Chapter 537: Netik: Warden of Threshold 9

The projection’s angry frown only made Aurelia’s lips curve into a mischievous smile.

She floated forward a step, golden-red flames dancing lazily along her wings. "And just who do you think you are, ruining our fun like this?"

Netik’s projection narrowed his eyes, the lines of age on his face deepening with irritation.

’These women... they reek of Nonexistence’s corruption, yet they carry the aura of Existence,’ he thought, baffled by this strange contradiction.

First, these creatures were unlike anything he’d encountered in the last eight hundred cycles. And second... he had never seen anyone who could be both—

Existent and Nonexistent.

Sonna tilted her head, her voluptuous figure swaying gently as she chuckled softly.

"Oh my, he looks so serious. Do you like music, maybe I can help your mood?"

Khaos chuckled, grey eyes sparkling with chaotic delight.

"Sonna, I never pegged you for the teasing type... I thought you were all peaceful and stuff."

"Well," Sonna said with a shrug, her blue hair drifting in the stormy winds, "you hang around husband enough, you’ll pick up more than a few things."

Netik’s projection hovered before them, his face growing darker by the second.

The women kept chatting as though he didn’t exist, their easy disregard stoking his frustration to a boil.

’They dare ignore a Warden of the Threshold?’

He sliced into their conversation as he were moments from lashing out.

"Why are you here, disturbing the lower frameworks?" His voice rolled like thunder through the space between them.

"And.... answer me now!"

He knew well, that due to certain oaths, it was against the very rules of both existence and nonexistence for these beings to come to disturb the lower frameworks.

Aurelia arched a brow, golden-red flames dancing in her eyes with a spark of amusement.

"Our purpose?" She asked as if he it wasn’t already evident.

"Oh, nothing grand—just having a bit of fun sprucing up this tired old Reality. What’s the matter? Does it ruffle your oh-so-precious sensibilities?"

Fay’s lips curved into a sweet smile, her pointed ears giving a playful twitch.

"Right... you make it sound like we’re committing some terrible crime. We’re just messing around," she said, rolling her eyes with exaggerated ease.

"You’re the one who barged in and killed the vibe."

Sia gave a slow nod, her cloud-white eyes shimmering with mischief.

"And on top of that, you’re kind of rude," she added. "You stroll in uninvited, scowling like we’ve snatched your favorite toy. Maybe you should just loosen up a bit."

Hearing the women, Netik’s fists clenched at his sides, the projection flickering with barely restrained rage.

"You insolent women..." he said through gritted teeth. To him, the destruction they caused went far beyond simply breaking their oaths.

Anything tied to nonexistence was no game or child’s play.

After standing on the edge of existence for over eight hundred trillion years, he had lost more than he could even remember—losses that only stoked his fury further.

"You invade this realm with filth from the other side and call it ’playing’? I won’t tolerate your lies."

Khaos laughed outright, crossing her arms. "Lies? Darling, we don’t need to lie. This is our conquest. If you don’t like it, feel free to leave. Or better yet — try and stop us."

The air between them grew heavier.

Netik’s eyes burned with rising fury as the wives carried on their light, carefree chatter, utterly unfazed by his authority.

But was it really just banter? Of course, not—nothing was ever that simple with those of the Ineffable.

And Netik, existing far beyond the confines of True Realities, seemed to hold more knowledge than could ever be deemed practical.

Through their apparent indifference, they had already uncovered enough.

’So, I’m assuming he’s a part of a force guarding all of existence, within the Prime Expanse?’ Sonna questioned through their bond, her mental voice calm and curious.

Aurelia’s thoughts flowed back smoothly. ’Perhaps.... that would explain his shitty mood.’

Fay added softly, ’And he genuinely believes we’re working with Nonexistence. Cute misunderstanding.’

Khaos’s chaotic energy pulsed with excitement. ’Enough talking. Let’s kill him and get it over with already.’

And seeing the women weren’t budging or even taking him seriously, his patience finally snapped.

"Enough!" Netik roared, voice thundering across the fractured sky.

HUMMM!

In that instant, four additional projections materialized beside the middle-aged one — a younger, fiercer Netik with wild hair, an armored battle-hardened version, an older scholarly one crackling with temporal energy, and a cold, emotionless variant.

All five projections glared at the wives with unified hostility.

"You finally dropped your nuts, bastard~" Aurelia said with a wicked smile as she disappeared in a burst of multicolored flames.

BOOOOM!!!!!

She reappeared instantly right in front of the original middle-aged projection.

Her fist slammed forward with devastating force — smashing directly into his chest and sending him rocketing backward across the sky like a comet.

HUMMMMMMM!!!!!

As Netik flew through the air, Aurelia’s body erupted in brilliant, shifting light.

She transformed into a breathtaking Unus Phoenix, the epitome of perfection standing between existence and nonexistence.

Her form was beyond mesmerizing — an enormous, radiant avian goddess whose towering wings and flaming body stretched across the entire plane, each feather shimmering with countless impossible colors that blurred the line between reality and dreams.

And.... her presence alone made the sky tremble.

While Netik was still hurtling through the air, Aurelia spread her colossal wings and unleashed millions upon millions of blazing flame feathers.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOOSH!!!!!

They streaked toward him like a blazing meteor shower — each one carrying a single devastating purpose: to sever and destroy the link between all his projections and the main body.

Netik didn’t panic in the slightest.

Even as millions of flame feathers screamed toward him, he simply closed his eyes in mid-flight, his expression calm and focused.

And in this moment, he activated a talent.

|Infinite Curtain of Projections (Prime Origin)|

HUMMMMM!!!!!

The instant it came to life, a surge of dense mana unlike anything ever seen before swept across Reality Two, rolling outward like a massive, unstoppable tide.

From his core burst a brilliant sphere of pure temporal energy, expanding in a breathtaking wave that seemed to stretch beyond the limits of sight.

In that heartbeat, countless versions of Netik shimmered into layered existence — thousands, millions, an unending torrent of his past, present, and future selves stacking together into a dazzling, godlike fortress of overlapping forms.

And in that surreal moment, every possible incarnation of Netik, from all that had been to all that would ever be, stood side by side in flawless defensive unity.

BOOOOOOM!