Chapter 288: Wrong Direction Part 1

After I was done with the three mothers and daughters, I shifted my focus to strengthening my formation. It was fun and all, but none of it would matter if the world end up getting destroyed.

To be clear, I couldn't care less about Hai-Yen's and Hai-Min's mother. She was a good, but only in certain areas.

Time passed, and at last, my formation was complete. I let out a sigh of relief before activating it.

The moment it came to life, my perspective shifted. I could see my entire sanctuary at once—every structure, every living being, even what lay beneath the ground. Everything was laid bare before my eyes.

Still, I wasn't satisfied.

Using the Hive Mind to complement the formation, I extended my senses further by manipulating wavelengths and resonance. My vision expanded beyond the sanctuary, reaching dozens of kilometers past my outermost wall.

I could still push it farther.

So I focused harder.

Twenty kilometers.

Thirty.

My awareness continued to spread until the city I had once saved finally came into view. It was a shadow of its former glory, its buildings scarred and crumbling, yet survivors still remained. They had managed to endure this long thanks to me—and to the aid of my armies.

I planned to renovate the city later, once my territory was safer. Most of its infrastructure was still intact, and it would be a waste to simply abandon it.

Now for the final stretch.

I closed my eyes and activated the nodes I had planted throughout the region.

They were partially made from my own body, making them biological in nature. Each one functioned similarly to a Hive Base, though they were several times smaller and hidden deep underground.

Just as water finds its way through the earth, my consciousness flowed into each node. They expanded on their own, resonating with one another until they formed a seamless network.

Within moments, the entire fifty-kilometer stretch of my territory was mapped in perfect detail.

Now, not even an ant could crawl through my domain without me noticing.

'Wait... what is that thing?'

Over a thousand kilometers away, something pierced the horizon.

It was a colossal tower.

Even from this distance, I could see it with startling clarity. Judging by its sheer scale, the structure had to be hundreds of kilometers tall. It rose beyond the clouds, its summit vanishing into the heavens, as though it connected the earth to the sky itself.

But it wasn't its size that unsettled me.

It was the power.

An ancient, overwhelming presence radiated from the tower, so immense that I could feel it even across three hundred kilometers. It distorted the surrounding mana, sending invisible ripples across the land like waves spreading through a still lake.

My instincts screamed at me.

Whatever that tower was... it wasn't something this world was meant to contain.

Then I sensed a familiar mana signature.

Hexor.

So this was what he had been doing all this time.

But why was the tower still climbing toward the sky? It continued to grow, higher and higher, as though it intended to pierce the heavens themselves.

Then I remembered his words.

His plan.

He had once declared that he intended to wage war against the beings responsible for this world.

My eyes widened.

This tower... it had to be a part of that plan.

And considering how massive it was, I couldn't help but feel humbled.

The being who claimed to be the First Magician seemed to possess power without limits.

To get a better look, I created a proxy and stationed it on top of a mountain. Unlike my clones, proxies had little to no combat ability. Their only purpose was scouting.

"Could I even win against him?" I mused aloud.

(No, you can't.)

A voice sounded behind me, and I quickly turned around. The fact that someone had managed to get this close without me noticing caught me off guard.

"You."

It was none other than the Monkey God. Or, more accurately, his projection. No wonder he had slipped past my territorial tracking.

He sat casually atop a boulder, smiling as though he were an old friend dropping by for a visit.

"So you're still alive? I thought your masters had already summoned you back." I joked.

(Hahaha, don't worry. I'm still trapped there, but I have a few tricks left.) He paused. (Though I have to admit, using clones to fake your own death was clever. You actually managed to fool me last time.)

"Please, I'm sure you see through it right away."

(Hahaha. I neither deny it nor claim it. )

He stroked his chin thoughtfully before speaking again.

(Boy,) he said with a grin, (I see you've already reached the Transcendent Stage. Not bad. If we fought again, you'd definitely beat me.)

His words were humble, but his expression said otherwise.

"You said I wouldn't be able to beat it. Is the gap between our powers really that big?"

(Well...) He stroked his chin again, thinking for a moment. (Frankly, your potential and rate of growth are far more terrifying. Given enough time to mature, there is no doubt you will surpass him. But unlike you, that magician has spent his life fighting against true gods.)

"So you're saying I'm weaker because I lack experience?"

(Yes, but experience isn't the only thing you're missing. You also lack allies.)

My eyes narrowed. "I don't think that's the case. I've been building my army and making them stronger—"

(Stop lying to yourself, boy. We both know what you're doing is nothing more than playing house. Your people may be strong compared to ordinary beings, but against true powerhouses, they are nothing. They would fall just as easily as those without any power at all.)

I didn't want to admit it, but he was right.

(That magician has tasted defeat many times, so he knows better than anyone that he cannot stand alone. That's why he didn't just focus on becoming stronger—he surrounded himself with allies who share his convictions. Boy, I think you're looking in the wrong direction.)

"Wrong direction?"