"W-What?"
"The hell did you do?!" Augustus roared, his pupils shrunk to the size of a pin, revealing more of his amethyst irises.
Making someone randomly disappear was one thing. Making Revan disappear randomly like this was another entirely.
No one was even sure of how strong he was. He had even once defeated Sierra effortlessly when the woman was trying to assassinate the very person who made him disappear just now.
Athyma's laughter was unsettling. It made it feel as if she was the one in full control now. Not only had she removed the absolute wild card from the equation, but she had done it with such ease that Revan didn't even have the time to make a move in retaliation.
"What...?" Charlie couldn't help but mutter the same thing as Vekas. He had been wary of Revan from the very beginning, ever since he met the guy. And now, he was gone before he could even show an ounce of resistance.
This woman, the girl he thought was his daughter, was actually terrifying if she was capable of dealing with Revan like this.
"You... where did you send him?" Sierra's voice cut through the suffocating atmosphere, low and steady despite her pupils' contraction.
She was also just as shocked as the rest. Revan had defeated her effortlessly, something Athyma had never once managed to do herself. She was far stronger than the last time they fought. The increase in strength seemed too much, in her opinion.
"Hehehe," she chuckled softly. "I merely sent him to the ninth layer of this base. Nothing too serious."
Yet, the others couldn't help but be apprehensive. This woman greeted them here, in the seventh layer, and even revealed her true identity. She could've easily done this in the ninth layer of the base. The question was, why didn't she?
"What's so special about the ninth layer, exactly?" Vekas asked, his eyes narrowed as he pointed his sword at her, now fully hostile.
"As I said before, nothing much." She smiled coldly. "Just that both the eighth and ninth layers are separate Spatial Realms that I created."
Although she said it in a slightly carefree manner, her words dropped a bombshell on everyone else. The only ones who didn't feel much after hearing this were the ordinary soldiers, and that was due to ignorance.
The rest, however — those who weren't ignorant — had pure panic coursing through their veins. A Spatial Realm was too vast to escape. Even huge planets like Varkana and Karsawa pale in comparison.
Traversing through Realms was a difficult feat, even for spiritual beings, which meant that for semi-spiritual lifeforms like Vekas and Sierra, it was utterly impossible. This was without even mentioning normal, physical beings.
"A Spatial Realm? You're saying that you created a Spatial Realm?" Sierra's voice shook. Creating a Spatial Realm was possible, but it was nearly unheard of.
Spatial Realms could be inferior to normal Realms, or they could be equal to normal Realms. In a very unlikely scenario, the Spatial Realms could be even larger than normal Realms.
"Indeed, and they are as vast as this Mortal Realm. Escaping the ninth layer alone would require an insurmountable effort, only for him to then land in the eighth layer. Plus, how can he possibly hope to escape when he's being drained entirely and is utterly bound by my techniques and authorities?"
Both techniques and authorities were used to detain him, but Sierra felt that Athyma had also used an Attribute. Revan was definitely a spiritual being, so no way could he be affected by techniques and authorities alone like this for long.
But an Attribute wasn't something one could have nilly-willy. They were unique to the user, and couldn't belong to anyone else. Getting one was too difficult. For spiritual beings, it was a challenge. For semi-spiritual lifeforms, a miracle was required.
Keeping this in mind, as well as how Athyma was able to create two Spatial Realms to trap Revan, alongside setting up multiple techniques and Authorities to restrain him, it all could only mean one thing...
"So, you actually evolved into a spiritual being, Athyma." Augustus's voice was low, but everyone who heard it shook visibly.
Evolving into a spiritual being wasn't easy one bit. In fact, whoever did evolve never even revealed how they attained such a level. Not even one in a million semi-spiritual lifeforms could become a spiritual being.
And yet, Athyma stood before them, having reached this realm. It was too shocking, especially for Charlie and the others. A spiritual being was living under their roof, one filled with this malice, and they couldn't tell at all.
Such concealment... as expected of a spiritual being. Charlie couldn't help but shudder. He had always been wary of Revan, yet he didn't even pay as much caution to his own daughter, who was terrifying herself, maybe more so than that wild card.
"Spot on, Augustus. I have actually been one for quite a while. It's quite a breathtaking experience." She chuckled darkly.
She stepped forward. "So tell me, how do you plan to stop me now? You are now an insignificant piece of work for me. Whether you live or die, it matters not to me. How can you possibly hope to stop me?"
This was new for Sierra and Augustus. The feud between the chef and Athyma was not something that could be easily forgotten or just abandoned. Augustus himself was proof of this as he still held hatred for her.
Was she now so strong that she considered Augustus insignificant? The chef couldn't exactly deny that statement. He was still a semi-spiritual lifeform, after all. A mere silent harmoner was nothing compared to an actual spiritual being.
He stepped forward. "Athyma, you have already achieved the realm of a spiritual being. You can now freely roam in all realms, no longer restricted by your identity as a demonic phantom. Why do you seek to cause more carnage? Wasn't your goal to become a spiritual being so that you could live in the Demonic Realm? Isn't that why you slaughtered so many beings and absorbed their essence and Vyr? Why do you continue this?!"
