"As you already know, Krepsunas aren't a single species in the traditional sense. They don't share a fixed anatomy and they don't even have a stable evolutionary line like normal organisms. Their bodies mutate constantly because of the K-Virus inside them. One might look like a giant wolf and another looks like a walking pile of flesh with too many limbs."
Nari and I listened to him as he explained.
"Their forms are dictated by how the K-Virus restructures the host body. That's why their shapes vary so wildly. But what Zhenyu recorded goes much deeper than simple mutations. The Krepsunas have a structured power hierarchy that governs their evolution, their intelligence and how much control they have over others. Their ranks are: Warped, Sunderers, Scavengers, Forgotten, Overlords, and Phantasms, from lowest to highest."
He lifted his hand and began outlining each rank slowly.
"The first three ranks-Warped, Sunderers, and Scavengers-are what we've mostly encountered on battlefields. These are the ones that operate under a shared hive mind."
"So they don't think for themselves at all?"
"Not in the way we do, Nari. They can react, adapt and even learn, but their primary directive is unified: spread the K-Virus and expand Krepsuna numbers."
He raised one finger.
"Warped Rank is the absolute lowest. These are newly infected or heavily degraded hosts whose bodies have been twisted beyond recognition. Their strength is comparable to Essentia Rank beings. They are dangerous to civilians but manageable for trained fighters."
He raised a second finger.
"Sunderers are a step above them. Their bodies stabilize slightly and they develop basic combat instincts. They're faster, more aggressive and more durable than Warped, but they're still considered expendable."
Then he raised a third finger.
"Scavenger Rank is where things start becoming a real threat. Scavengers retain fragments of the original host's knowledge and experience. If a skilled swordsman is infected, a Scavenger might still remember how to wield a blade just... in a far more brutal and unrestrained way. Scavengers are significantly stronger and faster than Sunderers. Their regeneration is improved, and their bodies develop a slight resistance to physical damage. Cutting them down once usually isn't enough."
He glanced at Narisva.
"Using Divinities is one of the most effective ways to destroy them. It disrupts the virus and prevents rapid regeneration."
"So all three of those ranks are basically swarm units?"
"Yup. And they grow stronger through two main methods: cannibalism and infection. When they devour other Krepsunas or living beings, they absorb their energy, which accelerates their evolution. And whenever they infect someone, that new Krepsuna becomes part of their subordinate network."
"Subordinate network?"
That's a first. I've never heard of that.
"Each Krepsuna-depending on its strength-can command a certain number of lesser ones. If a stronger Krepsuna kills a weaker one, it can also seize control of that weaker one's subordinates. So their military structure constantly shifts based on strength and survival."
Veneri's expression grew more serious as he continued.
"The next three ranks-Forgotten, Overlords, and Phantasms-are entirely different. Unlike the lower ranks, these Krepsunas are fully sentient. They possess independent thought, personal goals and the ability to strategize."
Narisva's eyes narrowed. "So they're not controlled by the hive mind?"
"They're connected to it but not enslaved by it. Think of the hive mind as a communication network rather than a controlling force at that level."
He leaned forward slightly as he went on.
"Forgotten Rank Krepsunas are comparable in power to Deities, though whether they match a Minor or Major Deity depends on the individual. They can manipulate elemental forces and their control is often more chaotic but just as destructive. Forgotten Rank Krepsunas possess extremely high regeneration. Their bodies can regrow entire limbs within moments, and they're resistant not just to physical attacks, but also to elemental techniques."
Narisva's voice dropped.
"So how do you even kill one?"
"The most reliable method is soul destruction. As long as their soul remains intact, their body can keep reconstructing itself through the virus."
I swallowed. That wasn't exactly easy to accomplish in a chaotic battlefield. Also, only the Aeterium are strong enough to do that. One can just damage them fast enough before their regeneration hits but using Soul Energy is the best method.
"They also command massive armies of lower-rank Krepsunas. A single Forgotten Rank entity can control tens of thousands of Scavengers, Sunderers, and Warped."
He paused, then added something that shocked me.
"And their power scales with the size of their army. The more Krepsunas under their command, the more energy they can draw from the network. If their subordinates die, the energy doesn't vanish. It flows back into the Forgotten Rank Krepsuna, strengthening it."
"So even losing troops makes them stronger?"
He nodded once.
"It's a win-win situation for them. They either expand their army or absorb its power. Above them are the Overlord Rank Krepsunas. These are the true battlefield commanders. According to Zhenyu's records, an Overlord usually commands between five to seven Forgotten Rank Krepsunas, treating them like generals."
Narisva's eyes widened slightly.
"That's... an entire army hierarchy."
"Yes. And in terms of raw power, an Overlord is comparable to a Primordial Deity not just in destructive capability, but also in authority. Their presence alone can distort the surrounding environment. Overlords retain full sentience, complex personalities and strategic brilliance. They don't just charge into battle. They plan campaigns, manipulate territories, and use lower ranks as expendable chess pieces."
He hesitated briefly before mentioning the final rank.
