Chapter 232: Making a new friend?

Derik waited for Lucien to gather everything they needed before sneaking out of the empire. The news of their departure was meant to be kept secret and not known by everyone, so only the council and a select few knew. As much as they are skeptical about Derik's trustworthiness, they understood this was not a time to ascertain if a person is trustworthy! They need to move fast and for faster progress, Derik is their only choice.

"That beast, hidden under your empires will soon break into the emperor's tier... It's nice to know you will have more capable allies to aid you" Derik said casually after they got past the gate and wandered far south.

Hearing this Lucien was confused as well but soon his confusion vanished and he was more stunned than ever! He had forgotten about Rupture and didn't even expect Derik to notice its existence. He was sure almost everyone has forgotten about the magic beast Rupture who ie hidden underground while focusing on his cultivation to reach the empire tier.

"How did you know?" Lucien couldn't help but ask but Derik didn't show any sign of pride or annoyance. He just maintained the indifferent look as he responded.

"I can feel it... I can feel a lot of things... I can see a lot of things... It's hard to explain but I guess this is the reward for becoming the realm protector" Derik said casually, making Lucien frown.

He suspected that this is how Derik noticed the power source in this God vein and was able to locate him, before coming for him and killing off emperor Fei.

"What else can you do as the realm protector?" Lucien asked and Derik shot him a suspicious look.

Why was this kid so interested in having a good conversation with him?

Did Alice tell him something before they left or is he just trying to build a good relationship?

'You have to do better than that if you want to get me to like you, little ass bastard' Derik cursed in his mind before replying.

"As the realm protector, I can detect the formation or creation of a new God vein... I can locate a god vein... I have authority over cosmic beings like the stars, moon, and sun... I occasionally see major events about to take place in each god vein and that's how I got to know about the invasion" Derik answered truthfully as they traveled.

He didn't hide any information since he didn't consider Lucien a threat. Even with the power of his three tamed inheritances, Derik wasn't bothered. In a real fight, he will always emerge the victor! This wasn't to say he undermined Lucien's abilities but the thing was that Derik strongly believed no one can win against him in a one-on-one deathmatch.

"You can control the stars, moon, and sun?" Lucien gazed at Derik skeptically.

He has never seen Derik use such abilities no matter how tough the fight is so he found it unbelievable.

"Not just the sun, moon, and stars... Cosmic beings include gravity and space too" Derik shrugged indifferently while he spoke.

Hearing this Lucien was stunned and gazed at Derik meaningfully. He knew Derik had no reason to lie to him so there is no reason for him to doubt him either. If this is the case, why didn't he use these abilities when they needed them?

"I harbor the power of millions of powerful warriors and mages in my soul... There was a time when I focused too much on the powers of outsiders but now things are different... I don't want to get lost, so I rarely use it unless absolutely necessary" Derik could understand why Lucien was confused so he decided to explain without giving him the chance to ask a question.

Hearing this, Lucien could understand it. Picking an ability to use from one of his assimilated beasts requires a lot of focus. Now comparing it to Derik who has millions of souls hidden inside him, this can be considered hellish.

He couldn't understand how Derik can remain sane!

"You are crazy!" Lucien screamed as he followed Derik from behind.

Anyone who saw them from afar would think there are two siblings with Lucien as the younger one, yelling at Derik the older brother.

"Quiet" Derik said indifferently and Lucien ignored his words and kept ranting.

At first, Derik felt annoyed but then gazing at Lucien again, he remembered something. It was himself at a younger age, focused to bear the burden of the death magic and the faith of the entire god vein. He didn't get to live and enjoy the things of life just like his mates. What he found annoying was that he ended up losing a lot because of this.

No family

No love

No friends.

Nothing...

Since he entered this world and killed Emperor Fei, this kid was made emperor and given a huge responsibility. He has been jumping from battle to battle risking his life and this is all his fault.

"But it is necessary" Derik muttered as he felt guilty for putting Lucien through this.

As much as he wanted to just send Lucien home and do all of this alone, Derik couldn't deny the fact that he needs this kid. Amongst everyone he has come across in his world, Lucien is the only open-minded, talented, and hardworking person worthy of wielding Rakuzen's power. If he could take this burden away from Lucien he definitely won't hesitate to do that.

"I am sorry" Derik said in a more brotherly tone, stunning Lucien.

"For what?" Lucien asked, confused.

"For putting so much burden on you... I'm literarily stealing your youthful days from you, just like I ended up losing mine as well." Derik seemed rather sad when he spoke and for the first time, Lucien saw Derik showing emotions outside anger.

"It is necessary for the people we love... Someone has to make the sacrifice" Lucien responded in a low tone as if he was unsure and is trying to convince himself.

Derik only nodded in response and they kept flying in silence for a while.

"Do you think we can win? Do you really think we can protect everyone from the celestial beings?" Lucien asked.

Hearing their Derik was stunned by the question and soon a confident smile bloomed on his face.

"We are the most capable people in this realm... We are the absolute... Of course, we can!" Derik urged and Lucien smiled in response.

"Did you have friends? In your world..." Lucien asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not really... While many were scared of me and tried everything they could to stop me, the others saw me as a god and not a person... They prayed to be and worshiped me... There was only one bastard in that world who I can call my friend!" Derik said.

"Who is that?" Lucien was interested in hearing the tale of the crazy dude who dared to befriend death!

"His name is Cyrus... While I inherited the death magic, he got ten life magic... I suffered my first defeat at his hands and for a while, we sincerely looked for opportunities to rip each other's throat... With time we got to realize that life and death are just different sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other... We went against the world together and we become best friends... We reached the true god realm together... We fought for that work together, I will never forget him" Derik said with a sigh.

Hearing this, Lucien was stunned. He never expected a day will come when two people using light and darkness would form such a strong bond together. Remembering Derik's words about not forgetting him, Lucien assumed Cyrus was dead and couldn't help but ask.

" How did he die?"

"Die?" Derik shot Lucien a blank look and blinked in a cute manner. For a second there, the terrifying god of death was no different from a normal confused man.

"He didn't die?" Lucien asked and Derik scoffed.

"No one could kill us... We killed our fellow gods from our god vein and went ahead to kill all the old gods from another god vein that dared to invade... We were invincible in that world! How can he die? I am not even sure I can kill him if I tried" Derik said thoughtfully, stunning Lucien.

If Derik could reach this level with the death element, how strong is this Cyrus with the life element? What kind of abilities did he possess?

"Where is he? why didn't he invade this world with you?" Lucien couldn't help but shudder at the thought.

Imagine Derik and this Cyrus invaded their god vein... They would swagger across the entire continent and no one would be able to challenge them. Maybe if Cyrus was here they may not even need the help of the other emperors to stop the invasion.

Why didn't this person come along?

"He stayed back to protect our world... Someone had to do it" Derik said with a sad smile on his face.