Six Lord Ravagers. If they truly began fighting, it would be an earth-shattering war. The battlefield would never remain confined to the Yongmei Star System. It would spread across the entire galaxy, perhaps even more... and in the end, even the Aeons would descend. Once that happened, a War of Aeons would erupt.
So the war absolutely could not be allowed to escalate any further. Something had to be done. This conflict had to end in advance.
After reaching this conclusion, Diamond let out a long breath, stepped forward, appeared within the Yongmei Star System, and released the aura of a Preservation Emanator, drawing everyone's attention.
"Everyone, end this war. If it continues to escalate, the situation will spiral beyond control."
After speaking, Diamond turned his gaze toward Celenova and Phantylia. "I believe the two of you would agree with me, wouldn't you?"
According to Diamond's intelligence, each of the two Lord Ravagers he named considered themselves masters of a particular art of destruction.
Phantylia infiltrated civilizations, incited internal strife, and ultimately plunged them into chaos—letting them shatter amid endless conflict and turmoil.
Celenova, on the other hand, hid behind the scenes and conducted the Antimatter Legion with a symphony of destruction, annihilating civilization after civilization.
In Diamond's view, neither Phantylia nor Celenova would want to see the war escalate into an all-out cosmic-wide conflict between factions of Destruction. That kind of destruction did not align with the artistic principles they upheld...
And in truth, that was indeed the case. Phantylia and Celenova had no desire to continue fighting. However, they could not be the ones to propose a ceasefire. After all, they were Lord Ravagers of Destruction.
Meanwhile, Asat Pramad, upon seeing Diamond appear, silently calculated the balance of high-end combat strength. With Diamond's arrival, the Emanator-level forces now stood at six against six.
Thus, Asat Pramad raised his head and transmitted a mental message to Zephyro. Continuing the battle would bring no advantage to the Destruction faction.
The white light flickering upon Zephyro's head brightened and dimmed as he snorted coldly. "Withdraw just like this? If we retreat now, the countless beings of the cosmos will no longer fear us Lord Ravagers of Destruction. Instead, they will see us as bullies who prey only on the weak."
"..."
Asat Pramad fell silent.
The atmosphere remained thick with killing intent.
Neither the Lord Ravagers of Destruction nor Ruan Mei and Herta made another move.
They simply confronted one another.
At this moment, Diamond spoke again to the Lord Ravagers.
"Listen to me once more. End this war. If it continues to escalate, I cannot guarantee that Preservation's hammer will not fall."
Jing Yuan also spoke. "Not only Preservation's hammer. The Reignbow Arbiter's divine arrow will fall as well. In fact, the Xianzhou Alliance has already prepared the Cloudpeer Telescope to provide coordinates for the Hunt's pursuit."
Diamond and Jing Yuan invoked the Aeons behind them.
The Lord Ravagers were furious upon hearing this—but beneath their anger was deep wariness.
None of them dared claim they could withstand an Aeon's strike before the destined moment arrived.
More importantly, according to their understanding, Qlipoth of Preservation and Lan of The Hunt truly might descend.
After all, the Xianzhou Alliance's Cloudpeer Telescope could indeed provide targeting coordinates to Lan, drawing down the arrow of annihilation.
Likewise, Qlipoth—the new Aeon of Preservation who rose after Ena of Order—might descend if the Destruction faction sought to unleash a new universal catastrophe.
"How about we withdraw?"
Phantylia, as a heliobus, instantly formed a private mental channel and communicated seriously with the other Lord Ravagers.
Zephyro replied with a cold snort. "If we withdraw now, we truly become cowards. Phantylia, do you want to be a clown?"
Phantylia countered, "But Zephyro, can you withstand the Reignbow's arrow—or Preservation's hammer?"
"..."
Zephyro fell silent.
At this moment, Asat Pramad spoke. "Perhaps we can find a dignified way to withdraw."
Celenova: "That makes sense."
Phantylia: "I agree."
"Wait..." Zephyro responded unwillingly. "They have Aeons behind them. We also have the Great Lord. Even if the war escalates, the great Nanook will protect us. We should continue."
"End this war. Return."
At that very moment, from an immeasurable distance, a vast voice pierced through endless spacetime and reached the ears of every Lord Ravager.
It was the voice of Nanook, the Aeon of Destruction.
All the Lord Ravagers froze.
There was only one reason.
They all heard the urgency and gravity within Nanook's tone.
Why does the Lord sound so urgent...?
Could it be that multiple Aeons are already preparing to descend? Is that why the Lord, unprepared for total war, is choosing to step back for now?
If this battle continues... will a War of Aeons truly begin?
The Lord Ravagers felt their hearts tighten.
...
Beyond the comprehension of the Lord Ravagers, in a dimension they could not perceive, Nanook—immense beyond measure, golden blood flowing from His chest—stood frowning as He faced several colossal figures.
One figure came from the future. Endless apocalyptic visions surrounded Them.
It was the Aeon born in a distant future timeline—Terminus.
They had come for Herta.
Terminus spoke slowly.
"After Herta's intervention, the future of this world has already begun to shift. I can sense it clearly... Nanook, call back your subordinates. Herta is important to the cosmos's future. She can alter the trajectory of the cosmos."
"In the distant end that I have witnessed, many Pathstriders attempted to survive Finality by infusing their souls into Soul Gems. Though they ultimately failed, such change had never occurred before."
"As long as Herta continues to exist and continue her research, new transformations will inevitably arise. Change is beneficial."
At this moment, standing beside Terminus, the ascended astral computer that had become Nous emitted a resonant hum.
"I have not yet completed my analysis of the secrets within Herta. I require her survival. Nanook, cease your advance."
