Domain: "Malevolent Shrine" (Double-Length Chapter)

"Hmm..."

Having gained Domain Expansion, Mo Zhen hummed a tune on his way home.

He took a shower and changed out of his dirty clothes, then reassured Mo Xiaochuan and Bai Xiaoxiao, who had been worried about him, before returning to his room.

Mo Zhen entered his Domain of the Heart and, after transforming, began experimenting with Domain Expansion.

The girl closed her eyes and spent about half an hour before she barely managed to absorb everything the King of Curses had learned about Barrier Techniques over his lifetime.

Fortunately, she had the system's help. If all she had been given was a textbook called "Domain Expansion Explained, by Sukuna," she doubted she could have learned it in six months.

The manuscripts and research materials of geniuses like Newton, Qian Xuesen, and Einstein were public too, but people still couldn't learn what they knew, could they?

The difference in talent between people was greater than the difference between dogs.

Hell was self-aware enough to know that, compared with true geniuses, she really was dim-witted.

There was no way she could master it quickly on her own. She could only overtake them by relying on the system's advantage.

But wasn't she cute?

Even if she was an idiot, she was the cutest idiot of all!

A certain witch never said it aloud, but she knew she was cute. After all, mirrors didn't lie.

At that thought, Hell suddenly gritted her teeth:

"Damn it... What have I been thinking about all day? Am I comforting myself? Childish! So childish!"

She condemned herself in her heart and quickly shook the jumbled thoughts from her head. Then she solemnly raised both hands and formed the Enmaten Hand Sign.

It was a necessary step in Domain Expansion and couldn't be skipped.

The girl gently closed her eyes and felt the magic power surging within her:

Domain Expansion...

"Malevolent Shrine!"

Rumble!

As her magic power boiled, the world plunged into darkness, so black she couldn't see her hand in front of her face.

A drop of blood fell from the sky. When it struck the ground, it spread across the earth in an instant, dragging the entire world into a pool of blood.

Rumble!

A grotesque Buddhist shrine made of bones and fangs rose from the ground behind Miss Hell.

This was... the domain of the king, Malevolent Shrine!

The complete Malevolent Shrine was an Open Domain that achieved the greatest possible range at the cost of being unable to stop enemies from leaving.

Its domain could extend up to 200 meters.

Within its range, Malevolent Shrine would automatically use Cleave and Dismantle indiscriminately against all enemies and buildings.

Within the domain, Cleave required no contact, locking directly onto every target with magic power until they were completely killed.

Dismantle, meanwhile, would slash and cut every object within the domain.

When necessary, Dismantle could create a vast amount of dust to set the stage for the powerful fire attack Furnace: Open.

"This feeling... is almost too good."

Hell took a deep breath, feeling the magic power surging through her body. Excitement filled her heart, and her cheeks flushed crimson.

It was excitement over power.

Her desire to kill also seemed to be rising...

After gaining a domain, Miss Hell felt a genuine sense of security for the first time, one that came from within.

It thrilled her so much that her very soul trembled.

But after the domain was released...

"Ugh...!"

Miss Hell's vision went dark at once. She staggered and fell to the ground, her black tights sinking into the pool in her Domain of the Heart.

Clutching her throbbing head, she experienced Cursed Technique Burnout for the first time, completely unprepared.

"I got a little carried away..."

How could she describe the feeling of burnout? It was like having the graphics card yanked out of a running computer, followed by black smoke pouring furiously from the case.

It was terribly uncomfortable. The magic power in her body was a complete mess, and she couldn't use any intricate Cursed Techniques.

But there was no helping it. This was a necessary part of learning a domain.

After enough burnouts, she would get used to it.

Just then, a knock came from outside. Hell left her Domain of the Heart, opened her eyes, and got up to answer the door.

Suddenly, she stopped herself, breaking out in a cold sweat. She immediately took a deep breath and undid her transformation.

Only then did she open the door.

Bai Xiaoxiao was standing outside.

Bai Xiaoxiao blinked in puzzlement. "Brother, were you sleeping just now?"

As she spoke, she noticed how pale Mo Zhen looked, and a trace of concern appeared in her eyes. "Are you all right? You weren't hurt at the Reynolds Group, were you?"

She moved closer to Mo Zhen and looked him over from side to side.

...The familiar scent of lavender body wash.

Mo Zhen put his hands on her shoulders. "Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm just a little sleepy. What is it?"

Bai Xiaoxiao could only nod. "Dad said our eldest brother has a day off tomorrow and is coming back to see us."

Mo Zhen blinked, thinking of his eldest brother, Mo Jin'an.

He had excellent grades and a master's degree in law from Germany. He had started living independently early on and never gave the family anything to worry about. He had always been a role model for the three younger siblings.

"Come to think of it, it's been a long time since we saw our eldest brother and second sister."

Mo Zhen couldn't help looking forward to it.

Just then, the doorbell rang softly.

Bai Xiaoxiao thought Mo Xiaochuan and Mo Chou had returned. Mo Xiaochuan had been acting strangely lately, following their father's lead and getting hooked on fishing.

