Chapter Summaries

Josh and Avila enjoyed their honeymoon while General Zod announced that the Kryptonians would attack Earth unless the planet surrendered someone to them. After days of chaos, Clark voluntarily went to meet the aliens, but a terrifying power approached just as he prepared to say goodbye to his loved one.

• Josh dismissed the idea of seeking out Batman and left with Avila while Diana stayed behind.
• Josh and Avila toured cities, shopped, and spent time together during their vacation.
• General Zod hijacked Earth's electronic systems and demanded that Earth hand someone over, threatening the planet.
• Josh and Avila decided to continue their vacation while Josh considered when to confront the Kryptonians.
• After days of global chaos, Clark surrendered himself to the soldiers and went to the agreed meeting place.
• As Clark sensed the approaching spacecraft and prepared to say goodbye to his loved one, he felt a terrifying surge of power coming from the same direction.

Josh confronted the arriving Kryptonians at a United States military base, declaring Earth his backyard and identifying himself as the legendary God of Light. He demanded an explanation from them for threatening to turn Earth into a dead planet.

• Josh waited near the military base with Avila until a Kryptonian spacecraft arrived, then teleported into the United States forces’ landing area.
• Josh’s magical power overwhelmed the soldiers, and he told Clark that Earth was his backyard.
• Deputy Commander Faora greeted Clark as Kal-El and demanded that Lois accompany her on General Zod’s orders.
• Colonel Nathan Hardy refused Faora’s demand, and Josh interrupted the standoff before Lois could volunteer.
• Josh confronted Faora, recounted his supposed history on Earth, and called himself the God of Light.
• Josh demanded that the Kryptonians explain why they had come to Earth and risked turning it into a dead planet.

Josh confronted General Zod over the Kryptonians’ plan to take Earth as their new home. After Zod refused to abandon the plan, Josh attacked, leaving Zod defeated and asking him to spare the last Kryptonian.

• Faora chose to summon General Zod after Josh threatened to shoot down the Kryptonian ship.
• Zod arrived in a massive warship and admitted that the Kryptonians intended to settle on Earth, even if that meant eliminating its inhabitants.
• Josh rejected Zod’s offer and attacked, killing several of Zod’s subordinates with magic that tore open space.
• Josh revealed his name, Josh Augustus, and his title, Cosmic Overlord, as he continued attacking Zod.
• Zod admitted he was no match for Josh and asked him to spare the last Kryptonian and kill him with his greatest power.

Josh accepted Zod’s surrender in exchange for information and the survival of Zod and Faora, then chose to spare Zod by sending him away. He unleashed his immense power to fulfill Zod’s request for a final display, and Zod’s spacecraft disappeared as the shattered sky began to heal.

• Josh agreed to spare Faora and another Kryptonian in exchange for Zod’s information about planetary structures.
• Zod gave Josh the information and prepared to die, but Superman asked Josh to spare him.
• Zod defended his actions and urged Josh to warn the universe that Earth had an owner.
• After consulting Akathosh, Josh decided Zod could serve his interests in another universe and let him leave in his spacecraft.
• Zod stopped his spacecraft outside Earth’s atmosphere, and Josh summoned his Seraph and unleashed a devastating spatial attack that shattered the sky.
• The spatial rifts began to close, Zod’s spacecraft vanished, and Josh declared that it was over.

Josh recruited General Zod into the Secret Ones Alliance and sent him to the Marvel Universe, while Earth’s authorities investigated Josh’s immense power and questioned General White. Josh concluded that removing Zod had also prevented Lex Luthor from obtaining the means to create Doomsday, then learned that Clark wanted to meet him.

• General White was repeatedly questioned by Washington officials, who investigated the space station’s encounter with aliens and Josh’s power to threaten Earth.
• Josh returned Avila to Diana and reassured her that he had controlled his attack to avoid destroying Earth.
• Josh explained his plan to General Zod, recruited him into the Secret Ones Alliance, signed a protective contract, and sent him to the Marvel Universe under Master Gu Yi’s watch.
• Josh realized that Zod’s removal and the destruction of his ship had left Lex Luthor without the means to create Doomsday.
• Josh invited Diana to visit another universe and learned that Clark wanted to meet him.

