"The mutual attraction between the Origin Forces of two worlds, and such tremendous benefits at that — no wonder the Ancient Final War was fought the way it was..."
For him, if he had known that such a world existed — one where he could directly slay gods and obtain complete Rule comprehensions — he would likely have gone mad with desire.
Compared to that, what did the fall of other Wizards, or the suffering of commoners, matter?
"The reason divine Rules are so easily assimilated should be the compatibility of the Origin Forces — or perhaps their complementarity?"
By now, Leylin was growing ever more convinced of that rumor: when the
"Or perhaps... in the primordial past, the Wizard World and the World of Gods were originally one and the same! That is entirely possible..."
Leylin speculated.
The rumor had spread so widely and managed to spark the Ancient Final War precisely because there was truth to it — truth that could withstand scrutiny.
The ancient Rule Wizards and the gods were no fools. None of them would have acted without ample reward.
"What a pity... the Wizards underestimated how tenacious the gods would be, and the strangeness of their Divine Kingdoms. In the end, it became a war of mutual destruction — and the end of ancient glory..."
A sharp glint flashed through Leylin's eyes as he quietly clenched his fist. "But the Final War that I lead will not repeat the same mistakes! The ultimate prize of Eternity — it will belong to me and me alone!!!"
The old Leylin could have been ordinary, could have wallowed in mediocrity. But in this extraordinary world, after glimpsing the hope of Eternity, no bond or restraint could ever obstruct his pursuit of it. Any enemy who didn't stand in his way wasn't even worth stepping on. But the moment they came into conflict with him, they would face Leylin's merciless destruction — no matter who they were!
[Ding! Rule-level existence consciousness captured successfully. Compatibility with deceased body cells: 100%. Activation in progress...]
At that moment, another notification window popped up from the Chip.
"The Dream Demon's specimen?"
Leylin smiled faintly.
The creature's massive body had merged with its entire domain, so obtaining cells had been easy enough. But after studying them briefly, Leylin discovered that once the Rule-level existence's consciousness was stripped away, all that remained of its shell was a mere assemblage of nutrients. Only when both matter and consciousness were present could a true specimen be obtained.
Previously, he had refrained from targeting the dream parasites of ordinary people out of wariness toward the Dream Demon. But now that the creature had torn off the mask of civility first, Leylin harbored not the slightest hesitation.
[Activation Successful! The host has obtained a Dream Rule existence specimen! Analysis progress of World Origin Force has accelerated by 27%!]
The Chip quickly provided Leylin with good news.
"Even among different Rule-level existences, there are differences. Before long, another specimen will be delivered right to our doorstep..."
A blood-red glow flashed through Leylin's pupils, and a faint red line split open between his brows as strange and distorted power rippled through the air around him.
"Ah! No... it's Ceruleus, I can feel them getting closer..."
On the other side, Bodac let out a miserable scream.
The purple eyes on his body seemed to sense their original owner's approach. They all writhed madly, beginning to explode one after another, making Bodac scream without end.
"Hmph! Silence!"
Leylin suddenly turned his head, the red line between his brows splitting slightly open.
Sss... something strange happened. The purple eyes that had nearly covered Bodac's entire body seemed to be startled by something, shrinking back abruptly. Bodac's screaming immediately diminished. But now he was looking at Leylin with an expression of disbelief.
"This is..."
"Quiet. Don't you want the curse removed?"
At this moment, having activated the Nightmare Energy-Draining Physique bloodline, Leylin seemed to have become the sovereign of the entire dream world, with dream world origin force constantly swirling around him. This made Bodac unconsciously close his mouth.
"Go back to where you came from!"
Leylin chanted the incantation in an ancient tone, and wisps of dream world origin force descended, transforming into burning red runes that sank into Bodac's skin.
Under the compression of these runes, the purple eyes retreated step by step, finally settling at the center of Bodac's back, forming a single exquisite purple eye surrounded by a ring of fiery red sealing runes.
"This... is it done?"
Bodac waved his hand, his expression somewhat dazed.
A curse born from a Calamity Lord's slaughter of over a hundred million living beings, harvested from their malice—sealed just like that?
The ease of the entire process left Bodac feeling as though he were dreaming.
"Just as I expected… as long as the opponent's foundation is dream power, they can't escape the suppression of the Nightmare Energy-Absorbing Physique!"
Rayleigh nodded slightly upon seeing this, a glint of understanding in his eyes.
Even a Calamity Lord possessed the formidable power of Calamity rules, but as long as its true nature was still that of a dream creature — one that had to rely on dream origin force to survive — it would inevitably be restrained by his bloodline ability.
