Different from ordinary Zerg creatures, this special bug, the so-called "will node," or "brain worm", actually possessed a trace of self-will. It was faint, almost laughably weak compared to the vast consciousness of the Zerg's main brain. The difference between them was like that of an iceberg and a single drifting snowflake.

But even such a fragile consciousness was real.

Its purpose was simple, to better transmit the will of the hive, filtering and translating the chaos of the battlefield into information that could be sent back to the Zerg Mother. It was not born from independence or ambition, but from function. Yet this tiny spark of individuality became its greatest flaw. That faint will, that faint deviation from perfect obedience, betrayed its coordinates.

Even the slightest ripple within the sea of consciousness could not escape Cillian's eyes.

As long as it involved the core of life, Cillian could find it. With the divine fire as his instrument, he located the bug's presence precisely, and immediately issued a command to his demonic forces.

"Capture it. At all costs."

Contrary to common imagination, this so-called "brain worm" did not look special at all. It was nearly identical to the countless Zerg around it. Within the ocean of chitin and mandibles, no one could distinguish it from the rest.

And that was exactly how it was meant to be.

This was the perfection of Zerg design, a creature that embodied both anonymity and necessity. On the battlefield, distinctiveness only put a target.

If you were the enemy commander and saw, amidst the swarm, a bug unlike any other, bloated, and pulsing with strange light, maybe resembling a leader, what would you do?

You'd target it first. You'd unleash every weapon, every bombardment, to destroy it.

That is why the real Zerg did not produce commanders with grand or monstrous forms. Unlike the illusions of games and films, the Zerg that lived through countless wars learned their lessons in blood. Their will-nodes were indistinguishable from the rest, hidden among their own kind.

They were cunning, and Terrifyingly intelligent.

Because the Zerg were not just beasts.

They were a collective of wisdom, honed through endless evolution, their intelligence as dreadful as their hunger.

Cillian's command tore through the air like thunder. From within the black-and-red vortex, torrents of dark mist burst forth, streaking across the void toward the gray tide of Zerg.

Within that mist were the strongest abyssal creatures under Cillian's command, a form of 'chosen elites'

Among them was Mirethane, the eight-headed mythical beast whose existence alone warped reality.

At the sound of Cillian's order, Mirethane lunged forward, leading the charge as the vanguard of the demon army. Its steps shattered the ground beneath it. Every motion bled power.

Unlike ordinary demons, Mirethane was a creature born of the abyss itself, its breath alone was pollution.

As it moved, waves of filth spread across the battlefield. Zerg on the opposing side began to rot and collapse as abyssal corruption seeped into their bodies, devouring them from within.

"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!"

Their screams tore through the air as their carapaces burst open. What flowed out was not blood, but a tide of pure corruption, a black sludge that defied the laws of life.

It spread fast, infecting those nearby, turning Zerg into twisted abominations, living pollution birthing more pollution.

But the swarm never fled.

The Zerg adapted. They evolved. And soon, Cillian noticed the change, some were already growing resistant to the filth. With each death, their resistance strengthened, their forms mutating to endure the corruption.

Even so, their infection could not harm Mirethane.

That creature was no longer a mortal being. It was now of authority, a living manifestation of abyssal law. As long as the abyss existed, Mirethane could not truly die.

And behind it all, Cillian watched from afar, channeling the divine fire, strengthening Mirethane's form with burning threads of power.

The rest of the demons, however, were not so fortunate.

Without divine fire to shield them, many were infected mid-battle, their bodies warping, their flesh splitting, until they became half-Zerg monstrosities. Some turned their blades on their comrades. Others were struck down by their own kind before they could turn fully.

But Mirethane advanced unbroken, paving a path through chaos.

Behind it, the demon army pushed forward, inching closer to the brain worm's coordinates.

⸻———x——————

"Trying to run?"

Cillian's eyes sharpened. Amid the tide of Zerg, the one he had been watching made its move, attempting to flee.

"You wish."

He raised his hand.

A dark anchor appeared, and the space around the brain worm warped violently. Fragments of abyssal land ripped through the void, dragging a piece of the abyss itself into the battlefield.

The air grew heavy. The light dimmed.Countless streams of black mist surged toward the escaping worm. If even one tendril touched it, there would be no escape.

Even a god, Cillian thought coldly, would not easily break free from the abyss once caught.

But before the mist could reach its prey, something unexpected happened.

The surrounding Zerg turned.

Not to defend the brain worm. But to kill it.

As if controlled by some higher decree, they pounced on it mercilessly.

The hive's will had decided. The node was compromised.

The brain worm's brief flicker of self-awareness was no longer useful.

It lay still, trembling, and accepted its fate as the other Zerg tore it apart piece by piece.

And as its consciousness faded, far beyond the battlefield, in the quiet fabric of the embryonic multiverse, a faint crack appeared.

