Chapter 626 - Theory (Patreon)

The revelation landed with crushing weight.

They had prepared themselves for bad news, yet the moment the truth settled in, it still felt unreal. An enemy far beyond their current level of power truly existed, and it had already set its sights on the continent.

In the past, Demoness Cocolia had been a nightmare. Her strength had been terrifying, but it was still something they could measure, something they could fight against. She had remained within their league, even if only barely.

This time was different.

Whatever left behind that bloodline power stood at least a full realm above them. They could not yet measure the exact gap, but they did not need an exact number. The complete annihilation of the ancient civilization was already proof enough. If that being ever appeared in full, none of them would be its match.

Newton’s voice broke the heavy silence.

“What I have shown you is the worst-case reading,” he said carefully. “It may not be completely accurate. The measurements were taken from the sealed hall after the event had already ended. During the chaos, some of the bloodline aura particles could have been destroyed or dispersed, which would mean the original number was higher than what I was able to count.”

He paused, letting the words settle.

He had no choice but to tell them the truth, but he also refused to let the room sink into complete despair. They still had time. The disaster had not yet arrived. If they moved quickly enough, they might still prevent the worst from happening.

“Even so,” he continued, his tone firm once more, “the fact remains that the amount of bloodline power present that day was so small that not a single one of us could sense it as an aura. That alone tells us the true source is almost certainly far beyond our current reach.”

The warning hung in the air, clear and unavoidable.

“So what exactly are we facing? A demonic beast? But the woman apparition looked completely human,” Fiona asked.

“Well, a King Level Demonic Beast can take human form. That part isn’t really strange,” Alchemy Emperor Edward said.

“Correct. But in my opinion, what we are dealing with is more likely an Emperor Level Demonic Beast. Only a being of that level could possess bloodline power this dense and powerful,” Newton replied.

Hearing the words “Emperor Level,” the Protectors no longer showed surprise. Given the power their unknown enemy had already displayed, this was the lowest conclusion they could reasonably reach.

“Emperor Level… this is still hard to believe,” Sherlock said, his voice carrying a note of weariness. “It was supposed to be nothing more than a theoretical stage beyond King Level. It has never appeared in our recorded history. Who would have thought that such a being has been here the entire time, carrying such deep hatred toward humans.”

He let out a quiet breath.

“Why does this have to happen now, when our civilization is at its most prosperous?”

“Well, if her motivation is truly revenge against humanity, then this is obviously the best time to carry out her plan, isn’t it?” Jade said.

The other Protectors fell silent.

Jade was absolutely right. If they placed themselves in the perpetrator’s position, the current era of prosperity was indeed the perfect moment to strike.

While listening, Leyvi closed his eyes and let his mind work through the situation. His thoughts, however, wandered quite far from the current discussion.

For some reason, he found himself thinking of Senior Raisho.

If King Level was equivalent to the Soul Transformation Realm, then Emperor Level should correspond to the Dao Manifestation Realm.

Back then, when Senior Raisho had summoned all the Dao Manifestation Realm cultivators to meet him, he had done so because they represented the absolute peak of power in this world. Anyone who stood at that level should have been called.

So why had this Emperor Level Demonic Beast been left out? Was she excluded simply because of her demonic beast origin?

No. That explanation felt wrong. Senior Raisho did not seem like someone who would draw such a line. He was a Divinity who treated even the weakest “ants” and “lesser beings” with genuine respect. Species should not have mattered to him at all.

His stated mission was to spread and protect life across the entire galaxy. Whether that life took the form of humans, demonic beasts, or something else entirely should have been irrelevant. If an Emperor Level being truly existed on this continent, there was no clear reason for her to have been ignored.

Then what was the real reason? Why would someone of that level not have been summoned by Senior Raisho?

Leyvi continued turning the question over in his mind as he listened to the ongoing discussion.

“Wait a second. Even if the one threatening our continent really is an Emperor Level Demonic Beast, the timeline still doesn’t make sense,” Fiona spoke up again, her voice sharper than before.

“Just think about it. The ancient civilization vanished five hundred thousand years ago. If they were truly wiped out by her, how is she still alive now? Even if demonic beasts possess lifespans several times longer than humans, it is impossible for them to live for hundreds of thousands of years.”

The other Protectors nodded. They had already considered this point as well.

Soul Transformation Realm cultivators could live for around five thousand years on average. Even if Dao Manifestation Realm cultivators lived twice as long, reaching roughly ten thousand years, a demonic beast with a lifespan several times longer than a human’s would still fall far short of five hundred thousand years.

Leyvi blinked. That was right. He had forgotten to consider the simple matter of lifespan. It was reasonable to conclude that the woman had already died long ago. That was probably also the reason Senior Raisho had never summoned her.

The problem remained, however. If she had already died, then how was she still able to do all of this?

A sudden thought flashed through his mind.

Wait a minute. Had someone resurrected her, the same way those cult people had resurrected those demonic beasts in Holy Cat City?

His thoughts raced for a few moments before he shook his head inwardly and forced himself to calm down again.

He remembered that the resurrection method used back then had required an enormous number of sacrifices. The sacrificed town his family had stumbled upon on the way to Holy Cat City had been only one among many.

If someone truly intended to resurrect an Emperor Level Demonic Beast, the number of sacrifices needed would have reached an insane scale. Something that large could not possibly have gone unnoticed. News of it would have spread across the entire continent.

So if it was not resurrection, then what else could it be?

Leyvi continued turning over the possibilities in his mind while the discussion continued among the Protectors.

He simply listened and did not try to add anything. At the end of the day, he was still the least experienced person in the room, lacking far more knowledge than the others.

Some time later, something in the discussion triggered a sudden connection in Leyvi’s mind, like a puzzle piece falling perfectly into place.

The more he turned the idea over, the more convinced he became that this theory had a high chance of being true.

What if the woman apparition was an entity similar to Alita? What if, long ago, she had also transformed herself into a tool spirit and deliberately anchored her existence to some external medium in order to escape true death?

Alita had anchored herself to the Universe Airship. As long as the airship remained intact, her existence could continue. Through that vessel, she could still exercise a portion of her power, but only when sufficient energy was supplied. That was precisely why she required a Spiritual Vein to keep the airship running. Without a stable energy source, her abilities would be severely limited or completely inaccessible.

Perhaps the woman apparition had used a similar principle. She might have bound her remaining consciousness or bloodline essence to some hidden medium, allowing her to persist across the ages even after her physical body had long since perished.

If her hatred toward humanity ran so deep that she wished to wipe them out again and again for as long as possible, this would be a practical and enduring way to continue her revenge.

The exact method might differ from Alita’s, but the core idea would be the same: an existence that no longer depended on a living body, yet still required an external source of power to act.

In Alita’s case, that power came from the airship’s energy reserves. In the woman apparition’s case, she might slowly absorb the bloodline power of other demonic beasts, converting it into her own strength. Once she had gathered enough, she would restore herself to a near-peak state and only then move to destroy humanity on Cloud Continent.

The moment this chain of reasoning locked into place, Leyvi felt a sharp surge of clarity. It was as if every scattered clue had finally connected into a single, coherent truth.

But the excitement lasted only a second before a heavier concern settled over him.

How was he supposed to present this theory without any solid evidence? More importantly, there was no way he could reveal Alita’s existence just to make the others believe him. 

He needed to find a careful way to guide the Protectors toward the same conclusion without ever mentioning his own secret.