A Journey Through the Multiverse from a Supreme Sovereign

Thus, Saigō, who had appeared in the form of the Great Old Demon Aging, did not actually possess many combat skills. The power similar to Jada's that he had displayed just now had relied on the Third Star Particle.

However, despite its lack of combat ability, the Great Old Demon Aging, as a "support," possessed the most wicked of powers.

Any matter or concept touched by his hands would fade away under Aging. A sword seized by Saigō would rust, and magic touched by him would dissipate.

Therefore, back in the World Tree Game, Saigō had been a true mage killer.

A mage's spells simply could not harm him, not even Super-tier Magic.

And once Saigō got close, fragile mages would be instantly killed.

His hands could corrode all things!

Warriors, on the other hand, could still fight Saigō even after losing their weapons and armor, only to be defeated by Saigō's formidable combat experience and talent.

Under normal circumstances, although Saigō had lost most of his combat strength, what Jada, the Third True Ancestor, was about to lose was her life.

Yet Saigō still remained wary of Jada, who appeared to have no ability to resist.

The True Vampires of this world were not Shalltear. In terms of immortality, that "lamprey" True Vampire Shalltear was not even worthy of carrying their shoes.

Therefore, Saigō could not guarantee that his power could kill Jada, the Third True Ancestor.

After all, Saigō had not yet reached the rank of Third Rank and had not undergone a qualitative transformation.

If he could reach Third Rank, he would probably only need to seize part of Jada's body to drain her into a dried corpse.

The Third True Ancestor: Let Me Become Your Observer!

"Admit defeat? Hmm, perhaps that is what you think."

Jada suddenly let out a giggle. Leaning back against the shattered rocks behind her, she trembled with laughter.

Then, the Third True Ancestor gave a sly smile. "...Do not underestimate the True Vampires. Do not underestimate True Vampires who possess ten thousand years of Blood Memory!"

"...To fulfill our promise with that person, the three of us endured that maddening sense of deathly silence for ten thousand years."

"The First Generation Vampires of old had long since either gone mad or died over the endless passage of time. Some had even chosen to end their own lives."

"...But the three of us kept on, struggling to survive again and again. Even though we wanted to die countless times, countless times we wanted to choose some method to end our lives as if by accident."

"Yet we never truly made that choice. This was, at best, our reluctant response to the sacrifice that person once made."

"...That is why we are True Vampires. Every other vampire will forever only be a vampire!"

"Our title of True Vampire does not come from being the first vampires. It comes from bearing the deepest Blood Memory!"

Jada's tone became somewhat agitated. Perhaps she had recalled her past experiences once more, for pain appeared on her exquisitely beautiful face.

"Your power is very unusual. Even I find it difficult to expel it."

"...But a True Vampire with ten thousand years of Blood Memory will not die so easily."

Jada's voice grew softer, weaker, and older.

From her fingers, the true meaning of Saigō's Aging began rapidly eroding the Third True Ancestor's body.

Her slender wrists withered, while her jade-like arms rapidly dehydrated and became wrinkled.

Jada's fit and beautiful body also swiftly began to age. Its fullness vanished, leaving her like a skeleton, with even her ribs exposed.

Then her beautiful green hair turned white, the flesh on her face receded, and even her pearly teeth yellowed and fell out.

In the blink of an eye, the once Beauty Overwhelms Nations, the Third True Ancestor, had perfectly illustrated the saying that all beautiful women were but skeletons beneath the skin.

Yet even so, the power of Aging continued. Her body soon fractured, and her remaining skin and bones gradually turned to powder.

No matter how one looked at it, the Third True Ancestor had completely died. Yet Saigō's vigilance instead rose to its highest level.

As a faint breeze passed through, that pile of bone ash scattered with the wind, leaving only a few traces of gray-white dust on the ground.

Then, in the next instant, those tiny specks of white ash rose into the wind. They returned from death to life, and under the effect of some mysterious power, the ash began to grow until it finally became a bone.

Using that bone as its foundation, Jada's nerves, flesh, and body all re-formed.

