"I'd do anything for Tina... even destroy the entire multiverse..."
—Mirror
Chirp chirp chirp...
Birds perched on branches chirped...
Clouds drifted slowly across the blue sky...
People walked along the streets, happily chatting about family matters...
Everywhere seemed blissful and perfect...
But all of this would soon vanish...
And above all this story...
"It's truly blissful here... but it's also... disgusting!"
A bizarre entity, covered in tentacles, stared intently at everything from the void.
His sharp claws lightly scratched a thick barrier...
His gaze was fixed on a certain spot... and what he was staring at was Taga.
And at that moment, Taga...
He walked alone silently down the street, while Tina and Syl went to another street to buy things.
At this moment, a faceless soul appeared beside Taga; it was Zorn, floating beside Taga in spirit form.
"Young man, I ask you, have you really never heard my legend?"
Zorn spoke slowly, his tone filled with confusion.
"I'm sorry, sir… I haven't heard your legend. I've only heard myths, and I've always thought they were just legends, so I've never really believed them."
Taga scratched his face awkwardly, his tone filled with helplessness.
"Could it be that I've been dead for too long…? Then why hasn't that story been passed down…"
Zorn muttered to himself, his brows furrowing as he began to ponder the reasons.
"What story? Sir, what exactly happened to you? I only heard you say that you are the chief god of the divine court…"
Taga asked疑惑地, currently communicating with him internally, the surrounding people unaware of their conversation.
"What I experienced… I don't know… I only know that billions of years ago, the primordial god's energy suddenly vanished… All of us gods were shocked for a moment and decided to go check… but… when we arrived, we only saw a figure with enormous wings… then my vision went black… and when I opened it, I was inside your body…"
Zorn said through gritted teeth, a hint of anger in his voice.
"Primordial god? Who is that?"
Taga asked疑惑地, walking towards a bakery and buying some bread.
"The primordial god was the first god created by the creator god. He was responsible for protecting the entire universe… no one knows how he died…"
Zorn said in a low voice… his brows furrowed tightly.
"It seems the primordial god really is the being from the myths I heard as a child."
Taga thought to himself, gently picking up a piece of bread and putting it in his mouth.
"So much time has passed... I never expected the entire universe's worldview wouldn't collapse…"
Zorn said softly, but his voice was filled with doubt. He couldn't understand why the universe's worldview hadn't collapsed in the years since his death.
"Collapse? What do you mean, sir?"
Taga looked at Zorn beside him, puzzled.
"The Primordial God was the entire universe's worldview itself. After his death, the entire universe's worldview should have collapsed and disappeared long ago… and the Creator God has long since vanished…"
Zorn said helplessly, shaking his head.
"Perhaps the Primordial God used his last bit of energy to hold up the entire universe's worldview…"
Taga said optimistically, while still eating his bread.
"I hope so… I've already begun to feel the life force of each universe gradually being eroded…"
Zorn said softly, his tone filled with regret…
"What did you say, sir?"
Taga asked, turning to look at the figure.
"Nothing!"
Zorn quickly replied, his brow slowly relaxing.
Taga shrugged helplessly at Zorn.
Taga walked on until he saw a shop selling mirrors. He turned to look at one of the mirrors.
He saw a reflection that was exactly like him, yet slightly different.
The Taga in the mirror also looked at the Taga in reality. The Taga's eyes were completely different from the real Taga's; his eyes were filled with darkness and pain.
Taga looked at himself in the mirror. For some reason, a sudden sense of fear crept up his spine. Slowly, black mist gathered behind him...
The mist in the mirror slowly transformed into figures, their expressions growing increasingly terrifying... They began to smile... They stared intently at Taga.
"What the hell is this?!"
Taga slowly gathered energy in his hands, then quickly threw a punch behind him, only to find he had missed!
Upon closer inspection, he discovered there was no black mist at all; instead, he saw the strange looks from those around him staring at Taga.
