"Eternity Breaker."

The words left Cain's mouth, and at once the world turned grey.

The benefits of assimilating Azazel into his mind and will were staggering. He had gained a breakthrough in his Ego Eternal's cultivation base, fragments of memories, and access to the ultimate power of the True Depravita of Sloth.

The ability to project a domain where the flow of time itself ceased belong now to him.

Yet such a gift came with a dreadful cost. The drain on his energy was horrific.

Cain wasted no time. For everyone else, it appeared as though he vanished in an instant. By the time he reappeared, blood rained from the highest sky. Sundering cuts split the chest of the ArchDeities of the Imperium of Time.

Exhaustion clawed at him, biting into his marrow, but he did not falter. His eyes were sharp, focused. One last target remained.

He appeared before none other than Divine Sea, the woman who had betrayed the Scarlet Kingdom.

Cain did not speak. His silence was heavier than any judgment. He placed his hand upon her massive form, breaking her Liberación Total with effortless force. Her majesty crumbled, her body collapsing back into its humanoid frame. Scarlet runes of gravitation encircled her, paralyzing her in place.

Only then did Cain finally allow himself to release Resurrección, his form shrinking back to its normal shape. His face was etched with exhaustion, but his eyes still gleamed with steel as he turned to Leonidas and the others.

"Guide them to paradise."

The ArchDeities and Runic War Avatars of the Scarlet Kingdom heard their king's decree, and cruel, cold smiles lit their faces. They lunged forward like wolves unleashed.

None struck with greater brutality than the Sky Sovereign. His Runic War Avatar surged with him, and his blade drove through Juda's chest, lifting the Pseudo-Depravita high into the air as his blood rained down in crimson streams.

Juda choked, spewing mouthfuls of blood. Agony twisted his face, but there was nothing he could do. Cain's strike had sundered not only his flesh, but his energy and soul as well. Ironically, the only thing keeping him conscious was the sheer magnitude of the pain. He could not even claim the release of death on his own terms. He could only watch in horror as he was dragged screaming into the Scarlet Throne.

One after another, all eighty Archdeities of the fallen Imperium of Time were cast into the Throne, their souls swallowed into the vast scarlet dimension.

Cain drew a long breath, and a small, satisfied smile crossed his face. Each ArchDeity carried with them immense waves of psychic energy, spirit force, and life essence. Their assimilation bolstered him in ways he desperately needed.

Yet even amidst this boon, his focus never wavered. His gaze turned cold as he placed his hand over Divine Sea's head.

The forces of the Scarlet Kingdom watched in silence. None doubted what was about to happen. Cain was not forgiving. If he condemned his enemies to eternal torment within the Throne, what fate awaited a traitor?

Divine Sea's eyes filled with terror. Fear consumed her expression as she realized there was no defense against him.

Cain's eyes gleamed, and in the next instant his Ego Wave surged, blasting into her brain, her ego, her soul.

"AHHHHHHHH!"

Her scream tore through the heavens. Every fragment of her being felt as though it was burning alive. Her agony painted a truly terrifying scene.

The ArchDeities of the Scarlet Kingdom frowned as they saw the actions of the Scarlet King, but it was not due to the pain that Divne Sea was enduring. Mercy for traitors was a weakness they did not possess. If their king wished to torture her before her end, it was his right.

But this was no mere torment.

Something else was happening.

Scarlet energy poured out of Divine Sea's body—yet it was not Cain's. It was psychic force, crimson like his own but alien, darker, heavier. Its power was undeniable, something none of them had ever witnessed before, yet Cain recognized it instantly.

It was the same energy that had manifested in the red eyes Azazel conjured during their battle, the same force that had healed his body.

Divine Sea screamed still, but as the foreign energy was torn from her, clarity began to rise in her gaze, flickering through the haze of pain. Cain pushed with everything he had, forcing that insidious power from her spirit. Only then did she collapse into unconsciousness.

Cain caught her before she struck the ground. With a motion of his hand, he passed her into the care of Leonidas. The old ArchDeity held her awkwardly, torn by confusion. Just moments before, he had been ready to cut her down without hesitation. Now he held her with no idea what to do.

Cain saw their doubt and did not let it linger.

"She did not betray us," he said coldly, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Not truly. Azazel placed her under a powerful mind control spell—using the power of his Master."

The warriors stiffened. A murmur ran through them.

Cain began to explain, drawing from the memories he had ripped from Azazel's mind. The reason one of the red eyes had appeared drained was because part of its energy had been used to ensnare Divine Sea. She had been intercepted as she left her Heaven, on her way to meet Cain, right before becoming a Core Member of the Scarlet Kingdom. Azazel had bound her with subtle mind control, so insidious that she herself never knew.

The trap was cruel genius. The victim retained their will, their thoughts, their sense of self—until the trigger was pulled. Only then did the hidden commands surface, turning them into puppets without their knowledge.

That was why Cain had not sensed any betrayal through the Flow. Divine Sea had not intended to betray him. Her loyalty had been real, her intent untainted.

It was only when the battle above Starfall Heaven raged that the hidden command was activated. From that moment on, every action she took—the choice to fight against the Scarlet Kingdom, the aid she lent the Imperium of Time—was nothing more than Azazel's will.

Her betrayal had never been her own.

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