Three hundred years ago, or perhaps even earlier, these events unfolded.
Afterskin's life had been nothing short of a tragedy. He always looked like a holess wanderer, perpetually battered by misfortune.
Even after isolating himself in desolate, uninhabited areas to avoid bringing bad luck to others, calamities continued to find him.
Eventually, Afterskin decided to starve himself to death in the wilderness.
But just as he was on the brink of death, a tower descended from the heavens.
The Tower of Truth.
Afterskin's pupils reflected despair as he stared at the towering structure.
They've co.
He knew that even if he killed himself, it wouldn't stop the Tower of Truth from descending. Besides, Afterskin couldn't die-not by his own hand.
The Apocalypse wouldn't allow it.
If the Supre Demon God could send Afterskin to Earth, it ant they had the coordinates of humanity's last refuge.
Earth was the only place where humanity had gathered, the only place that posed a threat to the Supre Demon God.
If that threat could be eliminated, the Supre Demon God would have nothing to fear, even if the Apocalypse descended again.
The Tower of Truth descended before Afterskin's eyes.
Collapsed on the ground, on the verge of death, Afterskin couldn't even muster a single tear. He stared at the sky, feeling an overwhelming sense of hopelessness.
And then, he saw a butterfly.
The butterfly danced gracefully in the air, spiraling upward before returning to the Tower of Truth.
Monts later, a middle-aged man erged from the tower.
From Mike's perspective, the man appeared to be wearing a simple white robe as he walked out of the Tower of Truth.
The man looked around, his expression filled with confusion as he took in the unfamiliar surroundings.
Afterskin noticed the man, and the man noticed Afterskin.
The man looked at Afterskin with a sympathetic expression and said, "Unlucky."
Afterskin chuckled weakly but didn't respond.
The man's eyes grew distant, and he muttered to himself,
"Who am I...?"
For reasons he couldn't explain, Afterskin blurted out,
"I think Apollo is a good na. If you don't know your na, why not use that?"
The man tilted his head and replied,
"Apollo... That does sound nice. Thank you for naming . Now, what can I do for you?"
Afterskin hadn't expected much, so he casually said,
"Can you perform divination?"
Apollo nodded.
That, he could do.
Afterskin was stunned. He hadn't thought Apollo would actually agree.
"Then tell where the person I'm looking for is," Afterskin said.
Apollo didn't respond. Instead, he began walking forward.
From Mike's perspective, the river of ti rippled slightly as Apollo appeared.
For soone of Apollo's caliber, even the river of ti struggled to reconstruct the events of
that era.
Mike's expression grew serious.
Where had Apollo co from? And why had he co?
These questions were critical to Mike.
Though trapped in the sword prison, Mike knew Apollo's current state wasn't good.
Once Mike escaped, he would need to find a way to help Apollo.
Any information he could gather now would be invaluable.
Apollo's grayish-white robe suddenly transford into a pure white one after his conversation with Afterskin.
As he walked away, each step covered dozens, even hundreds of ters.
For Mike, achieving such a feat now would be easy.
But there was a problem...
At this point in ti, Apollo hadn't awakened his talent!
Mike quickly noticed the pattern:
Apollo's strength was at its peak near the Tower of Truth.
The farther he moved from the tower, the weaker he beca.
---
Mike's perspective remained fixed on Afterskin, leaving him anxious.
He wanted to know where Apollo had gone.
The events unfolding in the river of ti were incredibly precious.
The first descent of the Tower of Truth, Apollo's ergence, the tower's activation...
These were monts everyone had heard of.
But the versions of history people knew had been altered by a certain history inventor.
What Mike was witnessing now was the unaltered truth.
Just as Mike's impatience reached its peak, Apollo returned.
He wasn't alone.
Following behind him was a young man who bore a striking resemblance to Maxen.
Apollo stopped in front of Afterskin, pointed at the young man, and then at Afterskin, asking,
"Is this the person you were looking for?"
The young man was none other than the boy who had once worn oversized boots.
The scar-faced man who had terrorized the children was long dead, and the group of kids had
started new lives.
