Thunder That Shakes the Heavens
"Boom!"
There was one thunderclap which rent the heavens, rumbling like the voice of ancient God.
The Astral Forest, which had been drenched in peaceful sunlight, darkened instantly. Over the great canopy above, the sky foamed like a universe-spanning beast's maw yawned open—dark clouds curled outward, consuming sky and light in equal measure. Thunder bolts twisted in the storm like scarlet snakes, blood-red streaks of lightning that throbbed with a ravaging hunger.
Felberta gazed up, her white fingers uncurling into shaking fists. Even her voice—her usually cool and authoritative voice—shuddered.
"N-Nux… your last lightning disaster… you'll be sure to survive this?"
Nux blinked, caught off guard. Throughout all his years by her side, he'd never once heard the Moonborn Dragon Queen stutter.
She went on, her own voice cracking in spite of herself. "I'm asking you, Nux! Tell me something!"
For a moment, he didn't respond. The girl who stood taller than Spirita's magical creatures, who could intimidate even Mountainborn Ape-Lord and Skyox Serpent with a single look, stood now in front of him with violet eyes wide with unadulterated fear. And somehow, that caught him off guard and brought him back—to another existence.
Earth…
He still recalled snippets of it: an iron and glass world, a world of perpetual darkness and constant din. No matter how many centuries had elapsed here, he had never forgotten what he had left behind. Spirita was not his home—but it was his battlefield.
No "time-travel cheat." No pre-existing system. Just himself. Just the ceaseless work to live. And yet destiny had smiled and granted him a physique unparalleled even among magical beasts: the Trisight Dragon, the Emperor of Auspicious Beasts.
Born with impossible ability. His presence raising beasts around him. Invulnerable to natural predators. Unreachable… until now.
And Felberta—so cold and haughty to others—had been an odd friend. The Moonborn Dragon Queen herself, teased into laughter, even warmth, by his mortal cleverness. They had become familiar, more familiar than either had intended. But now…
Another boom split the air. "Boom!"
The noise brought Nux back to reality. Felberta's lips were closed, her purple eyes fixed on him. "Nux. are you certain?"
He released a breath, peaceful and unperturbed. "What if I'm certain? What if I'm not? When soldiers approach, I repel them. When floodwaters swell, I stop them."
Felberta nibbled down on her lower lip so hard that it quivered. She tightened her fists further—then felt his warm fingers close over hers, gently opening her hands.
"Unwind," Nux whispered with a grin. "It's merely small calamity. I'll shatter it."
She shook her head so hard her memories flashed about like jagged light. The God Realm's ruthlessness. Constant oppression of magical beasts. Her voice grew sharp, verging on a hiss.
"The God Realm has no honor! They won't even let us ascend. This is not a tribulation—it's a massacre. You expect them to let you pass your million-year catastrophe so easily?"
Nux smiled weakly, black hair streaming with the wind. He lifted his face towards the sky, each crease of his tall figure exuding rebellion. "Fel, you and I know full well what kind of bastards occupy the God Realm. If they wish to make it difficult for me—let them come. I'm not afraid."
For an instant, she gazed at him—the man who stood as if hewn of iron, dark hair wild against the tempest, eyes burning like twin stars. Her silver hair stood up around her like a banner, their eyes met. And for an instant's heartbeat, her chest constricted.
"Boom!"
The clouds seethed. Blood-red thunder-dragons convulsed across the sky, their thunder shaking the ground. Throughout the Astral Forest, millions of magical creatures shuddered, crouching low to the ground as a heavy, ancient power leaned down upon them.
Nux stood, his body rising into the tempest, his voice booming out like thunder.
"This disaster is for me alone. Hold still. Don't panic!"
The command reverberated for miles, calming even the wildest hearts. Yet Felberta could only watch, her violet eyes wide. "Nux! How likely are you to overcome it?"
He glanced back at her over his shoulder, a playful glint sparking in his gaze despite the swirling doom above.
"Actually? Not so sure…"
Her breath caught.
"…It's just one hundred percent."
"You—!" She planted her foot on the silver platform beneath her, silver light blazing with the action. "You're going to die and you still have time for jokes?!"
