Extra's Death: I Am the Son of Hades

That existence.

He was sure of it.

It was Void.

And yet… something felt off.

Something was unfamiliar yet familiar about those gigantic eyes staring at him.

"You, who are you?" Neo asked.

His senses screamed that this being was the Void Supreme.

The Intent and Existence he could see told him the same.

But deep inside, his instincts whispered that it wasn't that simple. That there was something more to it.

"Void. That's a name I haven't been called in a long time," the voice said.

The sound came from everywhere at once.

The entire universe seemed to tremble with it.

The eyes as large as galaxies glowed in the dark, staring down at Neo.

"I'm Void, yes. But I'm not him. No, it would be an incorrect statement," the being said, amused. "I suppose you can say I'm the older—"

The being suddenly stopped.

The eyes shifted, looking into the endless abyss beyond them.

The eyes narrowed. "'He' has noticed you."

"What?"

"'He' is inside these memories just like me. Don't come back here again. You're not ready for 'him' yet."

Neo's surroundings started to shake.

Something—or someone—was coming closer at frightening speed.

The fabric of space itself was tearing apart.

The existence and strength Neo was sensing was something so powerful he never thought could exist.

Golden light poured out from every direction.

The intensity of the light was increasing, as if heralding the arrival of someone.

"Now, leave Hargraves. Focus on the task in front of you. And…"

A powerful force slammed into Neo, throwing him out of the memory like a storm ripping through space.

"Make the correct decision."

Neo shouted as he was flung away, "At least tell me who you are—"

"I will. When we meet next time."

Then everything went silent.

Neo opened his eyes.

He was back in reality.

He sat still for a moment, breathing slowly.

Then he pressed his lips together and pushed the memory out of his mind.

It was important, yes, but not now.

The past had nothing to do with his current goal.

His focus was clear.

The ones who killed his friends.

He would kill every last one of them.

"Upgrade all Cores and Heavenly Records," Neo said.

Now that he had reached Stage 6 Existence and absorbed a Core of the same rank, he could recreate Stage 6 Cores freely with his Shadow Core Concept.

The Heavenly Records began to pulse, energy surging through the void around him.

Before this, Neo's existence level allowed him to connect to billions of Heavenly Records.

But now that he was at Stage 6…

The number exploded.

One trillion. Ten trillion. A hundred trillion. Ten quadrillion. A hundred quadrillion. A hundred thousand quintillion.

The count kept rising until it reached the unimaginable numbers.

Decillions.

Neo exhaled slowly.

The space around him cracked under the pressure of his power.

Each of the Heavenly Records was now stronger, better, and more efficient than before.

"Optimize the boost of my physiques," he said.

At once, countless Physiques inside him began to shift and evolve.

Before, those Physiques let him fight with the strength of a Stage 6 being even though his body was only Stage 5.

That alone was absurd.

Each Stage was split into five Grades, and each Grade had ten Levels.

Jumping even one Level in a battle to fight opponents stronger than you was rare.

But Neo had jumped an entire Stage before.

From Stage 5 Grade 5 to fighting like Stage 6 Grade 3.

That was how much boost his Physiques provided him.

Now, his base physical power had finally upgraded.

Stage 6, Grade 1, Level 10.

That was his level.

And adding the boost of his Physiques?

The sheer strength that filled his body could now cause destruction on a scale only a Supreme could manage.

System notifications appeared in front of him.

[One Hundred Thirty-Two Physiques have reached Stage 6.]

[Please brace for the boost.]

Neo gritted his teeth as his power surged again.

His skin turned red hot, steam hissing off his body.

His Physiques had always been growing stronger, but now that he had upgraded the Heavenly Records, the speed of their growth reached unprecedented levels, causing several of them to reach Stage 6.

The power growth was too fast.

It was reaching a level his soul and Existence couldn't handle.

[Master, your physical strength is reaching a critical level.]

[It's overpowering your Soul and Existence, causing damage.]

[Should we inject the Ancient Dragon Blood into your Existence? It will merge with your body, soul, core, and Existence, strengthening them.]

"Yes. Do it," Neo said through clenched teeth.

Pain tore through him like lightning.

His entire being shook as the Ancient Dragon Blood merged into him.

His Existence started changing.

It was becoming heavier, more solid, and darker.

