Infinite Mana In The Apocalypse

Chapter 4390: Ways II

The Great Usurper smiled at the understatement!

This might be the most overpowered survival capability he’d ever developed...perfect invisibility through simply being part of the environment rather than a separate entity within it.

He continued not interfering with his expansion. Continued being idle, spreading across more of the Lands of The Dead with accelerating momentum.

Until...

”I defy, therefore I exist!

I refuse limitations, therefore I transcend!

I cultivate infinity, therefore...I need not fear the end!”

Until those words boomed across The Veil itself.

The Great Usurper’s awareness focused with sharp attention.

He recognized Osmont swiftly.

I was talking to him just over a day ago, but I haven’t checked in during the last 24 hours....

He wondered what could cause Noah’s declarations to echo with such force that they penetrated across dimensional boundaries into the Lands of The Dead.

And as he contemplated this...

HUUM!

In the next instant, he sensed the appearance of a terrifically powerful Prime Dead Early Creature.

The being manifested above the grand Citadel of The Dead that dominated this Cryptland.

The entity floated there, listening to the fading echo of Noah’s words with an expression that suggested... disapproval? Contemplation?

In the next moment, the being looked down at the grand citadel below and raised his hand.

Brilliant white light blazed from that raised palm...pure, crystalline Order that made the surrounding death-aspected existence recoil slightly from its presence.

When the being spoke, his voice carried the weight of absolute conviction.

”The Way of Order has been refined,” he declared. ”The foundations have been examined. The impurities have been identified. And now...”

The white light intensified.

”Order is being reinforced as the backbone of this Civilization erected across the Lands of The Dead. You shall now brim with True Order...not the chaotic semblance you have maintained, but the purified essence that THE Dead Order herself has ordained.”

His gaze swept across the thousands of Prime Dead Early Creatures gathered below.

”Are you all ready to receive the True Civilization of Order?”

...!

The Great Usurper observed in astonishment as all the Prime Dead Early Creatures in the citadel looked upward with expressions of profound reverence.

Their voices rose in perfect unison, synchronized with precision.

”WE ARE READY TO RECEIVE THE TRUE CIVILIZATION OF ORDER!”

The declaration shook the surrounding space, and the Great Usurper felt profound unease at the sheer fervor in their collective response.

What sort of fanatical beings have I stumbled across? Why do they seem so intimately devoted to THE Dead Order?

Are they...even still in control of their own existences, or has something fundamental been altered about their nature?

To obtain more information, he stopped actively observing the newly appeared powerful entity...looked away, momentarily, allowing his Idle Existence to simply be rather than consciously perceiving.

And the moment he looked away, allowing passive observation to resume...

|Entity appearing in perception of Idle Existence has been catalogued.|

|STATUS ASSESSMENT:|

|NAME: Meliodas|

|CLASSIFICATION: Prime Dead Early Creature|

|COMPLEXITY: 100 Quintillion|

|PURITY: 100 Quintillion|

|DISTINCTIONS:|

|—Guider of Order|

|—Herald of True Civilization|

|—Enforcer of THE Dead Order’s Will|

|—Bearer of Systematic Reduction Authority|

|CURRENT ACTION: Implementing Civilization Restructuring Protocol|

...!

The Great Usurper’s awareness reeled.

One hundred Quintillion?!

At most, the complexity he’d observed from other Prime Dead Early Creatures had ranged from 1 to 3 Quintillion. Powerful, yes, but nothing approaching this magnitude.

Who is this entity that he holds such terrifying power?

He returned to actively observing Meliodas, and what he witnessed made his formless existence ripple with shock.

From the being’s raised hand, a beam of resplendent white Order radiated outward and descended like a raging sea of crystalline calmness.

It washed over the entire Citadel of The Dead below, bathing thousands of Prime Dead Early Creatures in its luminescence.

But the effect wasn’t what the Great Usurper expected.

The undead beings didn’t explode with enhanced power. Didn’t receive boons or elevation.

Instead, one by one, their entire existences began to diminish.

The white light of Order stripped their complexity away. Reduced their purity systematically.

The Prime Dead Early Creatures...beings of substantial power, were having their very essence drained by the descending authority.

And they stood there. Accepting it. Faces showing nothing but reverent gratitude.

The Great Usurper looked away again, discomfort making him avoid direct observation.

Prompts bloomed immediately:

|Order is establishing itself fully and thoroughly across this territory.|

|The Edict that Meliodas has come to enforce is designated: TRUE ORDER PROTOCOL|

|As ordained by THE Dead Order herself, this protocol restructures power distribution across affiliated territories.|

|Too many existences possessing high Complexity and Purity creates chaos. Leads to disorder and disunity as countless entities gain capability to alter existence according to individual whims.|

|True Order strips this distributed power in favor of concentrated authority held by select few.|

|RESTRUCTURED HIERARCHY:|

|—Selective few (Guiders, Heralds, Enforcers) retain overwhelming capability to alter existence|

|—These entities act as Beacons of Order who will protect those without power|

|—Majority population reduced to minimal complexity (1 or less)|

|—Power concentration allows unified direction, elimination of conflicting authorities|

|JUSTIFICATION:|

|This is Order. Not democracy of power, but hierarchy of purpose. A single, select few holding existential authority ensures that through them, Order can be maintained without the chaos of competing wills.|

|Reduced complexity from reduced population increases the parameters of Guiders exponentially and proportionally, ignoring the set Ceiling.|

|Estimated gain: +25 Quintillion from this single Citadel.|

...!

The Great Usurper turned back to witness the conclusion of the process.

Every Prime Dead Early Creature in the Citadel...hundreds of powerful beings, now emanated the complexity and authority of...

One.

Not 1 Quintillion. Not 1 Trillion or Billion or even 1 Million.

One. Uno. Eins. Un. Ichi.

One singular unit of complexity and purity.

Beings who had possessed the power to reshape territories were now reduced to the existential weight of... nothing.

And yet their eyes remained fervent with belief. Faces showing nothing but satisfaction, as if this reduction was not just acceptable but desired.

Their expressions were identical...reverence that suggested something far more disturbing than simple loyalty.

Are these fuckers still in control of their own existence?

WAA!