Harem Stealer: Reborn with the God-Tier Sharing System Chapter 454 - Ripples

"Elira... is here?"

The Ruler questioned, the demand sounding more like a rhetorical observation than a true inquiry.

The surrounding ocean of shadows remained turbulent. They churned and shifted restlessly, resembling a man thrashing in agony upon the earth, before erupting toward the heavens in a terrifying display and crashing back down with the force of thunder.

The entire chamber appeared to warp, expanding and contracting in a formless, shadow-like rhythm.

The four dragons clenched their teeth, suppressing any urge to protest as they struggled to keep their heads bowed, their knees digging into the mysterious surface of the floor.

Only the Ruler remained undisturbed.

The entity occupied a throne invisible to the naked eye, manifesting only as a chaotic vortex of shadows. It was an oval mass of darkness, with smoke-like tendrils reaching outward like the grasping hands of a hundred men.

Yet, something else lurked within that shifting darkness.

They appeared to be eyes.

However, the sight was far too horrific to confirm if they were truly eyes at all.

"It," the entity declared, "is impossible."

Abruptly, the chaos ceased, as if time itself had been suspended by a pause button.

The four dragons let out breath through clenched teeth, a desperate sigh of relief escaping them as they prayed this marked the end of the ordeal.

"It cannot be," the being stated again. "Had Elira arrived in this final domain, I would have sensed it. Such a massive presence would have echoed through my very existence."

The weight of its words hung in the air.

Then, a shift occurred. The dragons felt the Ruler’s piercing intent bore directly into their souls.

They cowered even further.

"Or perhaps you have the audacity to mock me," it whispered menacingly, "by spreading falsehoods?"

"N-No!" the Water Dragon cried out, her voice trembling with absolute terror. "We would never dare to lie in your presence, O Ruler! Never! May Soul Rot devour our spirits if our words are untrue!"

She slammed her brow against the ground with violent force. The impact cracked her skull, sending a wave of agony through her like a hammer strike.

She bit her lip fiercely, stifling a scream.

The other dragons quickly imitated her submission.

"Then, dragons," the Ruler murmured with an eerie gentleness, "perhaps you possess knowledge of Elira's whereabouts."

"Perhaps," it mused, "you truly do."

"Y-Yes!" the Fire Dragon shouted, hastily retrieving a small item from a dragon-shaped ring on his finger.

The artifact looked like the severed, wide-stretched jaw of a dragon, its inner depths radiating a soft, white glow.

"With this treasure, my lord, we can track her location," the Fire Dragon explained urgently. "We only need a fragment connected to her essence."

The Earth Dragon took over, his voice steadier though his fear remained visible.

"As the progenitor and the eldest Soul Dragon, her origins have long been a mystery. However, the Concept Dragons hold pieces of her, and we secured one for our pursuit."

He swallowed hard, taking a brief breath.

"We can locate her," the Wind Dragon added, bowing so low that blood began to drip from her wounded forehead. "We can find her and deliver her to you, my lord, if that is your command."

A heavy, suffocating silence filled the room.

It was the kind of pressure that made even the most arrogant dragons squirm like insects in the mud.

Their mouths turned to sand, tongues dry and useless. Their breathing became labored and heavy, as if the very atmosphere fought against being inhaled.

Terror intensified until the Ruler’s voice boomed once more.

"One opportunity," it declared. "I shall grant you a single chance to deliver Elira to me."

"You will carry my authority and my protection. Succeed, and I shall fulfill your desires and return you to the Waking World."

The shadows coiled tightly, hissing like vipers as the final decree was issued.

"But if you fail, dragons," it warned, "you will discover that the Spirit World is no sanctuary for pathetic, miserable souls."

"It is the graveyard of the Universe."

The four dragons exchanged glances, the oppressive darkness pressing in on them—merciless and ready to extinguish their very souls.

In that moment, Elira was no longer just a prize for greed or evolution. She had transformed into their sole lifeline and the key to unimaginable power.

As they looked at one another, their gazes hardened, their determination solidifying with every passing heartbeat.

A deep resolve took root within their hearts.