Taga turned back to the mirror in confusion, only to find that his eerie reflection had vanished...
"What's wrong with this world..."
Taga rubbed his forehead, then slowly took a step and walked away.
Meanwhile, in the void...
A skeleton remarkably similar to Taga knelt before a winged entity.
"Now I need you to travel to the universe where the Chosen Ones are currently located, to retrieve one of my torsos from the core. Success is all that's required... failure is not an option!"
The entity slowly turned to face Taga kneeling before it, its hand gently rising and pressing against the other's head.
"Yes, my lord... I promise to complete the mission..."
Taga spoke respectfully, slowly rising to his feet, then turning and tearing through the void.
"Don't forget! Your main task also includes… stopping the Chosen One! Mirror!"
Rhazoth said solemnly, then looked at the sphere in the void.
Taga's figure appeared inside the sphere…
Taga was walking slowly down the road…
Looking at his surroundings, Taga couldn't help but feel that the environment was remarkably similar to his original world; many people looked extremely alike.
"Tina… I wonder if you're doing well in heaven…"
Taga's mood suddenly turned somber, and he murmured to himself, head bowed.
"Thinking of your sister again?"
Zorn spoke slowly, instantly appearing beside Taga.
"Nothing… seeing this environment just reminds me of my sister and my friends…"
Taga sighed softly, taking out the necklace he wanted to give Tina from his pocket… he had originally planned to put it on her after resurrecting her…
Just as Taga was still immersed in his memories, a scream suddenly rang out.
"Look! The sky...the sky has turned red!!!"
Instantly, everyone stared at the sky, watching it slowly change from blue to red, the sunlight gradually obscured by dark clouds...
Darkness enveloped the entire continent! Every creature on the continent raised its head in unison, looking at the sky already stained blood red.
And above the sky, cracks appeared... Suddenly, the cracks were torn open, and emerging from them... were countless, densely packed soldiers!
Standing before these soldiers was...the Taga who saw himself in the mirror, but his eyes held no pity or kindness, only pain and coldness.
"Go...crush everything in this universe...to find the body my master needs, at any cost..."
Mirror spoke slowly, his tone devoid of mercy, only pain, coldness, and a detached indifference as he uttered the words "crush everyone."
At that moment, all the soldiers standing in the sky lunged down, their landing causing the entire space to tremble!
"Kill them all! Give your lives for our great Rhazoth and Lord Distortion! For their great cause of resetting the entire universe's worldview! Give your every attack!"
One of the leading soldiers shouted to the soldiers behind him, their voices filled with cruelty, brutality, and bloodlust.
Upon hearing this, all the soldiers raised their arms in a shout, grabbed their weapons, and charged towards the city. Meanwhile, the soldiers standing on the walls saw a dense swarm of soldiers charging towards them from the entire grassland continent, their bodies covered in eerie tentacles!
Just as a soldier at the edge of the wall was about to ring the bell beside him, an arrow instantly pierced his skull. Not far away was a mounted archer! And behind this archer were even more archers!
"Loose the arrows!!!"
The mounted archer roared, and behind him, a dense swarm of tentacle-covered archers instantly unleashed their fully charged arrows.
Instantly, a dense barrage of arrows pierced every soldier standing on the city wall!
These soldiers didn't even have time to react before being riddled with arrows, dying instantly.
The army on the steppe charged towards the city gates, roaring as they smashed open the massive gates!
The slaughter... began!
As soon as the army entered the city, they began randomly seizing civilians and slaughtering them. Blood splattered everywhere, the entire city stained crimson with flames and blood.
And then, a soldier reached out to grab a little girl who was crouching on the ground, crying in fear...
A flash of light appeared before the soldier, who immediately closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the little girl had vanished.
"Alright, little one~ Don't cry~ Go find a place to hide~ I'll find your family~ Leave this to your brother~"
Appearing before the soldier was Taga! Taga spoke gently, lightly patting the little girl's head before standing up and turning to face the soldier.
