"Wordred, Orloff—what exactly are you two trying to do?"
When the Destruction Sovereign Wordred and the Fate Sovereign Orloff both drew their Sovereign artifacts, the Death Sovereign barked coldly, "What? Your underhanded tricks have been exposed, so now you want to resort to force?"
"Then how about I fight you myself?"
Crack!
With a flick of her hand, a violet whip-shadow lashed out, shattering even the chaotic spatial currents.
"Come, come! I'll accompany you today. Fight as long as you like—I'll stay with you to the end."
"Let's see whether my whip is sharper, or your blades are colder!"
Seeing the Death Sovereign step in, both Wordred and Orloff's expressions darkened. Then, almost in unison, they turned their gaze toward the Life Sovereign, Wawaya.
"...Sigh."
"Enough. Don't forget—the one who called this Sovereign Assembly is Sovereign Locke. For now, let's hear him out."
"As my elder sister said before—if what Sovereign Locke proposes isn't accepted by us, then naturally, the other Sovereigns won't be required to abide by it."
"Hmph."
With Wawaya's intervention, the Death Sovereign's anger subsided somewhat, and she withdrew her Sovereign artifact.
Likewise, seeing this, the Fate Sovereign Orloff and the Destruction Sovereign Wordred also put away their weapons.
"Sovereign Locke, please continue," Wawaya said with a nod.
At this moment, all the other Sovereigns were trembling inwardly. Conflicts between these figures were not something they had any interest in witnessing.
To them, whether there were four supreme figures or five above their heads made little difference.
"Then let's continue where we left off."
"As for how the Rule Sovereigns have been guarding against me—I've always known. I simply didn't care."
"After all, among the Water-type Sovereign sparks still unclaimed, there remains one Intermediate spark and one High Sovereign spark."
"How foolish do you think I am, to abandon a Highgod Sovereign spark in favor of a mere Intermediate spark?"
Faced with Locke's blunt ridicule, neither Wordred nor Orloff responded.
Indeed—so long as Locke wasn't a fool, he would naturally aim for the Water-type Highgod Sovereign spark to maximize his strength.
But they didn't dare gamble.
Even though the chance of Locke targeting the Water-type Intermediate spark was extremely low, they still feared he might assassinate the Azurewave Sovereign and seize that Intermediate spark.
Seeing that neither Wordred nor Orloff would engage, Locke didn't press further. Instead, he swept his gaze across all the Sovereigns present.
"Sovereigns—do you still remember your duties?"
"Or after obtaining your Sovereign sparks and experiencing a surge in power, have you come to believe yourselves to be beings above gods… and that all life beneath you is nothing more than ants unworthy of your attention?"
"Sovereign, Sovereign—don't forget. Even as Sovereigns, there is still a 'god' in that title."
"If you truly wish to elevate yourselves beyond that, then stop calling yourselves Sovereigns. Drop the 'god' entirely. Wouldn't it be better to call yourselves simply 'Lords'?"
At this point, Locke looked at the Fate Sovereign.
"Lord of Fate?"
Then he turned to the Destruction Sovereign.
"Lord of Destruction?"
"And you all—should I start calling you Lords of Earth, Wind, Water, Fire, Light, Darkness, and Lightning?"
"Have you all forgotten how you became Sovereigns in the first place?"
"Have you forgotten the responsibilities embedded within your Sovereign sparks?"
Under Locke's thunderous rebuke, the gathered Sovereigns fell silent.
Finally, Locke turned his gaze to the Water-type Intermediate Sovereign—the Azurewave Sovereign.
"Azurewave Sovereign, tell me—what are the duties of a Sovereign?"
"This…"
Azurewave hesitated, glancing at the Fate Sovereign.
"If Sovereign Locke is asking, then answer," Orloff said calmly.
"Yes."
"Sovereign Locke, the duty of a Sovereign is to assist the Overgods in managing the order of the divine planes, suppressing instability, and maintaining the laws of the universe…"
"Correct."
"As Sovereigns, while we enjoy immense power, we also bear responsibilities commensurate with that power."
"Maintaining order within the divine planes—this, all of you have handled well through your Sovereign armies, refraining from personally intervening in the struggles of lesser gods."
