Rise Of The Anti God

"HOWLLLL"

Doggy let out an infernal howl as it manifested outside after coming out from Damien's soul space.

Just as Aldrich Ward was about to execute a finisher move on Damien after gathering his ethereal energy, he saw a Red Eyed Hound springing out from Damien as if it was inside Damien the whole time.

'What the hell is this…' Aldrich Ward couldn't comprehend what he just saw. An ethereal beast manifesting from a cultivator? What has the world come to? He wondered why he was experiencing and seeing explicable things all together on the same day from the same person. He was even too shocked to notice the strange jet black marks on its forehead.

"Rip him apart!" Damien howled in his mind commanding his undead slave.

"Growlll"

Doggy let out a feral growl as it charged towards Aldrich Ward. 

As he saw the hound charging towards him, he shook off all thoughts and prepared to smash it down.

Doggy jumped and lept towards Aldrich Ward in order to maul him down. Even after seeing it's ferocious fangs and an eerie aura emanating from it, he didn't dodge and simply put out his fists trying to smash it's jaw.

*Clack*

A dull sound reverberated as Aldrich Ward's fist found its mark and smashed the hound towards the ground.

*Bang*

Cracks formed on the ground as Doggy was ruthlessly smashed on the ground under Aldrich Ward's iron fist.

Cracking of bones were heard as it's jaw fractured but the hound didn't even let out any whimper as if the blow it received didn't even cause it the slightest of the pain.

Even after being smashed on the ground it sprang up immediately and slashed at his chest.

"Arghhhh*

He stumbled backwards with pain as he didn't expect such a sudden counterattack from the hound since he thought the hound would be stunned because of pain.

His chest was already seriously injured and now huge claw marks stretched out across his whole chest till his stomach as fresh blood gushed out from his chest.

He looked incredulously at the hound who still had it's lower jaw half dangling.

*Crack*

But his eyes widened when he heard crackling of bones and saw its dangling lower jaw straighten itself out to look like it didn't even fracture its jaw in the first place.

However, before he could comprehend what was going on, Doggy rushed at him at a tremendous speed and lunged at him.

Aldrich Ward's ethereal energy reserves were running low as along with the usage of his ethereal skills, a significant amount of his ethereal energy was focused on suppressing his injuries otherwise he would have already collapsed.

He was already at his limit as his injuries were only worsening with time including his chest which seemed charred beyond recognition and contrasted with the fresh blood splayed across it.

Feeling fatigue and exhaustion over his entire body, he could only pull up his hands to defend himself against the hound's onslaught.

Doggy pounced him to the ground as his legs gave away unable to hold back the hound's ferocious strength.

After all, an ethereal beast's combat prowess was higher when compared to a human practitioner of the same level.

Although Aldrich Ward was two levels higher in cultivation than Doggy, he barely had any ethereal energy left to push back it completely.

Doggy used its claws to try and mangle his neck but Aldrich Ward gritted his teeth as he caught it's powerful limbs trying to claw at his neck. Fear and despair started to cloud his mind as he felt that his hands would give out any minute under the tremendous pressure exerted by the hound.

Saliva dropped from its mouth on his face as it wanted to rip him to shreds according to its masters orders.

"Move!" Damien's command echoed in Doggy's soul plane as it instantly moved back.

Jet Black lightning crackled in Damien's palms as he sent a fork of lightning towards Aldrich Ward's exhausted body.

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

Aldrich Ward shrieked with pain as the eerie lightning passed through his entire body and felt as if it was eating away at his entire body.

Damien went over to him and locked him down by pressing his palm on his chest. He made sure he sealed Aldrich Ward's ethereal energy so that he wouldn't be able to attack him suddenly.

Aldrich Ward could only helplessly watch as Damien sealed his cultivation. He was too weak, injured and exhausted to prevent Damien's ethereal energy from invading his body.

Damien slowly removed his hood and revealed his face as a derisive smile emerged on his face, "Hope you still haven't forgotten your dear nephew."

Aldrich Ward's eyes trembled and his pupils dilated as he got shocked seeing a dead boy's face, someone he had killed; his supposedly dead adoptive nephew, Damien Ward.

"D-Damien...y-you should be dead…" Aldrich Ward stuttered as he couldn't believe his eyes. Someone he had poisoned long ago and left for dead is now holding his life in his hands.

"Hahaha...dead? Death is overrated for me. I have already died for real once. But in a way, because of you I was reborn. For that I surely have to thank you and bestow you with a gift as my gratitude. You not only killed my father who cared for you as his younger brother but you also tried to kill a helpless cripple by poisoning him. It's time you received your retribution." Damien's deep voice echoed in Aldrich Ward's ears and felt as if he was going to receive judgment from death itself.

Aldrich Ward didn't fully understand what Damien was talking about but he knew that no matter what, Damien was prepared to kill him. But he noticed something strange.

"You a-are not Damien. He was a crippled boy who was not only naive but too kind. You are nothing like him. Why are you impersonating a dead person?" Aldrich Ward said in a tremulous voice.

Damien understood that Aldrich Ward would find it quite unbelievable that he is Damien. After all, his past self and current self were almost completely opposite in nature.

"Impersonating him?" Damien's lips curved upwards as he continued, "Then let me tell you something that only the real Damien should know...I was adopted by my father. As for your son, he already died like a dog in the hands of other rabid dogs. But as for how I am still alive or how I am not a cripple anymore...I don't think it will do you any good to know nor do you need to know...for as a dutiful adopted nephew, I am going to let you reunite with your precious son. Don't forget to say 'Hi' to him for me."

A sinister grin formed on Damien's face as his ethereal and soul energy completely invaded Aldrich Ward's ethereal core and soul plane. 

Aldrich Ward's expression became bleak and his eyes bulged as he felt all his vitality and soul essence being sucked out like a vacuum. He couldn't believe what was happening but no matter how much he wanted, he couldn't even lift a finger but stare helplessly at Damien's indifferent eyes which looked as if he was killing some mere bug.

He still couldn't believe that the Damien he knew was the same one in front of him. After all, he had seen him grow up and interacted with him for over a dozen years. How could someone change this fast within a month or how did a completely crippled person be able to use ethereal energy; that too with a lightning elemental seed.

Aldrich Ward was experiencing excruciating pain that would make one wish for death as his vitality and soul essence was being ripped out of him at the same time. But even then not even a groan or whimper escaped from his mouth as his body didn't even have the energy left to make a sound.

Not only his skin, muscles but all his organs including his vocal cords had withered and shriveled like a prune. Within a minute, his eyes had become dull and lifeless as all his vitality and soul essence were completely sucked out. He died with fear, indignation, anger, resentment and mostly regret that he killed his caring elder brother in the first place.

But just as Damien said, had Aldrich Ward not carried out his sinister schemes, Damien would be still a cripple and he would have lived the rest of his life like a naive and innocent boy under his father. Indirectly, Aldrich Ward was one of the major factors that would one day cause the universe to undergo a major upheaval. But he died without knowing how significant his role was in the universe.

Damien didn't want to turn him into an undead since for some reason he felt it a bit tasteless to make him his slave. Instead he thought of using Aldrich Ward's soul and life essence for himself.

'Ha....why am I always having eventful situations in this Dark Forest?'