Shortly after Victor's departure, John and the remaining few began to gather those awakeners scattered around the outskirts of Stellarburg.
Victor's thorough planning was evident.
While most people were within Stellarburg, a significant number were also outside its walls.
In no ti, they had assembled hundreds.
Most of these individuals were awakeners, with a notable number being of the gold-tier.
Among them were scavengers, rcenaries, and more prevalently, newly awakened students undergoing trials in dungeons like Phantom Ruins.
These students, the seeds of Stellarburg's future, were fortunate to have avoided the turmoil within the city.
Among this group, John spotted classmates from StellarSea Academy.
Daniel and Benjamin were there too.
Daniel looked towards Stellarburg with evident concern, while Benjamin was busy reassuring those around them.
Wearing the Hidden Stars mask, John went unrecognized.
He felt no need to reveal his identity.
As dusk fell, the sky was shrouded in dark clouds.
Above Stellarburg, a sea of black flas raged.
The azure barrier flickered, on the verge of collapse.
The massive Desire Demon, waving its tentacles, seed intent on upheaving heaven and earth.
Victor and Shadowcloud's skills streaked through the darkness continuously.
Their brilliance, like stars, captivated all who watched.
John sat on a massive rock, gazing in the direction of Stellarburg.
A fantastical array of colorful light appeared.
Yina, with her translucent wings, hovered mid-air.
Her silver hair, as if draped in a veil by the moonlight, emitted a soft glow.
Yina looked at John, who was as still as a statue, with a hint of guilt shimring in her multicolored eyes.
She apologized, "I'm sorry, I couldn't save your friends."
John shook his head, remaining silent.
At the first sign of Old Dog and the others' severe injuries, he had awakened Yina.
Unfortunately, even she couldn't save them.
Yina explained, "Gods are not omnipotent, and this world is peculiar. Gods here face various constraints, my abilities can only be used on you, and even my power is limited by you."
John remained silent for a long while.
Just when Yina thought he might not respond, he suddenly asked, "Why did you choose ?"
Gazing into John's calm eyes, she hesitated.
Eventually, Yina decided to share so truths with him.
"It wasn't I who chose you, but an entity from the end of the stellar ocean who did. The starry realms face great calamity, and this place, being the nexus of myriad worlds, is most likely to evade disaster. Thus, all gods wish to enter here. The space where you encountered , known as the 'Void Realm,' serves as this world's gateway, also preventing deities from entering.
I was gravely injured in the past and survived because that entity sealed in the Void Realm, owing it a favor."
Terms like an entity from the end of the stellar ocean, great calamity, the center of myriad worlds, and Void Realm reverberated through John's mind.
At that mont, he seed to touch upon the essence of this world.
After absorbing all the information, John slowly exhaled.
It seed he now understood the situation he was in.
John lifted his gaze to the sky, his vision seemingly piercing through the night to behold a myriad of dazzling eyes in the boundless starry expanse, and among them, a presence of imnse stature.
Behind them lood a vast expanse of deathly still black shadows.
His gaze grew complex.
Being swept into such a maelstrom where even gods could perish, he, a re mortal, had neither choice nor alternative paths to tread.
It seed every world was the sa in this regard.
Only the powerful have choices, while the weak are at the rcy of others.
If John wished to survive this tempest and prevent a recurrence of today's events, he had no option but to continuously grow stronger.
Until he beca so formidable that even gods would bow before him, and not even a great calamity could shake his will.
John tightened his grip on his staff, remaining silent.
At that mont, a commotion suddenly erupted from the crowd, seemingly sparked by a dispute.
John's brows furrowed as he turned towards the noise.
He saw a group of well-dressed individuals surrounding Silver Tear.
Among them, a corpulent, bald man was furiously berating her.
With rage in his voice, he shouted, "So what if you're from Hidden Stars? You have no right to restrict our freedom! I am the Deputy Minister of Stellarburg's Taxation Departnt, a certified governnt official by the Federal. If you don't let leave, believe it or not, once I get out, I'll complain to the Federal Inspection Bureau about Hidden Stars abusing their authority!"
The others, too, bore haughty expressions, echoing threats of their own.
Judging by their deanor and speech, they were likely officials from Stellarburg.
