Chapter 1284: Cosmic Rebirth [5]
Roughly two hours prior...
In a secluded area of the Ancient Battlefield, only three presences remained.
No matter how much the battlefield shrunk from the deaths of Divinities, this spot seemed to always be included in the circle despite being on its edge, an extremely strange phenomenon.
This was the place Iris had been resting for the past three years to recover from her soul injury.
The Ancient Sovereign and Orion Luminus were the only visitors she'd had, but she spent most of her time alone.
Though, it wasn't a lonely stay.
Iris had a newfound passion for progress, and a reason why she had to leave as soon as possible. She put her everything into recovery and improvement, and if one compared the person she was now to the person she was when Damien left...
Making such a comparison was completely useless. They could barely be regarded as the same person.
"Huu..."
Iris sent her senses through her body and soul.
'I'm almost there.'
Her soul injury healed majorly with every day, and her recovery period ended after 2 years, but she didn't immediately leave her seclusion.
She'd received a great gift from Damien, and she couldn't leave it to rot.
She'd spent the past year and a half or so completely focused on comprehending Creation and acclimating to her new soul, reaching a level she never could have imagined in the past.
No, she had to wonder if this level of growth was even allowed for Demigods who refused ascension.
'Half a year. In another half a year, I'll be unparalleled.'
That was also the end of the time the Ancient Sovereign promised to protect her.
She was planning to return to comprehension and stop wasting time the second she finished gaining a cumulative understanding of her current state, however...
The usually quiet area was anything but right now.
'If the Ancient Sovereign acted, there'd be no sound. That means...Ancestor?'
Iris stood up and made her way out of the cave to see what was happening.
And to her surprise and expectation at the same time, a fierce battle was taking place.
Orion was fighting an unidentified woman from the Nox Race. The strangest part was-
'-Ancestor is being...pushed back?!'
Iris could barely hold her astonishment.
The number of people who could do so in the entire Ancient Battlefield could be counted on one hand, but this woman was not one of them.
As she watched, the two went back and forth exchanging attacks. With just a bit of observation, it became clear that this was more of a spar than a real life-or-death match.
The woman never aimed for Orion's fatal points, and in return, he also avoided injuring her too deeply.
They were fighting for entertainment, nothing more.
The fight continued for a decent while. Iris watched and used it as a learning opportunity, increasing her knowledge of fighting through them.
However, it eventually came to an end.
"You are a good opponent," Orion said with a smile, extending his hand.
The woman looked down at it indifferently before shaking it.
"Mm, I never expected to fight a Primal Sovereign in this life. It was a pleasure for me as well."
"It's a shame we have to end it here, but I guess you came on business?"
"Right. Your friend over there would not have left me alone if I came to cause conflict."
The woman glanced at the Ancient Sovereign before penning her gaze down to Iris' location.
Iris raised a brow curiously as the woman made her way there.
'She's here for me?'
She was naturally confused.
She had no idea who this woman was, nor did she have any connection to the Nox.
However, when they stood face to face, she felt a strange sense of familiarity from the Nox woman.
"Is there something you want from me?" Iris asked, somewhat cautiously.
The woman nodded without hesitation.
"Right, there's somewhere we need to go."
"Pardon?"
"Ah, introductions and the likes. It seems my social skills have become rusty in those tens of thousands of years."
The woman, her black hair blowing in the wind and her eyes shining like rubies, smirked slightly as she spoke again.
"I was once known as the Death Emperor of the Nox Race, but those days are behind us. You may call me Tiamat, and..."
"Well, you could say I'm indebted to your husband, and I've come here to ask you to help me save him."
Iris' eyes narrowed.
"There is no need to say more. Let us leave immediately."
Two women who'd been absent from the main stage for varying degrees of time had finally come together.
And considering the current situation...
...they could be considered the universe's hope.
***
BOOOOOOOOM!
The duo slammed down onto the ground and made an extremely flashy entrance, but they had no plans of milking attention.
They rapidly surveyed the battlefield with a sort of synergy nobody would expect from two people who met just a few hours prior.
"Protect me?" Iris asked.
"No problem," Tiamat replied smoothly.
Iris instantly saw what Tiamat meant when she said Damien needed her help.
The current situation was hard to explain, but to put it simply...
'That looks like Cosmic Rebirth, but it doesn't have the fluctuations of one at all.'
Essentially, it was flawed.
And who better was there than her to fill its flaws?
Iris ignored all the surrounding Demigods and flew into the sky, standing just outside the barrier of law.
She acted without wasting time.
Universal Law was incredibly restricted in the Ancient Battlefield, but it was different now.
Not only was the Heavenly Order giving it a great presence that empowered her, but Iris had also comprehended how to recreate a variation of Universal Law through Creation.
There was nothing holding her back anymore.
"YOU...!"
Immortal Blood Asura said what might as well have been his catchphrase at this point and rushed at her.
Whatever she was doing was helping Damien, and he was not someone who would allow that.
However...
BOOOOOOOM!
A massive storm of blackness obstructed his path and forced him to retreat.
Tiamat appeared before him with a cold expression.
"You will not interrupt."
She kicked downward, slamming her heel into Immortal Blood Asura's stomach. As he crashed down to the ground, her icy gaze turned to the last man in the sky.
"Are you a new one?"
The Karmic Emperor didn't respond.
No, he could not.
Despite not being very organized, the Nox did have a history of their own that the most advanced of them were aware of.
This face, this demeanor, this aura...
The Karmic Emperor knew who that was.
A woman who only appeared in legends.
A woman whose mere title could terrify any and every Nox in existence.
"D...Death Emperor..."
Tiamat raised her brow.
"It seems my name has not been forgotten in all this time. Or, were you there before it happened?"
She didn't care.
The Death Emperor was a title given to her for a single reason.
She was the personification of the concept.
Anyone who looked into her eyes would die. Anyone who crossed her path would die. Anyone who even scraped the bounds of her perception would die.
There was no escaping death when she was involved.
'...and for that, they allowed their fear to take control and sacrificed me.'
She was sealed not killed. This was partially because of her power, and partially because the one who sealed her understood her predicament.
But now she was free.
Now she had no more restrictions.
And now...
Killing intent filled the air with so much pressure that it solidified. Reality warped into a domain of absolute death purely due to its influence,
Her eyes gleamed with bloodthirst.
"...the time has come for revenge."