Apocalypse: I Have A Multiplier System

Chapter 649 - 649: End Of Deimos

The stench was suffocating, the air thick with decay."So… this again," she muttered, narrowing her eyes.

A faint chuckle echoed through the shadows. Su Jiyai immediately understood. "Deimos," she said under her breath.

With a flick of her wrist, a pair of luminous wings unfurled behind her, and she rose above the muck. But the black water stirred violently, tendrils whipping upward to drag her down.

She countered swiftly, slashing through them with fire.

When the last tendril dissolved into mist, she hovered midair, staring into the endless dark. "Are you planning to keep hiding?" she called out. "Is this your new tactic?"

Silence stretched. Then, a low, hoarse voice echoed from the depths.

"You've become clever, Su Jiyai. You and those people from admin… you knew my weakness. You used your power to cut me off from every dimension."

The voice grew harsher, colder. "You think you've won. But I've seen countless task executioners, and never one as vicious as you."

Su Jiyai's lips curved into a cool smile. "I can say the same for you, Deimos."

There was a heavy silence from the other end before Deimos's rough, distorted voice broke through.

"I should have killed you the first time I saw you. I was too soft-hearted then, and now I'll pay the price for that weakness. But I'll make sure you truly die this time."

Without another word, the air quivered. A wave of black energy pulsed outward, followed by a rain of obsidian spheres hurtling toward Su Jiyai like meteor fire.

She spun sharply through the air, her fire slicing through the darkness as she dodged one after another.

Each sphere that missed her exploded into a storm of black smoke, spreading decay through the air.

But as she fought, Su Jiyai's sharp gaze noticed something strange... Deimos's attacks, though fierce, lacked their former force. His energy waves felt fragmented, unsteady.

A realization flickered across her mind. 'So that's it… when I saved other planets, it must've drained him more than I thought.'

The system's voice suddenly chimed in her mind.

[Host, Deimos's energy signature has dropped by ninety-nine percent. If you wish, I can initiate combat assistance mode.]

Before she could answer, Deimos's deep, mocking laughter filled the void. "Of course they would offer help," he sneered.

"The admin is desperate to protect their precious little savior. They're using you, Su Jiyai. You're only valuable as long as your power remains intact. Once it fades, they'll toss you aside like every other expendable pawn."

Su Jiyai let out a soft chuckle, her tone dripping with quiet amusement. "You're really bad at sowing discord, Deimos."

He chuckled back, voice cold and bitter.

"Call it whatever you want. But you and I both know the truth... the administration is no better than me. They'll take what they need, then discard you."

She met his words with a calm, unwavering expression. "You're right about one thing," she said lightly.

"I do prefer people who are useful to me. Those who aren't, I don't waste my time on. But that's not selfishness, that's survival."

For the first time, Deimos faltered. The silence that followed was deafening.

He had expected a heartbroken expression, defensiveness, maybe even anger, but instead, Su Jiyai spoke like someone utterly immune to manipulation.

When he finally spoke again, his voice had softened, almost persuasive. "Then come to my side," he said slowly.

"Why fight me when we're so similar? Join me, Su Jiyai. I can give you freedom beyond imagination. Become an entity yourself, harness power from despair and chaos. Together, we could reign beyond the guardians' control."

Su Jiyai smirked. "Tempting offer," she said dryly. "But I'll have to decline."

With a snap of her fingers, a river of flame erupted from beneath her feet, racing across the blackened water.

The stench of burning corruption filled the air as the fire spread. Deimos roared, his voice trembling with fury.

"They want me gone because they fear me!" he bellowed.

"Those so-called guardians, those administrators, they only destroy what they cannot control! They're afraid that others will lose faith in them!"

Su Jiyai's eyes narrowed. His words had struck a chord of curiosity.

She had always wondered why the admin wanted the entities eradicated so badly.

Who had created them? Why did the universe allow such beings to exist in the first place?

As if hearing her thoughts, Deimos began to speak again, his tone quieter now, heavy with memory.

