Chaos Heir

Chapter 1609: Hunger

The invisible had become visible. The ethereal had turned solid, gaining details, features Khan could inspect, a texture he could taste, and a majesty he felt able to disrespect.

It was odd, really. Everything felt new to Khan, but also deeply natural. The world in his eyes and perception had changed drastically while also remaining perfectly familiar.

It was as if Khan had gained direct access to the truth of existence, only for his brain to take it for granted. His very instincts saw that profound, shocking knowledge as nothing more than the natural way of the world, accepting it as if he had always been aware of it.

Khan still saw the symphony of energy, but perceived it as nothing more than thin winds now. After all, he was somewhat aware that what he had always relied upon was only a superficial layer of existence, something below him now.

Of course, that vast expanse only contained the echoes of distant True Chaos, being mostly empty. Yet, the layer beneath that showed the greatness of the God’s existence, pervading every inch of that separate universe.

And beneath didn’t mean weaker. The God’s existence spread on the same wavelength as the very fabric of reality, granting it an inconceivably powerful, pristine purity.

That existence was for all intents and purposes superior, standing at such a high level of being that ordinary evolved warriors lacked the tools to study it.

It was as if evolved warriors had analog scales, while the God was the greatest celestial body in the universe. Nothing the former tried to do would bring them closer to understanding his real weight.

Actually, the gap was even broader than that, but Khan lacked the references to describe it. He only knew that he could clearly measure that weight, as well as affect it.

As for how Khan knew that, he had no idea. He simply knew.

Khan’s awareness was no different from a bird’s ability to fly or a fish’s mastery of swimming. It was something he was born with, stemming from the very innate instincts that made his bloodline.

It was a primordial knowledge fused with Khan’s very genes, as if he were an animal who saw that superior state of existence as his natural environment.

Of course, Khan couldn’t be more different from the God. He had no widespread existence, no connection to higher forms of energy. Even his perception had nothing to do with mana or True Chaos, being a mere extension of his senses and instincts.

However, that didn’t imply inferiority. That difference didn’t make Khan less worthy of living in that higher state of existence. He and the God were like two apex predators in the same environment, their opposite but similar natures making cohabitation impossible.

And Khan felt strangely protective of that environment. He was the invader, but he believed he had been the one to be invaded. His dominion was rightful. It was his birthright, and anyone threatening it could only submit or die.

The novel but natural experience didn’t apply to the God. He had decided on his course of action as soon as he finished assessing the path Khan had chosen, and a wave of his hand enforced it.

Large slabs of True Chaos, no different from what had pinned Khan to the sky earlier, materialized in front of him, trying to affect his body with their sole presence, only for his flesh to defend against that influence.

Khan found three of those needle-like objects pressing on his chest, unable to pierce his skin or move his figure. Something told him that the God had tried to make them appear directly inside him, but his body was beyond that superior being’s authority, instinctively protecting him.

Khan’s muscles didn’t even tense while those slabs pressed on him. He was mere flesh and bones, but also far more than that, his physical figure easily fending off an attack that affected various layers of existence.

Actually, fending off was a stretch. Those slabs were cotton, while Khan was the sturdiest alloy in the universe. There was no clash. It was less than dust thinking it could pierce a dragon’s hide.

Khan tilted his head in curiosity before waving his tattooed arm, easily shattering those slabs. Those items crumbled into gales of True Chaos that tried to expand into massive clouds, only for his raised hand to keep them still, eventually drawing them toward his palm.

An odd sense of fulfillment spread inside Khan while that True Chaos seeped into his palm. The experience felt like drinking water, strangely satisfying, which only ended up making him aware of his bottomless thirst.

Khan couldn’t dwell on that discovery since his surroundings stirred again, replaying the previous event in far more widespread fashion. The God was launching another attack, but Khan had learned from the last exchange, spotting it and understanding he could react to it.

Despite the environment having nothing physical or ethereal, Khan jumped, his figure shooting up, his instinctive reaction unleashing a speed burst so immediate he almost lost his balance.

That was enough to put Khan half a step behind the attack. Khan had risen, but reality had kept stirring. He didn’t blink even once, but everything abruptly transformed anyway. Hundreds of those needle-like slabs had materialized all around him, already pressing on his figure.

The second volley of slabs turned out to be more of a challenge. The reasonable part of Khan’s mind even tried to sound the alarms, but his primal instincts remained calm, as if knowing something he had yet to realize.

And the array of slabs kept pressing on Khan, but nothing opened or bled. His body withstood the attack effortlessly, remaining unharmed, forcing him to realize that he felt no pressure at all.

If the previous slabs had been cotton, the current ones had been grains of dust, definitely more annoying, but nothing Khan couldn’t deal with by simply brushing them off.

Khan waved his other arm now, not even applying much strength, but everything around him exploded nonetheless. Tides of True Chaos that could submerge entire celestial bodies tried to expand, only for his body to draw them back to him, greedily devouring them.

’I see,’ Khan thought as a deeper but still incomplete sense of satisfaction spread inside him, his rational side finally catching up with his animal one.

Khan looked down, perfectly seeing the now-distant figure of the God below him. Saliva accumulated in his mouth, making his sharp canines itch to bite onto something, while his thoughts turned into a message that echoed through the very fabric of reality.

"God of the True Chaos," Khan said in what was a similar but also different version of the God’s mental messages. "I hunger."