'This feeling…'

Even through the agony, Neo noticed it.

The darkening of his Existence was familiar. He had seen it before in the Black Sun.

Both of similar dark existence.

It looked as if…

'Fusion. They had been created by fusion.'

That same heavy, bound nature.

It was as if many things had been forced together into one.

'Fusion… Is that the Authority of the Witch of Pride?' he thought.

His face hardened as realization hit him.

That was why Darkness always fused what it devoured.

It was inherited.

Something Moraine had gained after devouring the Witch of Pride.

But unlike the Witch of Pride's perfect fusions, Darkness performed 'true' fusion.

Imperfect, violent, destructive.

Witch of Pride's fusion must have been able to control who came at the top.

If two people were fused, she could decide which of the two rules the new fused body.

But when Darkness fused two people, they would undergo true fusion.

Their bodies, minds, thoughts and souls would be mended together, creating an abhorrent being.

That was why the Gods of Darkness ended up twisted, their bodies mangled and their minds lost to insanity.

Finally, the fusion of the Ancient Dragon Blood was complete.

Until now, Neo only had small traces of that blood inside him.

He had once sacrificed all of it, giving every drop to Veldora in secret.

That was how the dragon who lived beside him, serving him until the Eternals erased him, had become an Ancient Dragon.

Without Neo's help, that would have been impossible.

After all, if becoming an Ancient Dragon were easy, Nyxtharion would have already reached that level long ago.

But after losing his bloodline to his grandfather, Nxytharion had been forced to remain an Elder Dragon.

Neo had helped Veldora become an Ancient Dragon without him ever knowing.

That was why Neo had lived with nothing but dregs of that power.

But now, he finally had it back.

He clenched his fist and felt raw strength surge through his body.

Then he swung his palm.

The simple motion shattered the Independent Space, something even Ancient Dragons could never damage unless they used their strongest attack and even then they would have to attack multiple times.

In the next moment, Neo appeared in open space.

The vast universe spread before him, but he wasn't alone.

He could feel countless presences watching.

The elementals were alert.

And hidden eyes were staring from far away.

They must be from the Alliance, watching to see why two Ancient Dragons had suddenly created an Independent Space.

"Alliance," Neo said quietly, knowing the Alliance Gods were watching him. "Start counting your time."

World Energy and Darkness burst from him like an explosion.

At his current level, the amount he could create was enough to cover the entire Golden Domain easily.

The waves of energy began to spread outward, followed by a tide of deep, endless Darkness.

Across countless worlds, people looked to the sky.

All they saw was an apocalyptic scene of blinding waves of energy followed by a Darkness thicker than night.

Neo raised his hand.

Worlds and stars began to tremble.

He took them all—planets, people, monsters, everything—and placed them into his cosmos.

He began to empty the entire Golden Domain.

As his energy and Darkness expanded, he felt two familiar powers nearby.

Kram and Gram.

The two Ancient Dragons were coming to investigate Kaelus and Velion's disappearance.

Neo's energy spread around them but carefully avoided touching them.

He didn't want to trigger the appearance of the Deathbounds.

He wanted to deal with each Ancient Dragon himself.

A clone appeared before Kram and Gram, creating a new Independent Space around them.

He would put them through the same fate as Velion and Kaelus.

Meanwhile, the Alliance Gods began to appear in front of cosmic tsunami of World Energy and Darkness created by Neo.

"Kill the Heavenbreaker!"

"Stop him!"

"Heavenbreaker! We didn't want to fight you! We weren't part of those battles! We never harmed you!"

Neo didn't reply.

He only attacked the ones he remembered fighting before.

Those who had stood against him were devoured without hesitation.

But the ones who hadn't fought him—or those forced to by the Alliance by using their people as hostage—he spared them.

He moved them into his cosmos instead.

Neo was furious, but he wasn't cruel.

He wouldn't harm the innocent.

But those who had killed his friends, those who caused them to suffer, he would give them a hell from which even death wouldn't save them.

As Neo placed each world into his cosmos, he stripped away its foundation.

He reached into each World Core, pulled out the World's Consciousness, and gave it a new body.

Then he cut the connection between that core and its people.

Darkness and World Energy continued to pour from him, swallowing everything in their path.

And finally, that wave of destruction reached the Alliance's headquarters.