Josh met with Clark and Faora after spending several days exploring the city with Avila. He defended his decision to kill General Zod, leaving Clark troubled but acknowledging Josh’s reasoning and reminding the surviving Kryptonians that they were free to handle anyone who bothered them.

• Josh took Avila around the city to enjoy modern activities until Diana called to say Clark had arrived.
• Josh returned to the hotel with Avila using his spatial power and welcomed Clark and Faora into their room.
• Clark asked Josh about the world’s hidden secrets and whether ancient gods had truly existed, and Josh explained that gods could simply be powerful aliens.
• Clark questioned why Josh had killed Zod after defeating him, and Josh argued that Zod had not surrendered and had chosen death to spare Faora and Clark.
• Clark admitted he still struggled to accept Zod’s death but conceded that Josh’s approach seemed right.
• Josh told Clark and Faora to value their new lives on Earth and said they could deal with anyone who troubled them.

Josh and his companions left the DC Universe and returned to the Marvel Universe after deciding they had finished their business there. Back at his church, Josh learned that his allies had grown stronger from the powers of law, and introduced Diana to Garen.

• Clark and Faora thanked Josh for clearing up their doubts, then left to live quietly while preparing to defend themselves if humans came after them.
• Josh and Avila decided to return to the Marvel Universe, and Diana joined them after quickly arranging leave from work.
• Josh opened a Void Gate, and the group stepped into his office at the Secret Ones Church in New York.
• Josh sensed that those who had received powers of law had grown stronger, including Natasha at the Seventh Tier, Wina at the Eighth Tier, and Ciri at the Fifth Tier.
• Garen revealed that the laws of strength had raised him to the initial stage of the Eighth Tier, then asked Josh about Diana, whom Josh introduced as his student from the DC Universe.

After Josh advanced by infusing an asteroid with many rules, he discovered a strange state of locked life force and learned that his constructed planet could not produce life without souls. He realized the Soul Stone held the missing element, while Thanos sensed that trouble was coming.

• Josh transformed an asteroid by adding many kinds of rules, and the process unexpectedly advanced him to a higher life level.
• Josh discovered that he could see hidden lines between life and death and that his life force no longer seemed to flow away.
• Akathosh explained that transcending beings took power from their worlds, and Josh inferred that his new state might be a form of eternity.
• Josh asked why his rule-filled planet had no life, and Akathosh explained that souls were essential from the beginning of life.
• Josh realized he lacked the Soul Stone, which Thanos still possessed, and Thanos suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

After stabilizing his newly immense power, Josh heard from Coulson how Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. defeated Hydra’s Project Insight. S.H.I.E.L.D. survived but lost public trust, Fury was removed as director, and Coulson took his place.

• Josh stayed in the church to control his new power, then learned to move freely after several days of practice.
• Natasha and Ciri checked on Josh, and Natasha told him that Coulson wanted to see him.
• Coulson thanked Josh for the intelligence that helped S.H.I.E.L.D. uncover Hydra and explained how Nick Fury lured Hydra into launching Project Insight.
• Fury’s mole sabotaged Project Insight, while Captain America and Bruce Banner helped destroy the three Helicarriers.
• S.H.I.E.L.D. faced investigations and lost the trust of nearly every country, Fury was fired and became a special agent in Washington, and Coulson became the new director.

Josh celebrated reaching the divine level with friends from the worlds he had visited, then returned to his room to meditate and control his unstable power. As he and Akathosh meditated together, familiar silver power appeared around them again.

• Coulson thanked Josh for helping bring down Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. and asked to continue cooperating with the Secret Ones Alliance.
• Josh invited friends from across his worlds to celebrate his divine-level breakthrough, and the gathering grew into a huge banquet.
• Akathosh explained that Josh would be drawn into the Land of the Gods if he returned to the Muya Continent, so Josh chose to stay in the Marvel Universe for now.
• The guests celebrated until after three in the morning, while Josh avoided exerting himself because he could not yet control his power.
• Josh and Akathosh began meditating together, and familiar silver power appeared around them.

