Chapter 454: The Real Reason For War

The Hollow King opened a passage into the Hollow Realm and led Sylvia through it. They stepped onto a stone terrace as the distant stars disappeared behind them.

"I know you have many questions, so you can ask them now."

Sylvia stared at him for a while as she thought about everything she had just seen. The man who once sent an army against their world had protected Caelus and killed the Heavenly Lord’s clone.

"Then, I’ll start with the Heavenly Lord."

She put away the token Caelus had given her and continued.

"Why is he so determined to make the Enders fight?"

"He wants the power they stole from the Axiom Origin. When they unleash that power in a war, it begins feeding the construct again.

"He intends to restore it through their fighting and then take control of it."

Black flames spread over his fingers as he spoke. Sylvia felt their heat reach her even though they remained in his hand.

"Meng Ziyi refused to take part, so that bastard drove her to her death. He killed her because she wouldn’t fight his war."

His fist closed and the flames vanished between his fingers.

"He didn’t strike the killing blow himself. She took her own life to stop him from using her."

Sylvia fell silent as she remembered Caelus telling her about his Bronze ascension. Back then they had still been lower-dimensional beings in the Abyss with no idea how much had happened beyond it.

She knew about the Zither Girl and Hero Himmel, but hearing the truth from him was different. Even after all this time he could barely speak about her without wanting to kill the man responsible.

"Then we need to stop the war from happening, right?"

The Hollow King thought for a moment before answering.

"Yes, and if Caelus becomes a Primordial we might be able to restore the Axiom Origin ourselves. His powers came from it, so he should be able to control it."

Sylvia nodded until she remembered something that didn’t quite fit.

"But Caelus is the Third Origin. Shouldn’t the First Ender of Origin be the one who can control it?"

"Being the first isn’t what matters. A Primordial can control it, along with certain beings who possess its authorities but only partially.

"I have Creation and the Heavenly Lord has Order. The First Ender of Origin possessed Origin Authority, which was the strongest of them all.

"But he couldn’t become a Primordial either, the Authority by itself wasn’t enough and on that note, his other half received an SSS-Rank Talent from the Axiom Origin just before it entered slumber to stop the Enders from causing further destruction.

"Together they managed to stop the first Ender war."

Sylvia immediately remembered the broken recording they had found in the hidden ruin on Star King World. Adam had spoken about his other half there.

"Wait, are you saying Adam was the First Ender of Origin’s other half?"

The Hollow King nodded and Sylvia didn’t know what to say for a moment. Caelus had been carrying the power of Adam’s other half all this time or was he?

"Do you know what sort of talent he had?"

"He never told me what it was."

Sylvia clicked her tongue because she had wanted to compare it with her hubby’s talent. An SSS-Rank Talent granted by the Axiom Origin sounded worth knowing about, but she would have to leave that question for Adam.

"Then why couldn’t you become Primordials?"

"We never received acknowledgment from the multiverse. It refused me and the Heavenly Lord, just as it refused Adam and the First Ender.

"I don’t know why, but we did find another way to grow stronger. We found the remains of old Primordials and used them to reach a state beyond Axiom Origin Rank.

"That made us Half-Primordials. If I’m right, the remains of the Supreme One who gave birth to our universe should still be on Earth."

Sylvia stared at him again as she thought of the world they had passed through to enter the Abyss.

"The Supreme One’s remains are on Earth?"

"That’s where I believe they are. If you obtain them, you might become a Half-Primordial or even a true Primordial if you meet the requirements."

Caelus was changing somewhere beyond the universe while she had barely been able to help him escape. Sylvia had no intention of standing behind someone else every time an enemy came for them.

"Then I need to find those remains."

"First we need to rescue the people sealed in the God Domain. I only destroyed a clone, and the real Heavenly Lord might come back soon."

"Do you know where he is now?"

"Probably at the End of Time."

That place had been mentioned in Adam’s recording too. Sylvia wanted to know what was there as the Hollow King continued speaking.

"I wanted to end everything on my own and create a new world. Whenever I pictured that world, I still imagined Meng Ziyi in it.

"I kept clinging to that hope even when my role was already clear but that is far from the truth. What I can do now is help."

He opened a passage beside the terrace with a snap of his fingers. Sylvia could see golden light on the other side as he stepped toward it.

"We should go now, though it would be better if you stayed here."

"No, I’d like to come with you. I want to build an army."

"Then suit yourself."

Sylvia followed him through and emerged above a vast stretch of golden void. Enormous lands hung across it with mountains and rivers spreading farther than she could see.

They had finally reached the God Domain, though this was hardly how she had expected to arrive. Below them stood a palace surrounded by rows of towers and walls bearing the Heavenly Faction’s marks.

"There are intruders above the palace!"

The cry came from a tower beneath them and bells immediately rang across the grounds. Guards rushed along the walls as ten figures rose from different parts of the palace.

"Seal the inner gates and call the God King! Everyone else get away from the outer court!"

Golden light spread between the towers and closed above Sylvia’s head. At the same time four of the approaching gods raised their hands and formed spears large enough to pierce mountains.

"You picked the wrong place to break into!"

The spears shot toward them from four sides as the other six gods moved to block their escape.