"After all, if Sovereigns are the creators of order, then they cannot personally take the field to violate it."
"This is just like the Sovereign Pact established by the Death Sovereign at the first Sovereign Assembly."
"If even the four Rule Sovereigns refuse to abide by that agreement, then what authority would it hold over the rest?"
Hearing Locke's words, many Sovereigns fell into thought.
Of course, they also understood the deeper implication.
Locke was clearly ridiculing the Destruction Sovereign Wordred and the Fate Sovereign Orloff.
Since Locke, as a Law Sovereign of the third tier, was bound by the Sovereign Pact, then as long as the Azurewave Sovereign did not provoke him, Locke would never violate the pact to assassinate him.
Yet Wordred and Orloff had taken the Azurewave Sovereign to the Celestial Realm—just as Locke said, they were both enforcers of the rules and violators who personally interfered.
"The second duty of a Sovereign is to suppress the divine planes—to sort out the disturbances in the Laws caused by the existence of countless gods, and to maintain stability."
"This is the second responsibility."
"So then, Azurewave Sovereign—tell me: when the Water Divine Plane was on the brink of collapse, did you ever consider fulfilling your duty?"
"This…"
Azurewave opened his mouth, but in the end said nothing.
What could he say?
Say he had considered it?
Then why hadn't he appeared in the Water Divine Plane?
That would place all the blame squarely on the Fate Sovereign.
Say he hadn't considered it?
Given what Locke had said earlier—even the Destruction Sovereign might be "replaced" if he failed in his duties.
If that applied to a Rule Sovereign, then for someone like him… it wouldn't just be a thought—it would be immediate action.
"…I'm sorry, Sovereign Locke."
In the end, Azurewave spoke honestly.
"At the time, I feared that if I left the Celestial Realm, you might assassinate me. So, I stayed hidden and did not dare to come out."
Hearing this, Locke's expression softened.
With his soul-based perception, he could tell Azurewave was not lying.
The other Sovereigns sighed as well.
What Azurewave had thought of—they had all considered too.
Was the Water-type Intermediate Sovereign about to be replaced?
Yet, contrary to expectations, Locke did not punish him. Instead, he said gently:
"Azurewave Sovereign, you don't need to apologize to me."
"If anything, it is I who should apologize to you—for becoming something you feared."
At those words, all the Sovereigns thought they had misheard.
But as they looked at one another, they realized—they had heard correctly.
Sovereign Locke… had actually apologized.
And for such a reason…
In all their years as Sovereigns—including the dozens who had perished—when had a powerful Sovereign ever apologized to a weaker one?
Let alone for something like this.
Even among ordinary gods, such a thing was unheard of.
"...What?"
Azurewave's pupils shrank as he looked up at Locke—only to see Locke slightly bowing toward him.
"N-no, Sovereign Locke, this is too—"
For a moment, Azurewave was at a loss, unsure whether to step forward or remain still, afraid even that his own presence might tarnish Locke's dignity.
Yet in that instant, much of his fear toward Locke dissipated.
Not only him—even the other Lowgod and Intermediate Sovereigns began to feel that Locke was fundamentally different from all others.
"Sovereigns, after the last Sovereign Assembly, you all know that I was born in a material plane."
"The more I learned after stepping onto the path of cultivation, the more I understood the vast gap between myself and true power—and the more fear I felt."
"As someone who grew up within that fear, I understand deeply what it means to face something terrifying while being powerless."
"So, whether it is lesser gods or fellow Sovereigns…"
"In most cases, I do not wish to become a source of fear."
"All these years, I've believed that a stable system—one that everyone abides by—can minimize that fear."
"That is why I am willing to follow the Sovereign Pact established by the Death Sovereign."
"In doing so, those who need fear me are only the four Rule Sovereigns and the Four Divine Beasts Sovereigns."
"However, I did not expect that my possession of a Water-type Sovereign clone would cause all Water Sovereigns to fear me as well."
"So here, I, Locke, offer a unified apology to all of you."
"As for whether you will continue to fear me afterward—that is beyond my control."
"After all, I cannot swear an oath before the Overgods never to act against you simply because of your fear."
(End of Chapter)
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