Josh and Akathosh awoke in the Void and encountered powerful Void creatures discussing a message from Runeterra. As the creatures considered rejecting a request to delay their arrival, Josh and Akathosh realized that they had strangely overlooked important matters and feared they had entered a dangerous situation.

• Josh and Akathosh awoke in the Void, where Josh sensed a gathering of powerful Void creatures and was summoned to them by a silver ripple.
• The Giant eyeball explained that a voice from a Creation World had contacted the Void creatures, and Josh learned that it had come in the language of Runeterra.
• Josh introduced himself, and the Giant eyeball named itself Vel'Koz, leaving Josh wondering whether it could be the Vel'Koz from League of Legends.
• The Void creatures debated rejecting a request from a woman to delay their arrival, saying she had taken their benefits and made them wait long enough.
• Josh and Akathosh realized they had both instinctively overlooked important matters and suspected that someone or something had been watching them since Josh was weak.

Josh learned that time in the endless Void did not affect the outside world and found that he and Akathosh grew stronger there. When the Void creatures prepared to enter the Creation World, Josh watched Kavis tear open the boundary between worlds.

• Josh learned from his inheritance that he could stay in the endless Void for any length of time without affecting the outside world.
• Josh trained in the Void and discovered that his strength improved far faster there; Akathosh said the place felt like a return to Kamacia.
• Veratia told Josh that lifeforms from the Creation World were opening the Void Gate so the Void creatures could descend.
• The Void creatures sensed the boundary between worlds thinning, and Kavis volunteered to go first.
• Kavis tore the weakened boundary open with his claws, revealing what Josh recognized as the most primitive kind of Void Gate.

Josh watched the Void begin merging with the linear material world and saw Kavis enter Runeterra, where human forces attacked him. A powerful frost spell froze the battlefield, including Kavis and its caster, as the word "Freeze!" rang out.

• Josh sensed a mysterious power from Runeterra and reconstructed the chaotic lines into an image of the Howling Abyss.
• The Void’s lines connected with the linear material world, beginning the two worlds’ merger.
• Humans bearing the three Icy sisters’ flags attacked Kavis as he crossed into the material world.
• Kavis found that the humans’ attacks barely affected him and experienced the material world’s laws for the first time.
• An immense frost force swept across the battlefield, freezing the humans, Kavis, and the spell’s caster.

Josh and the others watched Lissandra seal the boundary between the Void and Runeterra, then realized she had used the Yetis’ power to defeat the Void at the cost of their extinction. After training in the Void, Josh mastered his power but remained unable to understand its essence, until someone proposed a new way to enter the material world.

• Lissandra froze the Howling Abyss and sealed the rift with nine True Ice Pillars, preventing Void lifeforms from entering Runeterra.
• Josh realized Lissandra had drawn on the Yetis’ strength, likely causing their extinction, and learned that she had betrayed the Void Watchers after receiving their power.
• Josh and Akathosh trained in the Void, and Josh gained control of his power and a deeper but incomplete understanding of it.
• Akathosh reached Tier Ten after training, while Josh struggled to master each new level of power.
• Someone suggested studying the source of the linear material world and creating avatars suited to its rules so they could enter it.

Josh studied how the Void Watchers created power incarnations for Runeterra and learned their plan to gather them beyond the sealed Void Gate. As he wondered how long he had been away, a Void Watcher revealed a newly discovered world and mentioned someone called Titans.

• Josh learned that Runeterra’s World Runes contained fused rules and studied how to condense and combine those rules.
• The Void Watchers showed Josh their giant power incarnations and explained that they planned to shape material-world power into avatars, using the loosened lower layer of the Void to supply them.
• Josh questioned how the incarnations had entered Runeterra, while Akathosh urged him not to interfere with the flow of time.
• Josh complained that he had nearly exhausted the asteroids he could use to strengthen himself and still had not found the Star Core or obtained the Soul Stone.
• A Void Watcher announced that he had opened a passage to a world whose inhabitants had defeated his creations, then said a figure called Titans had forced one of them to obey and help cleanse that world.

Josh continued cultivating in the Void until a faint magical fluctuation revealed that someone in the material world had activated one of Vel'Koz's seeds. The breach between the Void and Runeterra reopened, but it was too weak to admit the Void Watchers themselves.

