Chapter 300: Monarch Of Destruction [1]

Far away from the planet Terranis, where humans and countless other races lived, beyond their solar system and the familiar reach of civilization, lay an unknown region of deep space.

In that distant corner of the universe floated a massive planet of dark maroon.

It was an unnatural world.

There were no trees on the land of red and maroon. As far as one could see there were no oceans, no rivers nor clouds. It looked like huge red maroon desert.

There was not even a sun or moon to illuminate its surface.

The planet simply drifted through the endless darkness of space, surrounded by countless distant stars. Their faint light was barely enough to reveal the barren landscape below.

There was no breathable atmosphere here. There was no oxygen and warmth. No conditions that could sustain ordinary life. Yet something lived here.

WHOOOOSH!

Violent winds swept across the planet’s surface, carrying enormous waves of maroon sand. The sandstorm moved like an endless crimson blizzard, covering the barren land and eroding the strange rocks scattered across the planet.

At the center of this desolate world stood a colossal mountain.

Its surface was composed entirely of dark, maroon-colored stone. It rose hundreds of meters into the air, its peak disappearing into the swirling sand.

Near the summit was a massive cave. For a long while, nothing happened.

Then something came out of the cave, it was a sound.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

The sound of footsteps echoed from within the cave. Someone was walking out.

A man emerged from the darkness. He was enormous.

Standing nearly 210 centimeters tall, his broad shoulders and muscular physique made him look more like a warrior forged for battle than an ordinary human.

He appeared to be in his mid-thirties.

His black hair moved wildly in the violent wind, while a pair of dark crimson eyes gazed calmly into the endless void above.

Despite his intimidating presence, his features were remarkably handsome and mature. He stopped near the edge of the mountain.

The man looked upward. Millions of stars glittered across the vast darkness. Farther away, countless galaxies stretched across space like rivers of light.

He watched them silently. Then his lips moved.

"So..."

His deep voice was almost swallowed by the howling wind.

"They’re finally out."

His crimson eyes narrowed slightly.

"After fighting the Puppet of Decay."

For several seconds, he remained silent. Then a faint, mysterious smile appeared on his face.

He stepped forward.

Tap.

His foot reached the very edge of the mountain.

Below him stretched an endless sea of maroon sand. Above him was the infinite universe.

The man stood there alone, gazing into the distant stars as though he were waiting for something—or someone—to appear.

"It went as I expected."

CRACK.

A faint sound echoed through the emptiness of space.

The man standing at the edge of the maroon mountain suddenly raised his head. His crimson eyes narrowed.

The man’s attention was no longer on the planet beneath him. He was staring into the vast darkness above.

Another sound followed.

CRACK.

This time, it was louder. Something was happening in space. The darkness itself seemed to fracture. A thin line appeared across the endless void.

The cracks spread rapidly, branching across the darkness like fractures appearing on a gigantic mirror.

The man’s expression changed. A faint smile appeared on his lips.

"So..." His voice was quiet. "You actually came."

The cracks continued spreading.

Reality itself seemed unable to contain whatever was attempting to cross through.

BOOOOOOM!

Space shattered. A colossal crimson eye emerged from beyond the broken dimensional boundary.

It was enormous.

Its diameter alone stretched for several kilometers, and its blood-red surface was filled with countless dark veins.

The gigantic pupil at its center contracted as it immediately locked onto the lone man standing on the mountain.

Pure rage radiated from that eye. The surrounding space distorted beneath the pressure. Then something began pulling itself through the shattered dimensional opening.

First came an enormous hand. Then a grotesque torso. The creature continued emerging until its entire upper body floated above the planet.

It possessed a vaguely humanoid form, but calling it humanoid was almost an insult to the word. Its body was composed of enormous masses of rotten flesh.

Dark-red and black tissue continuously twisted and moved across its surface. Countless creatures had been fused into its body.

Some were embedded halfway into its flesh. Others had become little more than twisted limbs protruding from its torso.

Faces could be seen beneath the translucent layers of rotten tissue, their mouths opening and closing soundlessly.

Tentacles extended from its shoulders, back, and arms, drifting through space like enormous serpents.