The little girl also turned and quickly left.
"So eager to die?! Interesting!"
The soldier raised his longsword and swung it down at Taga!! But in an instant, Taga caught the blade with one hand!! His palm didn't even bleed.
"Too slow!"
Taga then lightly exerted force with his arm, instantly crushing the entire blade of the longsword. Then, Taga punched the soldier in the face.
Instantly, the soldier's face caved in, blood spurted out, and the soldier was sent flying into a distant house.
Taga stood watching the soldiers sent flying into the distance when suddenly an arrow flew towards him. He whirled around and caught it.
The archer who had shot the arrow saw Taga catch it and immediately drew another from his basket. But before he could nock it, an arrow pierced his head.
Taga casually tossed it away, piercing the archer's skull. Looking at the fallen archer, Taga began to think.
"They all look so familiar…where did they come from…damn it! I have to get to the others!"
Thinking this, Taga quickened his pace and strode off to another location.
Otherwhere…
A towering insectoid was lifting a resident's head, crushing it with a gentle squeeze. Blood splattered everywhere. It slowly raised its hand, licking the blood from its palm.
It walked slowly down the street, its enormous compound eyes surveying its surroundings. Suddenly, as if sensing something, it turned and brandished its claws. And standing before him was Taga!
"You stinking bug!"
Taga cursed, slamming a heavy punch into the bug's face. To Taga's shock, the bug's cheek didn't even emit a wisp of smoke.
"Long time no see…you annoying skeleton…"
The bug-man spoke slowly…
"It's you! The Beetle King!"
Taga gritted his teeth, staring at his former enemy!
"That's right! Didn't expect that, did you! I'm still alive!"
The Beetle King's tone was full of sneer. It slowly raised its hand…and then swung it towards Taga.
Taga saw the Beetle King's attack and instantly dodged to the side.
"It's just killing you one more time! I can kill you once, I can kill you a second time!"
Then Taga's eyes gleamed. He summoned his armbands, which instantly transformed into two double-edged blades. Taga gripped the blades and charged towards the Beetle King.
"But this time! The story might be different!"
The Beetle King slammed its paw heavily into the ground, instantly shattering the entire street in front of it!
Taga frowned, raising its twin blades to attack the Beetle King's abdomen. But the instant the blades struck, Taga felt an unprecedented hardness.
"This time I've evolved abdominal armor! This time you can't touch me!"
The Beetle King arrogantly declared, then used its claws to slice through an entire house in an instant.
Taga clicked its tongue inwardly and continued its rapid dash around, relentlessly slashing at every part of the Beetle King's body with its blades.
But the Beetle King didn't react. Its compound eyes constantly watched Taga's movements; every attack was meant to kill Taga.
Taga, relying on its rich combat experience, dodged every attack from the Beetle King, while continuously increasing the force of its blows.
Gradually, he began to feel the divine power within him growing stronger, the energy in his hands increasing dramatically, and this energy instantly flowed into his twin blades.
In an instant, a gash was sliced through the Beetle King's hard armor!
"A perfect opportunity!"
Taga instantly charged forward, wielding his twin blades towards the gaping wound in the Beetle King's armor.
The Beetle King reacted swiftly, punching Taga!
Taga was caught off guard and instantly sent flying, but he quickly regained his footing. He planted his feet on a tall building, and with a powerful stomp, the building beneath him shattered instantly.
Taga charged forward, the power of his twin blades growing ever stronger, and in a mere instant! The Beetle King's head was severed!
The Beetle King's body instantly knelt on the ground and collapsed...
Taga, panting heavily, looked at the Beetle King's body and couldn't help but sigh that this time the Beetle King probably wouldn't revive...
"Taga!!!"
Suddenly, two familiar voices rang out. Taga turned around and saw Tina and Syl!
"Are you hurt?"
Taga immediately asked, concerned for the two, while Syl rushed over and hugged Taga tightly.
