“J-J-Junius?” Shin’s voice faltered. Removing his hands from the viridian-haired man’s back, Shin found his palms drenched with fresh blood. Then, he remembered that Junius’ heart in the material realm had been so viciously pierced by his own spear. “W-Wait for a bit! If I can give you a little bit of my healing aura-!”

“There’s no point,” Junius shook his head. “From the beginning… From the moment I became blessed by the Tree of Illusions, I have long known my destiny. When I took the leap of faith and decided to betray the Allfather, my soul was already one step into the netherworld.”

The Spirit King knew his fate. Shin’s poison had invaded all corners of Junius’ body, making his physical state completely untreatable. Not to mention, his heart was destroyed by the Spear of Visam as well as much of his internal organs. Physically speaking, there was nothing that Shin or Lady Seph could do to save Junius. Spiritually, Junius was also hanging by a thread. The former Brahmin hadn’t expelled the Allfather’s mana; instead, he had purified it of the Spirit Saint’s will. An impossible feat if not for the Tree of Illusion’s help.

The Allfather’s will was separated from his mana and sealed into the Legendary-Grade Odachi that was ironically handed down to Junius to serve the Black Masks. There were no contaminants in the dense white mana that was injected into the Azure Water Blade. One could say that it was the purest form of spiritual energy there was. So, what did Junius do with all that purified mana?

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzztttt!!!

The ocean within Shin’s Spectre Soul roared as a hurricane landed upon its calm surface. Billions of water droplets flew everywhere, each one representing the hard-toiled mana that Shin had cultivated thus far. However, within the mixture of oceanic water, there was a new source of spiritual energy. One that was utterly calm and harmless to the owner of the Spectre Soul.

Shin turned straight at Junius, only to see him desperately trying to hold onto his heavy Azure Blade. The specially purified mana of the Allfather was rapidly diving down into the ocean. The spiritual energy that was housed within Junius included his own Rank 60 cultivation. The mana that the Allfather had blessed upon Junius twice. The power of the Brahmin mask.

And most importantly… The spiritual energy that had been set aside for Ao, the World Serpent, to make his advance into the Primordial Beast realm. All of that mana that had been stored within Junius’ body… was now rapidly leaving his dying Spectre Soul and charging straight into Shin’s inner body.

That’s right…

Junius was sending all of the mana that he’d accumulated into Shin’s Spectre Soul, giving the Prince the base to leap realms altogether. Shin was blessed by the Celestial River and possessed one of the most legendary Spirits of them all. He also had one of the strongest bodies for a Rank 50 Spirit Lord. Shin’s vassal was more than sufficient to make the leap; however, he just lacked a safe way to push mana into his body.

Junius had given him that opportunity. The Allfather was a Rank 99 Spirit Saint, and just a fraction of his spiritual energy was sufficient to overwhelm multiple Spirit Lords. Now that Junius had cleaned up that evil will within that mana, Shin was able to simply integrate it into his Spectre Soul without any fear of backlash. Shin hadn’t even realised that his cultivation level had climbed to the peak of Rank 59! Furthermore, that wasn’t the end. Once Shin had solidified his seventh spiritual ability, with the residue mana left spiralling within his Spectre Soul, there was no saying if Shin wouldn’t climb to higher ranks.

It was a gift… Junius’ last gift to his beloved younger brother...

“Shin… Our relationship over the past seven years has been… difficult...” A low baritone shocked Shin’s mental functions as he snapped his head rapidly to the side. Junius’ back, which had long been dripping with blood, was now bleeding profusely. Splitting the Allfather’s will from his mana was no easy task. Even with the assistance of the Tree of Illusions, it had ripped Juniu’s Spectre Soul into thousands of pieces. Not to mention, on the outside, Junius’ body was already failing. In just a few more minutes, the man named Junius would cease to exist. However, for the sake of completing his mission, the Spirit King still stood his ground, resisting the urge to close his eyes for the final time.

“Ariel’s death… I never got to apologise for that...” Junius locked eyes with Shin, who was trembling slightly.

“I never intended to kill Ariel or Lily during that assault… I was just so frustrated that I couldn’t save any of you that I...” The man bit down on his lip, all while strength left his body. Shin watched on as Junius continued to self-decrepitate and burn his soul.

“That day… The day where Frie Mountain burned… I just wanted to reunite all of us...” There was no need for Junius to explicitly call out the names. Instinctively, Shin knew what he was talking about. “We had been suffering under the Frie Clan for far too long… If the First Elder wanted us dead, we would have all died… That wasn’t a life I wanted all of you to lead. I wanted all of you to live happy and carefree in a remote village, spending the rest of your lives without worry about hunger, war or the fear of death...”

Junius rambled on about the recurring dream he had for the orphans. How good would it have been if all of them had their happily ever after? Free from the Frie Clan, the orphans would live the rest of their lives in bliss, all while Junius protected them under the guise of a Black Mask. It was a dream that had haunted Junius’ sleep for the past few years now, but unfortunately… He couldn’t live to see it pass.

