The Invincible Full-Moon System

Chapter 1833: Devilment

Rex was patiently waiting after making preparations for Dorn’s arrival.

His attack on the Sky City should be more than enough to make Dorn and others in his faction—to be wary of him, but it does not hurt to make preparations in case things go south. Right now, he was all alone, surrounded by four massive statues.

A voice prompted him to raise his gaze.

Standing a few steps away was Mrs. Greene.

Not in the body of a human, but a beautiful and lean, earth-colored dire wolf.

It has been quite some time for him since he last saw her again. Last time, she brought bad news about a catastrophe that only he could stop. Now, he was hoping that she had come only to visit, “Did you come to bring me more bad news, mom?”

He said that, but he was glad that she graced him with her presence again.

Every single time he saw her, the chaotic mess inside his mind seemed to be suppressed automatically.

Rex had always felt the clearest when she was around.

“You’ve gotten stronger again,” She stated, but her lips didn’t move. She was talking to him through a telepathic link. Perhaps even in death, the bond between a mother and a son is unbroken. “What price did you pay for this?”

“Are you going to lecture me?” Rex leaned forward and placed his elbows on his thighs. A smile graced his face. “Go on, then. I went to the military the moment I could, but I still remember the earlier days when you always lectured me about kindness and family.”

Mrs. Greene approached.

Her paws trotted forward and inspected Rex as she could see through his suppression mask.

“You still haven’t answered my question.”

“You knew that already. You’ve been watching me. I can feel it.”

“Millions are dead again, like always. And it’s not right.”

Rex rolled his eyes.

Everything in this world can only be obtained at the price of blood, so it’s unavoidable.

Being merciful to his enemies meant being cruel to those close to him.

And he can’t accept that.

“Don’t roll your eyes at me,” Mrs. Greene complained—and her wolf body growled. “I am your mother. I tried to instill my values into you, but your growing days are seized by your biological mother, so you have her devilment. Let me win.”

“A mortal and a God,” Rex glanced at her. “That’s what you said to me. I can’t let you win when there’s a catastrophe coming. I’m doing my very best.”

He didn’t know what the catastrophe would be.

But he knew what was required to stop it, and also knew that it might even take his own life despite his best attempt. At least, that’s what Evelyn believed would happen to him because of that damn Qonvale, who poisoned her mind with fear.

“You’ve been hesitating to become a God, but you’re not anymore.” Mrs. Greene’s eyes narrowed.

“I won’t stay long as a God,” Rex brushed away her worries. “Though you’ve been watching me, there is still a lot more that you don’t know. One day, I will be with you and the others. One day, I’ll tell you my story directly.”

“That, I have no doubt,” Mrs. Greene smiled. “But, tell me, what are you going to do as a God?”

A long stretch of silence seized the moment.

Rex knew what she meant. He knew exactly what her worries were.

She was concerned that he was becoming a God simply so that he could be the God and the mortal that’d be sacrificed when the catastrophe finally came. And he didn’t blame her for thinking like that, as he was going to do that.

At least, he was going to do that until he changed his mind fairly recently.

For those around him, there’s no price he wouldn’t pay.

Even his own life is a low price if that means the others would be safe and sound.

But it seemed those around him didn’t want that.

Be it those he met in this realm or those back home that always showed their feelings in their own ways to him, none of them wanted him to be cruel to himself. Losing them might make him mad, but now he understands that perhaps the others are also the same.

No need for him to treat his life as a penny when his life wasn’t his to begin with.

“I’m not going to sacrifice myself to stop the catastrophe, mom—don’t worry,” Rex assured. His tone was steady. Believable. But then, he looked directly into Mrs. Greene’s eyes again, eyes glowing red. “Instead, I’m going to drag a God down from his pantheon and use him as the sacrifice. As for the mortal, I can find plenty in this realm or my home realm.”

Mrs. Greene’s face turned from concern for his life to concern for what he’s becoming.

Her teachings are failing.

And the devilment from Rex’s biological mother is surfacing.

“What if that’s not enough?” She asked hesitantly. “What if the sacrifice can’t stop this big catastrophe?”

Rex’s smile stretched wider at the question, slicing his face open.

“If that’s not enough, since it’s not me who was sacrificed, then I’ll chuck more Gods into the sacrificial rite,” His smile then turned crueler and more cynical. “I’ll keep on sacrificing so much more until the catastrophe choked on blood, and then stopped.”

And with a single blink, her body disappeared from sight.

Rex faced forward again and whispered, “Look away for the time being, mom.”

“Your Majesty…?”

A voice snapped him out of his daze.

He looked to the side and saw Linthia half-emerging from a pool of ink.

“Who are you talking to, Your Majesty?” She asked. tilting her head curiously. “Are you perhaps suffering from being separated from the pack for too long? I heard some werewolves developed mental disorders because of loneliness.”

“Mental disorder? Me? Pfft,” Rex waved his hand. “I’m completely sane.”

Linthia smiled awkwardly, ’But I heard what you’re saying earlier…’

Disregarding the topic, Rex stood up and looked skyward, “Have they arrived?”

