"I witnessed the entire birth of this universe and worldview. When I saw them living so happily... I felt sick."
—Distortion
A gloomy sky... tiny raindrops landed on every corner of the icy continent...
The rustling sound of the rain was soothing, like gentle words entering my ears.
Taga was sitting in a chair, flipping through a book... The cover of his book bore no title, only a blank, animal-hide cover.
The book contained numerous words that Taga didn't quite understand, but from others' perspective... the book looked completely blank.
Syl was returning to the cave carrying a basket of herbs. He saw Taga sitting on a stone chair, flipping through the book she was reading.
"Do you understand this?!" Syl stared at the book in Taga's hands with a hint of surprise, his eyes widening.
"Hmm? Honestly... I can't understand what's written there at all... I can only make out the pictures..." Taga squinted slightly in embarrassment as he looked at Syl's surprised expression.
"You can even see pictures?!" Syl's tone grew even more astonished! He hadn't expected Taga to be able to understand this ancestral heavenly book!
Even he and previous generations of magicians had spent their entire lives studying the heavenly book, only to comprehend most of it, perhaps even fragments. Yet, Taga could actually see both the text and the pictures.
"So?! What are those pictures saying?" Syl looked at Taga excitedly, his eyes filled with longing and curiosity. He wanted to know everything Taga had seen.
"The picture depicts five figures, and a figure in a golden robe holding a sphere... and two extremely terrifying figures." Taga narrowed his eyes and described what he had seen in detail.
"What else?!" Syl continued excitedly, hoping Taga would quickly tell him everything he had seen.
"And... on an icy island, there's a strange ruin... covered in various carvings, and inside, a tall statue... but its face is unclear..." Taga pondered everything he'd seen, and then an idea struck him.
"You said..." Taga raised a finger and looked at Syl, who then looked back.
"Could it be that the ruin is on this island?" They both spoke their thoughts in unison, their thoughts coming to the same conclusion.
"How about... we go look for it now?" Taga looked at Syl questioningly, his eyes seeking his opinion.
Syl looked at Taga, smiled, and nodded, agreeing to travel with him.
"Thank you..." Taga smiled at Syl, his eyes etched. His smile was so beautiful, so youthful... even after so much had happened, he remained optimistic.
"Before that! I need to pack! I've got some important stuff for the adventure! Can you wait for me?" Syl stretched his lithe body, clenching his fists until they crackled.
"Okay. I'll be happy to wait patiently." Taga looked at Syl and nodded, gratitude evident in his tone.
Several minutes later...
"I'm done!" Syl excitedly emerged from the cave, carrying a large bag. Taga, who was sitting in front of the cave, turned and looked at Syl, startled by the mountain-like backpack.
"You're carrying so much..." Taga scratched his head awkwardly. He hadn't expected Syl to carry so much.
"These are just in case. I only brought some food and books." Syl raised his nose confidently, proud of his preparedness.
"Do you need me to carry them?" Taga stood up and looked at Syl.
"No need! I can do it myself!" Syl raised his nose and looked at Taga, indicating that he could do it.
They were on their way to the expedition, looking so happy...
And on the other side...
Distortion was sitting on a large ship, and behind it, the sea was densely packed with ships! Aboard these ships were thousands of soldiers, their eyes emitting an eerie red light!
The Alkaros army sailed across the sea, their target an island shrouded in darkness...
The island was shrouded in darkness, appearing lifeless and lifeless.
Soon, the Alkaros Empire ship docked. The planks slowly opened, and thousands of soldiers disembarked. Distortion sat on his throne, his palms gently cupping his cheeks.
Several soldiers slowly lifted Distortion's throne. They lifted the tall throne with their hands, and Distortion, seated on the throne, looked down at them.
They carried the throne slowly forward, their path clattering under the pounding of the soldiers' footsteps.
The wet road didn't deter the Alkaros soldiers; they continued to follow the soldiers at the front carrying the throne...
After walking for a while through the mud... they arrived at a church...
In front of the church, several men in red robes stood at the doorway, seemingly welcoming Distortion...who had arrived.
Distortion slowly opened his eyes and looked down at the red-robed men. He gazed down at them, and the red-robed men, in turn, bowed respectfully.
"Welcome~ my great friend of our God~" the red-robed men said in unison, their voices filled with respect.
"It seems~ you've been expecting this~" Distortion responded politely, a tone tinged with a hint of sinister undertone.
"My god has long since told me that your arrival will bring us a future!" the red-robed figure said in a high voice, his hands tucked into his sleeves.
"Then... take me to greet your god!" Distortion glared at the red-robed figure with a wicked smile. The red-robed figure turned and waved, motioning Distortion to follow him.
The soldiers gently lowered the throne, and Distortion slowly stepped down, following the red-robed figure's footsteps.
The red-robed figure led Distortion to the church and slowly pushed open the doors. Upon seeing the door, several red-robed figures kneeled in prayer in strange postures.
Before each of them lay bowls of a strangely smelling black liquid. They bowed their heads in silent prayer, mumbling something, then slowly lifted the bowls of black liquid and drank them all in one gulp.
Distortion silently commented on all this from behind them. His eyes held no trace of disgust, fear, or any other emotion, only a hidden evil and distortion.
After all the red-robed men finished drinking the black liquid, they turned and knelt before Distortion. They knelt respectfully, worshipping him.
"My God and mighty Distortion! Please bring us a future of destruction, so that this entire Oldworldverse may be reborn in great glory!" The red-robed men knelt on the ground, their hands wide open, and spoke these strange words with great emotion.
Distortion watched as their lips curled slightly, their strange teeth and tentacles twisting against each other, as if in agreement.
Distortion walked along the red carpet, slowly approaching a strange mural carved into the wall. On the mural, a strange eyeball was carved.
"I have come to greet you, the reborn demon of the past!" Distortion gently placed his hand on the eyeball. At Distortion's touch, the eyeball slowly glowed with an eerie red light. Immediately, the wall cracked, like a seal breaking open!
In the space within the wall, a figure was entangled in chains, but the surrounding fog obscured its form. Within the fog, a strange red light emanated, as if an extremely eerie being were watching over everything!
"Welcome back, our god! Under your leadership, we will bring the entire Oldworldverse its deserved rebirth!" The red-robed people looked at the figure, all in worship, without a trace of fear, as if they were enjoying it...
Distortion turned his head to look at the red-robed people... He spoke slowly...
"Thank you for your efforts... Now you will receive our gifts!" Distortion smiled wickedly and summoned tentacles from his hands. The red-robed people continued to kneel respectfully on the ground without any resistance...
They were about to take action...
And above all else...
A pair of eyes were watching Distortion's actions, and he simply observed everything silently...
"This story is getting more and more interesting..." The owner of those eyes smiled, then turned to look in Taga's direction...
He seemed to be expecting something...