"The suppression appears to be absolutely terrifying…"
Rayleigh glanced at the world origin force swirling around him, even sensing the faint attention of the world will. "If it were an eighth-level being from another world, I'd have the confidence to defeat it within the Dream World, but the chances of it escaping would still be considerable. However, if I face a Calamity Lord… I'm afraid it wouldn't have even the slightest hope of escape… It's as though the entire world wants me to do this! Hm? Wait!!!"
Rayleigh's eyes widened as he felt he had grasped something crucial.
There was no such thing as baseless hatred in the world, nor baseless affection. The birth of the Nightmare Energy-Absorbing Physique had clearly been facilitated by the Dream World — and the purpose behind that was worth pondering.
Cultivating a bloodline and investing such a tremendous amount of origin force and favor was no small expenditure.
"Whoosh…"
But just at that moment, a violent tornado appeared on the horizon, braving the massive onslaught of Destruction Snow as it charged resolutely in their direction.
"Rayleigh… Lord! It's here!"
Bodac proactively changed his form of address, placing himself below Rayleigh in status.
"Perfect! I have a theory of my own that needs it to verify!"
Rayleigh nodded, inwardly quite satisfied with Bodac's performance. The things he had displayed seemed to have won the creature over to some degree.
"What? It's an eighth-level Calamity Lord! Are you saying you intend to fight it, Lord?"
Bodac detected something extraordinary in Rayleigh's words.
"Naturally! Do you object?"
Exquisite dark-red patterns faintly materialized across Rayleigh's body, the mighty bloodline force surging within, radiating an ancient, primordial aura that resonated with the entirety of the Dream World.
Upon witnessing this scene, Bodac shook his head like a rattle drum. To its olfactory senses, Rayleigh in this state was even more terrifying than the Calamity Lord itself!
Moreover, it was Bodac who had provoked Celusius — Rayleigh was, strictly speaking, helping it. Especially… Bodac glanced at the seal behind it, and the purple eyes trapped within that had been tormenting it.
Rayleigh merely sealed it, but did not completely solve it. Although there appeared to be no trouble now, Bodac did not dare guarantee that Rayleigh hadn't left some hidden hand behind.
Offending one Calamity Lord was terrifying enough. Offending another? That kind of ending...
"Damn it! Here goes! Roar roar..."
Bodac's expression hardened, and its body suddenly exploded into countless plumes of yellow smoke, forming the shape of the one-eyed giant dragon from before, with Rayleigh standing right on top of its head.
A dragon's might far surpassing that of ordinary dragons, carrying an aura as if it could freeze space itself, Bodac spread its sky-blotting wings and revealed the unique majesty of a rule-level being, baring its sharp fangs at the incoming Calamity Lord: "Celusius!!!!!"
Two rule-level beings from other worlds, and one eighth-level Calamity Lord of this world, an intense conflict on the verge of erupting!
"Roar roar!!!"
Suddenly, Bodac lifted its enormous draconic head, its two nostrils taking a deep breath...
Whoosh whoosh...
A stretch of sand and gravel from the ground abruptly lifted into the air, then was drawn towards the sky, as if two colossal black holes had appeared there.
In the midst of Bodac's inhalation, nearly half the continent's oxygen and other gases were all drawn in by it, creating a vast vacuum.
Bang!
The air condensed to the extreme within Bodac's lung now seemed to form two white ribbons, slicing directly through space towards Celusius.
"Not bad? You now barely possess the bearing of a seventh-level being!"
Rayleigh nodded approvingly. If this were the Wizard World, Bodac's earlier inhalation would have been enough to cause half of the surface world's natives to suffocate and die, and even some first and second-level Wizards might not have survived.
But fortunately, this was the Dream World, vast and boundless, and happened to be in a period of dormancy. Apart from the Nightmare Lord's domain, there weren't many living beings around, so no terrifying disaster was caused.
The air cannon, refined to its utmost, clashed directly with Celusius. The Calamity Lord let out an enraged roar: "You thief! You actually dare to attack me???"
A moment before the attack struck, Celusius revealed its true power as a Calamity Lord.
"I am the King of Calamities!!!"
Behind it, an endless blizzard coalesced into the phantom silhouette of a centaur monster, roaring in the Ancient Byron Language.
The mighty dream power gathered in its hand, coalescing into a colossal black battle axe, its surface etched with the embossed contours of a human face.
"Die!"
Celusius brought the axe crashing down. A beam of black light cleaved through the air.
Boom! Boom!
The streaks of air and the black line clashed, creating infinite distortions. Countless dreamscapes were born and died here, followed by a terrifying explosion.