Elira would be captured.

Regardless of the cost.

Regardless of the method.

She would be taken, serving as their golden ticket to glory.

The moment Noah forged a new bloodline did not pass entirely unnoticed, contrary to what one might assume.

Standing in the heart of the great void, the Son of Emptiness tilted his head from side to side, his eyes—two swirling pools of nothingness—showing a hint of confusion.

He slowly lifted his hand, palm open toward the sky, before clenching it into a tight fist. This action sent a pulse of invisible energy through the void, a force powerful enough to wipe out millions of cultivators like Noah in an instant.

Despite this, the Son’s brow remained furrowed. He relaxed his hand, letting his arm drop to his side.

Looking upward, he muttered, "How peculiar. Something is amiss. What could it be? I cannot say, but something intrinsically tied to me is profoundly, fundamentally wrong."

"I can sense it within my very non-existence. Am I a target? No, this feels like a different sort of focus."

He turned his gaze toward the deep voids. "Is it them? That seems unlikely. The only way they could pose a threat is by uniting, which is a literal impossibility."

What, then, was occurring?

His mind raced with incredible velocity, calculating every probability, even the most absurd scenarios.

Gradually, his thoughts drifted toward the Perfected Reality, and then toward the three entities—!

"Why, tell me, old friend, are your thoughts dwelling on me?" The Son of Emptiness’s internal monologue was cut short by a familiar voice, causing a faint smirk to appear on his face.

"Now I am certain something is wrong," he remarked, "if even Gaia is the first to initiate a conversation."

"Wrong?" Gaia’s voice grated. "The only thing wrong is you meddling with me and bestowing your power upon three of my children."

"I have remained silent for too long, Son. What is your objective?"

"My objective is your protection, Gaia," he replied. "To defend you against those others. Not out of affection, but because your demise would expose us even further."

"And how do those insignificant beings assist you in such a task?"

"That is a detail you are not permitted to know," the Son countered. "That is where you are gravely mistaken," Gaia’s tone turned icy. "You are exploiting my children. You use my creations for your 'noble' goal of saving me. How virtuous! But I have every right to know what is happening to them and what their fate entails." The Son went silent for a moment before speaking. "Will Eternal, are you not old enough to realize? Some truths are better left in the dark. You cannot comprehend the scale of the force that wishes to consume you. But I can." "Do you realize how long this conflict has raged?" he asked, answering his own question. "You do not, Gaia. I have been here guarding you since you were nothing more than a wishful seed from one of The Old."

"Have I ever failed you?"

Gaia found herself speechless. She had come seeking answers about the Son's motives, but she left only with a harsh reminder of the being she was confronting.

She was dealing with someone—or something—far older than herself, a presence that had been by her side before she even understood her own purpose. Suddenly, a chilling anxiety for her son began to stir within her.

Out of her cursed affection for Noah, she had assisted him in a deed he never should have attempted.

Today, Will Eternal had intervened and spoken to the Son because she sensed a threat—not directed at her, but at the one she reluctantly loved.

The Son of Emptiness had detected a disturbance, and for a being of his stature, a feeling of "wrongness" was something he would stop at nothing to investigate.

Especially a being like him.

She compressed her lips, unsure of what to say next.

Sensing her retreat into silence, the Son prepared to speak again, but he stopped as eyes larger than entire universes began to shimmer deep within the void.

He made a sharp, annoyed clicking sound with his tongue and drew himself up. "What must be done will be done," the Son finally said. "And never forget, Gaia."

"Power begets Power. That is why you are under siege. That is why I am here. And that is why those three will eventually step onto this stage."

He cracked his neck audibly.

"Now, let us begin, my dear friends. Another round? Fine, fine, fine! Let's settle this quickly today!"

"Yellow, today I shall obliterate your fragmented essence. Wise, today I will pluck out those eyes of yours; they truly disgust me!"

The Son of Emptiness broke into a cackle and surged into the fray.

Gaia withdrew her consciousness to her own realm, her mind spinning through countless scenarios to figure out...

How she could help her son escape the inevitable wrath of the Son of Emptiness.