“But… I now understand… My actions… My anger towards the Frie Clan, my desperation to bring happiness to all of you… It does not excuse my sins. The sins of a man who served the Allfather, the vilest human to have ever lived...” The man looked up in the starry night sky as the Azure Water Blade started to dim. The Allfather’s mana was about to dry up, and with it, Junius’ life. The moment the transfer was complete, Junius’ soul would finally break apart alongside his physical body.

“Even your friend… Shizen, was it? I shouldn’t have killed him… I just… Had to see you one more time... I know that a simple sorry wouldn’t suffice, but at the very least, my death should bring some release to your tainted soul...”

“Junius, you were controlled by the Allfather! You were corrupted by the Awter Clan’s vengeance! It had no-”

“Nothing to do with me?” Junius finished Shin’s sentence, flashing a bitter smile. “You’re wrong, Shin… I was under the influence of the Allfather and the remaining Awter Clan members. Still, everything that I did was my decision alone… I killed thousands just by drafting a plan or two. Those that died had families, much like we had ours… The blood on my hands… Even if I washed it in the River Styx, it would still reek!”

“...” Shin didn’t reply. As much as he hated to admit it after Junius had repented, a large portion of Shin’s heart still blamed Junius for all the evil deeds that he’d committed. He agreed with Junius’ own self-assessment. The man was right. Even if Shin could forgive Junius, the world wouldn’t.

“To a certain extent… Death is a reward...” Junius shrugged his shoulders. He could feel it… The life force that was powering his soul… It was fading away rapidly. “Shin… You were right, I had to be brought to justice. However, before I died, I’d hoped to do one good deed.” The man lifted his Azure Water Blade as the last bit of spiritual energy was being squeezed out.

“Shin… The Allfather is powerful… More powerful than any of you could ever imagine… You need to grow stronger and quickly. Once the Allfather awakens from his hibernation, the Terre Continent would be sent into an age of turmoil, no… an age of destruction...”

Junius’ astral form seemed to be fading away. The seventh crystal obelisk that stood in the centre of Shin’s deep mana ocean was shaking like an egg that was ready to hatch. The Celestial Dragon greedily sucked up the mana being provided by Junius and converted it quietly into its own. While Shin got stronger by the second, Junius’ soul seemed to be fading into oblivion. Hence, the man started to blurt out everything that he knew.

“What… What do you know about the Allfather?” Shin’s expression fell. Without the Allfather’s curse, Junius was able to spill out everything he knew about the enigmatic leader. “Who is he? What is he after? WHY DID HE DO THIS TO ALL OF US?!” Shin rapidly fired his questions.

“I...” Junius hesitated. Even though he was a Brahmin and one of the most trusted humans within the Black Mask Syndicated, even he was unclear of many of the details. However, there were some things that he did know… “The Allfather, he… Isn’t some God that descended upon the Terre Continent, or neither is he a Spirit Beast that lived for thousands of years.”

Junius immediately shot down the two main falsehoods that were spread about the enigmatic figure. “The Allfather was a genuine human. He is… A man who had lived during the era of Spirit Immortal Dream...”

“Spirit Immortal Dream?” Shin raised his eyebrows at the inclusion of the latest Spirit Immortal. “Didn’t she ascend five hundred years ago? Are you saying that the Allfather is...”

“Yes, he’s a human that’s over five hundred years old...” Junius very cautiously explained. “Or rather, he was a human that was over five hundred years old… The Allfather, his Spirit is… special...”

The young Prince’s Adam's apple rose and fell, as his throat started to feel dry. “What Spirit does the Allfather have?”

“I have no idea,” regrettably, Junius shook his head. “I have been with the Black Masks for about a decade now, but I’ve never seen the Allfather summon his Spirit outright. Occasionally, I would feel his overwhelming presence. However, there was never an instance where the Allfather would summon out his Spirit.”

For beings like the Allfather, there was no need to fully summon out their Spirits. Just their spiritual pressure and mana were sufficient to overwhelm any opponent. Not to mention, the Allfather’s Spirit seemed to be exceedingly special. Not only could he share his mana with thousands of cultivators, strengthening them in the process, but the Allfather could also even teleport from place to place without batting an eye.

Only a select few in the Black Mask organisation had seen the Allfather face-to-face, let alone witness the full grandeur of his Spirit. Junius sighed as he continued to answer Shin’s questions: “For your next two questions… They are both intertwined...” Junius threw his head up as he recalled the many conversations that he had with Ao.

‘What will the Allfather do when he conquers the world?’

‘Huh? Where did you get that thought?’

‘What isn’t the Allfather aiming for world domination?’

‘HAHAHA!!! WORLD DOMINATION?! That’s rich! Why would the Allfather, the man who stands above anyone else, care about the affairs of the mortal world?!’

‘So… Why are we trying to destroy the three superpowers then?’

Junius’ face paled. The answer had once shaken him to the core and just repeating it had made his dying heart beat rapidly. What the Allfather wanted… The reason why he killed so many people in the world...

“The Allfather… He wants to… Open the Gate to the Immortal Realm!!!”