Underworld, Eligos Territory—
In the encampment beside the ancient battlefield where the Eligos peerage had previously conducted their special training, Leon, with twelve devil wings unfurled behind him, flew across the horizon like a phantom and landed before the campfire pit.
"If it's here, I shouldn't be discovered, right?"
Retracting the twelve wings that symbolized his status as a Satan-class Devil, Leon scanned his surroundings and muttered softly to himself.
There was no helping it; since he was about to meet the leader of the Khaos Brigade, the head of a terrorist organization, it was better to avoid others for now. Otherwise, while Sirzechs and the others might be easy enough to explain things to, those stubborn old fogies of the Devil Council wouldn't be so reasonable. They might even try to make life difficult for him because of it.
Of course, before long, even if those people wanted to trouble him, he wouldn't have anything to fear. After all, if everything went smoothly from here, Leon would never need to fear anyone again.
With that thought, Leon took a deep breath and produced the "Queen" piece.
Hum—
Inside the crimson piece, the black snake biting its own tail seemed to sense something and began to stir. Black aura emanated from its body, sending ripples of invisible power outward like the flickering flames of a dark serpent, dispersing toward an unknown destination.
Leon watched the scene quietly, allowing the black snake within the Evil Piece to release its power and scent.
A moment later—
"—Have you reached a decision?"
A crisp, melodious voice devoid of any emotional fluctuation sounded behind Leon, causing him to turn around and look.
Ophis's small figure had appeared soundlessly, as if she had been there from the start. Her hollow eyes gazed at Leon, silent and desolate.
Leon walked over without a word and handed the "Queen" piece to Ophis.
"I can help you deal with Great Red." Leon told the Dragon God the decision he had spent an entire month pondering. "But, I will only help you drive it away; I will not kill it. Furthermore, the premise is that I am capable of winning. If I end up being no match for it, then there is nothing I can do."
Great Red was, after all, the guardian of the Dimensional Gap. Many believed its presence maintained the balance of the Gap. If Great Red were gone, the Dimensional Gap would suffer even greater distortions, and the barriers between worlds would likely fail, leading to catastrophic consequences.
Therefore, Leon would not kill Great Red; he would only help Ophis confront it so that it could no longer bar her from her home.
"Additionally, if I successfully defeat Great Red and allow you to return to the world of silence, you must disband the Khaos Brigade. At the very least, you must leave the organization and stop providing them with power or aiding their villainy."
The reason Leon had hesitated over Ophis's proposal before was because her identity was highly sensitive. It could very well result in him becoming an enemy of the world, branded as an accomplice of the Khaos Brigade.
He might not care for himself, but he couldn't allow the many girls by his side to be treated as terrorists. Thus, after thinking it through, this was the demand Leon made of Ophis.
As long as Ophis left or disbanded the Khaos Brigade, the major powers would likely be more than happy to see that result and let bygones be bygones. Many subsequent major incidents would be nipped in the bud due to the organization's disappearance. Even if a few restless small-fry remained, without Ophis's support, they wouldn't be able to stir up any significant trouble.
This way, he could obtain a truly peaceful life, spending his days happily playing with his group of cute and beautiful peerage members in the Eligos territory.
That kind of life would surely be very pleasant, wouldn't it?
"I accept."
Ophis agreed immediately without the slightest hesitation.
She had never held any attachment to the Khaos Brigade; she had only accepted their recruitment and become their leader to defeat Great Red. As long as Great Red was defeated, Ophis had no desire to remain the leader of the Khaos Brigade.
Furthermore, her power was about to be given to the Devil before her. In the future, even if she wanted to bestow power upon others, it would likely be very difficult to do so.
Thus, Ophis agreed to Leon's request without a second thought.
"Then let's begin."
Leon was not one to procrastinate, especially since this matter brought him nothing but benefits. Now that he had considered it thoroughly and made his decision, there was no reason to hesitate.
And so, Leon stood there and watched as Ophis pressed his most important "Queen" piece into her chest, merging it into her body.
Thump—!
In that instant, an unprecedented pulse resonated through Leon's body.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump—
It felt as though a surging river was being born within him, as if an infinite universe was exploding in the depths of his being. Leon's entire body shook violently.
His heartbeat thundered through heaven and earth.
His blood roared and surged like a torrent.
Every muscle, every internal organ, every nerve, and every vessel—even every single cell—underwent a world-shaking transformation at this moment.
As these changes occurred, a massive amount of information flooded into Leon's mind.
[Trait: Peerage Conversion, currently in effect—]
[Obtained Base Feedback: Mana (Massive).]
[Obtained Advanced Feedback: Race (Super-Devil/Transcendental).]
[Obtained Extra Feedback Trait: Earth.]
[Obtained Extra Feedback Trait: Water.]
[Obtained Extra Feedback Trait: Wind.]
[Obtained Extra Feedback Trait: Ice.]
[Obtained Ultimate Feedback: Divinity.]
This was feedback unlike anything before.
This was the greatest harvest to date.
Ophis, the legendary Dragon God who governed infinity, was the strongest being in the world alongside Great Red. Even in the original story, after losing most of her power, she was two levels stronger than the Two Heavenly Dragons—which meant she was an existence two tiers higher than the God-class. Now, having accepted Leon's Evil Piece at her peak to become his subordinate, the feedback she brought was absolutely unprecedented.
While Longinus holders and equivalent special existences were considered to have high potential, Ophis's potential as a Dragon God far exceeded those standards. Leon, who previously could obtain three types of feedback at most, now gained seven types simultaneously, including the so-called "Ultimate Feedback," resulting in an unimaginable metamorphosis.