The voice of Nous echoed like a cosmic calculation.
The implication was unmistakable.
If Nanook insisted on escalating the conflict, They would not remain idle.
A carefree voice rang out next.
"Herta's existence is important to the cosmos. Aside from my dear brother, Akivili, she is another variable. I want her safe. Only then can there be more change—and more Elation!"
It was Aha, the Aeon of Joy.
Below, across layered dimensions, Silver Wolf of the past and αWolf of the future had fused into one, transforming into Magical Girl · Invincible Player form—Silver Wolf LV.999.
The harmonious scene I glimpsed at the summit of the Tree of Existence... it never included this vision.
Herta cannot be harmed.
At that moment, another colossal figure opened Their eyes.
It was Qlipoth, the Aeon of Preservation.
They lifted Their massive hammer and pointed it at Nanook, Their voice resonant and heavy.
"End this war."
As Their words faded, Qlipoth's gaze shifted toward Herta. A strange light flickered in Their eyes.
The Soul Gems Herta created preserved the souls of those slain by the Lord Ravager Phantylia, preventing them from falling into Nihility. That is, without question, a form of Preservation.
One Aeon after another spoke, standing on Herta's side.
As time passed, yet another emerged.
It was Yaoshi, the Aeon of Abundance.
Yaoshi did not threaten Nanook. Instead, They merely stated:
The God Tree Herta had researched had added a corresponding miracle within the Path of Abundance, further perfecting it.
Herta had created a miracle of Abundance.
If, in an even more ancient era, she had developed the God Tree—or even more life-creating technologies—then the Aeon of Abundance might have changed.
As Yaoshi's words fell, Their figure vanished swiftly.
The reason was simple.
Lan of The Hunt had arrived.
Bow drawn, Lan scanned the surroundings, searching for Yaoshi's presence—yet found nothing.
At the same time, the gathered Aeons were shaken by what Yaoshi had said.
To complete a Path. To perfect a miracle of Abundance.
Unbelievable.
Herta had reached such a level.
Among those present, only two remained calm: Qlipoth of Preservation and Nous of Erudition.
Qlipoth had already sensed that the Soul Gems preserved souls, thereby expanding the Path of Preservation.
Similarly, as Herta developed one super-crisis technology after another beyond Nous' calculations, the Path of Erudition had also expanded.
Nanook, at last, understood Herta's uniqueness.
If she could broaden a Path itself, perhaps she could also bring a different kind of destruction to the cosmos.
After all, a genius' experiment was dangerous. Failure alone could spell ruin for the universe...
Having reached this thought, Nanook slowly declared the end of the war and ordered the Lord Ravagers to withdraw.
With the supreme Lord of Destruction having spoken, the Lord Ravagers had no choice but to comply.
Phantylia raised her head and looked at Diamond. "I can give you my answer now. This war ends here. Whether it is me or the other Lord Ravagers, we will withdraw."
Celenova nodded.
Zephyro gave a cold snort but did not object.
Asat Pramad adjusted his hat without a word.
As for Luxbane and Archforger, the moment the Lord's command resounded, they had already withdrawn silently from the star system.
Diamond, Jing Yuan, and many others were stunned.
The Lord Ravagers had agreed to ceasefire so suddenly.
Had their threats truly worked?
No—that could not be it. Lord Ravagers were not beings who yielded to threats. What exactly had happened?
Even Jing Yuan, the Divine Foresight General of the Xianzhou, found no answer.
Among those present, perhaps only Herta and Elio understood why the Lord Ravagers had softened their stance.
With the aid of the Research System, Herman, Herta had used appraisal methods to glimpse the higher-dimensional standoff among Aeons.
Though she did not know the precise contents of their discussion, her sharp mind had already deduced that Nanook had chosen to step back.
Elio, possessing his unique vision, had seen and heard the confrontation among the Aeons in that higher dimension.
He knew the truth.
Herta was simply too special. So special that multiple Aeons had appeared together to confront Nanook, forcing Them to retreat and issue the order to withdraw.
Elio could not help but sigh inwardly.
The war had begun because Herta had taken the Blood of Abundance from the Stellaron Hunters.
And now, it ended because of Herta as well...
At this moment, the Lord Ravagers were preparing to depart. However, Zephyro—the strongest among them—left behind a final threat before leaving.
"This war of destruction is not over. Wait... It will not be long before the iron hooves of Destruction trample all existence—reducing prosperity to silence and vitality to despair and the abyss."
With those words, Zephyro—his head bathed in white radiance—prepared to perform a spacetime jump.
But at that very instant, Herta deployed wormhole technology and intercepted him.
Sensing this, Zephyro halted and lifted his glowing head, roaring at Herta.
"We have already agreed to ceasefire, yet you dare block my path? Do you truly not fear provoking our wrath and igniting total war?"
Herta chuckled softly, confidence radiating from her expression.
"Even if total war breaks out, so what? As long as I am here, we will win."
Zephyro laughed in anger.
"No matter what, you are merely a newly ascended Emanator of Erudition. Such arrogance. If you stood alone before me, I could kill you instantly."
Herta shook her head slightly.
"You cannot kill me. And besides, your Destruction Legion has reduced the Yongmei Star System to this state. How could there be no compensation?"
"Compensation?!"
Zephyro was stunned. Beneath the white glow, even his features twitched.
He had never imagined that Herta would dare demand compensation from Lord Ravagers.
Such audacity. Reckless to the extreme.
Fury ignited within him. He clenched his fist, ready to strike.
At that moment, Celenova seemed to sense something. The halo above her head shifted. She extended a hand to stop Zephyro and turned to Herta.
"What do you want?"
Herta's eyes gleamed.
"I want Nanook's golden blood."