"Innos! Your old friend is here!"

A loud shout shook the earth and traveled across the land.

In the distance was a small chubby mountain covered in greenery with the top covered with black stone and ash, an active volcano. A giant building of beautiful red and orange rock, covered in tiny golden symbols was shining in the sunlight.

Enormous pillars stood on either side of the road, leading to giant steps into the palace.

A few young Elves, dressed in red robes with golden phoenixes on their backs, were training martial arts on the grass outside. Their shouts and body movements created a peaceful and disciplined environment.

The guards standing at the front gates of the giant building twitched as they detected a presence fast approaching.

"Someone is here!"

They all rose their heads to look towards the sky, where a small dot was quickly approaching, surrounded by a white halo. The figure oriented itself towards the place and descended like a meteor, before losing all momentum and landing on the steps of the Phoenix Temple soundlessly.

"Respected Elder!"

The guards recognized the insignia the man wore and immediately kneeled in respect.

"I'm here to meet an old friend, no need to stand on ceremony!" The man gave them a warm smile and then entered the temple by himself.

"Innos! After all these centuries you are still working here on your Divine Phoenix Treasures? Isn't it time to give up already?" the man shouted.

"Beliar?! Haha, how are you, my old friend?" Both men laughed and hugged.

"How long has it been? Four hundred years? I thought you already lost your life in the Void!"

"Bah, how little confidence do you have in me? If I died just like that after reaching the Divine, I would really be a disgrace to our great race!"

"So? Why are you back? Did you finally find what you wanted?"

"You bet!" The man pulled out a few black crystals.

"Oh! Is that what I think it is?"

"Haha, of course! These are genuine Divine-Rank Soul Eater Cores! You have no idea how hard it was to kill those damn Soul-sucking monsters!"

"And? Do you still think you will be able to extract their abilities?"

Shrugging his shoulders Beliar said, "You spent half a millennia trying to extract Phoenix's resurrection ability, why shouldn't I try to do the same?"

"That's true, but my work is soon going to pay off, I'm sure of it! Just a few more years and I'll succeed, mark my words!"

"Haha, that's precisely why I'm here! You are the only one I can turn to for help. Your expertise with Spirit manipulation is at the top of the world."

Innos thought for a while and then said, "You know what? Help me finish my research and I'll then help you with yours!"

Without even thinking about it, Beliar happily slapped his shoulder, "You got yourself a deal! I can afford to waste a few more decades in this dump!"

"Haha, good! Come, let me show you what I've got…"

The two High Elves, both already above the Divine Rank, entered the deeper parts of the temple where the research into the secrets of magic was currently taking place.

***

Rumble!

"What is that? Is the volcano waking up again? But that shouldn't be, I just recently sealed it!" Innos lifted his head and looked at the trembling walls around them.

"No, it's something else! There is something big going on in the middle of the continent, something is messing with the underlying structure of space!"

Innos frowned and turned his attention away from his research, to where Beliar was looking. His eyes saw the walls of the temple, but his mind's eye spread across the land, hundreds of kilometers to the west.

"You are right, something is trying to tear a hole in the Firmament! Don't tell me... Is some fool actually trying to break through again? Haha!" Innos made a mocking smile and turned his gaze away.

"When was the last time something so exciting happened? Should we go and take a look?"

"You can go if you wish, I'll stay here and continue working on this necklace. Within these few years of your help, I almost got it! I can't stop now!"

"As you wish! I'll be back before the nightfall, save some of this delicious wine for me!"

Beliar dropped his wine cup and rose in the air as the space around him warped, and disappeared from the room.

***

Above a hilly area in the middle of the Neloron continent, a storm was brewing in the sky. The entire space itself was bending and cracking while producing terrifying lightning. A few tall old men, with long ears and silver hair stood in the sky, calmly observing the situation.

"Oh, Beliar? Is that you? You are finally back?"

"Old dog, you are still alive! Did you also come and watch the excitement?"

Beliar flew closer and gazed across the familiar faces.

They were all High Elf Elders, beings that stood on top of the food chain in this world, Divine beings with powers strong enough to extinguish all life of an average kingdom with a single hand. They were also his early friends and classmates from centuries ago.

"I can't believe you old bastards are still alive! How have you been?" Beliar smiled. They hugged each other in a greeting and laughed, taking out strong wines and Divine Elixirs to celebrate their reunion.

"Who is stupid enough to try and break through this time?"

"Hehe, we are wondering the same thing! The Firmament is just growing stronger the more they attack it, they can't be all that smart."

Crack!

A loud and scary crack spread across the sky but was then immediately closed up by a bolt of lightning that struck it from the clouds. An angry gray face, covered in scales and with black horns coming from its forehead appeared momentarily before it disappeared.

"Haha, did you see that? I think it was the Demon King himself! What a fool!"

"Bwahaha, the look on his face! Did you see that stupid look? He is so mad-looking!"

"Stop, stop! Ow, my stomach, it hurts from laughing so much! Hahahaha…"

"Do it again! Come on, try it again! You can do it!"

"Woo-hoo! Go, Demon King, go! You can do it!"

"You can do it, you can do it!"

The High Elves started to chant in unison, laughing and mocking the being that tried to break through the protective shell of their world. It might have been their arrogance or the strong liquor, but they acted completely unlike people of their age should.

All of them were grown-up men, centuries, or even millennia old, some with white hair and hunched backs, and yet, they acted like teenagers in provoking the immensely powerful being on the other side.

"ROOOAR!"

BOOOM!

The structure of space shook and the entire planet felt the vibrations, but the spatial barrier stood strong. The hearts of those present skip a beat, but then quickly returned back to normal.

"Hahaha! Look at him! He is still trying!"

"You can't come through, you fool! You are too strong! Send us your weaker underlings!"

"Yeah, send them through! I was just lacking some good exercise!"

The High Elves laughed and mocked, Beliar included. They would see a sight like this once every few centuries when a strong foreign race or being tried to descend upon their world. They would be always stopped though, with no exceptions!

That was because the Firmament, set up by their ancestors, was a magic barrier that became stronger the more force was applied to it.

And that didn't work with physical force, no. It was the strength of a Soul. A core of any living being in the universe. The stronger the Soul, the stronger the resistance.

Weak beings could come and go as they pleased, but if they wanted to cause trouble, there were a few thousand Divine Rank High Elves guarding the place.

"Yawn, this is getting boring already…"

After a few hours of the Demon King trying to break through unsuccessfully, the High Elves got bored of it and left one by one.

"I think I'll also go back now… Hey, you there! Feel free to stop making so much noise at any time! Bye, bye now," someone shouted towards the Demon King.

Even Beliar descended from the sky and went to get a bite to eat. He was traveling through the Void for a long time and then went to help his friend with his research immediately after. He didn't have time to get some quality food in quite a while.

Rumble~

"What now?" Beliar turned around, only to see the sky split open and a ring of dark purple stone fall through.

"Huh?" Beliar mouthed. "What's that?"

Wooooommmmp!

The purple ring suddenly lit up and dark swirling energy burst out of it.

"Uh-oh! That can't be good!"