Hiss!
A red slash of blade-light ripped across Penacony's dome. A storm of Nihility raged, tearing through the dreamscape's buildings with withering, unstoppable destruction.
Before the power of Nihility, whether it was Harmony's strength or the dream itself, everything was as fragile as paper.
Not only had she cut Aventurine with a single strike—she also conveniently sent the Astral Express crew to Dreamflux Reef while she was at it.
"Mei, that slash was seriously cool." Koji walked over, applauding.
As expected of Penacony's "main DPS" in that version—this effect was the classic. He could watch it a hundred times and still not get tired of it.
Sure, Phainon's transformation effects were amazing too, but personally, he still felt Acheron's effects hit harder—the crushing, suffocating pressure of Nihility came rushing straight at you.
"I haven't really put in any effort." Acheron said flatly. "That slash doesn't compare to the one I used to cut Polka Kakamon."
"Done watching?"
Acheron and Koji turned at the same time.
A crowd of people appeared slowly—like marionettes on invisible strings—"447" among them. Adults and children, men and women…
"A single slash severing the sky, leaving behind the gloom of Nihility… you are dangerous…" a Pepeshi said in a detached voice.
"A single slash isn't accurate." Acheron shook her head, calmly pointing out the mistake. "It was two slashes. The second one was simply faster."
The Dreammaster was speechless. Was that really what I meant?!
"Puppets of Nihility… the Planet of Festivities has no place for you. Those who live in the shadows should not step onto a brightly lit stage."
"Oh?"
Acheron folded her arms. After the influence of Nihility on her body had been dispelled, her emotions were gradually returning. She looked at them with growing interest.
"What if I refuse?"
The moment the words fell, the colors of the world began to fade, centered on Acheron—until only black and white remained.
That was the power of Nihility: the opposite of existence.
Harmony's strength could unite the masses as one, influence others, assimilate them. But before the Path of Nihility, Harmony would only be swallowed up and assimilated in turn.
"Are you threatening me?"
The Pepeshi's expression changed. He could feel it—Nihility so dense it was practically absurd.
A miscalculation. This Emanator of Nihility was terrifyingly strong. Even if an Emanator of Harmony showed up, it felt like they'd still get cut down.
"You will all die."
Acheron said those domineering words in a calm tone—because she had absolute confidence in her own power.
Right now, even if an Emanator stood before her… even if an Aeon descended… she would still swing her blade without hesitation.
IX, Aeon of Nihility, wouldn't mind how much power a Self-Annihilator took from Them.
"…"
The Dreammaster was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Sure, being stubborn was fine, but even all of them together wouldn't be enough for Acheron to carve up. And an Emanator of Nihility wandering around Penacony at a time like this had a massive impact on the Dream of Taiyi.
If Acheron couldn't be handled… then what about the person beside her…?
Pairs of eyes turned toward Koji. This could be the breakthrough, right?
"What, you think I'm easy to bully?"
Koji laughed. They couldn't beat Acheron, so they turned to him instead—how cute. They really were underestimating him.
Lumine and the others were inside the Serenitea Pot. Otherwise the Dreammaster would've started getting ideas about them, too.
"If you want to fight, fine—worst case, we just sink Penacony." Koji said it with even more confidence—overbearingly so.
Clang!
The sword sang like a dragon's cry. The Divine Sword: Dawn had been drawn less than an inch, yet the power of the Paths began to tremble, rushing toward the divine blade as if competing to be first…
This was a god's weapon—one that could shake an entire world.
Acheron was a little surprised. She hadn't expected Koji to possess a power like that. It was astonishing.
"Stop!"
The Dreammaster shouted at once. They'd thought Koji was the weak link—yet Koji's power was even more savage. The blade wasn't even fully drawn and it was already shaking Penacony's foundations.
Harmony's power was completely useless against Koji. Even when the Dreammaster secretly used the power of Order, it had no effect whatsoever.
"Not much of a scare tolerance." Koji sheathed the sword. "Mei, let's go."
He'd barely threatened them and they were already about to wet themselves. He couldn't even be bothered to cut them down.
Acheron nodded and left with Koji. Enemies without the courage to fight weren't worth her attention either—she wouldn't lose anything anyway.
They weren't even as good as Duke Inferno.
"Haa…"
After the two vanished, the Dreammaster let out a long breath. Finally gone. The pressure had been about to explode his head.
If they hadn't left, the Dream of Taiyi would have failed for sure.
"Ehehehehahaha—what a riot. Want to come to the tavern and be a clown?"
Just then, all the people under the Dreammaster's control started laughing.
It was involuntary laughter—laughter born from instinct, not because anything happened. They simply wanted to laugh out loud.
A red smiling mask appeared out of nowhere. The Pepeshi's expression changed instantly.
Even when facing off against Koji and Acheron, he hadn't looked this shaken.
"Respected Lord of Elation… may I ask what brings You here?" The Dreammaster lowered his posture as far as it could go.
This was a real Aeon. And among all the Aeons, the Aeon of Elation ranked among the strongest.
The Dreammaster was going numb. One Emanator of Nihility had finally left, and now the most chaotic variable in the entire cosmos had arrived.
He had a terrible feeling the Dream of Taiyi was going to fail. Too many things had slipped beyond control.
"Don't be afraid. Aha is a good person—no, a good god. If you want to revive that Taiyi fellow, Aha can't even be bothered to stop you." Aha laughed, sounding almost reassuring.
An Aeon who'd already failed—revived or not, it wouldn't matter. After all, Harmony wouldn't just stand by and let Taiyi return.
To Them, a fallen Aeon reviving was a pretty entertaining joke.
If Taiyi really managed to win the "revival match," Aha would go congratulate Them—and then stuff Taiyi right back into Xipe's body.
Order Taiyi was something Aha didn't like. If the stars ran according to Taiyi's will, there'd be no fun at all.
"Aha's leaving. Are you sure you don't want to come to the tavern and be a clown?" Aha asked again, inviting him.
"No. We appreciate Your kindness, Lord of Elation." The Dreammaster shook his head. Even if he was unhappy, he didn't dare be rude to Aha.
"Alright then—Aha got rejected again. Hahaha! Aha has no face at all."
Aha left—without taking a single cloud along.
The Dreammaster exhaled again. That troublemaking god was finally gone. If Aha didn't leave, he really wouldn't have been able to hold on any longer.
Just managing to endure a conversation with an Aeon was already difficult enough.
But… did Aha really leave?
That unpredictable Aeon of Elation—whatever They did would be "reasonable," by Their standards. Maybe They were watching from somewhere right now.
Forget it. If They wanted to watch, let Them watch. What could they do about it?
Unless the Aeon of Harmony descended personally—only then could Aha be driven away. But that was the last thing they wanted. As remnants of Order, if they were discovered, "the Family" wouldn't let them off.
In a space mortals could not perceive, Aha found Xipe.
"Xipe, someone's trying to revive Taiyi. Aren't you going to take a look?"
"Aha, you already know. They can't do it."
The things mortals did—how could an Aeon possibly not notice?
(End of Chapter)
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