Prologue

In the vast universe, where time was raw and incontrollable, the core of universal existence thrived. It swirled in dark shades of violets and blues, yet covered by a barrier of gold energy that contained its wild nature.

Despite the darkness that surrounded it, there were blasts of energy and explosions from advanced weaponry that dominated the space.

A young man clad in a black leather coat with golden designs stood atop a meteoroid that floated close to the universal core.

Amidst the chaos, he remained a prominent figure with golden blonde hair and predatory amber eyes that observed the mass of energy in front of him.

"So this is where it all ends..." He mumbled to himself as he lifted a single hand and a ray of dark energy shot out at the large reptilian creature that approached him from the side.

It was worm-like with silvery scales and a face that resembled a dragon.

The energy devoured the creature whole but the young man snapped his fingers and it awakened before it descended into the depths of space. The creature heeded the will of its new master and proceeded to defend against its kin.

"The dawn of a new era I sought has dimmed and faded into darkness..." The young man shook his head as he watched several spacecrafts destroyed by the armies of monstrous beings.

Only a few who piloted the spacecrafts were skilled enough to eliminate the creatures and dodge their attacks.

"The world I dreamed to create is lost."

He noticed that on the verge of disruption, black rays of energy seeped from the barrier of the universe's core. It had suffered a great deal of damage from the spacecrafts that were destroyed by monstrous creatures and crashed into it.

Yet the barrier persevered against the attacks of the enemies in the distance. But for how long exactly?

"We've come too far to set everything back now!" Another young man shouted over the deafening blasts of attacks at the prominent figure on the meteoroid. "My Lord?!"

"We failed," The Lord stepped forward. "Or rather I have failed us, Caelum."

"We've worked too hard to suddenly throw everything to waste! What guarantee do you have that we will climb to this point again?!" Caelum placed a hand on his Lord's shoulder.

"Look around you, Cael," The Lord gestured to the destruction around them. "The war with the Gods is reaching its end! And it ends with our defeat! They've set the beasts of the world's end on us!"

"You've conquered four of the seven realms of heaven! What's stopping you from moving forward?!" Caelum scowled with disapproval.

"The Gods were always one step ahead of us," The Lord clenched his fists." I was too foolish to trust those I should not have."

"Is this your final decision?" Caelum clicked his tongue.

"Are you sure you want to be doing that?" A strange being materialized beside the Lord.

Its form was that of a black shadow with scarlet eyes that glowed in the darkness. It grinned with a show of sharp teeth as it let out a devilish cackle.

"As if a demon could make me change my mind," The Lord arched a brow at the unholy being. "This is a second chance to make things right. I won't let it slip by."

"Are you prepared for the consequences?" The demon levitated before the Lord. "If you reset everything, there's no telling what the Gods will do this time."

"They will have no memory," The Lord smirked. "This is the universal core, not even they can defy it."

"And what if in the next life we don't make it to this stage?" Caelum sighed.

"I have no right to do this. It's not fair for everyone to endeavor against the fate I am going to set," The Lord continued to walk forward. "But can we fight and survive a universal apocalypse?"

The Lord and his followers had suffered far too long at the hands and superiority of the enslaving Gods. Since the very archaic eras, the races were created as nothing but tools and entertainment for the selfish Gods.

However the races and other creatures that were ensnared in the God's divine authority lacked the abilities and power to retaliate against their Creators.

But when one saviour arose from the lowest of the weakest classes with determination to change their fate, he was granted power to take the first stand.

This was the 'Lord' the races now revered.

He discarded all second thoughts and released the dark energy from his body. He used it to gather several meteoroids that collectively joined to create a path for him towards the universal core.

The flow of mana in the atmosphere intensified with each step, which almost made it difficult to breathe or proceed further.

"He's really going to do it eyy?" The demon cackled. "Why not reset everything to the beginning? A time when the humans and other races were not slaves to the Gods?"

"Do you think I am a thousand mana cores combined?" The Lord glanced over his shoulder at the demon. "What then? A time when we were not slaves? We were still powerless. Even if I reset the time to then, we will have no power to fight against the Gods that wronged us. And we would once again become their tools."

"He is right," Caelum spoke. "Ironically, the powers and abilities we possess now were created by a God who pitied us before she was executed... yet without it, we are of no use. For how much longer will we fight wars against each other for their satisfaction? Like puppets controlled by strings."

"So what happens when everything resets?" The demon questioned.

"Time will revert to a period before the wave occurred, but that period will be a different situation and era compared to the one we experienced. Perhaps it will be a modern world or a distant era of the past. There is no telling, " The Lord explained.

"But will we all will be there?" Caelum asked.

"Indeed. Perhaps we would live ordinary lives without a clue of our identity, goals, or our origins as slaves to the Gods," The Lord stated as he finally reached a few inches of the universal core.

The golden light from the barrier was almost blinding but he saw beyond it into the darkness.

He placed a hand on his chest and closed his eyes to concentrate.

'Our journey has been long and tough,' He thought.

[Master's decision will be followed without fail]

The mechanical voice of a female replied to him.

'Come find me or rather... my successor in the next life,' He said as he reached within his chest through magical means.

His hand went straight through without any difficulty but there was a slight pain when he extracted an emerald jewel that emerged out of his chest.

He whispered a few words under his breath and the emerald jewel soon vanished into thin air without a trace.

"He really took it out," The demon's mouth curved into a wide grin. "What did you do with it?"

"You don't need to know," The Lord extended a hand into the universal core.

The energy seemed to be unruly due to a stranger's touch and perhaps the force of its nature even burnt through his flesh. However, the Lord would not give up.

"See you bastards in the next life," He looked back one more time at his companions.

He gritted his teeth and pushed forward as he released his dark energy into it. The core was triggered by the foreign mana and immediately released a massive blast wave of gold and dark energy that reverberated across the entire universe.

There was a brief white noise and silence reigned when the blast wave penetrated the spacecrafts and creatures in its path.

And only silence reigned when the blast quietened.