Ubermensch – Chapter 183

Chapter 183

Mason looked at Nodens.

“What’s the current situation?”

Nodens spoke simply and honestly.

“It’s the worst.”

Nodens was the Mad God of Good. He was a mixture of good and order, and evil and impulsiveness.

Because his impulsive side wanted to fight the Destroyer, he didn’t step in to stop him directly. But conversely, his good side made him care for the victims of the Destroyer.

And now, stimulated by the Destroyer’s question, his evil and impulsive side had separated from Nodens, creating another deity named Azathoth.

Nodens’ divinity was now half of what it was before. No, in a way, it was less than half.

“Why less than half?”

“Azathoth has taken over The Origin. He’s showing the First Mason infinite nightmares. He will eventually become Azathoth, and if that happens, I can only be an illusion.”

“That means…”

“The reason Cthulhu can be destroyed by something like an oil tanker explosion is because people believe it. But it’s also because he’s an intangible deity.”

Nodens said calmly.

“My situation is the same. As long as the First Mason becomes Azathoth, I’m nothing more than a dream Azathoth is having. Regardless of my divinity and divine power, I can never defeat Azathoth.”

The Mad God of Good, Nodens, was separated into the Mad God Azathoth and the God of Good Nodens. Thanks to the original being a transcendental existence, both maintained their Greater God status, but Nodens had now become a being dependent on people’s faith.

And with the penalty of never being able to defeat Azathoth.

“Now that I’m weakened, there will be limitations to how much I can help the Lord of Time. The production rate of the Fighters will also be halved.”

“The Lord of Time…”

The Lord of Time. Robert Park was waging an all-out war against the Destroyer on the stage of time. However, Robert Park’s Time Trooper production couldn’t keep up with consumption, and Nodens’ support was crucial to maintaining the status quo.

But Nodens’ power had been halved.

“And above all… the Destroyer is still standing. Without a single scratch.”

Even if Azathoth just held onto Nodens and stalled for time, the Destroyer could crush the Lord of Time, Robert Park, and take over time.

If the Destroyer were to gain control of time, the Destroyer of ‘to the victor go the spoils’ would slaughter his enemies before they were even born.

Without even caring about time paradoxes.

After all, if everything is going to be destroyed, what does it matter if the timeline gets a little twisted?

Mason thought for a moment and said,

“So, the fundamental problem is that your power has weakened?”

“Yes.”

“Can’t you reabsorb Azathoth?”

“Impossible. He and I are opposites. It’s a wonder we were able to exist as one being for so long.”

Mason thought for a moment and then asked,

“His chaos seems to have a fatal effect on your order.”

“Yes.”

“Is the opposite impossible?”

If the opposite of order is chaos, then the opposite of chaos is order.

“Theoretically, that’s correct.”

Theoretically, they should be each other’s natural enemy.

But even touching Azathoth’s chaos made Nodens’ body rot.

“But it’s impossible now.”

The reason was simple.

“Because he has substance, and I am an illusion.”

“The First Mason.”

“Yes.”

The First Mason was captured by Azathoth. The First Mason was dreaming nightmares and would eventually become Azathoth.

As long as Mason becomes Azathoth, Azathoth is the true history. It was an event and a result that was bound to happen. Naturally, Nodens would become an illusion.

His future self influencing his past self.

It was a contradiction.

But for divine beings, laws were objects of respect, not absolutes.

Nodens said with a calm expression,

“In the worst case, it might be better to kill the First Mason. Then we’ll both be illusions, so at least it won’t be as disadvantageous a fight as it is now.”

“Is there a way to do that?”

“No.”

Nodens laughed weakly.

“That’s the biggest problem.”

The Origin had become chaos itself. The dimension itself was rejecting beings of order. Even entering recklessly would lead to corruption, dissolution, and ruin.

“Then… there’s no way to save him?”

Nodens looked at Mason. As if he had expected insult but received praise. Or as if he had expected praise but received insult. He was bewildered and confused.

“The First Mason?”

“Yes.”

After thinking for a moment, Nodens said,

“Theoretically, it’s possible.”

“What is it?”

“We need to make the First Mason become Nodens. If that happens, I’ll become real and Azathoth will become an illusion.”

“And then you can defeat Azathoth?”

“At least I won’t lose.”

“Not a bad plan.”

Nodens said with a gloomy expression,

“Except that the First Mason is sunk at the deepest part of the abyss of chaos.”