Many of them were doing well.
Calderon, for instance, had risen from underground boxing to the world stage. But after a controversial match where he was accused of intentionally injuring his opponent, he was
banned for life.
As for the boy in boots, he had given himself a new na:
Nathan.
This was a rare glimpse into history.
Without the child's help, Mike would never have had the chance to witness this.
He wasn't a Supre Being yet and couldn't command a white horse to take him on such a
journey through the river of ti.
Even Ares, in his current state, would struggle to sustain such a trip.
Once Mike beca a Supre Being, he would have responsibilities to fulfill and no ti for
such endeavors.
In other words, this was Mike's only chance to see these events.
He watched intently, determined not to miss a single detail.
Apollo brought Nathan to Afterskin.
Mike noticed sothing important: Nathan already bore the Supre Mark.
Based on the Supre Demon God's earlier words, it wasn't hard to deduce that they had
chosen Nathan.
The first human Supre Being had been chosen by the Supre Demon God...
Sothing about that felt off.
From the Supre Demon God's perspective, Nathan was the safest choice.
Most people had reasons to fight for the world.
Nathan didn't.
He had never known love, had only ever played with his own shadow as a child, and had no
reason to protect a world that had never been kind to him.
If the human Supre Being cooperated, they could deal with the Supre Demon God's
problems.
The Supre Demon God would grant them ascension, and the world would fall under its
control.
Everyone would get what they wanted.
But they hadn't accounted for one thing:
Nathan was willing to risk everything.
Seeing Nathan, Afterskin's mind flashed back to the boy in boots.
So it really is him...
Struggling to his feet, Afterskin ignored Apollo and fixed his gaze on Nathan.
"You can't go in. No! You can't enter that tower!"
Afterskin stood in Nathan's way, his voice trembling with emotion.
"You have no idea what you're dealing with. The thing sealed inside can destroy this world
with ease. If you stay out, if you wait for the Apocalypse to co... everything will end
quickly."
Nathan t Afterskin's gaze with a faint smile and nodded.
"That's all the more reason for to go."
Knowing the truth only strengthened Nathan's resolve.
Avoidance wouldn't solve anything.
Afterskin was at a loss for words.
The Apocalypse could be avoided.
If Nathan hadn't entered the Tower of Truth and activated it, there would have been no hope
of averting the Apocalypse.
Death would co in an instant.
Why struggle needlessly?
Nathan thought for a mont and said,
"I think there are more good people in this world than bad.
"As long as there are enough good people, things will eventually get better."
Afterskin wanted to call him naive but couldn't bring himself to say it.
Nathan continued,
"Most importantly, I don't have a choice, do I?"
He pointed at the Tower of Truth and said seriously,
"Apollo told that the Abyss will descend soon. The Tower of Truth is the only place where
I can gain power."
Apollo stood silently nearby.
He had no need to lie.
Nathan bore the Supre Mark, making him humanity's potential Supre Being.
Apollo needed Nathan and was willing to perform three divinations for him.
Nathan had already used the first.
Afterskin's lips moved weakly, but he couldn't find the words to stop Nathan.
He slumped to the ground, defeated, and made way for Nathan.
Nathan patted Afterskin on the shoulder, his smile as bright as the sumr sun.
"Have hope for the future!"
But his optimism didn't reach Afterskin.
Afterskin sighed.
"You're dood. The Truth Source will reject you..."
He shook his head.
"And even if the Abyss descends, what can you do alone? You're the only one who can enter
the tower, the only one who can grow stronger... You can't stop it."
Nathan thought for a mont and replied,
"How will I know if I don't try?"
With that, Nathan placed his hand on the Tower of Truth.
A black aura rose from his body.
The strap on Mike's shoulder reacted to the aura, revealing itself.
The Supre Mark.
But Nathan's Supre Mark was complete.
At that mont, a brilliant light erged from the Truth Source, flying into Nathan's body.
A notification appeared before Mike's eyes:
[Nathan has awakened the SSS-level talent: Dream Co True.]
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