Volume 1, Chapter 123: The Sudden Appearance of Tartarus

In the darkness, Tregear slowly opened his eyes.

He lowered his head and glanced at the energy chains wrapped around him, feeling utterly speechless. He was the mighty Chaos Evil God—when had he ever suffered such humiliation? To think he had actually been tied up by someone.

Thud, thud, thud!

At that moment, the sound of footsteps approached.

Tregear had only just raised his head when a flash of light was hurled into his field of vision, striking him squarely in the face.

Smack!

The crisp sound and the pain spreading through his flesh made Tregear’s eyes fly wide open.

His answer, however, was Darrgon’s iron-hard fist.

Boom!

The punch landed solidly in Tregear’s abdomen, forcing a muffled groan from him as his teeth clenched tightly together.

“Let me have a turn!” Hizram cried out. His body spun halfway through the air before he drove a kick into Tregear’s stomach.

That kick nearly ended Tregear’s life.

And this was only the beginning.

Carmeara held a long whip. Her hands were fair and delicate, as tender as young scallions, yet every lash she swung carried the force of thunder and moved as swiftly as lightning.

With each strike, Carmeara seemed to pour all her strength into it, as though she wished to whip this man to death with her own hands. Every blow left a hideous welt across Tregear’s body.

Throughout the entire process, Tregear uttered not a sound.

A fallen tiger was bullied by dogs. He accepted it.

After all, there was nothing else he could do. With the pitiful amount of power he currently possessed, he was no match for the three Dark Giants before him—not even for some random monster that might happen to appear.

Smack, smack, smack, smack, smack, smack…

No one knew how long the beating continued. At last, Carmeara seemed to tire. She put away her whip, twisted her sore wrist, and then stretched out on a stone chair nearby to rest.

As for Darrgon and Hizram, they had disappeared long ago.

Finally granted a moment to catch his breath, Tregear stiffly raised his head. His gaze fixed itself upon the woman before him, carefully engraving every one of her features into his memory.

Because in the not-so-distant future, he would make this woman regret everything she had done today.

Still, when all was said and done, the woman did possess a certain beauty.

Lying on the stone chair, Carmeara displayed the perfect curves of her body to their fullest. Coupled with the darkness swirling around her, she looked, through the haze, like a goddess of the night sleeping in a dream—an exquisite beauty beyond compare.

But the heart of this goddess…

Tregear glanced at the wounds covering his body and thought resentfully: What an utterly ungrateful woman!

For some time afterward, Tregear became little more than an outlet for the Dark Trio’s rage.

Even he began to despair, thinking pessimistically: Could he really be imprisoned here forever?

Another dawn arrived.

Tregear knew that even without opening his eyes, a whip would soon be coming to greet him.

Yet as time passed, he felt none of the dark aura he had come to expect.

What was going on?

Tregear opened his eyes and looked around warily.

The Dark Giants seemed to have gone out.

The realization made his heart leap. His chance to escape had come.

But a bitter smile soon appeared on his face.

The energy chains binding him were simply too sturdy. They were formed from Carmeara’s dark power, and with the strength he currently possessed, he had no hope of breaking free.

But with an opportunity right before him, how could Tregear give it up so easily?

Without hesitation, he closed his eyes, relaxed his entire body and mind, and began absorbing the water element spread throughout the ocean.

Water was the gentlest force in the world.

It lacked the ferocity of fire, the weight of earth, and the sharpness of wind.

Yet it was also the most powerful of the elemental forces.

He had the Dark Trio’s base in the deep sea to thank for that. Otherwise, he would never have had the chance to absorb the water element of the ocean.

But just then, space ahead of him began to ripple. After a series of undulating waves, a golden figure emerged.

Tregear’s eyes snapped open. The moment he saw that figure, his expression darkened.

“Tartarus!”

The newcomer wore golden armor and possessed an overwhelming presence. His gaze was sharp, and he was none other than the Ultimate Lifeform, Tartarus.

“Oh?” Tartarus was surprised that Tregear had recognized him by name.

He paid it no mind, however, instead studying Tregear with great interest before slowly speaking.

“I found it strange that I couldn’t influence the Tregear of the past dimension. I never expected that you were still alive.”

Tregear said nothing. He merely stared silently at Tartarus, his eyes flickering as though he were contemplating something.

“Looking at you now, you truly are in a sorry state.” With Tartarus’s keen eyes, how could he fail to see that Tregear was utterly spent?

Even he could crush Tregear with ease.

At that thought, Tartarus could not help but sigh.

Once, Tregear had stood at the pinnacle of the universe. Even Tartarus himself had worried that Tregear might truly destroy the Land of Light.

After all, it was the Kingdom’s chosen second homeworld and could already be considered half of its homeland.

Who could have imagined that the Land of Light’s combat power would be so terrifying?

Still, with Legend having intervened, the outcome was not entirely unexpected.

At the thought of Legend, deep apprehension flashed through Tartarus’s eyes. He secretly resolved that he had to find a way to eliminate that menace.

His gaze returned to Tregear, and Tartarus smiled faintly.

“Tregear, heir to Grimdo’s power. What do you say? Would you consider cooperating with the Kingdom? I can restore your strength and allow you to display your former glory once more.”

“Heh.” Tregear laughed as well. “And the price would be becoming the Kingdom’s lapdog?”

Tregear had never deliberately sought to understand the Kingdom, but merely traveling through time and space with Tartarus before had already made one thing clear: Tartarus possessed a power akin to his own Fallen Revision, allowing him to forcibly control another’s mind and bend it to his will.

The difference was that Tartarus’s power required the other party’s consent. It was nowhere near as direct—or as violent—as Tregear’s Fallen Revision.

“And do you have any other choice now?” Tartarus said with a faint smile.

A wisp of golden energy appeared in his hand, radiating an utterly terrifying aura of destruction and carrying an unmistakable threat.

Tregear was clearly a clever man. After staring deeply at Tartarus, he lowered his proud head.

Indeed, in the face of death, everything else became unimportant.

Seeing this, the smile on Tartarus’s face grew wider. Without hesitation, he raised his hand and infused Tregear’s body with a stream of Absolutian particles.

Though this power could help Tregear recover from his injuries, it would also suppress him in a certain sense, preventing him from truly returning to his peak.

Nourished by the strength, Tregear’s aura surged dramatically. The chains binding him were effortlessly shattered.

Tregear raised his hand and stared at the golden energy swirling in his palm, a trace of astonishment crossing his face.

Perhaps it was only his imagination, but he felt as though he had seen this energy somewhere before.

He could no longer remember where. He only knew that it seemed strangely familiar.