Clone

After he finished speaking, the golden book he held emitted a beam of light that shot rapidly toward Zane, who was floating in midair.

"I, Arishem, the Supreme Judge of the Universe, as the one who passes judgment;"

"Declare you, Zane Sy, guilty!"

"Execution, immediate!"

Swoosh!

Another straight beam of light shot forth.

The three red tomoe-like triangles in Zane's eyes spun rapidly as he maneuvered through the narrow, distorted mirror world, narrowly dodging the oncoming golden beams.

Then, his gaze shifted, revealing a different kind of red vision—[Mystic Eyes of Death Perception].

In an instant, the giant before him appeared as if it were divided by countless intersecting gridlines, showing a complex web of death lines and death points entangled with one another.

"Hmm? These death lines and points... there are way too many."

Through his [Mystic Eyes of Death Perception], Zane observed the scene, a bit puzzled by the sheer density of the death lines and points on the giant.

Compared to Eson, the weakest member of the Celestials whom Zane had previously defeated, this was far more overwhelming.

He remembered that the God of Destruction had personally stated that Judge Arishem was of the highest level within the Celestials, reaching the pinnacle of the seventh dimension.

So, logically, Arishem couldn't be weaker than Eson.

Could it be that Destruction had intentionally lied to mislead him?

'Whatever. I trust my skill,[Mystic Eyes of Death Perception], more than I trust the words of an enemy.'

Zane thought to himself as a dense shadow began to emanate from the black scythe in his hand.

Simultaneously, the giant stood tall in the narrow space.

The golden book in his hands kept flipping pages, unleashing an endless stream of dazzling golden beams.

They shot toward Zane like countless powerful water hoses, all with built-in tracking.

Swoosh!

With a swift move, Zane dodged all the beams. His black scythe swept down swiftly.

"If a mere member of the Celestials dares to declare me guilty…"

Zane flew up beside the giant, coldly saying:

"Then I, Death Incarnate, Zane Sy…"

"Declare that your Death is now at hand!"

Boom!

The scythe's blade silently descended.

Zane, holding his scythe free of any trace of blood, gently landed on the floor of the mirror world.

A sudden crackling sound filled the air.

Behind Zane, the enormous body of the giant began to split and crack, fissures spreading across it.

"Now, who is the judge, and who is the judged?"

Zane's disdainful voice echoed through the mirror world, transmitted through the warped light to distant realms.

But thinking of the immense size of the Celestials, even though he knew they could shrink their forms, Zane couldn't resist a darkly humorous thought.

Unaware of Zane's inner sarcasm, the giant's gaze grew fierce as he fixed his eyes on Zane and continued:

"With your knowledge of the path of the dead, and after having killed Ego and two other Celestials, you should know what I mean."

Zane's voice gradually faded away.

This battle had been a major disappointment for him, utterly dull and boring.

Just as he was about to turn away to wrap things up, he realized he had already reached the distorted edge of this world.

Yet, at this moment, it transformed into a vast, open plain.

It seemed like he had returned once more to the dark, empty expanse of space.

"So, it's finally over… how utterly meaningless…"

A flash of golden light passed, and Zane withdrew his black scythe, a symbol of slaughter. He no longer wanted to remember this short-lived battle.

It had been far too brief and feeble.

Not suited to a powerful man like him.

Boom!

The sound of a colossal form collapsing.

Zane shook his head, with no particular thoughts.

"How many years has it been since I last fought someone face-to-face?"

"The last time must've been against that asteroid…"

"But back then, it was so weak it couldn't even touch a single one of my fingers…"

"I never thought someone would come challenge me in person this time."

A voice both familiar and strange to Zane sounded from behind him.

It sounded somewhat like the giant from earlier, but crisper.

Zane quickly turned around and saw a massive figure standing upright behind him, clad in deep crimson armor.

Large chunks of what looked like earthen shells were crumbling off it, crashing onto the mirror world's surface with a booming noise.

Then, Zane noticed that this crimson-armored giant also held a golden book.

"Is that armor really so thick?"

Seeing the book in the giant's hand, Zane instantly knew it was the same giant from earlier.

Moreover, like the previous challenger, this giant, too, was covered in armor of various colors—a common trait of the Celestials.

The red rings in Zane's eyes shimmered as his [Mystic Eyes of Death Perception]once again scanned the massive form of the armored giant.

'This time, there are noticeably fewer death lines and points.'

'But what's strange is, if they're the same person, why do my [Mystic Eyes of Death Perception] show different visions?'

Zane whispered this thought to himself, then called out loudly to the giant, whose earthen shell continued to flake off:

"Are you the Celestials' leader—Arishem?"

"Just one step away from reaching the eighth-dimensional existence?"

"Oh? You actually know my power?"

"Was it that talkative Eson or the hot-headed Destruction who told you?"

"It must have been Destruction, since that weakling Eson couldn't even perceive my true strength."

"However, how long will it take to cross that final step to the eighth dimension?"

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