Chapter 459 - 459: A new god vein

"What the hell is this?" Tanatos looked fearful while gazing at Derik.

He couldn't understand how Derik managed to kill the beyond's spiritual materialization or that or that of the other cosmic beings, all he knew was that Derik was stronger than ever. The aura he released was even more oppressive than when he was still at the peak of the true God realm. Tanatos failed to understand why Derik suddenly became more powerful and was left confused for a while until a strange thought invaded his mind.

"Did the beyond lose? Consuming a portion of its realm guardian soul is the only way Derik can enter the demigod realm even without regaining his godly essence!" As Tanatos spoke, the fear in his eyes became more visible.

The fact that Derik has consumed a portion of the beyond's soul and he has reached the demigod realm without regaining his essence meant that he would definitely reach the realm protector realm once he finds his godly essence! This means he would be at the same level with the Beyond and judging based on his prior knowledge about their elements and powers, Tanatos was a hundred percent sure that the beyond was only able to kill Derik in the past because of the difference in the realm. He concluded that the Beyond would be easily defeated if it were to face Derik on equal footing just like what happened now.

"We can talk this through! No one has to die!" Tanatos quickly retreated while speaking. Gazing at the gentle smile on Derik's face was even more terrifying.

"Talk? Why would I want to do that? I have the advantage in terms of strength... Your death is assured and my power will rise with your defeat… Choose your next words wisely, your life depends on it" Derik answered calmly.

Hearing this answer, Tanatos calmed down and quickly searched for a way to preserve his life. Running is not an option and fighting is suicidal. The other old gods are most likely too terrified and the beyond is too hurt to even look his way. As a true god, he never thought a day would come where he would need to talk his way out of death. He shot Derik another glance before taking a deep breath and speaking.

"I will let you place your imprint on my soul! That way I shall be your loyal subordinate till the end!" Tanatos said hastily causing Derik to chuckle lightly.

He had to commend Tanatos on the words he chose first since they are the only reason he is yet to rip his head off his body. Although Derik can always kill him and have access to his powers thanks to his perfect death magic, this places too much burden on him. He has seen the power of science first hand and he knows, Tanatos is unable to display his true strength because of his realm. In his opinion, change is necessary, advancement is needed for a stronger race. The powerless humans created by tanatos used these weapons to defeat gold realm experts and even killed Gin! If he didn't step in, all the gold realm masters and a few guardian spirit hosts of the empire would have died on that day. The part about putting his imprint on Tanatos soul was the most attractive since it means the god's life is in his hands. This assures perfect loyalty and this increases his overall power.

"My battle with the beyond is far from over and I need more capable allies so, let's go with this…" Derik said after giving it some thought.

Swoosh!

"I am only doing this because I got to understand that there is strength in numbers… The beyond and I still struggle for ownership of this world… most of the old gods are still on its side and the cosmic beings as well… In terms of numbers they have the upper hand but that doesn't change the fact that I am superior in terms of strength… you will reduce the burden on me" Derik said as he placed his soul imprint on that of Tanatos.

"How am I supposed to compete with the other gods… I have always been the weakest… I lack the strength of the other gods… My strength lies in my inventions…" Tanatos replied in a low tone but seeing a genuine smile on Derik's face he was puzzled a bit.

"I think that why you are the most powerful… we are the past and the present but you… you are the future! You made powerless humans capable of killing Gold realm masters! Tanatos we were enemies and even now, we are still in a bad place but I have to tell you one thing… if any other old god made this request I would have killed them at the spot without a second thought but you… you are different" Derik said.

Hearing this Tanatos was left speechless. This was the first time someone had said so many nice things about his ability.

"Go… finish up their barrier" Derik said to Blink while he released the spatial seal around him and Tanatos.

At the demigod realm, his power has become too great for him to reside in the same realm with mortals unless he's consciously suppressing it. Derik was about to open the passageway to his realm but then his vision blurred as he felt a bit dizzy. A vision of battles going on in an entirely different world flashed across his eyes! Beast men and humans are locked in a bloody battle. In that battle, two beast-men and one human caught his attention! While one was the descendant of a Phoenix god, the other was a descendant of a dragon and the only human amongst them possessed the power of time. Their power was enough to make him frown!

The environment in that world was similar to theirs, yet different. Their abilities were similar, yet different. They looked weak, yet strong! Either way, what caught Derik's attention was not those three. Instead, it was something powerful! Too powerful to exist in this realm.

"What's wrong?" Tanatos asked the moment he noticed Derik in pain.

"A new god vein has appeared and a lot has happened during our absence… the beyond may not be the only one we will have to deal with" Derik said with a bitter smile on his face as blood trickled down his nostrils.