"I can't read your mind, girl," he said, "but I can guess what you're wondering. You want to know how I became what I am."

Su Jiyai said nothing. She simply hovered in the air, eyes gleaming, waiting.

"I was once a cultivator," Deimos began, "in the cultivation world, a realm far older than your own. After centuries of cultivation, I ascended and became immortal. For a time, I believed I'd reached perfection. I thought the heavens were fair."

His laugh was bitter and low.

"But I learned the truth soon enough. The heavens are partial, Su Jiyai. They favor some and cast aside others. When I became a Heavenly King, I gained access to the power of faith, the energy of mortals' devotion. Through it, I could shape worlds, bless the weak, and explore the mysteries of the cosmos."

He paused, his voice echoing faintly in the darkness.

"At first, I used that power to help. I healed the sick, ended droughts, and restored dying lands. And the people worshipped me. Their faith made me strong. I believed I was destined to ascend beyond all limitations."

His tone turned colder.

"But faith is fragile. One day, a new god appeared, a deceiver who offered quick miracles and false hope. My followers abandoned me overnight. My name, once sung in temples, was erased."

He snarled.

"I was cast down. Stripped of my power. That's when I realized how useless gratitude is. Humans forget kindness, but they never forget pain. So I searched for another way and I found it."

Su Jiyai's breath hitched as the air around her grew colder.

"I discovered something stronger than faith... despair," he said darkly.

"Despair feeds faster, burns brighter, and never fades. I began to harness the negative energy born from fear, anger, and grief. Compared to the fickle devotion of mortals, it was pure, constant. But to harvest it, I needed more suffering… more chaos. So I created it."

"Plagues. Wars. Famine. I didn't cause them all, but I nudged them forward," he continued. "And soon, I had enough power to create my own realm... a dimension of pure void. No stars. No time. No life. From there, I could slip between worlds and spread despair freely."

Su Jiyai's gaze hardened. "You became an entity."

"Yes," he said simply.

"An entity feared by the guardians of the universe. They called us abominations, but we were pioneers. Others like me arose, each feeding on a different form of energy. Together, we grew stronger, and the guardians retaliated, sending task executioners to 'restore balance.' They called it justice." He spat the word like poison.

"By the time I reached my one hundred and ninth world, I had built an empire of darkness. I was ready to challenge the heavens themselves." His voice trembled with rage. "And then...you appeared. You cured the apocalypse. Restored hope. My energy collapsed overnight. The guardians celebrated. But you...you ruined everything I built!"

Su Jiyai didn't respond right away. Her mind spun with the implications of what she had just heard.

For years, she had believed Deimos was pure evil, just another monster to be eliminated. But now, she saw a man who had once been betrayed by faith itself.

Taking a slow breath, she said quietly, "So that's your story."

Deimos didn't answer.

She continued, her voice steady.

"Even if I try to understand you, it doesn't justify what you've done. You claim you were betrayed by mortals, but you turned that betrayal into an excuse to destroy billions of lives. If you truly only wanted power, you could've stopped at one or two worlds. But you didn't. You wanted domination."

Her eyes gleamed like molten gold. "That's not strength, Deimos. That's greed."

Deimos's scream tore through the darkness. "I'll crush you and then those hypocritical guardians will follow!"

Su Jiyai's expression softened into something almost pitying. "No, Deimos," she said gently. "It's already too late."

The entity froze. Then he noticed it.... the fire that had spread across the black water was burning lower, yes, but not fading. It was consuming. The inky liquid was evaporating, revealing what lay beneath.

The ground trembled as light began to seep through the cracks in the darkness.

Slowly, painfully, the veil of corruption dissolved.

The murky void that had surrounded them revealed itself for what it truly was... a dying world stripped of stars, reduced to a single broken plain.

And at its center stood Deimos's true form.

He was nothing like the invincible god Su Jiyai had imagined.

His body was tall but skeletal, translucent in places, his veins pulsing with streaks of black smoke.

His face... what remained of it... was half shadow, half bone, the remnants of divinity twisted into monstrosity.