His voice was calm in the beginning, but by the end, clear anger could be heard in his tone. He was openly glaring at her, his fists clenched as his knuckles turned white.
Athyma laughed, her voice melodic that reminded Charlie and his people of the laugh they had always known of the princess. It made their hearts sink even more as they realised how it was all a facade. A fake.
"Augustus, how can you be so narrow-minded? I expected more from my former nemesis." She shook her head, a small smile on her face.
She then looked straight at him, her eyes shining coldly. "Why should I limit myself to merely this? Although it was my initial goal, why would I possibly stop when I am aware that there is a plane of power beyond this? How can my goals be as shallow as the rest of this world's? Be it the Mortal Realm, the Demonic Realm, or the Spirit Realm — I don't care!"
She grinned, showcasing her pure white teeth. "My pursuits go beyond merely the Spirit Realm. I shall be the strongest being to ever exist! I shall exist beyond the laws of the world, beyond techniques and authorities, beyond everything! I shall not limit myself to such shallow goals like revenge anymore, the way you and Sierra do."
Her voice was clear and loud enough for everyone to hear. It sounded like a melody of a woman who had a clear resolve to soar above all limits. At this moment, all who looked at her were mesmerised, for she seemed to radiate brilliance even more than before.
Augustus, meanwhile, pursed his lips. "You... do you intend to become the strongest spiritual being in existence?"
"Not just that. I want to reach a level beyond what imagination can hold! You will never be able to understand, because you are far inferior to me, Augustus. Back then, I didn't realise it myself, but now I do," she replied as she stretched out her hand.
Sierra stiffened, her gaze sharpened as she stepped in front of Augustus, her blade ready. "Make a move, and you'll regret it."
Athyma laughed. It was soft and spoke of genuine amusement. "You still have that flair even after learning that I am a spiritual being? How cute, my darling Sierra. Fine, I'll play with you the way that Revan did."
She stepped forward. "Alright, then. I invite you all to strike me down. Can you all do it?"
Sierra didn't answer; she rushed at her with her blade. Augustus followed, and soon, a huge battle commenced.
***
Revan was trapped in an endless expanse of pure darkness.
There was no light, no sound, no air, no water, no form of matter at all. There only existed the vacuum of space. There was also the absence of Vyr, which made [Vyr Perception] useless as well.
Instead, there was only Agma. A vast amount of Agma. They were the building blocks of all spiritual matter, such as purely spiritual attacks, and were far stronger than Vyr. Only spiritual beings like Athyma could use this energy. Semi-spiritual lifeforms couldn't dream of it.
However, this Agma was tampered with and had Athyma's control woven into it. This meant that even a spiritual being couldn't control this Agma, as only Athyma had the authority to do so.
Not to mention the several techniques and authorities working on Revan to drain him and eventually kill him. There was no space here either. Just enough for him to exist. Otherwise, the only thing other than him and the Agma here was the concept of time.
Yet, even this time was fractured. Mere two hours in here meant four days in the outside world, and Revan had spent well over five hours in this place, merely thinking about it.
Speaking of which, even his thought process was being interfered with by Athyma's techniques. As for his power being drained, he felt that, other than her techniques and authorities, this was the doing of Athyma's Attribute.
Currently, the binds of darkness were still wrapped around his whole body, leaving only his mouth free. They made sure he wouldn't escape no matter how hard he tried.
There was another terrifying thing. He was in the ninth layer of the underground base, which was connected to the Mortal Realm. Yet, this was a Spatial Dimension.
Yes, a Spatial Dimension. Only the eighth floor was a Spatial Realm, while this floor was, in reality, far more terrifying. A Dimension was well over four times the size of a Realm, sometimes even more so.
To create one like this, it solidified Athyma's position as one of the strongest spiritual beings to exist. She had even given it special properties like having no space — which was ironic for a "Spatial" Dimension — and an accelerated time flow.
The teeny-tiny space that Revan himself occupied was also shrinking, trying to crush him to nothingness. It had been a relentless process for the past five hours, which was 10 days for the outside world.
Even if Revan somehow escaped this Spatial Dimension, he would still have to deal with the eighth layer, which was still a Spatial Realm. They were both connected to the underground base, yet they couldn't be accessed even through the seventh layer.
Only spiritual beings could come and go here, and even then, it would be difficult. Not to mention that the Spatial Realm and this Dimension he was trapped in were also meant to prevent access and leaving.
Thinking all this, Revan remained still in this vast expanse of darkness with no space and a decelerated time flow. He didn't really try to move or resist as he analysed everything he could about this place.
It was a masterpiece of a trap, and he knew that Athyma probably wasn't too worried about him escaping, no matter how cautious a person she was. This containment and eventual elimination plan was simply too immaculate.
At that moment, his lips curled to form a small, enigmatic smile. There was no light, so one couldn't really see it, though it wasn't like there was anyone else there to see it either.
His lips moved — though no voice came out due to the void he was in — as he spoke. "Boom."
BOOM!