"And then there are Phantasms. These are the rarest and most powerful Krepsunas. Their strength is comparable to Nexus Rank beings. They're entities that exist at the very peak of our known power scale. According to Liang Zhenyu's records, Phantasms appear so infrequently that some centuries pass without a single confirmed sighting. Entire Krepsuna invasions can occur without one ever manifesting."
I leaned against one of the pillars, listening closely as Nari kept asking questions.
"So they're like... anomalies among anomalies?"
"That's a good way to put it. A Phantasm isn't just stronger than an Overlord. It exists on a completely different tier of existence. Their control over the K-Virus and dimensional energy is so refined that they're no longer bound by the same biological limitations as other Krepsunas. Asenane was one of them, as you know."
"Did he mention her?"
Veneri nodded slowly.
"Zhenyu's notes mentioned a Phantasm-class entity that disappeared around the same period Asenane was recorded in certain anomalous events, which include the Destras Cataclysm. It matches her almost perfectly."
I folded my arms tighter. Asenane rarely spoke about her past and whenever the topic even brushed against it, she avoided it. When we shared our memories with each other (the beloveds and I), Asenane didn't share hers. She wanted to tell Darling first before she told us and we respected that.
"She never told us that."
"She probably didn't want to. Phantasms aren't just royals in the Krepsuna hierarchy. They're closer to keystones. Their souls are unbelievably dense and stable. Even after their physical bodies are destroyed, their souls can remain intact for absurdly long periods. That's why her soul was able to sustain the Obsidian Runic Spire for centuries. The spire was anchored by it. Most souls would have dissipated within days under that kind of strain."
Narisva exhaled slowly in relief.
"Thank goodness she's not a Krepsuna anymore."
I nodded silently in agreement. The thought of someone like Asenane still being aligned with that hive was... deeply unsettling. A brief silence followed, until Narisva shifted her attention back to Veneri.
"What about Dimensium?"
I instinctively looked at Veneri too, even though she couldn't see me. I didn't say anything. She wouldn't expect a response from me anyway. Instead, she watched him, waiting.
"The information about Dimensium was responsible for at least half of the pain I experienced when I accessed the Hidden Truth."
That made my stomach twist. If just talking about Krepsunas had nearly killed him, then whatever came next was going to be worse.
He summoned the Mystic Book of Altherion.
"I can't explain this part with words alone. It's easier to show you."
He opened the book and pressed his hand against a page filled with spiraling runes which lit up one by one, responding to his touch. The air above the center of the throne room warped, and a three-dimensional image formed. It was vast, luminous, and rotating slowly in midair.
It was a planet.
Narisva's eyes widened when we knew what it was.
"Spheraphase."
The globe hovered above us, detailed down to its cloud formations and cloud cover. Even I felt a strange awe seeing our entire world laid bare like that.
"I've never seen it from this perspective, not even as a Celestial. It has a ring now after Erna Moon was destroyed, by the way. Its fragments were pulled into orbit. I knew that in theory, but seeing it like this..."
The shattered remains of the moon glimmered like a broken halo around Spheraphase. Honestly, I'm amazed the Hidden Truth was able to keep up with current times and state of the world.
Veneri nodded once, then flicked his fingers. The image zoomed in slowly, making the continents to appear clearer.
"There are four continents we've always known. Xypelia in the north, Navaraza in the south, Nesmarone in the west, and Anqerise in the east, all surrounded by the Asmapheri Oceans."
"That's accurate," Narisva said. "Celestial cartography matches this exactly."
Veneri didn't respond. Instead, his expression grew increasingly grim.
"Well, not exactly."
The projection shifted again, zooming out just slightly enough to reveal something we've never seen before. At first, I thought it was just a massive storm.
A swirling mass of deep crimson clouds covered a huge portion of the planet's surface, like a wound that refused to close. But as the image sharpened, land began to show beneath the clouds. There were coastlines, vast plains, mountain ranges, all tinted in varying shades of red and black.
My breath caught in my throat. Narisva stood up without realizing it.
"That's a continent."
And it was massive.
It took up nearly a quarter of the planet's total surface area. If I mentally overlaid the other four continents onto it, they could have fit inside its borders with room to spare.
"There are supposed to be four continents, Veneri. Every celestial map, every divine record-"
"There are five."
He zoomed the image in further. The crimson landmass dominated our field of view. The clouds above it churned endlessly,
"This is Dimensium."
"That's impossible."
"That's what I thought too. Because everything we've been told says that Dimensium is a foreign dimension that the Krepsunas invaded us from."
He closed the book halfway, but the projection remained, sustained by residual energy.
"The Hidden Truth Liang Zhenyu uncovered is that Dimensium was never another planet."
He looked directly at Narisva.
"It has always been part of Spheraphase."
Her lips parted, but no words came out.
"Dimensium is the fifth and largest continent of this world. It was sealed, concealed and erased from all historical records. The crimson clouds aren't natural weather. They're a dimensional barrier meant to hide it from external observation."
Nari staggered back a step. My mind was struggling to process what I was seeing.
"So the Krepsunas..."
Veneri finished the thought for me in my mind.
"They are not invaders from another world. They are a native race of Spheraphase, just like us."