Lord of Annihilation

Lucius' consciousness was jolted out of the darkness. His eyes showed movement under his eyelids and he felt his sensations returning to his body, one by one.

Slowly opening his eyes, Lucius could finally see light dispelling the darkness.

"You're finally awake!" seeing him open his eyes, Reyna let out a sigh of relief.

Adjusting his eyes to the bright light, Lucius could finally see the scene before him. His body was currently lying atop a rock floor. Looking around he could see multiple stalagmites and stalactite, extending from the floor and the roof of this cave respectively.

The inside of this cave was surprisingly warm and comfortable. Looking down, Lucius could see his injury tended to and a relieved looking young girl sitting next to him. His entire body devoid of any power, is at its weakest state. A sharp contrast to the nigh-invincible feeling, that he had felt before.

Recalling the previous events, Lucius could feel cold sweat forming his back. That feeling of meeting a Lord was simply too terrifying. Granted Lucius did not directly meet 'Him', just being in the very presence of such an almighty being made him feel utterly powerless.

'And to think I am plotting against such a being.

"Hey, are you alright?" the sound of a concerned young woman sounded beside him.

Turning his head, Lucius stared at the beautiful looking girl. She was looking at him with care and concern filling her bright emerald eyes. Multiple patches of her dress was torn, revealing her snow white, soft and supple skin. The fresh cloth for tying his injuries had come from her, since Lucius' clothes were completely drenched in blood.

A strange feeling filled Lucius heart as he continued to intently stare at her. A feeling that was familiar yet foreign.

Feeling Lucius' intense stare on her, Reyna suddenly felt embarrassed. A red blush rose to her face, completely covering her ears and her neck. Her eyes gazed down towards the ground, not daring to meet his gaze. Due to her cute reactions, her otherworldly beauty further increased by a notch.

Seeing her reaction, Lucius snapped out of his thoughts and spoke with a hoarse voice, "I'm fine. Thank you for your care."

After that, silence. The atmosphere between them turned a little awkward as both of them weren't sure how to continue the conversation.

As that feeling got stronger and stronger within his heart, something happened. His soul shone with a reddish-black light as it sent a wave of energy. Immediately the emotions and feelings in his heart were completely wiped out, leaving behind cold indifference.

Looking at her indifferently, Lucius spoke first, "How long was I asleep for?"

"Ah! Well you were sleeping for around 8 hrs, I guess." checking her watch Reyna unsurely said. Facing his cold stare, Reyna felt uncomfortable in her heart.

Lucius simply nodded his head. He looked around and asked another question, "What happened to Ka'lor'ah?"

Hearing this question, Reyna's face grew serious for a second, " When you were unconscious, your body was suddenly shrouded by some kind of invisible energy. Your body seemed to be real, yet illusory at the same time."

"Ka'lor'ah said something about 'Rules' and did something with her flashing gold lights on your body. After that, she told me you were fine and was going into a deep slumber to recover her energy."

Furrowing his brows he asked her, "When was this?"

"Three hours before you woke up." she immediately replied.

Lucius did not reply but quietly stood there. After a few minutes, he opened his mouth and instructed her, "We shall leave this cave at daylight. Rest till then."

Hesitating for a few seconds, Reyna cautiously tried to ask. "Lucius, what did she mean by the Rules?"

"You don't have to know." he directly replied.

"Oh...okay." facing his direct rejection, she found herself at a loss. A sour expression climbed onto her pretty face, adding a hint of melancholy.

'Again with this. Trying to hide and shoulder it all yourself. Why don't you allow me to help you?' Reyna bitterly complained within her heart. She looked towards Lucius with accusatory eyes.

Feeling her gaze upon him, Lucius simply ignored it. He then turned around and sat in a cross-legged position. Closing his eyes, he started to cultivate to recover his soul energy. Seeing the sudden change in his reaction, a tinge of disappointment filled Reyna's heart.

Lucius' 300 years of experience were not in vain. Observing her reactions from the time he woke up, he had vaguely formed an understanding in his mind.

'This girl seems to be in love with me.' his mind blandly said. There was no sense of happiness, expectation, elation, only a feeling of...disappointment.

'Foolish. With the beginning of the Ascension, we have no time to waste on such paltry feelings.' his mind indifferently thought.

The way she reacted, her concerns, all these factors went beyond simple concern for a friend. It was much deeper and purer. Unfortunately, love was something that Lucius could not feel. A feeling which he had forsaken within his heart.

The number of times he had loved someone, only to lose them later was too numerous for him to count. Along with the passage of the years and his rising cultivation in the [Killer] soul, Lucius had slowly formed an unfeeling heart.

His expressionless demeanor and his indifferent gaze were the result of his success. He wasn't expressionless because he wanted to, but simply because he felt nothing within his heart.

His eyes carried such indifference because he truly felt the other party to be insignificant, a worm or an ant which he could effortlessly crush beneath his feet. He had seen and felt what true power was. Underneath Stage 7, every existence was but a mere ant.

Underneath 'Them', the universe itself was an insignificant existence.

This unfeeling and cold heart was the cost for his power. A power that set him on a path of endless loneliness and eternal damnation. Feelings were something which he could not have.

Although he had felt Reyna's feelings, Lucius did not place any importance on them. He simply considered them to be a fleeting crush of an inexperienced young girl.

'Given time her feelings will pass.' Thinking so, Lucius wholeheartedly focused on his cultivation.

Alas, what Lucius did not know was how much he had underestimated her feelings. The misunderstanding which he had unknowingly created during their escape had left a profound impression, deep within her heart. An impression that would bring much trouble for Lucius in the future.

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A few hours passed and the ray of the first light shone into the dimly lit dave. Lucius who had his eyes closed promptly opened them.

Getting up on his feet, he looked behind only to find Reyna asleep.

Her body was curled up like a shrimp, with her hands hugging onto her legs. Her face seemed peaceful with a small smile being present on them. Obviously, she seemed to be having a good dream.

Infusing a tiny bit of soul power into his fingers, Lucius flicked it on her forehead. A wave of energy passed into her mind, immediately waking her up. All traces of drowsiness had disappeared.

"Ah! I'm up!" she was startled.

"Let's go." Lucius indifferently said as he reached to carry the backpack, which she had been using as a pillow.

Seeing at Reyna had gotten up on her feet, he extended his left arm and held her by her waist. On his right, he gripped the weapon which was in its scythe form.

"What are you doing?!" she was asked when Lucius suddenly jumped.

His body immediately jumped 10 feet into the air, before it started to drop. Calmly swinging his scythe, he pierced it into the wall next to him and used it as a handhold to jump once more. His body rose another 5 feet into the air.

Repeating this action four more times, Lucius and Reyna's bodies left the narrow gorge. Landing on the surface, Lucius scanned his surroundings.

Massive golden rocks, which looked like miniature mountains were scattered at various distances. Some close and others very far. Each rock was still radiating its golden light which seemed to fuse into the atmosphere, no longer being limited to the area around the rock.

In this grey colorless world, this seemed to be the only other shade. A dusty plain, filled with rocks.

Seeing the golden energy suffusing into the atmosphere, Lucius frowned. "It's starting."

Switching on his [Killer Vision], Lucius saw two trails of golden light, leading towards the east. They seemed to be in the same location.

Taking a deep breath, his legs tensed up before he shot forth like an arrow leaving a bow. A dark shadow flashed through the empty plains of Deatov.

The date: 9th February 2321.