In only a few seconds, the dead Third True Ancestor had completely revived. She still leaned against the rubble, clutching her white ceremonial dress to her chest and wrapping it around herself to conceal her boundless spring scenery.

The revived Jada was completely different from before. The aged air left by Aging was gone, and her skin was once more filled with a healthy flush.

Even Saigō was stunned by this unbelievable sight. This resurrection ability was far too powerful.

Even his demon body, which was formed from concepts, could not possibly continue reviving after being reduced to ashes.

If every True Vampire possessed such immortality, then these True Vampires truly would have a difficult time dying.

After carefully examining Jada, Saigō laughed. "...You are even weaker than I am now. Forget combat ability—you probably cannot even walk."

"...Hmm, let me guess. This resurrection ability of yours should come from one of your Familiars?"

Saigō looked thoughtful.

Jada revealed a charming yet weak smile. "...You guessed correctly, Zarathustra. This is precisely the power of my Familiar, Xipe-Totec."

"...This Familiar's power is rebirth. After exchanging one's Blood Memory and Familiar for life, one can revive even after being reduced to ashes."

"I have never used this ability. I even thought I would never use it in my life."

"...But I did not expect you to take my 'first time' so easily."

It was unknown whether Jada did it deliberately, but she had specifically used phrasing that could easily be misunderstood.

"This ability was originally a method to deceive powerful enemies after encountering them, but over the past ten thousand years, I never encountered an enemy powerful enough to make me use it."

"...The price of using this ability is exactly as you see. Although I can be reborn, I temporarily cannot use any power."

"Consider this battle your victory, Zarathustra!"

"...But I must still thank you. You let me taste the fear I had long forgotten, even making me choose this method of ending myself to escape my fear of Aging."

Jada murmured in sorrow. Saigō did not know whether it was an illusion, but he felt that the Third True Ancestor before him spoke with more emotion than before.

The Third True Ancestor from earlier had been like a madwoman, heedless of everything and concerned only with pleasure. Now, she seemed to possess a measure of reason.

"I recall that you signed the Sanctuary Treaty with the Forgotten War King, did you not?"

"...The Kingdom of Aldegia is still one of the Sanctuary Treaty Nations, yet you caused such havoc in its capital. Who knew how many people died during our clash just now?"

"Are you not afraid that the Forgotten War King will come looking for trouble?"

Saigō asked at this moment. In truth, he was probing the relationships and connections between these True Vampires.

Jada was no fool. She saw through Saigō's intentions, but she did not care and merely said casually, "...The Sanctuary Treaty is merely something Kii came up with. I have no interest in following it."

"...Besides, what does it matter if a treaty was signed in black and white? So long as I wish it, it is nothing more than a piece of waste paper."

"The so-called Sanctuary Treaty Nations exist because of the three of us True Vampires. If any one of us abandons the treaty, then the treaty will naturally become void."

"...I seek pleasure, and so does Kii. But he is someone who follows rules and order."

"His efforts to bring peace to the world and promote coexistence between humans and demons are merely his own method of seeking pleasure."

Although Jada did not say so directly, Saigō roughly guessed that the relationship between the three True Vampires was actually quite good.

Though they each had their own goals and minor conflicts, overall, they had coexisted peacefully over these ten thousand years.

This was not good news. The three True Vampires were a small group, which undoubtedly represented the strongest force in this world.

At this moment, Jada smiled mischievously. "...Are you collecting the Vessels of the Fourth True Ancestor? It seems you are interested in the Fourth True Ancestor's power."

"...You are now a Primogenitor, which makes you one of my kind. I can even help you collect these Vessels and allow you to completely grasp the power of the Night Lord of Blazing Light."

"You only need to agree to one condition."

Saigō's heart stirred as he asked, "...What condition?"

Jada blinked her emerald eyes at Saigō and smiled faintly. "...Just let me become your observer!"

I Am Merely a Demon!

"Become my observer?"

Saigō laughed dumbly, then his expression turned cold. "...Although your proposal is somewhat tempting, I still refuse."

