Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'
Chapter 749 - 358. "Usurper Tyrant" Leoz

Chapter 749: 358. "Usurper Tyrant" Leoz

"Wake up, Gio Zieou."

Lai Anding’s kind and gentle voice resounded. He turned his head to look at the other end of what was originally the conference table—but there was no conference table. Instead, it was a path to doomsday, burning with green nether flame. The fierce flames deterred anyone from stepping forward, and columns of fire would occasionally shoot up thousands of feet, like a giant snake devouring the heavens and earth, roaring incessantly between sky and ground.

At the end of this long path to doomsday lay an astonishing and magnificent scene:

"...the universe."

He murmured.

Displayed before him was an entire universe, floating amidst the nebulae.

Its edges would take trillions of light years to traverse. It possessed a complete crystalline wall structure and an outer shell of burning essence, forming a hemispherical shape that projected information outward from the shell. From his vantage point, one could observe the entire history and current state of the universe.

But that was nothing in comparison.

For above this grand universe stood a naked woman, several times the size of the universe itself, emerging from the hemispherical cosmos like a sky-scraping tree breaking through the soil. Her arms spread wide, her ten fingers pierced by countless sharp swords, and a dark spike ran down her spine, nailing her completely into this universe.

She allowed the timelines and dimensions to extend recklessly across her skin, possibilities from countless spacetime continually unfolding upon her.

Her hair resembled jellyfish tendrils, crystal clear, deeply rooted in the starry sky, faintly shimmering with colorful light—but this was far from purely beautiful, for he clearly saw golden blood slowly squeezing and injecting into the void through those transparent strands.

She not only broke through from the universe but also used her life to nourish the existence beyond the canopy of the sky.

Noticing his gaze, the woman slightly curved her mouth. Her porcelain skin showed no wrinkles, but he believed it to be a smile, a pure smile rooted in a mother’s love for her child:

"Gio Zieou, my child... you have finally awakened."

He lowered his head, looking at his porcelain skin, the pitch-black armor, and the blood vessel-like green war patterns so familiar. His height was no longer that of a small dwarf; his shoulder height exceeded 12 meters, muscles bulging, once again restoring the grand and magnificent appearance of a giant god.

"...Lai Anding, Mother of the Gods, Great Fairy Spirit, Fool of Chaos, it is you who have created us from chaos."

Gio Zieou respectfully knelt on one knee and humbly lowered his head before one of the oldest Chief Gods:

"I have always known that all of this is your work. Your dedication to the Starry Abyss is truly unrivaled, the greatest of Fairy Spirits."

"Gio Zieou, you are the mightiest samurai, the most loyal warrior of the Starry Abyss. Dumfis fell in battle, and you too followed him unto death. Your martyrdom is legendary, and the Starry Abyss has not forgotten you."

Lai Anding smiled wryly:

"Were it not for circumstances, I really wouldn’t want my children to see me in such a disgraceful, ugly state."

"I have already grasped the general situation."

Gio Zieou nodded without wasting any time, speaking earnestly:

"You sought out Jiaozi Niu—essentially to ’remove the cognition filter’ and truly inquire of me, correct?"

"Precisely, Gio Zieou, you are always so perceptive."

Lai Anding said:

"You are aware, of course, that the game ’Starry Abyss’ is just a masquerade, meant to calm the emotions of those Warriors of the Gods, allowing those who have served with distinction to enjoy their twilight years peacefully, and those still full of vigor to safely step into Starry Abyss to battle and repel invasions from the [Society] and other enemies."

"I understand."

Gio Zieou nodded:

"The Fairy Spirits sacrifice themselves to sustain this great cause; we will never forget your sacrifice—please, ask whatever questions you have."

"Thank you, Gio—actually, my question is quite simple."

Just as Lai Anding was about to continue, Gio Zieou suddenly interrupted:

"But before officially asking your question, I have had a question I have been meaning to ask you."

"Go ahead."

"Here."

Gio Zieou pointed behind him to the vast wasteland, where towering, porcelain-skinned spiritual warriors roamed the desert. They sang and danced, laughed heartily, some conjuring wooden boards to write and draw upon, unable to suppress their laughter, others flying through the sky as if driving cars, and still others dancing and singing under trees, filming short videos with stones.

The entire world was filled with an absurd, sham, joyful atmosphere.

"—Where exactly is this?"

Gio Zieou demanded:

"Could it be that such an advanced civilization was merely a fleeting illusion, a mirage? Are we simply enjoying a false happiness in a hallucination?"

"Yes and no, my child."

