Mystery: Good Witch

Chapter 1390 Goal
At this point, in the solar system where Earth was thrown into the "mirror world," there were no planets left. Even the gravity that originally formed the Earth's normal orbit was provided by the former "superstar overlord" through its own symbol.

Otherwise, before the barrier shatters, the Earth will crumble due to its inability to function properly, the gods will go mad and out of control after losing their anchor, and no Outer God would want to know what the many source substances and extraordinary properties that originally belonged to the "original creator" would fuse together.

Therefore, the vast solar system is just the right place to serve as the battlefield for the ancient decisive battle between the Earth faction and the Outer God faction.

The two sides floated distinctly on either side of where the Earth originally existed.

Having painfully relinquished the torn portion of the "Mother Nest," the "Fallen Mother Goddess" repaired her weaknesses with the aid of an immortal symbol. Though weakened, she now possessed the power to fight two opponents simultaneously, aided by the pillars of existence. Her face, identical to that of humanity—the dominant life form on Earth, born of the original Creator and slumbering alongside the Creator—once again revealed a gentle, benevolent smile, yet her crimson eyes radiated undisguised evil. These contradictory emotions, fused together by features representing "beauty," evoked a longing in the heart, like a child yearning for its mother's embrace.

After losing the "Mother" and "Moon" pathways, this pillar should have lacked the symbolism of "beauty," leaving only the contradictory yet unified concepts of "beginning of evil" and "undying one." However, the other half of the "mother nest" that He left within Him can self-repair to become a complete source matter and also nurtures the "primordial chaos embryo," the mother of most other Great Old Ones. Therefore, He still possesses a certain degree of maternal symbolism, which in turn can give rise to the "beauty" of motherhood in the eyes of all living beings.

Just as the eldest daughter holds significant importance in the field of mysticism, the "mother" also possesses unique power.

Therefore, even though they had just entered reality and were already in control of the "Shadow World," Fabuti, whose power and status had reached half that of the Old Ones, attacked them, triggering many desires and evil thoughts within them. The Outer Gods naturally formed a loose formation around the "Fallen Mother Goddess."

At the forefront was the "Superstar Overlord," who had just arrived and destroyed the Earth's mirror image. His body, composed of numerous constantly fusing dense star clusters, emitted a light that illuminated the entire star field, shining on all the participants on both sides.

Behind Him is the “Mother Tree of Desire”, a giant humanoid tree with chaotic scales. Its surface is covered with tempting fruits, wet flowers, metal coins from different civilizations, black hearts, and wriggling tumors that symbolize different desires. These things surround the heads of a man and a woman, each with their own gender-specific charm.

Standing alongside the giant tree were three elegant young women, all belonging to the same ancient being, the eldest daughter of the primordial creator and the fallen mother goddess, the "Goddess of Fate." The body on the left had empty eyes, manipulating an illusory loom to weave a net of fate, which converged into streams and flowed to the armless woman in the middle, where they gathered into a long river of fate. This river flowed to the third body on the right, which had lost its head and held illusory silver-black knives in its hands. Under its cutting, the tributaries of fate were severed, leaving only the thick trunk.

Behind the four figures that bear an extreme resemblance to humans is a "decaying king" as large as a planet, wrapped in bandage-like gold like an alternative mummy. The bluish-yellow pus flowing from the gaps in his golden armor constantly emits a watery light, symbolizing the passage of time. His exposed left hand is slightly clenched, with festering skin, oozing the same pus.

Their human-like appearance was not intentional, but rather because the birth of humankind originated from the power of the "original creator," and the two share the same origin.

This can be seen from the three human forms that the "Ring of Destiny" also possesses. The three bodies, back to back, face each other. The one facing forward is emaciated and full of pain, the one to the left rear has a ferocious face full of malice, and the one to the right has a holy expression full of pity. The light they emit intertwines and turns into a silver-black color.

Beneath the bodies of these Outer Gods, a dark vortex constantly expands and contracts, its interior filled with gleaming white, sharp teeth, spewing forth a chaotic liquid that encompasses all colors. This is the symbol and concept of "Primal Hunger," which devours everything, even its allies if given the chance.

Besides this pillar and the six ancients, a seemingly untouchable shadow lingers at the edge of the solar system. Sometimes it appears to be at infinite height, and sometimes it is close to the other ancients, like an observer closely behind a curtain, yet not in the same dimension on the battlefield.