• Josh and Akathosh discussed how Sargeras's power compared with that of the Void Watchers.
• Josh continued fusing laws and cultivating, learning that he would return to his body when it neared its limit.
• Josh sensed a faint magical fluctuation and joined the Void Watchers who had gathered around its source.
• Vel'Koz explained that a human had activated a seed he left in the material world using its power and life.
• The Void Watchers found the reopened breach could admit only power avatars and combat puppets, not their full selves.

Josh witnessed Icathia’s rebellion against Shurima end in catastrophe when Icathia opened a Void Gate, which consumed both armies and every living thing nearby. Vel'Koz lamented that the mindless Void creatures had destroyed the humans they hoped to study, leaving Josh among the ruins.

• Icathia rebelled against Shurima after more than a century of oppression and prepared to defend its restored kingdom.
• Jax led the Kohari and Icathian army against Shurima, but the nine Ascended overwhelmed them and drove the survivors behind the city walls.
• Icathia’s mages activated a scroll containing a seed of power, opening a Void Gate beneath Shurima’s army.
• Void creatures poured through the gate, devouring Shurima’s soldiers, the Ascended, and then the Icathians and other living things nearby.
• Josh recovered amid the ruins, and Vel'Koz criticized the creatures for killing everyone before they could learn about their world.

Josh and Vel'Koz watched the Void's uncontrolled war puppets devastate Icathia and Shurima, where the Ascended fought for years before winning at a terrible cost. As the Void Watchers began sending conscious constructs into the world, two immense level-thirty forces approached.

• Vel'Koz told Josh that the battle was between Icathia and Shurima, after the Icathians had unleashed the Void's power to resist Shurima's invasion.
• Josh and Akathosh watched Shurima's Ascended, led by Queen Shetaka, fight the Void puppets as ordinary people were infected by Void power.
• The Ascended eventually defeated the puppets after years of fighting, but countless Ascended died and Shetaka fell in battle.
• Vel'Koz expected the Void Watchers to send their conscious power constructs into the world now that the puppets were gone.
• Josh and Akathosh sensed a tremendous level-thirty force tearing through the heavens and another familiar level-thirty construct approaching.

Josh and Akathosh witnessed Aurelion Sol’s past: The Celestials enslaved him with a crown, then ordered him to seal the Void Gates on Runeterra. At the final gate, Aurelion Sol attacked the approaching Akathosh, mistaking his desperate cries for mockery.

• Josh and Akathosh saw peak Akathosh drifting through the Void as the Void Watchers watched without attacking or helping him.
• Akathosh remembered that he had once fled a purple world and encountered Aurelion Sol, prompting Josh to witness the Dragon King’s past.
• The Celestials gave Aurelion Sol a crown made from Star Gems that let them control him, forcing him to fight their enemies and serve their empire.
• After The Celestials’ power weakened, they summoned Aurelion Sol to Runeterra to seal the Void Gates left by the war between Icathia and Shurima.
• At the final Void Gate, Aurelion Sol sensed Akathosh approaching and attacked him, while Akathosh had been trying to ask for help.
• Josh realized Aurelion Sol had mistaken Akathosh’s hoarse cries for laughter, and Akathosh protested that he had been desperate for help.

Josh learned that Aurelion Sol had secretly created a free soul fragment before the Celestials regained control of his true body, and sent a Tier Nine power incarnation to find him. Josh finally reached Aurelion Sol near Celestial territory, but the Dragon King attacked as soon as Josh tried to speak with him.

• Josh learned that Aurelion Sol's attack killed Pantheon and briefly freed him from the Celestials' control, allowing him to create an independent soul fragment before they seized control again.
• Josh created a Tier Nine power incarnation and sent it to Runeterra to find Aurelion Sol, while Akathosh helped track the Dragon King's aura.
• Josh observed Runeterra's devastation and concluded that the surviving Ascended would soon become the Darkin.
• After about a week, Josh found Aurelion Sol near Celestial territory, with several Celestials' corpses beneath him.
• Josh told Aurelion Sol that his true body was in the Void and that he had come to talk, but Aurelion Sol immediately attacked him.