With their status, they could easily live comfortably elsewhere; the fate of Stellarburg was naturally of no concern to them.
These officials simply wished to depart from this place of trouble as swiftly as possible, to avoid any fallout.
The disturbance caught the attention of many onlookers.
Witnessing the group of arrogant and impolite officials, anger flashed across the faces of the crowd.
The younger and more hot-blooded students, in particular, were red-faced with fury, itching to confront and chastise them physically.
At a ti when Stellarburg faced catastrophe, these officials weren't thinking about how to save the people but instead were looking for ways to escape.
Now that they were stopped by mbers of Hidden Stars, they even thought of reporting Hidden Stars for abuse of authority.
Such despicable behavior!
Silver Tear, faced with the group of nacing governnt officials, seed sowhat overwheld.
Clutching her staff tightly and biting her lip, she was about to say sothing when suddenly, a pair of hands gently rested on her shoulders.
She turned around, puzzled, only to et John's indifferent gaze.
"I'll handle this," he said calmly, and walked towards the officials.
The bald official, seeing John approach, assud he was coming to appease them.
His arrogance intensified, disdainfully saying, "So, you've got so sense after all. Hidden Stars are nothing but dogs kept by the Federal, daring to stand against us..."
He was cut off mid-sentence by a swift shadow that flickered before his eyes.
Then, he felt an unstoppable force strike his face, as if a cannonball had made direct contact, causing his cheeks' fat to almost squeeze together.
"Thump!!!"
A dull sound echoed through the night, accompanied by a few bloodied teeth flying through the air.
The bald official's corpulent body spun several tis in the air from John's slap before crashing face-down to the ground, motionless.
An eerie silence enveloped the vicinity.
Both the officials and the bystanders were stunned, staring blankly at John, not expecting him to suddenly make a move.
As the officials regained their senses, their faces were etched with rage, as if they had been deeply insulted.
A middle-aged man with glasses pointed at John, shouting angrily, "Do you realize what you've done? You've attacked an on-duty Federal official! This is a capital offense! Mark my words, I will ensure you, a lawless thug, are thrown into a Federal prison!"
John slowly withdrew his hand, standing upright with an unyielding deanor.
He calmly stated, "According to Article 32 of the Federal Special Departnts Ordinance, during the execution of urgent tasks, if anyone deliberately obstructs the process, they may be neutralized on the spot. Currently, Stellarburg is under a high alert due to the Dusk Sect's attack. I suspect there are Dusk Sect spies among you, attempting to disturb the Federal's stability and peace.
During my investigation, I encountered your vehent resistance, leading to neutralize you on the spot."
He fixed his gaze on them, his eyes piercingly cold as he asked, "Do you see any issue with that?"
Upon hearing John's words, the rage on the face of the bespectacled official froze.
The icy glare from John sent a chill down the spines of the officials, making their scalps tingle with fear.
Was this man insane? He was actually suggesting to execute them all! Did he grasp the implications of his actions?!
One official said with a trembling voice, "You... you can't do this... you're with Hidden Stars... protecting our safety is your duty!"
Hearing their response, John let out a long sigh.
Then, his eyes suddenly blazed with an overwhelming intent to kill.
The next mont, a crimson blade light streaked across the night sky.
"Whoosh!"
The official's head flew high into the air, blood spraying all over the bespectacled official.
He felt his face grow warm as his glasses were stained red with blood, blurring his vision.
The bespectacled official's pupils trembled violently, his face etched with terror as he stumbled backward, eventually falling to the ground.
He looked at John with eyes filled with sheer horror, as if staring at a demon.
How dare he? How could he dare to publicly execute a Federal official!
John slowly retracted the Bloodthirsty Blade.
Turning his gaze toward the other officials, he asked again, "Do you see any issue with that?"
This ti, however, his voice carried an undercurrent of violent murderous intent.
Everyone swallowed hard.
The officials shook their heads frantically, no longer daring to utter another word.
Witnessing the previously arrogant Federal officials instantly beco submissive was a startling sight.
The students, who were just monts ago seething with anger, now felt an imnse sense of satisfaction.
Daniel's admiration for John was evident in his gaze.
This was the image of Hidden Stars he revered!
Dark Fox, watching John's silhouette, seed lost in thought.
In him, she seed to see the shadow of their captain.
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