Main God's Past, Eternal Regret

The vast, boundless phantom of the Main God hovered at the center of the world. Its indistinct outline blotted out the sky, forcibly dividing the descending Seven-Colored Judgment Divine Light and the roiling black Chaos mist into two separate regions.

The twin calamities that had been pressing forward moments ago, on the verge of crushing everything, were now firmly restrained by this suddenly awakened ancient figure. The trembling of the earth gradually subsided. The blood-red contract markings that had burrowed deep into living beings' souls and continuously stripped away their vitality curled up and faded as if they had encountered their natural enemy. The agonizing pain that had nearly torn them apart also eased considerably.

The surviving humans and cultivators of the various races slumped across the ruined ground, gazing up at the towering phantom with bewilderment and awe. They had been born in this world and raised beneath this sea of stars. They had heard countless ancient legends since childhood, yet never known that deep beneath the planet at their feet slept such a supreme being, one who ruled over the entire universe.

High above in the void, Frieza's tense body relaxed slightly, and the restless Emperor Energy around him gradually settled. He had lived for countless years and traversed the galaxy. He had seen powerful life-forms of every shape and sensed the terrifying auras of higher-dimensional beings, yet the presence radiating from the Main God's phantom still filled him with an indescribable sense of oppression.

This was not the brute, overwhelming pressure that came from amassed power, but an innate authority over an entire cosmos. The mountains and rivers, stars and streams, living beings and plants of this universe all fell under his jurisdiction.

"So the world believed the Main God had perished completely after losing the ancient war, but he had actually survived in hiding this way." Frieza murmured to himself, his crimson eyes fixed on the phantom as his thoughts churned.

Kallen clenched his fists. As his chest rose and fell, his boiling Saiyan battle blood gradually calmed. In the ancient memories passed down through generations of the Pure-blooded Saiyan Race, fragments concerning the Realm Overlord remained, though they were so distant that most of the information had long since blurred and vanished. Now that he was witnessing the Main God awaken with his own eyes, those buried fragments of memory began to stir and piece themselves together.

"So our ancestors didn't protect this world with their lives for nothing." Kallen's expression was complicated. "But why did the Main God remain dormant for billions of years, watching all living beings become nourishment for the Heavens and allowing the Chaos Clan to devour the Origin?"

The questions circled through everyone's minds, but no one could answer them.

The Golden Full-Power Super Saiyan floated among the clouds, his golden hair hanging still, endless vicissitudes settled in his eyes. He had witnessed countless civilizations in this universe rise and fall, and had once explored the ruins of ancient battlefields alone, yet he had never uncovered the complete truth behind the defeat of that ancient war. Now that the Main God had appeared, at last there was a chance to unveil that age-old history buried by time.

Lin Chen stood in the heart of the formation on the earth, the light of his ancient golden bloodline faintly resonating with the Origin of the land around him. Ancient memories unlocked in his mind surged forth, and, combined with the aura radiating from the Main God's phantom, the scattered images of the past began to connect.

He could clearly sense that the Realm Overlord's soul was incomplete. His body, too, was merely a phantom condensed from the universe's Origin. After billions of years of slumber and depletion, his power was no longer at its peak. Even so, his innate foundation in the Origin was still enough to intimidate the Outer-Domain Supreme and the Chaos Royal Clan.

Beyond the dimensional barrier, the seven supreme auras that had been poised to strike began to waver.

The Seven-Colored Judgment Divine Light no longer pressed relentlessly downward. Its radiance flickered, betraying a hint of apprehension. For billions of years, the Supremes of the Heavens had long assumed that this universe was a helpless granary. The certainty that the Main God had perished completely had taken root. Now, the sleeping ruler had abruptly awakened, throwing all their schemes into disarray.

The Chaos King's massive shadow shifted restlessly within the black mist. His hollow eyes were fixed on the Main God's phantom. His earlier indifference and mockery had vanished, replaced by deep wariness and a trace of panic too faint to notice.

"During the ancient final battle, your soul was gravely wounded and your Origin was on the verge of collapse. How did you evade the scrutiny of the Heavens and my Chaos Clan, and remain hidden until now?"

The Chaos King's deep, hoarse voice rang across the world, full of disbelief.

An ancient, distant voice slowly issued from the Main God's phantom. It carried no sharp force, only the weight and sorrow of having crossed the ages, echoing into every corner of the world.

"Defeat without death is nothing more than a lingering existence. Back then, the Heavens joined forces to invade, and Chaos suddenly betrayed us, attacking from behind. The cosmic defenses collapsed across the board. Countless sages died on the battlefield, the very foundations of the universe shattered, and this god's Origin was gravely wounded and torn apart."

As the words unfolded, a harrowing history buried for billions of years slowly appeared before everyone.

In ancient times, this universe had been vast and its living beings prosperous. Geniuses from every race had emerged in droves, and civilization had reached its peak. The Realm Overlord sat at the heart of the cosmos, protecting countless living beings as they flourished in peace. In those days, order prevailed throughout the myriad worlds, and they coexisted without interfering with one another for an exceedingly long time.

