Rex is a considerable force within the Spirit Realm.

It was mainly due to his connection with Kei Xun—and also the façade of another backer, thanks to the welcoming gift from Ignatius. His raw strength is nowhere near the top, but he’s considerably stronger than the average.

He is at the level of the royal knight, but below the royalty.

But in the Mortal Realm standard, he should basically be unbeatable.

And yet, his hands were numb from blocking Void’s attack, which really caught him off guard.

Just the fact that the attack reached him was already surprising enough; he didn’t need another surprise that would stun him like this. System, how could this be possible? Scan the attack residual and give me an answer!

A holographic blue light expanded throughout the entire area.

<Scanning…>

<Notice: Based on the residual energy, the attack could reach the user because of a cross-realm artifact that has a connection between the Spirit Realm and the Mortal Realm. Any attack devised by this alien artifact will be able to reach the user>

Rex calmed down after reading the answer, and then he straightened his back.

He was surprised that such an artifact exists.

The Angel Origin has connections to the Spirit Realm and the Mortal Realm. Maybe it’s his that Void now wielded.

At this point, Rex knew that there were several supernatural races that exists between the two realms. So, it shouldn’t surprise him to find other things that are connected despite the realm separation. He needed to know more about this artifact.

“Surprising,” Rex commended the attack with a nod. “But what made you come here for me?”

“Because you have wronged me.”

“Do tell how exactly I wronged you,”

Rex found it incredulous as he hadn’t made his move against the Angels yet.

Or at least, he didn’t feel like he had done anything.

But he was wrong.

“You have supported the rebellion forces. You have made a deal with the Demons so their hellish reach and impurities would corrupt my Dark Angels. You have tried to take back claimed land like a thief in plain sight. And you…” For the first time, there was a change in Void’s expression. There was anger, and it was strong. “Have killed my brother and sullied the Archangel of Knives’ reputation.”

Rex’s face remained as Void lists his transgression.

He didn’t know exactly how Void could come to learn of those things, but it would come to light one way or another, so he doesn’t really mind. But the last thing he listed was a revelation. Stelios… Stelios is his brother?

Never would he be able to guess that Stelios and Void are siblings.

“I came to declare blood vendetta against you,” Void’s voice dropped into a threatening bass. “I’ll claim your life.”

“Yeah?” Rex smirked at the declaration. “You’ll have to wait for your turn like everyone else.”

Compared to Chaos. Compared to the Fourthborn. Compared to the Lunirich Gods. And compared to the Sky People, Void was the most unthreatening one. Rex was ready to go against beings in the higher planes, so what could a mere new Dark Archangel do?

If anything, he would sweep Void quickly so that he could focus on the others.

Splash!

Morgana sneaked behind Rex and stabbed her hand into his back.

Blood sprayed across her face as she pushed harder, but then she realized her enchanted hand had lost its momentum. It halted inside, unable to go further in. Rex’s muscles and bones were impossibly dense, unyielding as forged steel.

Her fingers were driven into him like meat into a wall.

Crunch—!

“Raarghk!!”

She screamed. His flesh pressed back, crushing her hand, grinding bone to splinters.

“Master, help me!”

Almost the instant she asked, another beam of energy tore through the fabric of the dimension and flooded her hand with power. Killing Rex now rather than later became the only thought that mattered. He’d be in trouble down the road. Best to end it here and not risk it.

But killing Rex wasn’t that easy.

Rex twisted his torso and landed a devastating elbow across Morgana’s face.

Just that hit alone broke many bones in her face.

Brutally, Rex seized Morgana’s face, and his eyes glowed crimson. Life energy was rapidly charged into the Red Dawn of Kaiser as he used the Inevitable Death. But unlike normal, the effect hummed with a stronger force.

Strong enough to create a haze out of the air, as if it were as hot as lava.

“You know, after defeating your brother, I was really wounded,” Rex explained. The wound on his back healed in an instant as he turned to face Void again. “I needed to heal, and your brother is the only way for me to recover.”

Void’s face hardened.

He knew what Rex was. He knew what this meant. And that made his fury become more evident on his impartial face.

Rex waved his hand and summoned something from the inventory.

It dropped into the ground with a heavy thud. A few pairs of beautiful feathered wings.

One that was worn by Stelios and was now in his possession.

“And because of that incident, I grew fond of an Angel’s flesh,” Rex’s lips curled cynically, eying Void like he was the next meal on the plate. “I’d look forward to when we can settle this once and for all. I’m looking forward to how your flesh and blood taste. A full-fledged Dark Archangel… That’s a rare dish indeed.

“But first, let me show you who you’re dealing with.”

Slash—!

Rex made a slashing motion with his hand toward Morgana.

She closed her eyes in fright, fearing that this would have killed her right here and right now.

A few seconds passed, but there was no pain.

Morgana opened her eyes again in confusion. She dropped down to the ground when Rex let go of her, and she immediately looked down to check her condition. Nothing. She couldn’t see any visible wounds, and she also felt no pain.

