The portal of white light was extremely clear in the midst of the darkness that devoured the depths of the Earth, easily drawing the attention of everyone present.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Two figures rushed through the curtain of light, almost as if they were trying to run away as fast as possible from something or someone.
"L-Lord...?!" Gabriel's eyes bulged open as wide as possible and a flash of horror and disbelief gleamed in his pupils.
Yes, he was in shock when he saw Bai Zemin returning alive and safe even though he was clearly attacked by a Fifth Order angel... but this was nothing compared to the shock his psyche received when he saw Medes and Uriel suddenly appearing in such a miserable state!
Uriel was still fine as her beautiful fairy-like face was only slightly pale and that was all. Medes, on the other hand, had lost all appearance and dignity that his title as God of Heaven hinted at.
Half of his body was still covered by a thin but terrifying layer of ice, his defensive silver-colored tunic was torn in multiple places, and there were even dried blood stains at the corner of his mouth; he had clearly received a blow that left him with at least medium- grade wounds.
For millions of years, even when it was the turn of the Army of Heaven to stand guard and protect the Abyssal Crack from the Golden Domain's invasion, Medes never suffered medium-grade wounds.
When was the last time Gabriel saw Medes wounded to this extent? In that split second, Gabriel's memory took him back to that battle between the God of Heaven and the Demon God in which they both ended up with serious injuries before parting on bad terms.
While Gabriel was completely stunned and not understanding what was happening, Medes observed the surroundings coolly. However, as Medes' eyes scanned the sparse crowd they suddenly froze on the body of a person.
Bai Zemin's night-black eyes met the clear silver eyes of the Lord of Angels. Suddenly, he smiled indifferently and said calmly, "I apologize for letting you down." 1At first, Medes clung to the idea that what he was seeing was nothing more than a bad taste illusion and his disturbed mind was playing tricks on him. However, when Bai Zemin's voice reached his hearings he immediately knew that what he was seeing was the cruel and grim reality.
Under the shocked eyes of Uriel and Gabriel, Medes' body shook fiercely for a brief moment before staggering backwards and coughing up a mouthful of white blood.
"Lord!"
"My Lord!"
Uriel waved her hand hurriedly, holding back the blood and preventing it from spreading through the water.
Gabriel's body flashed and in the blink of an eye, he appeared next to Medes. He supported him with a face still full of disbelief and asked in shock, "Are you okay?!"
Medes cleaned off the blood and shook his head, signaling that he was fine now. Freeing himself from Gabriel's grip, he looked at Bai Zemin with eyes that showed nothing but indifference and utter detachment.
"How did you survive?"
Bai Zemin raised an eyebrow in surprise, as he hadn't expected this to be the first thing Medes would say.
He smiled slightly and said calmly, "How I survived is none of your business, is it? You just need to know that what you did today completely infuriated me. Your Army of Heaven and I absolutely cannot coexist under the same sky."
In fact, after the Immovable Heart skill evolved some of Bai Zemin's most bestial and cruel thoughts had shown signs of disappearing as his logical mind began to take place.
With the Golden Domain being a constant and formidable threat that could annihilate all life in the universe, Bai Zemin judged that it would not be a good idea to harm the forces on this side too much. Regardless of how hateful most of the Higher Existences might be and even though he did not have a favorable opinion of them, when all was said and done the reality was that they all shared the same common enemy against whom they needed to unite to defeat.
However, today's events infuriated Bai Zemin to the core.
Unlike the Dragon God Kingdom that only targeted him, the Army of Heaven also put the life of the woman he was in love with in danger and even now Bai Zemin knew nothing about Lilith. Besides, he could not deny that the sight of Shangguan Bing Xue crying and in such a vulnerable state upset and angered him more than he thought possible.
He had already made up his mind to wipe out the Army of Heaven at any cost!
Medes gazed into Bai Zemin's eyes for a long time before slowly closing his eyes. If he had any doubt left before, he was now completely convinced that the young man in front of him was the reincarnation of Sirius.
That's because only Sirius had managed to press him down to the breaking point!
"We're leaving." Medes shook his head. He gave Bai Zemin a last glance before disappearing without a trace.