But the playfulness dropped from him as he faced back into the storm, his face hardening.
"Watch close, Fel. What I do today… isn't just surviving the tribulation."
His voice dropped to a growl that rumbled through the clouds.
"I'm going to overturn the sky."
She froze, her breath stalling. In that moment, she understood—perhaps for the first time—why she had let this man under her guard. He had no reverence for the God Realm. No chains around his heart.
"Boom!"
The sky split. Blood-colored thunder-dragons rained downward, each bolt the size of a mountain, promising annihilation. Across the forest, despair flickered in countless eyes. Even the Skyox Serpent and Mountainborn Ape-Lord exchanged glances heavy with dread.
"Brother…" the Ape-Lord rumbled, clutching the serpent's tail. "Can Lord Beast God really shatter such a storm?"
Idiot!" the Skyox Serpent spat, tail whipping at the ground. "Look at that cloud. That's not a tribulation—it's a death sentence. Even Lord Beast God."
He stopped, eyes fading. "How can any beast resist the sky? And yet. that pride. We can only bow our heads and pray."
"Hold your head high!"
Light burst.
A ghost shot skyward—a holy monster a thousand feet high, scales aflame with golden fire, claws cutting circles of light. Its bellow shook heaven and earth as it hurtled itself not away from the thundercloud but directly into it.
The jaw of the Skyox Serpent fell. "By the stars… he's attacking it?!"
Felberta's howl ripped through the sky. "Nux, you must be mad! What are you doing—burning out your soul core? You'll incinerate a million years of cultivation!"
"Crash!"
The Trisight Dragon's ghost dove into the center of the blood-red maelstrom, golden fire crashing against crimson thunder. The sky itself tore asunder beneath the impact. Then—
Light.
Clean and blinding.
The thunder dissipated. The clouds tore apart like paper, the sunlight bathing the Astral Forest again. The stars outside shone as if nothing had occurred.
"It's done! It's really done!" the Mountainborn Ape-Lord roared, voice shaking with excitement.
"Shut your mouth, idiot!" The Skyox Serpent's tail cracked across his back. "Can't you see? Lord Beast God incinerated his soul core… he's—he's gone…"
The Ape-Lord stood stock still, his gigantic body quaking. "No… no way…"
Felberta drifted above the sky, her hair flailing with the soft wind, her eyes raking over every inch of the clearing below. A crystal tear rolled down her cheek. She didn't even notice. Her fists were balled until they cut into her palms, bleeding. Her voice was a cube of ice.
"God Realm… you kill my people, and now you kill the one I…" Her lips quivered, blood oozing where she bit hard. "I'll bury you."
Then her voice cracked, contorting into something primal. "Dog man… if you wouldn't do it, you could've asked me to assist you! Faking death just to seem cool-looking—scoundrel!"
"Who's the jerk?"
She stood still. "Nux…"
"Hm? Who's talking?" she whispered, eyes racing wildly. And then she saw it—hanging in midair beside her, a twenty-four-petaled golden lotus, its petals shining like molten sunlight. It throbbed with a heartbeat that she could sense in her chest.
Her pupils constricted. What is this? She had never seen anything like it—neither gold nor jade, yet carrying an aura that was sacred and alive.
Then came a voice she knew—a muffled, annoyed one—floating from inside.
"Little Fel, would you care to tell me what you meant by 'pretending to be gone'?"
Her eyes went wide. "Nux? You're inside? What is this—what happened?"
She touched the lotus with her fingertips. It was solid but warm, a substance beyond her comprehension. Her heart pounded.
"Take me back to the cave first," the voice within said, half-exasperated, half-fatigued. "I need time to recover. I'll tell you everything once I'm safe."
Even as he talked, a voice also resounded within his mind, cold and robotic.
[Ding! Congratulations to host for finally turning into human form. Wife Taking System has now started binding!]
[Ding! System bounds successfully!]
[Ding! Host can now get God-tier rewards by increasing the favourability of Goddesses through his power. Task target locked—]
Felberta's eyes flared as she wrapped the lotus tightly in her arms, her heart pounding. Whatever had just been set in motion, she knew with absolute certainty: the man she believed lost had just entered into an even greater destiny.