Father and son often went to Whale Sea Park and spent the whole afternoon fishing.

Mo Zhen went downstairs to answer the door.

Unexpectedly, it wasn't Mo Xiaochuan and Mo Chou at the door.

It was a middle-aged man in a dark gray suit and polished shoes. He had refined features and a calm, unruffled expression.

Behind him stood two black-clad bodyguards with their backs to Mo Zhen, keeping a constant watch on their surroundings. They carried loaded guns at their waists.

He's clearly no ordinary man...

When the man saw Mo Zhen, he paused for a moment, then smiled faintly and held out his hand. "Hello, Mo Zhen."

"I'm Moro von Hermann, a friend of your father's. It's been a long time since we last met, so I came especially to visit him."

Mo Zhen froze for a moment, then shook his hand. "A friend of my father's? All right, please come in. I'll give him a call."

"Of course."

Moro smiled and nodded. After entering the villa, he took a seat in the living room.

"Xiaoxiao, give Dad a call."

"Okay."

Mo Zhen called up to Bai Xiaoxiao on the second floor while taking out his father's tea leaves and brewing a pot for Moro.

"Thank you."

Moro's gaze was kind, and he was especially warm and polite, which made Mo Zhen's impression of him considerably better.

Meanwhile, Mo Chou, who was fishing with Mo Xiaochuan at Whale Sea Park, received the call. When he learned that someone named Moro had come to visit, a complicated look entered his eyes.

"I understand. I'll be home right away."

Mo Xiaochuan looked up in confusion. "What's wrong, Dad? Did something happen at home?"

Mo Chou shook his head. "An old friend I haven't seen in years."

About half an hour later.

Mo Chou returned home.

Moro stood up and raised a hand with a smile. "It's been a long time, Mo Chou."

"Long time no see, Moro."

At the sight of him, a trace of nostalgia flashed through Mo Chou's eyes, and he shook Moro's hand.

They had once been the closest of comrades. Though their differing ideals had led them down separate paths, that hadn't stopped their friendship from enduring.

Mo Chou said, "How did you find time to come see me?"

Moro shrugged and looked at Mo Zhen. "As it happens, it has to do with your son Mo Zhen. I'm sorry, Mo Chou. My people didn't stop him from taking part in the Compound Nine experiment in time."

Moro really hadn't known about it. He had only discovered it yesterday.

After all, as the head of a monopolistic mega-corporation, he really didn't have time to pay attention to a small laboratory in Europe.

Hearing this, Mo Chou looked at Mo Zhen.

Mo Zhen immediately averted his eyes guiltily, picked up his teacup, and took one, two, three, four sips.

Hmm, this tea sure is tea...

Moro smiled and came to his rescue. "The good news is that I've seen Mo Zhen's examination report. He's in excellent health and has adapted very well to Compound Nine."

"It's even possible that, as the drug continues to act on him, he may awaken a different superpower, rather than just having his pupils change color."

Mo Chou sighed. "If possible, I'd rather my children were ordinary people."

"That may be what you want, but we both know it's unlikely, don't we?"

Moro shook his head, a hint of helplessness on his face. "Take Mo Xiaochuan, for example."

The reason Moro had made a special trip to visit his old friend in seclusion was that he had learned about Mo Xiaochuan's awakening.

Others might not know, but Moro knew that his old friend wasn't from Earth. He was an alien from an extragalactic star system.

His strength was certainly no less than that of Peacemaker, the strongest superhero on Earth today. If the two fought to the death, it was hard to say who would win.

Mo Chou was already so powerful, so how strong would his children, who were half-human, be? How much potential would they have?

Moro was curious, which was why he had made time in his busy schedule to visit for an afternoon.

He extended an invitation:

"I'm leaving Tianhe City tomorrow. How about we go out and have a proper get-together today? Bring the children along."

"No problem."

Mo Chou nodded.

Since Mo Chou had made the decision, Mo Zhen and the others naturally had no objections.

Moro had come in two business vans. He arranged for himself and Mo Chou to ride in one, while Mo Zhen and his two younger siblings rode in the bodyguards' van behind them.

On the way, Mo Zhen took out his phone and looked Moro von Hermann up, only to discover that he was actually the founder and chairman of Colossus Company?!

Holy crap, Dad, you have connections like that?!

He had originally assumed Moro was just an executive at Colossus Company or perhaps one of its shareholders. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to obtain Mo Zhen's experimental records.

After all, Moro seemed so refined and modest, nothing like the man the media described as "capitalism's sharpest sword" and "the tyrannical dictator of the Colossus Group."

After his initial shock, Mo Zhen thought it over. His father was no ordinary man to begin with, so it was only natural that he knew some top figures.

After mulling it over, he figured it probably had something to do with Mo Xiaochuan after all.

Along the way.

Moro and Mo Chou talked freely in the car about old times, recounting how they had fought side by side on the battlefield, their words full of nostalgia.

Thirty years ago, Colossus Company had just been founded.

