Chapter 1248: 1248. Decision

"What do you mean with too crowded?" Noah shouted to question the god of the Empire.

He could feel his instincts screaming when he inspected the sky. The dangerous sensation that such scenery caused inside him surpassed all the threats that he had faced throughout his life.

His instincts told him to escape, to run away as fast as he could, and never look back. It was as if they had decided that the world was beyond saving.

"The number of powerful beings surpasses what the world can take in its current state," Shandal explained, and his words spread through the sky to inform every powerhouse willing to listen. "The internal pressure caused by all of us is too much for this damaged plane."

Shandal's words left everyone speechless. According to him, the last attack of the divine Eternal Snakes had managed to bring the world on the verge of destruction.

The net of fissures connected to the void didn't remain still. It slowly enlarged as time passed, and that made Shandal's words easier to believe.

The higher-ups had yet to count how many specimens had reached the lower plane after the third wave of reinforcements. Still, it was clear that rank 6 creatures filled both the surface and the seabed now.

Even a perfectly intact lower plane would find it hard to withstand the internal pressure that those creatures caused. It wasn't a surprise that the world couldn't endure them now that it was in that state.

"Almighty!" God's Left Hand shouted as she kowtowed in the middle of the sky. "How do we solve this?"

Shandal glanced at her underling before shaking his head. That gesture already answered her question, but he decided to give more details to inform those unable to see him.

"You don't," Shandal replied. "The world can't start healing until it stops using its energy to contain its population."

Shandal began to leave at that point, but Noah couldn't accept that outcome easily. He had great plans for the myriad of Eternal Snakes that had invaded the world, and he wasn't willing to give up on them so soon.

"Where are you going?" Noah asked. "You have the power to save the world. You are the solution to this problem."

"Heroic cultivators have their hindrances to overcome," Shandal replied after heaving a sigh, "I have mine. I would help you if my actions were to lead to your doom, but you have another world available. You can survive this event without my help, so I won't do anything."

Shandal then teleported above the old continent and waved his hand. The land under him shook, and the terrain opened as a huge landmass rose in the sky.

The landmass wasn't wholly material, and it wasn't only a wide chunk of terrain. It had a white sky and storms above its surface.

Noah and other powerhouses of the Hive could immediately recognize that land. That was Shandal's separate dimension. The god had taken it out in the open without even bothering to hide it from the other cultivators.

The separate dimension shrunk after Shandal performed a sigil with his hand. That land became nothing more than a small white sphere that the god stored inside one of its devices.

It was clear that Shandal had every intention to abandon that world. The powerhouses didn't need any other proof to understand how far gone their world was.

Noah's inscribed notebook rang to no end, but he ignored those messages. A strange idea had formed in his mind, but he knew too little about planes to decide if it was feasible.

"I have one last question," Noah shouted, knowing that Shandal would hear him even if his voice didn't reach his position. "I wish to go over it privately."

God's Left Hand and Great Elder Diana heard him, but they didn't understand why he thought that Shandal would grant him that meeting. However, an azure flash soon shone near Noah, and that halo engulfed his figure.

The azure light threatened to blind Noah, but he didn't show any fear and let the halo create an isolated area. Shandal soon appeared in front of him, and Noah could only sigh as he prepared his question.

A lot would change depending on how Shandal answered. Noah was ready to put his life at stake.

"Thinking of something foolish?" Shandal asked as a faint smile appeared on his face.

Noah didn't bother to nod as he asked his question. "How many existences need to leave for the world to stabilize?"

Shandal's smile widened. The god had to admit that Noah was even more reckless than he thought.

"Hundreds for it to be able to heal again," Shandal replied. "I'm not talking about rank 4 creatures."

Noah fell silent as calculations filled his mind. He had understood what Shandal meant. The migration alone wouldn't be enough to save the world.

"You are about to leave," Noah said at some point. "Three organizations will do the same. They have hundreds of heroic cultivators and a dozen powerhouses. This should be enough to slow the destruction of the world, am I right?"

"Yes," Shandal replied. "I'd say the world will gain half a millennium worthy of time with that migration. My departure alone will delay its destruction for three centuries at least."

'Five hundred years,' Noah thought as the calculations continued in his mind.

That would generally be a short period for a rank 6 existence, but Noah didn't intend to spend that time cultivating. With his Dark Womb spell, he could kill one Eternal Snake and recover in less than a year.

Noah knew that it would be harder to find isolated Eternal Snakes now, but time was on his side. Even if his instincts begged him to leave, his ambition kept making him consider all the benefits he could obtain in that ruined world.

"The dimensional portal can't withstand your pressure," Noah commented after he reached a conclusion about that issue.

Shandal snorted before answering. "I'm a god. I will travel through the void to reach the other world. I will use the dimensional portal only to keep track of the path."

Noah nodded and performed a sincere bow. Shandal had never tried to suppress him, even if he had the power to do so. The god had even helped him without asking anything in return, and he was now answering every question.

Shandal had even given Noah the best gift for an existence like him. The god didn't do that on purpose, but Noah felt that a polite gesture was the proper way to show his gratitude.

"This is a goodbye then," Shandal said as his smile widened. "Don't die. I've already mentioned you to them. It would be a pity if your peculiar existence didn't manage to reach the Immortal Lands."

Noah shrugged his shoulders and floated outside of the azure aura while waving his hand. His mind felt heavy whenever he thought about his decision.

The azure area vanished as Noah walked away from it. Shandal's presence had also disappeared after that, but a similar light shone inside a crack above the Utra nation.

Shandal had left the world, but he had warned his underlings before beginning his journey through the void. God's Left Hand had already left the area and was preparing her organization for the migration.

Noah sighed when he saw that Great Elder Diana left the area too. He picked his inscribed notebook and informed the Demons about the situation.

He also gave a few orders. The Hive had to migrate to the other world and never come back. There was a chance that the dimensional portal would crumble once the lower plane worsened, so they had to hurry.

Then, he contacted someone that deserved a personal message.

"June," Noah said to inform his lover about his decision, "We need to talk."