The star destroyer was a planetary object despite being constructed by man, so its collapse wasn’t something light. The sheer amount of damage it did to the starry sky alone would remain for hundreds of years to come.

Countless hundreds of kilometers of space distorted chaotically, and traversing the area around Throh became nearly impossible.

In a sense, Heaven’s Army had faced defeat on this battlefront as well. After all, aside from destroying the star destroyer, the main goal of the attack on Throh was securing a supply route to the Soul World.

While this was still somewhat possible, it was far more inconvenient due to the area’s current condition. Not to mention, the planet Throh didn’t exist anymore.

Even the entity that resided within the world had fled during the star destroyer explosion. Heaven’s Army wasn’t even able to completely confirm its identity, only that its form was similar to a snake.

Only a stray World Core remained in Throh’s place.

Perhaps, someday, it would be able to bloom into a planet once more.

Nevertheless, events continued after the explosion. There was no time to ruminate over mysteries that couldn’t be immediately solved.

The battle wound down eventually, and because a majority of the Nox forces in the area had been decimated by Sherya’s tactics, cleanup was far easier than it shouldn’t have been.

The normal Heaven’s Army soldiers worked ceaselessly for many days to perfectly clean the battlefield. Meanwhile, the higher authorities were far away, partaking in a completely different type of battle.

A mental standoff against a Demigod wasn’t a joke, especially when an unknown situation caused that Demigod’s kin to activate a protective charm given to him by said Demigod.

Priscilla Adelaire was barely able to hold the Plaguelord back using her authority and ability, along with the help of those extreme peak 4th classes supporting her.

“The victory…is ours.” A relieved murmur leaked from her mouth. In the current pregnant silence, it was incredibly loud.

The atmosphere shifted immediately.

The building tension died down, and even though they were in the presence of a Demigod, these extreme peak 4th classes didn’t have any more fear.

They’d won the battle, and since the Plaguelord’s son didn’t die, they didn’t have to worry about retaliation.

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The Plaguelord’s broken words were like a bucket of cold water on the spreading atmosphere of calm.

His gleaming eyes glanced around the encirclement.

“Universe prohibits, my participation, otherwise only death…”

“…disdainful.”

The Demigod began to move. He stood up from his seated position and floated unhurriedly through the crowd around him.

They didn’t lift a finger.

They could do nothing but avoid him, lest the universal law activate its prohibitions.

Priscilla Adelaire watched him leave with an indifferent face.

“You may outstrip us in strength, but remember: the universe’s restrictions are protecting you just as much as it protects us. You aren’t even an Emperor yet, and you dare to be arrogant? Any of our Holy Masters could end you with a single finger.”

Plaguelord’s movements paused. His head turned, his eyes glaring at Priscilla’s small figure.

“We, will see…Ancient Battlefield, true stage.”

Leaving those words, he turned around and left.

Those present couldn’t help but feel as if his existence was dissonant, a feeling that got stronger the further away he got.

‘A Demigod isn’t called a higher existence for no reason.’

It was a shared thought amongst those extreme peak 4th classes who participated in the mission.

They hadn’t battled him, and thanks to Priscilla’s power, his Avatar had been subdued rapidly as well. But just from that single showing of power and his latent aura, they were clearly able to see that he was Heaven and they were Earth.

Priscilla let out a deep sigh.

“Let’s go. Let’s regroup with the main army and assess the situation before planning on how to proceed from here, Plaguelord won’t be a problem anymore.”

“How do you know?” A nearby combatant asked.

Priscilla’s eyes became hazy as she looked in the direction the Plaguelord left in.

“…that man isn’t as complicated as he appears.”

Her eyes were filled with indiscernible emotion, yet within mere sparks of an instant returned to their usual indifference.

There was still work to do.

Now that they’d won the battle, a connection needed to be made with Soul World, and Eden’s situation needed to be stabilized,

The war wasn’t over. In fact, now that such a huge battle ended in Heaven’s Army’s victory, they needed to capitalize on their momentum and move with more fervor than ever before,

‘Before the Nox can dig their claws too deep in the Soul World and Beast Domain, we need to be ready to counteract them. Never again can we allow the situation to turn out the same way as it did in Eden.’

Perhaps it wasn’t a total Dead Zone like the Elven Domain, but Eden was also uninhabitable at this point. The majority of its worlds were either destroyed completely or corrupted beyond repair, and the Plant Races had taken a massive blow to their numbers.

If the universe kept losing as it had been, it wouldn’t be long before it was totally destroyed.

‘Amidst all this bad news, it’s at least good to know that our universe is still producing geniuses.’

A small smile formed on Priscilla’s face. This kind of expression was so incredibly rare that if any of her acquaintances saw her currently, they’d directly faint.

‘Damien Void, just what kind of person are you?’

The advent of a genius who could hold back an Emperor, create miracles, and single-handedly push both concurrent battles to victory with his own actions…

If this wasn’t enough to make her smile, just what was?

Priscilla clenched her fists as she moved towards Throh to regroup with the main army.

As long as Damien stayed on the battlefield, they’d one day meet.

And when that day came…

‘If his character is ideal, he could be the perfect successor to the Demon Sealing Pantheon.’

In no time at all, Priscilla and her group reunited with the main army and continued their duties.

All things proceeded as they should, and the universe regained a modicum of peace, even if it was only for a brief moment.

Things were silent for a week or so after the battle as Heaven’s Army and all those associated with them celebrated their victory and planned their next moves. Contact between Sectors was at an all-time high as well, with innumerable forces coming together as one to support the relief efforts.

But there was something nobody knew, not even the utmost experts of the universe.

The 9 Sectors together formed a delicate balance that allowed the universe to function at its maximum capacity.

They were all cogs in a massive wheel, and each held a certain significance that couldn’t be explained properly in words.

Now that two of them had been destroyed…

Cracks began to appear in the wheel’s foundation.