The upheaval began when the great powers beyond the universe grew ambitious.

The Supremes of the Heavens coveted this universe's rich, pure Origin and its races' extraordinary cultivation talents. They secretly plotted to annex and plunder it. Unwilling to weaken themselves through a direct assault, they covertly courted the Chaos Clan, which dwelled beyond the cosmos, made lavish promises, and lured them into betraying their pact and joining forces to encircle their former home.

On one side stood the deep-rooted native cosmos; on the other, the powerful allied forces of the Heavens, reinforced by Chaos elites. The battle had been at a disadvantage from the very beginning.

Countless races set aside their differences and fought side by side. War gods and heroes took turns joining the fray, yet they still could not withstand the relentless assaults of the two opposing forces. Their territory shrank without end, stars fell one after another, prosperous star regions became ruins, and the dead piled into mountains. The entire world was shrouded in blood and smoke.

The Main God exhausted all his strength to defend his land and fought the Seven Supremes to the death. But even the strongest could not fight four hands at once. No matter how sturdy the defenses, after day upon day of attrition, they neared collapse.

With their homeland on the verge of total ruin and countless living beings about to be slaughtered, the surviving leaders had no choice but to negotiate a concession, hoping to keep the spark of their races from being extinguished forever.

In the end, they signed the Eternal Sacrifice Contract, turning the entire universe into a source of nourishment for the Heavens and entrusting the Chaos Clan with overseeing it. With this humiliating price, they bought the universe a temporary reprieve and allowed its living beings to continue reproducing.

"When the contract was signed, this god understood its consequences." The Main God's voice carried profound helplessness and regret. "If we submitted and provided sustenance, then billions of years later, once the Origin was depleted, the universe would still perish. But if we fought to the death, our races would be wiped out then and there, without a shred of hope."

In that desperate situation, there had been no way to save everything. They could only preserve a sliver of hope.

Knowing that his Origin was too gravely wounded for him to fight again, and unwilling to watch his descendants remain prisoners and fodder for generations, the Main God chose to hide and sleep. He separated his wounded soul from himself and sank to the deepest part of the planet's core, enveloping himself in the universe's core Origin and completely concealing his aura to evade the scrutiny of both the Heavens and Chaos.

He silently nurtured and healed his soul while observing the universe's changes under the contract, waiting for a chance to break the deadlock once and for all.

He knew the double shackles of the contract had their drawbacks: while they imprisoned the universe, they also bound the Chaos Clan. If the contract were broken, Chaos would be freed from its restraints and inevitably wreak havoc across the multiverse, while the Heavens, deprived of their nourishment, would launch a frenzied counterattack. The entire world would be plunged into an even greater disaster.

So for billions of years, the Main God had remained patient and hidden.

He watched generation after generation of living beings be born and grow. He watched geniuses struggle to cultivate and break through. He watched everyone remain oblivious to their own fate, becoming nourishment for others. His heart ached, but he could not reveal himself lightly.

Breaking the balance too soon would only unleash an apocalyptic disaster beyond anyone's control, needlessly sacrificing every last shred of hope.

"This god has been waiting, waiting for a descendant who can see through fate and dare to defy it. Waiting for the chance to rally the will of all living beings, carry on the legacy of the ancient sages, and balance the two calamities."

As he finished speaking, the Main God's indistinct gaze slowly lowered, finally settling on Lin Chen in the heart of the formation.

The moment that supreme gaze fell upon him, Lin Chen's bloodline abruptly burned hot. Deep in his soul, he felt a kinship born of a shared bloodline, as if the mission he had been born with had finally answered the call of an inheritance stretching back through the ages.

Kallen, Frieza, and the Golden Super Saiyan suddenly understood the Main God's purpose in enduring and remaining hidden for billions of years.

He had seemed to watch coldly from the sidelines, but in truth, he carried the blood feud of the entire world, endured endless torment alone, and quietly safeguarded the last spark of hope for a reversal.

"So our resistance was always within the Main God's expectations." Kallen's heart surged, and the Saiyan Clan's unyielding pride grew even firmer. "The wish our ancient ancestors could not fulfill has finally found a chance to come true."

Frieza's expression shifted several times. He had spent his life believing himself supreme and rarely felt admiration for anyone. But after hearing the history of the ancient war and seeing the Main God's phantom bearing the regrets of the ages, his arrogance gradually subsided.

Every inch of this universe's land had been stained with the blood of its ancestors. The fate of every living being was tied to grudges stretching back through the ages. The territories of dominion he had once pursued so obsessively were nothing more than fleeting splendor within a prison.

"Enduring and lying low was never a long-term solution. Now the contract has stirred, the Heavens have begun their reckoning ahead of time, and Chaos has broken free of its restraints. If we keep waiting, we'll only sit here and await our doom." Frieza spoke gravely, his gaze razor-sharp. "Joining forces is our only chance to rewrite our fate."