Lai Anding said with heartache:

"How could I bear to give you such poor treatment? You are the best warriors, the heroes of Starry Abyss, saviors of the universe; you should not be mistreated or trapped in a mere illusion—please understand, this is a necessary part of the plan."

"Plan?"

"Forgive me for not being able to disclose this; it’s an absolute secret."

Lai Anding shook his head:

"But I can tell you where this place is."

Lai Anding slowly moved his fingers, pointing at the countless shining stars in the sky:

"This is the Starry Abyss."

"My children, you divine warriors born of Chaos, you have never left your homeland. Even if you fell on the battlefield, I, as a mother, would give my all to pull you back from the hands of death."

"You need not feel fear or panic; this is not a false world, quite the contrary. To repay your illustrious battle achievements, you have been well protected since your birth."

"You originated from the Starry Abyss and will gain eternity within the Starry Abyss."

Gio Zieou was silent for a while. He—He knew that, no matter what, he would never get the complete truth from her.

"What exactly do you mean to ask, Fairy Spirit? I am not very familiar with Li Zi."

"I know you’ve met Leoz. Li Aozi is indeed Leoz; I am aware of your strong bond. There is no need to hide it; I bear no malice toward Leoz."

Lai Anding paused, then said:

"However, there is a question that has always troubled me, one that only you might answer."

"You already know the identities of Li Aozi and Leoz—what more is there to question?"

"...To be honest, at the beginning of our plan, we sent a seed ahead into the Starry Abyss, serving as a navigator. It would appear in the ’game’ in advance and guide you reborn divine warriors to regain your strength and save the Layer Abyss."

"Oh? I suppose that seed must be Leoz then—after all, he is the Executer of Morphederia, the God of the Present World, and the Chief of the Pantheon."

Speaking of his good friend, Gio Zieou’s tone became more relaxed.

"No."

Lai Anding shook her head and said:

"We selected a highly talented child, chosen by the Will of the Starry Abyss, born bearing the glory and blessings of the entire world."

"But isn’t Leoz also very strong? He has slain many [Society] enemies, demonstrating his superior talent."

Lai Anding replied:

"Leoz has no talent."

"—Say that again?"

"Leoz, identified as MFD-10752, was a cannon fodder deity prepared by Morphederia."

Lai Anding continued:

"Do you think Leoz is some kind of genius? No, he is an evil tyrant who climbed to power over the corpses of both comrades and foes alike, a machine driven purely by slaughter without emotion."

"Cannon fodder deities are usually burned in chaos for a few extra hours to ensure they are devoid of emotions and desires and minimize resurrection costs. Without desires, they have no ambition to strive or advance."

"But Leoz, he was granted a divine name."

"And through extremely dirty means... He deliberately sabotaged the former God of the Present World, Reylette, watching her get bitten by a giant dragon until she was nearly dead before seizing the opportunity to steal her glory. Then he deliberately delayed his rescue, letting Reylette bleed to death."

Gio Zieou was stunned.

"How could this be possible... Leoz, doing such things?"

"Leoz is a tyrant. In pursuit of power, he entirely usurped Morphederia, reigning supreme in the universe under the guise of ’Executer’—he is nothing more than a usurper, a tyrant in Starry Abyss’s assessment."

Lai Anding continued:

"However, that is not the main issue."

"The problem is... after Leoz died in battle, we did not receive his divine soul."

"...Wait, what does that mean?"

Gio Zieou sensed something amiss:

"You mean... Leoz was never resurrected?"

"Yes, I did not resurrect Leoz, nor did the Starry Abyss. Yet, he appeared in this world."

"Then..."

Gio Zieou said in a low voice:

"What exactly did I encounter before?"

"From your reaction, it does not seem fake... I think that might indeed be Leoz."

"You are confusing me..."

"No, it is quite clear. Seeing your performance, I also have a guess."

Lai Anding pondered for a moment and said:

"Leoz might have used his own strength to escape to the Starry Abyss after his death."

"...From the Morphederia Universe to the Layer Abyss? Through fifteen layers of burning essence shells? Even a divine soul should have been incinerated!"

"It’s just a hypothesis—now, Leoz’s issue can be set aside."

Lai Anding’s face turned serious:

"Gio Zieou, I have a critical task for you."

"The seed of the Starry Abyss is missing and has not taken effect as scheduled. Something must have gone wrong."

"I will disable your cognition filter for a time, allowing you to go as a Descender to find the seed of the Starry Abyss."

"If you cannot find it... at least ensure it does not fall into the hands of [Society]. Understood?"