Chapter 2654: Stone Supreme

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Unknown

As the boulder and stones rolled down the mountain and struck other rocks, they generated sparks. With enough sparks, even the energized yet stable form of methane in the area ignited and detonated, which in turn triggered the methane in its vicinity, forming a cascading chain reaction. It was like witnessing nature’s version of a thermobaric missile at work. In under a couple of minutes, the entire mountain range was reduced to a sandy dessert.

Thanks to my limitless barrier, I was able to witness all of this with my primordial soul pupils without any interruption from the explosion itself. I even saw the snow on the mountains vaporize into scorching steam during the blast; under the all-round pressure of the explosion, the vapor condensed and accumulated, forming pockets of superheated steam within the blast zone.

When the methane detonation subsided, these pockets of superheated steam burst thunderously as the pressure that sustained them vanished with the explosion. This gave rise to another round of explosions. However, this second wave was deadlier and more destructive than the first, reducing whatever remained of the mountains after the initial blast into fine sand. It also created violent drafts capable of burning anything they came into contact with to ash.

One had to understand that this energized yet stable form of methane was the result of soul energy. I had never seen such a form of methane in Earth’s natural environments or laboratories. That was to say, the destructive power of this methane fog was more than sufficient to completely level and pulverize the Mountain range. If that didn’t get the job done, the pockets of concentrated, superheated steam did.

Knowing this, I didn’t dare retrieve my limitless barrier. I left it in place and tended to the guard captain instead. I made use of my soul energy manipulation to create extremely thin energy needles and pierced his soul pathways, drawing the methane out of his body and flushing it with clear, refined soul energy. Methane was colorless, tasteless, and odorless; the poor guy never saw it coming. His intent sense should have, but the methane fog had spread too quickly, covering the entire mountain range in mere seconds.

Just as I was expelling the methane from the guard captain’s body and circulating pure soul energy through him, the surrounding dunes of sand began to sink, forming a vast, swirling pattern around a pitch-black void beneath them that acted as the eye of the phenomenon. The suction force it generated was overwhelming. Within minutes, the entire desert was swallowed.

Fixed in the air and surrounded by infinitely stretched space, I escaped the suction force and witnessed everything in horror. When I looked down at the origin of the pitch-black void, I saw the walls of ground closing in on itself like a anal hole before water began to spurt out from the cracks, rapidly filling the crater and forming a large lake.

When I made use of my primordial soul pupils, I detected a massive concentration of pure stone rule power moving beneath the ground, deep underground, diving further into the card world’s crust until it moved out of my vision. Its pace was far too fast for me to interfere in any way. All I could tell was that it was humongous, and that its body was similar to Bloodette’s, formed entirely from condensed rule power. I immediately suspected it was the Stone Supreme, but without definitive proof, I couldn’t confirm anything.

Compared to the Blood Supreme, who had chosen the form of a human, the Stone Supreme seemed to have taken the shape of a humongous underground behemoth or even a leviathan. I couldn’t help but wonder how long it would take for something like that to decimate a city. Judging by how quickly it had reduced an entire mountain range to sand and swallowed it whole, the answer was clear. Far less time than anyone could afford.

I also couldn’t help but wonder whether the Stone Supreme had warned the living creatures inhabiting the mountain range before deciding to feed on it, giving them time to migrate. Otherwise, I couldn’t think of a better reason why the entire mountain range was devoid of life, except for a few flora born from stone-rule. If this were true, was the Stone Supreme showing care and mercy toward these living creatures, or was it merely ensuring that its palate remained restricted to the diet it preferred, stones?

From what I had observed during my time with Bloodette, I had realized that supreme beings, like humans, were social. However, unlike humans, they were simple-minded but not to the point of being called stupid, emotionally honest, and fearless. That was to say, supreme beings thought simply, not shallowly. They ignored politics, strategy, and social norms unless those things clashed with their values and interests. When it mattered, their instincts were razor-sharp.

If I had to guess, the Stone Supreme had warned the living creatures for both reasons. I even believed that the living creatures had helped the Stone Supreme by clearing away vegetation that didn’t suit its appetite, which explained why we had only seen stone-rule plants and nothing else. Not that it mattered, as everything would have been reduced to ash or sand. Perhaps those living creatures had performed it as a sign of respect, or outright worship.

Of course, that was all based on the assumption that the Stone Supreme had warned the living creatures to leave the mountain range. It was also possible that the mountain range had been devoid of life from the very beginning. Honestly, I didn’t have all the facts and now that the mountain range was gone I never will.

But the Emissary of Light did. Otherwise, how would he have known that the Stone Supreme was about to feast on this mountain range? Or perhaps it had merely been a coincidence, considering that he recalled his soul projection without killing the guard captain. Given his nature, and knowing that I could undo his brainwashing, he should have killed the guard captain, yet he didn’t. Maybe he hadn’t known where we would be teleported at all and had sent us away randomly, simply to expend as little faith as possible.

Be that as it may, I was beginning to realize that returning to the five regions with baggage weighing me down was not going to be easy.

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