The Golden Super Saiyan gave a slight nod. "We'll make up for the regrets of the ancient past together, today. But the situation is perilous. On one side are the Supremes of the Heavens, intent on harvesting the Origin; on the other is the Chaos Clan, on the verge of losing control. Our odds are still slim."

The Main God's phantom swayed gently, and the currents of the world's Origin shifted with it.

"After billions of years of slumber, this god's soul has yet to recover completely. My strength is less than a tenth of what it once was, so I cannot directly destroy our two great enemies. But I can break open the seals on the universe's Origin, buried for countless ages, and awaken the ancient remnants scattered throughout the cosmos. I can also remove the bloodline shackles entirely, so the contract's power will no longer suppress the talents and potential of this world's living beings."

Those words filled everyone with renewed hope.

For a long time, cultivators had inexplicably encountered bottlenecks. Once their combat power reached a certain level, they could advance no further. The root cause was the Sacrifice Contract, which tightly locked the Origin's limits. If the shackles were removed and the hidden talents of every race unleashed, their overall strength would surely surge.

Beyond the dimensions, the Seven Supremes seemed to sense the Main God's intention to break the seals. Their dormant auras instantly sharpened, pressing down with menacing force. The Seven-Colored Judgment Divine Light abruptly converged. No longer falling in scattered beams, it became several enormous pillars of light, hurtling toward the Main God's phantom with the resolve to destroy everything.

They would never allow a variable to emerge from within their prison, much less let this universe's Origin, nearly within their grasp, slip from their control.

Seeing this, the Chaos King no longer hesitated. The churning black mist gathered together, and boundless Chaos Power took the shape of a savage beast. It charged after the judgment light, lunging at the phantom in the center.

One side sought to kill the awakened ruler; the other sought to break free of its age-old restraints. Both supreme forces attacked at once.

The Main God's phantom did not retreat. Layer upon layer of thick, ancient patterns suddenly lit up across his indistinct form. The Origin of the earth, the power of the stars, and the surviving will of the ancient sages throughout the universe converged, constructing an Origin Barrier that stretched across the world before him.

Rumble—

The earth-shaking collision rang across the cosmos, and invisible shock waves swept outward from the point of impact. The ruined mountains shattered completely, the void split with countless cracks, and the entire Earth shook violently, as if it might break apart at any moment.

The Origin Barrier held firm against the combined assault. It shuddered violently but did not break.

But Lin Chen keenly noticed the Main God's phantom growing fainter under the impact. His already damaged soul was being drained relentlessly. For the Main God in his current state, forcibly blocking the combined attack of two mighty foes took an enormous toll.

"The Main God doesn't have the strength to hold them off for long. We can't just defend passively." Lin Chen spoke at once, glancing at the three beside him. "Let's reunite the four sources of power and work with the power of heaven and earth that the Main God is drawing on to hold off our enemies."

The four immediately reached an understanding, setting aside the divisions of their former allegiances.

The Golden Bloodline Power, Purple Saiyan Battle Qi, pale-white Emperor Energy, and the Super Saiyan Origin, tempered through the ages, surged skyward. Four distinct yet equally formidable forces merged into the Origin Barrier. The once-thin defensive wall grew several times thicker in an instant, holding firm against the successive attacks.

Seeing his first strike fail, the Chaos King's low growl boomed through the black mist. "Your remaining strength can't turn the tide. Even if you break the shackles on your talents, you still can't stop the Heavens and Chaos from joining forces. This universe is doomed to destruction today."

The Main God's phantom spoke slowly, his voice steady and resolute. "No one else gets to write the ending. The humiliation and sacrifices of billions of years, the lives of countless ancient sages—they will not have been lost in vain."

Just as the stalemate dragged on, with the two sides' forces locked in a tug-of-war, a new fragment of broken memory suddenly surfaced in Lin Chen's mind.

In the image, near the end of the ancient war, besides signing the contract and the Main God going into hiding, there seemed to be another extremely secret Void Secret Realm, sealed by all the mighty beings working together. Within it lay a mysterious treasure capable of shaking the order of the Heavens, one the Main God himself had been unable to use lightly back then.

The memory fragment was blurry. He could only glimpse the treasure's unusual black-and-white radiance, intertwined with both Chaos and the Origin.

Before Lin Chen could make sense of this sudden memory, the Seven-Colored Divine Light, held at bay above the sky, abruptly contracted and converged.

Deep within a crack in the dimensional barrier, an icy, indifferent divine sense from a Supreme locked directly onto Lin Chen. Carrying an unyielding authority, it slowly delivered a chilling decree.

"A mere junior insect dares to overturn the order established through the ages. Since the Main God has awakened, there's no need to delay any longer. Begin the cross-dimensional descent at once. I will personally erase every rebel."

The Outer-Domain Supreme was no longer content to pass judgment through distant laws. He intended to enter this low-dimensional universe in person.

At the same time, the universe's Origin, which had flowed steadily deep beneath the earth, suddenly fell into a strange disorder. The seal on that secret realm, buried for billions of years, began to loosen and crack ever so slightly.