He was so fast that Bai Zemin didn't even see how he left; the difference between the two sides was colossal, to say the least.
"My Lord!" Gabriel wanted to call him back but it was already too late.
He looked at Bai Zemin with a tinge of wariness this time and the smug little smile he always had on his face was nowhere to be seen at the moment.
"Uriel, we're out of here!" as if running away from something, Gabriel turned and quickly stepped across the void in front of him.
The man was in such a state of shock and horror that he didn't even notice the fact that the Archangel of Fire Michael had not returned with Medes.
Instead of leaving immediately, Uriel looked at Bai Zemin and Shangguan Bing Xue who refused to leave his arms as if afraid that he would disappear. A complicated expression shone on her otherworldly face, and although she seemed to want to say something she ultimately only shook her head softly and sighed before disappearing without a trace.
For a couple of seconds, the only thing that could be heard under the deep water was the movement of the rushing waves and the occasional low growl of the giant sea beasts that were oppressed by the auras of those present.
"H-How can this be..." The King of the Coral Kingdom was the first that broke the silence.
His face was deathly pale and his lips had turned purple in an instant. When his eyes looked at Bai Zemin it was as if he was looking at the legendary Leviathan instead of a small human being.
Before, the various Higher Existences had promised him that as long as he helped them obtain the Worlds Connector and hinder or even kill Bai Zemin they would not only help him strengthen his kingdom but also immediately accept him into one of their factions once he met the base requirements.
After learning that there were tremendously more powerful beings out there, the King of the Coral Kingdom felt his icy heart begin to warm with desire. He wanted to step out of this small world and step onto a larger stage where he could show his worth!
However, just like a castle built of sand, the tide of reality hit him hard and destroyed his weak walls he naively thought were unbreakable.
"It's over, Father." Shui Meiying gazed at him with cold eyes and said, "You should never have trusted those intruders. They are all creatures that don't belong to this world but you decided to listen to them. Did you really think they would keep their promises?"
Shui Meiying simply could not understand how her usually smart and clever father seemed to turn into a stupid man whose mind did not work well. As far as she was concerned, those Higher Existences would immediately turn their backs on them once they got their hands on what they were looking for. Therefore, after much deliberation, Shui Meiying chose to ally with a human such as Bai Zemin when the opportunity presented itself.
Ignoring Shui Meiying and the old King, Bai Zemin kept his spear and put his hands on the slender shoulders of the woman who refused to let go of him and clung to his tunic as if her life depended on it, "Bing Xue?"
"Mm." She simply let out a sound similar to that of a small kitten meowing.
"Are you okay?"
"Mm."
Bai Zemin sighed in his heart seeing her in this condition. Although he was extremely worried about Lilith to the point where he was on the verge of insanity since he couldn't see her anywhere, he simply didn't have the will to push Shangguan Bing Xue away. It was clear that the cold and indifferent Shangguan Bing Xue whom everyone secretly called Ice Queen was not as cold as everyone thought. She was cold and detached on the surface, but only Bai Zemin knew that inside she was warm and affectionate like jade hidden under layers of stone. Only he and he alone could see this side of her. It was his special privilege.
While Bai Zemin was lost in his thoughts, something he had been waiting for a long time finally happened.
[The Leader of the 'Army of Heaven' has given up and desisted from extending his influence on Earth. All foreign factions have been forced out].
[All evolutionary requirements have been successfully fulfilled].
[Congratulations, you have acquired the Unique Class 'Blood Warlock'!] 2
Instead of paying attention to the other notifications, Bai Zemin thought on the skill he got when he became the successor of the Sky Emperor.
This skill's name was Sky Ruler and it was neither good for attacking nor defending in battle. In fact, it was locked so Bai Zemin had ignored it until today as he could only use it when he became a Third Order soul evolver.
Now, however, he only needed to fulfill one more requirement and he could finally use that skill. Only then would the Earth truly be his.
The only thing he hoped for was to become Emperor as soon as possible. Only then would he feel at ease and not have to worry about some crazy angel destroying the whole world.
Now that all the factions had left and given up on Earth, Bai Zemin could not rule out the fact that some Higher Existence would do everything possible to destroy this world... and the very thought terrified him.