The creature was so gigantic that its body covered a vast portion of the sky. It was nearly half the size of the maroon planet beneath it.

The moment it completely emerged, an oppressive aura swept across the world.

BOOOOOOM!

The planet trembled. Cracks spread across the barren ground. Even the enormous sandstorms were pushed away by the pressure.

Yet the black-haired man didn’t move. He simply stood there. His hands remained casually at his sides.

The enormous eye of the creature focused on him. Then its voice exploded through space.

"IT WAS YOUR PLAN ALL ALONG!"

The voice was so powerful that the surrounding space itself vibrated.

"YOU SET THEM UP IN THAT PLACE!"

The creature’s enormous body trembled with fury.

"YOU DELIBERATELY CREATED THAT SITUATION AND MADE ME GO THERE!"

Its voice became louder.

"AND YOU KNEW THAT DAMN BOY WOULD WEAKEN ME!"

The man listened calmly. Then he chuckled.

"Well, well."

He lifted his head slightly.

"It was your own mistake for falling into my trap."

His crimson eyes glimmered.

"I didn’t force you to go there."

The creature’s countless mouths opened.

"YOU BASTARD! WHY DID YOU DO THAT!!"

A wave of murderous intent exploded from its body. "JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE THE MONARCH OF DESTRUCTION DOESN’T MEAN I FEAR YOU!"

The man’s smile disappeared.

The creature continued.

"DO YOU THINK YOUR TITLE GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DO WHATEVER YOU WANT?!"

Dark-red energy began leaking from its enormous body. It wasn’t ordinary energy. Something that seemed to corrupt the very fabric of space. Wherever that energy passed, the stars in the distance appeared distorted.

"Because of you," the creature roared, "that damn Moon Goddess interfered!"

The black-haired man’s expression remained calm. Until the next words came.

"And because of that boy and her... everything ruined. "

But the Monarch of Decay wasn’t finished. "And that’s not all. That boy even possessed bloodline of a monarch."

The man finally frowned.

Silence. Then man’s eyes widened slightly. A genuine shock crossed his face. The man’s pupils contracted.

"What?"

His voice was barely audible. The creature roar.

"YOU HEARD ME."

He spoke further, "That human isn’t merely carrying the blessing of a God."

Its gigantic eye stared directly at him. "He possesses the bloodline of a Monarch."

The man’s expression became increasingly grim.

"That wasn’t supposed to happen." he muttered.

He lowered his gaze. "It was supposed to be a man blessed by the Sun."

His mind raced. Everything had been carefully calculated. The pieces had been placed. The conditions had been prepared.

The one who was supposed to enter that place had been chosen. The one carrying the Sun God’s blessing.

That was the person who should have encountered the Monarch of Decay. That was how the plan was supposed to proceed.

Yet something had gone wrong. Someone else had entered. A completely unexpected variable.

A young human who should never have been there.

"This isn’t how it was supposed to happen..."

The man’s voice became colder.

"This isn’t what I expected."

The Monarch of Decay immediately noticed his reaction.

Its enormous mouth stretched into a grotesque. "I don’t care what you are talking about!!"

The man slowly looked upward again.

The creature continued speaking. "That boy and the Moon Goddess damaged my soul."

Its voice was filled with rage.

"Do you have any idea what that means?"

Dark-red energy exploded from its body.

"My soul has been damaged!"

The surrounding space distorted violently.

"And it’s all because of you!"

The creature suddenly raised its enormous arm. Countless tentacles erupted from its flesh.

"YOU WILL PAY FOR IT!"

The arm descended.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

A colossal wave of dark-red energy rushed toward the planet.

The attack was so enormous that it covered the entire mountain range.

The man’s expression didn’t change.

He simply bent his knees.

BOOM!

He kicked the ground. The mountain beneath his feet exploded. His body shot upward.

The attack passed beneath him. The sheer speed of his movement was beyond what ordinary perception could follow. His black hair whipped violently behind him as he ascended into space.

The Monarch of Decay’s gigantic eye followed him. Then the man’s body began changing. Black energy erupted from his skin.

RUMBLE.

His muscles expanded. His bones shifted. His entire body began growing at an impossible rate. He was changing into something huge. Something very dangerous.