But seeing the dark smile on Rex’s face, there was no way he didn’t do anything.

It was then that the feeling came like a blooming flower.

Not pain. If that was the case, she’d be screaming right now. She felt something was changing inside her. Something about her body now felt wrong, incredibly wrong. Panic settled in as she glared at Rex. “What did you do?!” She roared, eyes widening in utter fear of the unknown. “What have you done to me?!”

Even Void couldn’t wrap his mind around what happened.

Or at least, not until he finally felt it.

He felt the connection between him and Morgana was fading gradually.

“Angels were once saviors,” Rex said, his smile widening as he watched Morgana drown in uncertainty. “Beings who many looked up to. Beings who sacrificed themselves so others could live. But now? The Angels, or Dark Angels for that matter, are nothing but ugly mutations of what they used to be. And that ugly mutation is only fifty percent of you. I so happen to be able to cut it out.”

“What…?” Morgana’s eyes widened.

Never in her entire life did she think this would happen at some point in her life.

And it was terrifying.

“What do you mean by that?” Her expression began to tremble. She reached for Rex’s leg and shook it like she was begging him to answer. “What do you mean by that? What do you mean that you can cut it out?”

“It exactly what it means,”

“No… You’re lying. You have to be lyin—arghh!”

Morgana wanted to believe that Rex was simply lying about this. But at the same time, she felt her body gradually becoming colder. Her warmth was leaving her, and the worst part was that she couldn’t feel her connection with Void anymore.

Only then did she realize that Rex wasn’t lying.

Her bloodline of an Angel… It’s disappearing. Diluted and replaced by her Spirit bloodline.

Ascending to Awakened Demigod transformed him. Every energy he could control became laced with divinity. All of them are now stronger and purer. His abilities followed this growth. His Inevitable Death allowed him to deal unavoidable, lethal damage to the target.

Now, it could even aim deeper essence within the target’s body, which includes the bloodline.

It’s a Spirit Genesis that was based on the Blood Moon.

Bloodline is well within the scope of its power.

Losing her Angel bloodline made her entirely a Spirit now. Her skin was melting alongside her energy, shedding her brilliance and replacing it with normalcy. She doesn’t look grand and dignified like she has always been anymore.

She now looked plain, and worse, a lot weaker.

“Despite the First Light’s death, his connection to all Angels as their Origin remains extremely strong. A benefit of time, I guess,” Rex turned back to Void, spine rigid, and the threat of disappearance behind his gaze. “Dark Angels are different. You and your kind are new. So, tell me… First Darkness. What do you think will happen when I use my power on them the way I did on Morgana?”

Void’s expression sharpened and focused.

The answer to the question should be obvious already.

Rex was threatening him with the consequence of being erased completely from the annals of history.

If there was no trace of a bloodline, then the Dark Angel might as well never exist.

Such a threat prickled on the softest part of Void’s ego. One that he was going to treat seriously.

Morgana was still a half-angel earlier, and yet her bloodline was wiped out that easily.

Given the chance, Rex’s Inevitable Death could simply erase the Dark Angel bloodline entirely. Even those who could theoretically pose a threat to Rex would simply lose. Perhaps their body would have exploded regardless of their strength.

“I will remember this,” Void said with meaningful intent. “Our blood feud will end with you choking on your own blood. And do not think you can act arrogantly in my presence after your transformation. In case you feel safe, there are still many more surprises for you.”

<Killing intent!>

Rex remained motionless as he watched a killing intent notification triggered by Void.

Seems like earlier, Void simply finds it necessary to kill him.

It was clear that he didn’t care about Stelios, at least not in the way one would to their own brother.

He must only be doing this to preserve his reputation. After all, seeking no vengeance to his brother’s killer doesn’t look good for him. But now that Rex’s threat struck a nerve, the intent finally changed to a personal one.

Rex wasn’t intending for that to happen, but it’s a good thing for him anyway.

And with that, his presence vanished, the last remnants of energy sustaining the portal finally exhausted. Silence swallowed the area. Only the sound of Morgana’s whimpers as the light within her forced their way to leave her, no matter how hard she tries.

Rex didn’t focus on her.

His mind was somewhere else.

What does he mean by that? What does he know? And what surprises?

Just meeting with Void alone was already surprising enough. He thought the Archangel of Knives was the only one he needed to deal with, but that wasn’t the end of it. As if fate had willed it, Void seemed to know a lot about him.

Does he also adept in his divinity and sense my ascension? Or is it something else?

Recalling the face Void was making before he disappeared, he felt like it was something else entirely.

Just a hunch.

Rex knew that Void’s meteoric rise was unnatural.

He must’ve had help. No doubt about it.

And since there’s much unknown about Void, while Void likely knew more about him, Rex couldn’t afford to relax. He shook his head with a sigh. “Everyone wants me dead for one reason or another. And he’s a hypocrite. I visit the Tabaxis, and suddenly I’m a thief? He’s the one conquering foreign lands.”

He straightened. “Either way, I need to return quickly. He might go after the others.”