At the time, Taiping Prefecture was still fighting its war of independence. It was nowhere near as prosperous as it was today and could even be described as ravaged.

After the arrival of the new century, the Northern Continent Alliance, led by the British Empire, had gradually lost control of its overseas colonies.

After the war, the Eastern Continent Alliance and the Pan-American Federation had immediately seen eye to eye and joined forces in a tacit understanding, dismantling the old empire's colonial system.

They had supported many ambitious young people in Taiping Prefecture and ultimately won the proxy war there through various means.

From then on, Taiping Prefecture had declared independence and established the United Government.

The Northern Continent Alliance had dissolved after the crushing defeat and reorganized itself as the New Continental Europe Alliance, marking the complete end of the colonial era.

The top leaders of the three alliances had seized the opportunity to establish the Earth Alliance, barely managing to take the first step toward global peace.

Moro and his Colossus Company had risen to prominence during that war for Taiping Prefecture's independence.

Toward the end of the war, Colossus Company had received investment and policy support from various factions.

In the subsequent era of superhuman commercialization, Colossus Company seized the opportunity and introduced the first generation of superheroes, led by Peacemaker, becoming a trust in the superhuman field.

Even today, no other faction could challenge Colossus Company's position. They could only follow behind it and get a share of the leftovers.

Soon, Mo Zhen and the others arrived at a private restaurant.

At the table, Moro handed his business cards to Mo Zhen and his two siblings. "If you need any help in the future, you can contact me at any time."

"The doors of Colossus will always be open to you. Don't feel embarrassed about it, children."

"Your father once pulled me out of the ruins on a battlefield. That's how we became the best of friends."

"Thank you."

Mo Zhen accepted the card, lost in thought.

Mo Chou watched from the side without trying to stop them.

He knew Moro's character and understood that he wasn't approaching his children for personal gain. He genuinely cared about them.

They had discussed it in the car just now.

Since Mo Xiaochuan had already awakened superhuman abilities similar to Mo Chou's, it was better for him to receive proper training with Colossus Company's help than to develop without guidance.

But all of that depended on what they wanted.

Neither Mo Chou nor Moro would make decisions for the children. They hoped the children could make their own choices about their lives.

Dinner ended.

Moro arranged for a driver, then said goodbye to them and left first.

Sitting in the car, the man took out an old pocket watch and gently opened it, gazing at the portrait of a deceased boy inside:

"In the blink of an eye, those little ones have all grown so much. If little Norman were still alive, he'd probably be about the same age as Mo Zhen."

The secretary beside him flipped through his schedule and offered comfort. "Sir, I think young master Norman would be proud to see Colossus as it is today."

Moro sighed and said nothing for a long time.

The man was over fifty, the man at the helm of Colossus, standing at the pinnacle of the superhuman pyramid. At this moment, he was no more than an old lion who had lost his child.

After a long while, he instructed his secretary, "Keep a close eye on news of those three children."

"I regard them as my own, so I don't want them to be used by other forces. Understood?"

Many in later generations never knew what had prompted Moro to establish Colossus Company: during that war of independence, he had witnessed Mo Chou's Superman-like power firsthand.

That great, invincible figure had destroyed a war fortress the allied forces had long failed to conquer, all in an instant.

And his codename among the allied forces was... Beyonder!

No one could rival him, no one could stop him.

The Northern Continent's colonial army was laughable before him, no more than ants.

Tanks, fighter jets, even a direct hit from a nuclear bomb-none could harm him in the slightest.

Later, Moro created the Atlas First-Generation Compound in his laboratory.

Its effects were far more potent and controllable than those of the artificial superhuman serums of the two great blocs, East and West.

With that as his starting point, he secured billions in funding and preferential policies from the two giants, expanded the fledgling Colossus Company, and put down deep roots in Taiping Prefecture.

"I understand, sir."

The secretary, Vincent, nodded solemnly.

Moro's vehicle headed toward Colossus Company through the night.

On a narrow stretch of road, a falcon-red Rolls-Royce Spectre passed Moro's MPV.

At the wheel, Mo Jin'an, a young man in a black turtleneck sweater, rested one hand on the steering wheel and picked up his phone with the other, dialing Mo Zhen.

The call connected quickly.

"Hello? Big brother?"

Mo Jin'an smiled. "Is Dad home? I'm coming back tonight. I'm already on my way."

Mo Zhen said, "He is, he is."

"What do you want for a late-night snack? I'll pick something up on the way."

"Hang on, let me ask."

Holding the phone, Mo Zhen asked everyone, then began listing the food:

"Ice cream, a bucket of fried chicken, McDonald's fries, and some cola, vanilla-flavored."

Mo Jin'an noted it all down. "OK."

The call ended.

Immediately afterward, his secretary called:

"Boss, all the surveillance footage at Reynolds Group has been deleted. Whoever did it left no traces. We can't recover it."

Mo Jin'an fell silent for a moment, tapping his fingertips lightly on the steering wheel. "Set it aside for now. I'll deal with it when I come over tomorrow. Keep an eye on the situation at Moon Studio."

"Understood."