Vampire Progenitor

"He's really a miracle for having survived this long," Truman remarked.

"He... was born that way." Sasrir sounded helpless. Being Vice-King of Heaven was exhausting enough as it was.

"Hello, I'm Leodero." To everyone's surprise, the furious Leodero was the first to recover, rein in his anger, and introduce himself.

"Hello, guest from afar. I'm Oseacus."

Just then, a man in a white robe approached, beaming with youthful vigor. His short golden hair glittered in the sunlight.

He reminded Truman a lot of the Ancient Sun God.

"You've already met all the angels beneath the Sun," Sasrir said, introducing Truman to the angels as well.

"They're no weaker than the Ancient Gods."

Compared with a single Ancient God, they certainly weren't weak. But the Ancient God Alliance was something even the Ancient Sun God had to treat with caution.

Besides, the Ancient Gods whose authorities the Ancient Sun God intended to reclaim belonged to two opposing camps. Without sowing discord between them, no one could withstand a fight against all six.

Truman had come here to help make that happen.

The two continued their tour of the Sun God's divine kingdom while the three angels watched from a distance.

"Why does he feel so weak?" Medici asked, baffled. "And yet I don't dare attack him. I even feel like something bad would happen if I provoked him."

"Which of you two wants to challenge him?" Medici urged the other two.

"I'm not an idiot," Leodero scoffed, refusing to take the bait.

"Oh, really? Since when?" Medici blurted out a taunt, nearly making Leodero lose his temper again.

"We may be on the verge of war." Oseacus's smile faded, and his tone grew solemn.

"Excellent!" Medici raised an eyebrow. With an army behind him, he was at his strongest. War was what suited him best.

"This..." Truman stared in astonishment at the city before him, several times grander than the City of Silver. It was at least thousands of years ahead of its time.

Greek colonnades, Byzantine domes, Gothic spires—the architectural styles that had vanished into the past had been reborn in this divine kingdom.

"Beyonders as construction workers. That's certainly one way to do things." Truman chuckled.

There was no shortage of Low Sequence materials or Beyonders here. They only needed to pass a simple selection process before being granted a Potion.

To humanity, both in the present and in the ages to come, this was a true heaven.

"This is what the future will look like," Truman concluded.

The Ancient Sun God's later rise to become the Creator of the Third Epoch was evident in this place alone.

"Why is the Vampire Progenitor called Lilith?" After touring such a vast city, Truman asked Sasrir.

"The roots of humanoid Ancient Gods all lie in humanity," Sasrir said.

Truman nodded slightly.

"But Lilith has retained her humanity well. She's the only one worth cooperating with."

Sasrir was satisfied with Truman and the Goddess's choice of ally.

"I've already received word that the Demon Wolf clan has set out for the Giant King's Court."

The Goddess had caused trouble so quickly? Truman was somewhat surprised.

"It's connected to the commotion you caused in the City of Silver."

The appearance of the Chaos Sea's aura had roused the Demon Wolf, which held the Fool Pathway, from its slumber. The place where it had appeared made the Demon Wolf wary as well.

The Demon Wolf and the Giants were mortal enemies, constantly seeking to devour each other. The Demon Wolf was even more unhinged; once its desire for destruction was stirred, nothing could restrain it.

"As a result, every Ancient God is watching the Giant King's Court."

"...Then I'll have to laugh about that." Truman chuckled and shook his head.

The disturbances caused by the fluctuations of the Chaos Sea Sefirah had probably begun around the time Truman met with the Ancient Sun God.

In the divine kingdom of the Annihilation Demonic Wolf, within a rough-hewn yet tranquil temple, a figure took shape.

The Goddess of Misfortune, Amanises, opened her eyes and emerged from concealment. Her expression was indifferent, though a repressed madness seemed to stir beneath it.

She left the rough-hewn temple and looked out over a boundless primeval forest and a towering mountain range whose peaks vanished into the clouds.

Farther away, several terrifying beasts seemed to be rolling about. Wolves howled without end, making the earth tremble.

The Goddess walked in silence toward the mountain peak, as if on a pilgrimage, with utmost devotion.

"Awwooo!" A wolf's howl rang out from the towering mountain, undisguised malice pouring from it.

The Goddess of Misfortune, Amanises, remained calm as she faced the enormous Demon Wolf blocking her way.

The Demon Wolf was terrifying, a small mountain stretching across her path. Its body was covered in dark, short fur, and its eight legs were thick and powerful. Its pitch-black eyes fixed on Amanises with open malice.

"I challenge you! The position of God of Misfortune belongs to the great Gozrat!"

The Demon Wolf spoke. Strange light shimmered across its body—the deepest, most concentrated darkness, spreading the powers of concealment and fear, embodying silent destruction and erasure.

Amanises looked past the Demon Wolf. Several similar Demon Wolves lurked behind it. If she showed even the slightest weakness, the pack might tear her apart.

A mad Ancient God might need a Subordinate God of Misfortune, but wouldn't care who filled the position.

And this was just another ordinary day for the Goddess of Misfortune.

These Demon Wolves were a nuisance: she couldn't kill them, yet they wouldn't leave her alone.

Amanises was clearly used to being challenged whenever she went out. She merely glanced at the walking Beyonder characteristics and strode away.

"Roar!" The Eight-Legged Demon Wolf bellowed, unleashing darkness infused with fear and concealment.

But Amanises simply walked on, turning herself into a Pencil Drawing that an eraser wiped away. When she appeared again, she was already on the mountaintop.

The powers of concealment and misfortune were formidable. The Eight-Legged Demon Wolves, each comparable to a Sequence Two or Sequence Three Beyonder in later times, couldn't even see her retreating figure. They were just a bit of a nuisance...

"Amanises."

Another Demon Wolf approached, but this one was different. It lacked the aura of terror that clung to the others and was far more elegant. From time to time, crystalline Worms of Spirit emerged from its body and slipped back inside.

"Antigonus." The Goddess nodded slightly.

Before long, another Demon Wolf arrived. This one resembled Antigonus, with pitch-black pupils taking up three-quarters of its eyes and a tuft of white fur on its forehead.

"God of Wishes," Kotar the Demonic Wolf.

Snort! Antigonus shot Kotar a look of disgust and walked on without a word.

Ahead stood another divine being, half-human and half-beast, covered in black and white feathers. Its head was more birdlike, and strange symbols marked its pale skin, emanating a thick aura of death.

God of Death, Salinger.