From within that fracture, a thin ray of light began to seep through.

Just when the brain worm was about to be completely torn apart

Cillian finally moved.

"My trophy…"

His voice was quiet but filled with weight. The black-and-red vortexes in his eyes spun wildly, like twin black holes consuming everything before them.

"You think you can take it from me?"

Nothing enraged Cillian more than losing control. He had spent resources, time, and his strength to find this single brain worm, a fragment of the Zerg's vast consciousness. Its death wouldn't just be a setback; it was the erasure of a connection he desperately needed, it would set him back to square one.

And so, when his fury rose, the abyss itself trembled.

The abyssal territories he had summoned began to collapse one after another. Matter shattered like glass, imploding into itself. Everything caught in the collapse, ground, air, and Zerg alike, turned into dust and vanished into nothingness.

That destruction spread faster than light could travel, but even that speed could not save the dying brain worm.

The battlefield was vast beyond imagination, spanning the surface of several planets. No matter how fast Cillian moved, it was impossible to reach the worm in time.

He clenched his jaw. "You damned insect… so loyal to the hive that you'll die for it?"

His voice turned sharp, burning with contempt. "Then I'll make you defy that will. Even if you die, you'll die betraying your master."

In the black abyss behind him, the Ring of the Seven Deadly Sins began to spin, slowly at first, then faster, until the air itself quaked. From its center burst a ray of invisible light, dark and divine. The light merged with the flame that burned in Cillian's soul and shot across the void toward the battlefield.

It struck the dying brain worm.

And at that moment, something changed.

Its compound eyes flickered, not with hunger or command, but with emotion.

For the first time, the spark of self-awareness flared within it. The endless commands of the Hive Mind went silent. The suffocating voice that had always dictated its thoughts was gone. The brain worm was suddenly free — and alive.

It didn't yet understand why it felt so strange, so separate. All it knew was that its body was being torn apart, and for the first time in its existence, it feared death.

The concept of death, something no Zerg had ever truly possessed, bloomed in its mind like fire.

And with that came the will to live.

It lashed out instinctively, its blade-like limbs slicing through the Zerg that were tearing into it. A piercing sound echoed as its claw impaled the compound eye of one of its kin, The attacker collapsed, twitching.

The brain worm struck again, slashing away the others that lunged toward it.

The Hive Mind roared within its mind, flooding it with commands to stop, to submit, to die. But the worm resisted. There was only one thought left in its mind.

I want to live.

It didn't know what life meant. It didn't understand purpose or meaning. It didn't even grasp what survival was supposed to lead to. But none of that mattered. Life itself became its first desire.

Something new began to form within it, something Zerg were never meant to have.

A seed of will.

The brain worm dragged its mangled body across the ground, hiding behind the corpse of one of its fallen kin. It curled up, protecting the wound on its back, its compound eyes glowing with desperate light.

Then, for the first time, it opened its mouthparts, and roared.

A broken, alien sound, but unmistakably filled with emotion.

The first roar of new life.

But the swarm didn't hesitate. The Hive Mind's command was absolute. Countless Zerg rushed in to finish the traitor.

Just as one blade limb pierced the air toward its heart.

A storm of black mist tore through the battlefield.

The storm devoured everything. The Zerg that surrounded the worm were reduced to ash in seconds, their bodies erased without a trace.

Out of that storm stepped a man. Black hair. Black eyes. The abyss itself seemed to move around him.

He stopped beside the trembling brain worm and looked down at it, a faint smile touching his lips.

"Don't struggle," he said softly. "You've already won the right to live."

With a flick of his hand, the black mist coiled around the worm, lifting it gently before vanishing into the abyss.

Cillian exhaled and whispered, "Finally… not a wasted trip."

Then he turned his gaze toward the distant horizon. " Take everything we can before this place collapses."

He barely finished speaking before the world itself changed.

A sound, not of this realm, rippled through the fabric of space. Every creature, from gods to insects, froze. Even the Zerg stopped mid-motion, their eyes drawn upward.

Above the battlefield, the sky cracked open.

A vast fracture spread across the veil of the multiverse, and from within it came a song, soft at first, then powerful beyond measure.

A hymn of creation. A melody that praised the divine.

It filled every being with awe and sorrow. Countless intelligent creatures fell to their knees, tears streaming down their faces. Even Cillian paused, feeling the purity of that sound cut through the chaos of the abyss.

And then came the light.

Feathers drifted down from the rift above. Each feather carried warmth, beauty, and an irresistible call to worship. Even the corrupted felt their souls tremble.

The demons, however, only hissed and spat, their very essence rejecting the holy presence.

"Angels…" Cillian muttered.

From the brilliance above descended a figure, wings spread wide, eyes blazing with divine judgment.

The Angel of Punishment. The Gatekeeper of Heaven's Gate. The Third-in-line upon the throne of the Mountain of Heaven.

The High God Peter had come.

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