Lilith stood at the entrance of the Eternal Abyss, taking a deep breath as she stared into the bottomless darkness below.
“Round two.”
She closed her eyes and leaped forward, diving in once again.
...
The familiar sensation of falling returned.
Just like last time, Lilith felt as though she had fallen into a bottomless pit. Her body plummeted uncontrollably through the pitch-black void where nothing could be seen.
But this time, she was prepared.
“Calculating the time, it should be arriving soon,” she thought smugly to herself.
“I’ve reversed time. I know exactly when it will appear and when it will attack. I also know it’s a 'high attack, low defense' type. As long as I use a wide-range destructive spell, I should be able to kill it.”
A smirk played on Lilith’s lips.
Was this a joke? She was coming prepared this time, knowing everything that was about to happen. If she still couldn't win, she might as well quit being the Demon King.
As she fell, she began to gather mana at her fingertips.
Pale gold mana converged at her fingers, the light growing brighter and brighter, pushing back a fraction of the surrounding darkness.
Lilith intended to charge her power while falling.
“Ten seconds until its first strike.”
Lilith counted down in her head.
“Ten, nine, eight...”
She stared toward the direction the previous attack had come from, her gaze sharp.
“Seven, six, five...”
The fluctuations of mana grew increasingly intense.
“Four, three, two...”
Lilith held her breath, her muscles tensed and ready to strike at any moment.
“One!”
Now!
She snapped her hand up, flinging the mana from her fingertips toward the pitch-black space.
A massive slash tore through the darkness, cutting toward the predetermined direction.
The air shrieked as the slash passed through.
Lilith had put her full strength into this blow.
Its power was enough to instantly kill an average God-tier expert.
She believed that as long as it hit, that shadow entity would be either dead or severely wounded.
However, even after the slash flew out, there was no hit feedback whatsoever.
Lilith: “...?”
She froze.
“How is that possible?”
Her eyes widened as she stared in the direction the slash had vanished, her face a mask of confusion.
“It clearly hid there to attack last time. Did I guess wrong?”
That shouldn't be possible! After a time reversal, everything should return to its starting point. The opponent's attack pattern, position, and timing should all be identical to the last time.
How could she have missed?
Could it be... the opponent also remembered what happened before the time reversal?
Lilith’s heart skipped a beat.
If that were true, things were going to get complicated.
The opponent knew she would predict its move, so it changed its method of attack.
Which meant she was currently—
“Oh no!”
Lilith spun around violently, trying to defend herself.
But it was too late.
A pitch-black hand reached out from the darkness behind her, silently piercing through her chest.
Squelch!
The sound of flesh being torn apart was exceptionally clear in the silent darkness.
Lilith looked down at the hand protruding from her chest.
It was tightly clutching her heart.
Her heart was still beating at that moment.
Thump, thump, thump...
With every beat, blood gushed from the wound, staining her clothes red.
Lilith opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came from her throat.
She tried to use time magic to restart her own state.
But the hand suddenly squeezed.
Crush!
Her heart was pulverized.
Agony flared, Lilith’s vision went black, and her consciousness began to fade.
In the second before she lost consciousness, she heard a voice ring in her ear.
The voice was soft and cold, carrying a hint of mockery.
“Time magic?”
“Unfortunately, it’s useless against me.”
...
Lilith slowly opened her eyes and found herself back at the entrance of the Eternal Abyss.
She stood there, staring down at the bottomless darkness, her face pale and her forehead drenched in cold sweat.
“Passive time reversal triggered...”
She murmured to herself, her voice trembling slightly.
“Did I... die?”
She touched her chest.
Her heart was still beating, perfectly intact.
Her clothes weren't damaged either; they were perfectly clean.
Everything had returned to the state before she jumped.
But the sensation of her heart being crushed remained vividly in her memory.
Lilith shuddered.
“But that’s not the point...”
She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
“The point is that thing could actually ignore the time reversal!?”
She clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.
“Are you kidding me!”
Time reversal was currently one of her trump cards, but now, that card had failed.
Moreover, that shadow entity seemed to remember what had happened before the reversal.