“Yes, not a bad plan.”

Mason said with a calm expression,

“Because I can go and save him.”

“…Are you insane?”

Nodens held up his prosthetic arm.

“I lost an arm just trying to pull you out of the chaos. The First Mason will be even deeper.”

“It’s okay.”

Mason said with a calm expression,

“I… don’t have nightmares anymore.”

Nodens, who was about to say something, fell silent. He looked at Mason.

“You’ve changed, Oztalon.”

“Yes.”

His level of divinity hadn’t changed. His divine power hadn’t increased. But Mason’s eyes held calmness and composure, as well as strength and firmness at the same time.

Personality. His personality as a human had been peeled back a layer.

“Übermensch…”

He had become an Overman, one who had overcome all temptations and obstacles that a human could experience.

Even the strongest can worry. Even a god can have contradictions. Power, strength, does not make an Overman.

But on the other hand… it meant that even the weak, even ordinary humans, could surpass themselves.

And the moment Mason discovered the core within himself, he achieved enlightenment.

“I am among the people.”

Mason clenched his fist.

“There is nothing meaningless in what I have done. There is no doubt in what I will do. I will help people, I will protect them. That is the path I have chosen.”

Nodens stared at Mason.

He could tell that Mason had achieved enlightenment, that he had become an Overman.

But could an Overman overcome chaos?

That was a separate issue.

Chaos existed, and being contaminated by chaos was a natural phenomenon.

Whether or not enlightenment could stop chaos could only be known by actually trying.

Sending Mason in this situation was a gamble.

“Go, Oztalon.”

But now was the time to take that gamble.

“Save me from my nightmare.”

“Do you believe in me?”

“I have no choice but to believe.”

Nodens said with a calm expression,

“After all, if you fail, there will be no future for our universe.”

If Nodens couldn’t stop Azathoth and the Lord of Time couldn’t stop the Destroyer, defeat was already a foregone conclusion.

To avoid the predetermined outcome, the scales had to be tipped, and that required taking a risk.

“Okay.”

Nodens and Mason stood side by side.

Nodens extended his prosthetic arm with a clenched fist.

“Ready?”

“Yes.”

“Then…”

Crash!

As Nodens thrust his prosthetic arm forward, the dimension shattered.

An abyss overflowing with chaos surged from beyond the dimensional rift.

Mason looked back at Nodens and grinned.

“I’ll go, Nodens. For you, who is suffering in chaos.”

Mason took a step forward.

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Mason was immersed in solitude.

‘Lonely…’

Silence. There was an infinite silence. There was darkness where not even a sliver of shadow could be seen, and neither warmth nor moisture touched his skin.

Chaos. The despair gifted to Mason by Azathoth, the master of The Origin where everything was mixed, was infinite isolation.

Unable to feel any sensation, he was simply trapped in his own body for an infinite amount of time.

‘Am I supposed to spend 6 billion years like this?’

The lonely Mason despaired.

‘I can’t even stand a few seconds?’

Mason screamed.

“Do you want me to go crazy?”

There was silence. A silence so deep that he couldn’t even hear himself, making him wonder if he had actually screamed.

“I’ll go crazy, I’ll go crazy! I’ll go crazy, so please, just let me out of here!”

There was no response. No answer.

Mason only roared in the infinite emptiness.

“Just hit me! Just kill me! Anything, just be with me!”

Mason sobbed.

“Anyone… I’ll do anything… just don’t leave me alone…”

Mason murmured.

“Help me… please… save me…”

At that moment.

From beyond the abyss, something appeared, splitting the chaos.

The holy light emanating from his body was as clear as the morning star and as fierce as the sun.

Even in the chaos where filthy and murky things surged, the man was smiling like a ray of dawn.

“I have come. Finally, I have come.”

The man reached out his hand. A thick, strong arm. A thick, large hand. But the moment he was touched, Mason found himself shedding tears.

Not tears of pain and sorrow, but tears of overwhelming emotion.

His senses were returning. His eyes saw the man, his ears heard the man’s voice, and his fingers could feel the rough and warm palm of his hand. Mason clung to the thick arm in a hurry.

“Ah… Ah…”

He was coming back to life. Life was returning. The senses that had been stolen by chaos, the feeling of being alive, were returning.

“The protector has come. He has come to your side.”

Oztalon grabbed Mason’s hand and shouted.

“This Oztalon, has come to save you!”