"...I hate being threatened, especially when the other party is in the position of a defeated loser."

"Though compromise is the rule of politics and the product of order, unfortunately, I am a demon. What I follow is not the order you are familiar with, but absolute chaos!"

"...The more reasonable you think something is, the less likely I am to do it. The more unreasonable you think something is, the more likely I am to do it."

After a pause, Saigō gave the same sly smile as Jada. "...Of course, if the benefits are sufficient, I am not incapable of adjusting my moral bottom line."

"...After all, I am merely a demon!"

Humans were contradictory creatures, and demons were the same.

Sometimes, Saigō liked to speak in riddles and deceive others.

But at other times, he was extremely candid and did not mind directly telling others what he thought.

Of course, Saigō would never agree to Jada becoming his "observer." He did not want to live under someone else's watchful eye.

If Jada were truly powerful enough that he could not resist her, perhaps Saigō would reluctantly yield.

But Jada was not powerful enough to make him yield.

From Jada, Saigō had also gained a rough understanding of the True Vampires' strength and the true power of True Vampire Familiars.

Those area-of-effect Familiars similar to "magic" posed no threat to Saigō at all. His Aging was completely the nemesis of such abilities.

Only types like Jada, who could engage in close-quarters combat and possessed extremely powerful hand-to-hand fighting ability, gave Saigō a headache.

His demon Divinity was not purely combat-oriented. Although it gave him abundant combat experience, that experience could easily crush ordinary people from the World Tree Game.

The game's skills were merely formulaic things and posed no threat whatsoever.

But against beings like Jada, who had lived for thousands upon thousands of years and possessed such combat experience and will, Saigō did not dare guarantee that he was stronger than her.

It was clear that the Third True Ancestor's combat experience was already considered weak. She had probably fought very little over these ten thousand years.

That was why Saigō had still held the advantage over Jada in combat instinct and experience during their battle.

But even if she had few opportunities to fight, ten thousand years of time was not something ordinary humans who lived for barely a century could compare to.

If Jada truly is, as she says, the strongest among the three True Vampires in close combat, then I need not worry too much about the other two. I only need to be wary of their strange Familiar abilities.

...The greatest threat in this world is indeed Sin God Cain and his Great Calamity.

Saigō muttered inwardly.

He was also glad that this world's strongest race was vampires, a group that completely relied on Familiars to flaunt their might.

If this world's strongest race were true warriors like beastmen, who fought desperately without fear of death, then Saigō would truly find that troublesome.

But even so, these True Vampires are far stronger than those players in the World Tree Game. Players are ultimately just players, ordinary people who gained power. All they can rely on are the skills established by the game system.

...There was no pain in the game, nor was there death, so they could become the Fourth Calamity.

But after transmigrating, once they can feel pain and truly die, the gap between ordinary people and genuine powerhouses will grow infinitely wide.

...From this perspective, even if the other members of Ainz Ooal Gown transmigrated, they might not necessarily be very strong.

Momonga has an advantage in this regard. The dead body of an undead is truly useful, apart from the regrettable loss of powerful desires.

Saigō sighed inwardly. Desire was what drove a person to continue growing stronger. Losing desire was, in truth, losing one's future.

As Saigō pondered and continued evaluating this world's overall strength, Jada clapped her hands and laughed loudly. "...Hahaha! That is why I say you are interesting, Zarathustra!"

"I like people like you, who act without restraint. Kii worries about too many things, always beating around the bush, and even insists on signing treaties with humans. It is simply so boring."

Jada's tone was filled with dissatisfaction. Her wild and lovely face had reddened slightly, making her look quite angry.

However, the target of her dissatisfaction was not Saigō, but the First True Ancestor.

Immediately afterward, Jada sighed. "...But it is precisely because Kii has concerns that, among the three of us, he has retained the most reason and possesses the richest Blood Memory."

"...You need not care about something like an 'observer.' That is merely a title."

"The fact that the power of the Night Lord of Blazing Light has been obtained by a demon who likely came from another world has made Kii and Aswardgull very worried."