It knew she would predict its move, so it changed its attack.
How was that possible?
After a time reversal, everything should be reset. Except for her, the caster, no one else should remember what had happened.
Why did the shadow entity remember?
Could it be... it was unaffected by time?
The more Lilith thought, the more alarmed she became.
If that were the case, the Eternal Abyss was far too dangerous.
She couldn't possibly defeat an enemy that could ignore time and space and even predict her attacks.
“I need to find the God King.”
She made a snap decision and turned to leave.
“This place is too bizarre. I have to figure out exactly what that shadow entity is first.”
She walked quickly away from the entrance of the Eternal Abyss and flew toward the God King's Palace.
...
The God King's Palace.
The God King was handling some affairs of the God Realm when he suddenly felt a powerful fluctuation of mana coming from the distance.
He looked up and out the window.
“Back so soon?”
He was somewhat surprised.
Lilith had only been at the Eternal Abyss for less than half a day. Why was she back already?
Had she already investigated everything?
Just then, Lilith rushed in, her face pale and her breathing ragged, looking rather disheveled.
The God King raised an eyebrow.
“What’s wrong? Did you run into trouble?”
Lilith sat down in front of the God King and took a few breaths before speaking.
“There’s... something inside the Eternal Abyss.”
The God King set down his book and looked at her.
“What kind of thing?”
“I don't know,” Lilith shook her head. “It’s completely shrouded in shadows; I couldn't see its face. But it’s strong—absurdly strong.”
She paused, then added, “Moreover, it can ignore time reversal.”
The God King’s pupils constricted.
“Ignore time reversal?”
“Yes,” Lilith nodded. “I used time magic to restart time, but it seemed to remember what happened before the reversal. It changed its attack and killed me.”
When she said 'killed me,' her tone was calm, but the God King could hear the lingering fear behind it.
The God King was silent for a moment before speaking slowly.
“The Eternal Abyss is the end of the God Realm, where time and space are static. Time magic is indeed restricted there.”
“But to ignore time reversal...”
He paused, his expression turning solemn.
“There is no concept of time in the Eternal Abyss; everything is static. Since that shadow entity has lived in that environment for a long time, it might have adapted to the flow of time or can even perceive changes in it.”
Lilith listened, stunned.
“So... it can see the traces of time reversal?”
“It’s possible,” the God King said. “But this is just my guess. To know exactly what’s going on, further investigation is required.”
Lilith thought for a moment and asked, “Do you know what that shadow entity is?”
The God King shook his head.
“I don't know. The Eternal Abyss is a forbidden zone; even I rarely enter. I’m not sure what’s inside.”
He paused and added, “However, the God Realm has records stating that the Eternal Abyss imprisons certain things that shouldn't exist. Those things are very dangerous; even I, as the God King, wouldn't dare provoke them lightly.”
Lilith’s mouth twitched.
“Why didn't you say so earlier?”
The God King glanced at her and said flatly, “I did tell you the Eternal Abyss was full of dangers and warned you to be careful.”
Lilith: “...”
She thought back; it seemed that was indeed the case.
The divine general had warned her, and the God King had warned her as well.
But she hadn't taken it seriously.
“Fine, it’s my fault.”
She sighed.
“So what now? That thing is too strong; I can't beat it.”
The God King thought for a moment and said, “Go rest for a bit. I’ll look through the archives to see if there are any records regarding the Eternal Abyss.”
Lilith nodded.
“That’s all we can do.”
She stood up, preparing to leave.
As she reached the door, she suddenly turned back and asked, “By the way, that shadow entity said something before I died.”
“What did it say?”
“It said: ‘Time magic? Useless against me.’”
The God King frowned.
“It... can speak?”
“Yes,” Lilith nodded.
The God King was silent for a long time before he spoke slowly.
“I understand. Go rest for now.”
Lilith gave him a look and turned to leave.
In the study, the God King was left alone.
He walked to the window and looked out, his gaze deep.
“Time magic... useless...”
He whispered to himself.
“Could it be... them?”
He clenched his fists, his expression turning grave.
“If it really is them, then things are going to be troublesome.”
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