“They are nearing.” She nodded, feeling the distant pulse of her mark finally activating. Hours ago, she had been preparing for this meeting, and it’s now finally paying off. But her expression darkened. “He’s not alone. Full convoy, and a second Gatekeeper.

“One that was present that night of the attack.” Her tone was careful.

If anything went wrong in this meeting, she would be responsible.

Not because Rex told her so, but because she was the one who delivered the message from Dorn.

She felt responsible.

“You’ve done nothing wrong, Linthia,” Rex assured, sensing her unrest. “Relax. If you’re going to be tense, you should go to Amanir and let me handle this.”

“No!” Linthia denied. Her voice was louder than she intended, and she shrank as her nervousness was now bare for Rex to see. “No, Your Majesty. I won’t be nervous and shame you, but please let me stay beside you.”

Rex nodded.

He saw how fiercely she desires to become stronger and be useful.

And considering everything Linthia has done, she’s indeed worthy enough to stand beside him.

“In that case, you can stand directly beside me when they come,” Rex gestured to his side.

Linthia emerged from the ink-water with a smile—and took her place beside him. To anyone watching, she was little more than a shadow with eyes—a menacing silhouette that radiated an ominous presence. The Well of the Untold had steeped her in depths normal shadows never touched.

Her aura alone could freeze a man’s blood.

“You’ve made use of your situation well, Linthia,” Rex said without turning to look.

His comment completely caught her off guard.

She stared at the side of his face with widened eyes, stunned in the moment.

“You’ve come a long way from someone timid to someone capable,” He continued, nodding his head in acknowledgment. “I don’t know what you went through down there, but you did really well. I can say that much. I’m sure Dindora would be proud of you.”

Linthia looked down at her toes.

A tear stung her eye, but she held it back and stood straighter.

One difference compared to the usual was that her chin is now lifted a little bit higher.

A few dozen miles away, several colorful meteors tore through the sky.

Dorn and Malvis cruised through the air, heading to the rendezvous point. Behind them were a couple of Lava and Shadow Paladins, their personal armies used mainly to govern their assigned land across the realm.

Each one is one of the most capable in their entire legion.

Anyone who saw these meteors would wonder who the Gatekeepers could be meeting.

After pushing a few more miles through the vast blackness, the bleak darkness suddenly started to bleed into crimson. Ahead, a miniature Blood Moon hovered in the distance, glowing, suspended above ruins scarred by a fierce battle.

“We’re here,” Dorn announced and immediately descended.

Malvis also got down before he turned to the paladins, “Scour the area and protect the perimeter.”

All of them nodded and spread out without saying a single word.

Both then continued the last two miles towards the ruins on foot. But when they should’ve been close enough to see what lay beneath the miniature Blood Moon, there was nothing. Just an empty blur where ruins should be, as if something was actively blinding them.

“Don’t do anything to clear this area,” Dorn warned.

He knew that this was Rex’s doing, and he didn’t want Malvis to offend him.

“I knew better than to do that,” Malvis brushed the concern off. “I know how important this is.”

Only when they got really close did the blurriness clear.

Considering their respective approach, the two Gatekeepers expected the same in return. But what they found instead was Rex in his battle armor. In his werewolf form. He was seated on a coffin with a face utterly devoid of interest or disinterest.

He simply watched them approach, as if they were weather passing by.

Dorn and Malvis immediately felt a suppression.

Not the crushing weight of overwhelming power—they were too strong to be pressured by anything or anyone. This was different. This was the pressure of something higher than them. As if they were not facing a creature of the Mortal Realm, but something from a higher realm than theirs instead.

And since they were present that night, they immediately saw the difference.

It was the mark on Rex’s upper chest that wrapped around like a necklace.

Something about him changed, but neither knew what exactly happened.

Dorn and Malvis exchanged a look.

They made the right decision. The growth that Rex was going through is simply too extreme.

Give him ten years or even a few more years, and his raw strength might be near their strength.

Linthia, on the side, as if she could smell the gladness in their minds, leaned back, scowling towards them, a surprising reaction that the Gatekeepers weren’t expecting. “I have made it clear already. You came here only to fulfil your task. You came here to increase their aptitude—and yet, you can’t even adhere to that?”

“My name is Malvis, the Gatekeeper of Shadow. I apologize if I came without warning—but I came to make sure the process will not fail,” Malvis took a step forward and explained. “I hope you can pay no mind to my presence.”

“I’m not talking to you,” Linthia smiled—and pointed a finger at Malvis playfully. “I’m talking to you, Dorn.”

“I wanted to inform you about this change, but I have no way of contacting you properly,” Dorn replied, making sure that his voice is level, but loud enough to be heard. “But still, I am here to fulfil my task, and his presence will no—”

“That’s not how this works,” Linthia shook her head.

She pointed her hand to the ground and summoned an ink-black portal.

From it, a figure emerged.

His eyes were red, and his mouth was salivating from the mouth like an animal.

Dorn’s eyes immediately widened, realizing that it was his nephew. Close enough to even be his son.

“You’ve made a mistake. And a mistake like this incurs a price that must be paid.”