"We're fine. When we saw the sky turn red, we decided to come find you. The soldiers along the way were really tough."
Tina looked at Taga and couldn't help but laugh, giving him a carefree pat on the shoulder.
"You're pretty good, kid! You actually defeated such a big guy!"
Tina saw the Beetle King behind Taga and couldn't help but marvel at Taga's strength.
"No, not really... just a little experience..."
Taga scratched his head and laughed, looking happily at Tina and Syl.
"I was so worried about you!!"
Syl said in a cute voice, hugging Taga tightly and rubbing his cheek against hers.
"It's alright, I'm fine now..."
Taga sighed and patted Syl's head.
Suddenly, a figure slowly emerged from the firelight behind them...
Tap tap tap...
The slow footsteps reached Taga and his companions' ears.
Taga and his group looked in confusion towards the source of the footsteps.
And what they saw was...
a different Taga with different clothes and a different mark on her face!
"Taga...why...you..."
Syl slowly pointed to a Taga behind Taga who was almost identical except for the mark and clothes.
"Taga...that seems to be you from another world..."
Tina then pointed at the other.
Taga was now covered in cold sweat...because this was the "self" he had seen in the mirror and in his dreams.
Suddenly, Zorn appeared!
"Kid! Run! He's dangerous! I sensed an unusual power emanating from him!"
Zorn said nervously, his voice filled with fear!
"Sir...I...can't move..."
Taga slowly uttered these words, realizing he couldn't move his legs at all, his soul trembling with terror...
"The Chosen One...we've all lost everything, haven't we?"
Taga spoke slowly, his tone calm and cold.
"..."
Taga wanted to speak, but found himself powerless due to fear...
"Look at you...you're just like I was back then...though our essence isn't different..."
Taga chuckled softly, then looked at Tina.
He paused for a moment when he saw Tina, but his eyes instantly returned to their icy expression.
"You can't do anything now...you can't do anything..."
Taga sighed, then clenched his fist and slammed it into the ground, causing the entire universe to tremble violently.
Meanwhile, another version of himself standing before Taga began radiating purple energy from his arm, which instantly poured into the ground.
With a powerful tug, an arm was ripped off.
At the same time, the space above the entire continent began to crumble into fragments... and the ground began to collapse...
Tina and Syl, seeing Taga standing motionless, tried to grab him and carry him away, but Taga couldn't move.
Just then!!! The man in black robes appeared, grabbed Taga's shoulder, and vanished with Taga and his companions!
Meanwhile, another Taga, watching the surrounding space begin to shatter, slowly spoke...
"All of this will turn to nothingness. These universes are the bargaining chips needed to resurrect Tina..."
He then grabbed the Beetle King's corpse, turned, and tore open a spatial rift. He slowly walked into the rift, and all the soldiers who had followed him also tore open their own rifts, leaving this universe...
Meanwhile, within the void...
Rhazoth sat on his throne, and a rift tore open in front of him. Mirror emerged from the rift, knelt before Rhazoth, and placed an arm in his hands.
"Well done..."
Rhazoth slowly raised his fingers, and the arm in Mirror's hands instantly flew to Rhazoth. He picked up the arm and began to absorb it.
Instantly, the arm vanished from his palms, and Rhazoth's elusive arm solidified!
His aura became even more terrifying! The entire void was shrouded in fear!
"A long-lost feeling..."
Rhazoth spoke slowly, turning to look at the Beetle King's corpse beside Mirror.
He snapped his fingers, and a new head instantly sprouted from the Beetle King's body.
"You've failed again!"
Rhazoth said to the Beetle King, a hint of anger flickering within him.
"I'm sorry... my lord..."
The Beetle King stammered, his voice filled with awe and fear.
"Next time you die, I will not resurrect you!"
Rhazoth uttered these words coldly, then turned and sat on his throne... He looked at the scene within the sphere...
"Father... you created me... but I am sinful..."
Rhazoth murmured to himself...
A chilling fear enveloped the entire void around him...