A sea of mana generated within Leon. The aura that billowed from him shook the very heavens and earth, causing the entire encampment to tremble.
Previously a perfect Devil, he officially transcended the "Devil" race in this moment, becoming a "Transcendental" on the same level as Sirzechs and Ajuka.
Several traits perfectly compatible with the power of "Zenith Tempest" were generated within Leon, merging into his body alongside his existing "Lightning" and "Flame."
Finally, a true Divinity formed within Leon, completely sublimating his life-tier.
If Ophis and Great Red were dragons possessing Divinity—making them Dragons among Dragons, Gods among Dragons—then the current Leon was a Devil possessing Divinity. He was a Transcendental among Devils, a God of Devils.
"Magic God"—this was Leon's current identity. He had surpassed the Satans and the so-called Transcendentals, just as Ophis was an existence that surpassed the Dragon Kings and the Heavenly Dragons.
"Is this the current me?"
Leon couldn't help but close his eyes, feeling the horrific power within his body. In the past, he could roughly estimate which realm or tier he occupied and how strong he was, but now he had absolutely no idea how strong he had become.
"The current you has reached the same height as me."
Ophis provided him with the answer.
"Perhaps not yet equal to me or Great Red, for you are still young—a newly born Divinity. But you are at least an existence of our tier."
In other words, while Leon's level as a Magic God might not yet match the two Dragon Gods in terms of pure power, his realm and tier were now identical.
From this day forward, a brand new rank would likely be born in this world—a "Magic God-class" equal to the "Dragon God-class."
And at this rank, while Leon might not yet best Ophis and certainly not Great Red, he was definitely stronger than Trihexa (666), who was known as a sub-Dragon God-class.
This was a level sufficient to contend with all the mythological factions in the world.
Of course—
"If you wish to defeat Great Red, you are still slightly lacking with just your current self."
Ophis's voice continued.
"So, take it. My power."
As her voice fell, Leon, who had not yet opened his eyes, immediately felt a surge of power—one no less inferior to his current strength, and perhaps even stronger—suddenly flood into his body.
In a daze, Leon seemed to see a snake biting its own tail rushing toward him. Its size was so vast that even a slight movement could crush him, yet it transformed into an endless black aura that madly merged into his body, being absorbed by his form.
The influx of this massive power caused Leon to feel his body undergo another metamorphosis, an expansion of his being.
"I have only kept one-tenth of my power for myself; all the remaining power is yours."
"From now on, I am no longer infinity, but a finite existence."
"And you shall become the new infinity, achieving the ultimate strength."
Following Ophis's words, Leon truly felt that while he was becoming stronger, he had indeed mastered a concept.
Infinity.
Having mastered this concept, the power within Leon's body would become inexhaustible. There would never be a day it ran out. Furthermore, he could now do as Ophis once did: bestow a small portion of his power upon others to strengthen them without suffering any loss to himself.
Under these circumstances, the terrifying aura that had been shaking heaven and earth just a moment ago began to settle and grow calm. Just like the Ophis of before, it was powerful, yet so quiet and desolate.
Presently, Leon slowly opened his eyes.
Ophis stood before him, but Leon could no longer feel that boundless strength or presence emanating from her. Instead, he felt that she was incredibly small and fragile at this moment.
"Are you... alright?" Leon couldn't help but ask.
"I am not," Ophis replied truthfully, shaking her head expressionlessly. "Currently, I am too weak."
"..."
She was indeed weak.
To allow Leon to defeat Great Red, Ophis had truly gone all out, leaving only a tenth of her power for herself and giving everything else to Leon.
One must realize that the power stolen from her in the original story was roughly three-quarters of her peak strength. While the power she retained then was less than a quarter, it was still significantly more than one-tenth.
Therefore, the current Ophis no longer possessed the strength that was "two levels higher than the Heavenly Dragons" as seen in the original story; it was even debatable if she could be one level stronger than them.
Right now, she probably only possessed power at the God-class level. Compared to her past self, she was truly much weaker.
But—
"The current you is very strong."
A strange light flickered in Ophis's eyes as she looked at Leon.
"With your current self, you should be sufficient to reach Great Red."
Leon knew better than anyone what Ophis's evaluation meant. To be stronger than Great Red meant he was already the strongest being in this world, second to none.
"So I've become the strongest just like that?"
Leon himself didn't feel a strong sense of reality. He could feel that he was very, very strong, but as for exactly how strong, he would never know until he truly fought.
In that case—
"Great Red will just have to suffer a bit."
Thinking of that red dragon happily swimming through the Dimensional Gap, Leon felt no pity, but rather a surge of eagerness. He wanted to know, more than anything, just how strong he was now.
"Let's go."
Leon extended his hand toward Ophis.
"Let's finish pummeling Great Red quickly and come back early."
Recently, with the help of the Phenex family, Ravel had scouted a group of peerage candidates for him. According to her, she had found five human girls—quintuplets—who seemingly shared a unique Sacred Gear. A single piece wasn't very powerful, but if the five sisters acted together to combine them, they could exert power comparable to a Longinus.
Coincidentally, after giving the "Queen" piece to Ophis, Leon only had five "Pawn" pieces left. These unique quintuplet sisters would be his final five "Pawns," his final peerage members.
Leon was already prepared to go and meet them.
"Mm."
Ophis nodded, reached out, and grasped Leon's hand.
"Let us return. To the world of silence."
The two held hands as a rift tore open before them, gradually expanding into a hollow void. On the other side of the void was the kaleidoscope-like distorted Dimensional Gap.
Leading Ophis, Leon laughed freely and stepped forward into that warped world.
This step was both a step toward becoming the strongest and a step toward the future—
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