That is the shadow left in this dimension by the "higher-dimensional observer".

Like Him, the "unceasing murmur" has no real substance; it can only attach itself to certain things, giving it a specific color or shape. At this moment, this old murmur, which once lingered in the mind of one's temporary "ally," is seeking an opportunity to infiltrate the enemy.

Before this pile of seemingly humanoid yet strangely shaped ancient beings are the existences of all the ancient entities from the Earth side.

Besides Klein, the "Lord of Mysteries," who wore a trench coat and top hat and had temporarily withdrawn all his clones and puppets to avoid being restrained, and Angel, the "Cataclysm of Destruction," who wore a white "cloth" fused with flames and wielded a greatsword of destruction, three newly created Ancients also stood beside them.

Roselle, the "Shadow of Order," clad in full-body armor tinged with gold in black, wearing an imperial crown, his face seemingly shrouded in shadow, obscuring his expression, with countless elegant and noble figures standing behind him; Stiano, the "Demon of Knowledge," composed of countless shimmering scrolls of civilization and a vast, illusory torrent of information, vaguely resembling a handsome man with a face like jade; and Amanisis, the "Eternal Darkness," wearing layered black skirts, a tall iron crown, her face covered by a thin black veil, her graceful figure exuding a deep and gloomy aura.

Behind the five ancient beings, a giant figure with five heads, though not large in size, stood tall and imposing. Above it, a huge golden Buddha sat cross-legged, its radiance enveloping all its companions. Below, a phantom black shadow seemed poised to devour everything.

These are Grisha, who has become a pillar-level Old One, and the Key of Light and the Shadow World, who did not have time to truly contain the Source Matter and can only exert half of the Old One's power.

On Earth, there are two pillar-level beings, "Lord of Mysteries" and "God," two ancient beings without any hidden dangers, "Cataclysm of Destruction" and "Eternal Darkness," two ancient beings who have become great beings but have some problems, "Shadow of Order" and "Demon of Knowledge," and two beings with unique support, the help of Dao-aligned beings, and ancient status but with some loss of power, "Key of Light" and "Shadow World."

They were to deal with eight Outer Gods led by the Pillar-level Old One, the "Fallen Mother Goddess".

At first glance, the two pillars and six old souls are evenly matched against one pillar and eight old souls. However, from Earth's perspective, they have a winning probability of over 80%.

On one hand, Angel can use his authority in war, which is based on "destroying natural disasters," to form legions of all the Old Ones, sharing their abilities and authority with each other, and even utilizing the symbols of other Old Ones to some extent. On the other hand, the Outer Gods, the only thing that could bring all the Old Ones together, the "Uncertain Mist," has been severely damaged in the "Vortex." Apart from the simple "comradeship" of robbing Earth's resources together, there is no corresponding plan for cooperation.

On the other hand, during the month or so that they became the Outer Gods and plotted to prematurely ignite the Doomsday War, Klein and Grisha relied on their divination and prophecy and their omniscience and omnipotence to gather and master information on all the Outer Gods. They learned about their purpose in seizing Earth and what their general targets were: which source matter and which unique aspects. They then formulated corresponding tactics. Conversely, most of the Outer Gods on Earth were "appearing for the first time," and the Outer Gods did not have the corresponding information, making it difficult for them to make effective arrangements.

With an advantage in intelligence, the ability to rationally allocate opponents in battle can allow the Earth side to gain a local advantage despite having fewer people and incomplete ancient forces.

Specifically, the "Lord of Mysteries" can deal with all other Old Ones who do not restrain him, but as long as an Old One who can restrain his "change" joins the battle, he will find it difficult to fight multiple opponents at once and can only deal with two at the same time.

The ancient beings capable of restraining Klein include the "High Dimensional Overlord," who can see through the puppets and clones through the symbol of "dimension" and confront the true form of the Lord of Mysteries; the "Unquenchable Whisper," which can directly trigger extraordinary characteristics and the original creator's spirit remaining within the source matter through "whisper," transmitting madness to Klein; the "decaying king," whose "decay" and "inevitable death" symbolizes bypassing clones and harming the Lord of Mysteries just as Angel's attack directly targets the true form; and the "Primal Hunger," which possesses the instinct of "aggregation," can directly attract Klein's true form to its side and devour its power and authority.

Therefore, the other ancient beings on Earth must intercept and deal with these four special Outer Gods in battle, so that the "Lord of Mysteries" can use his myriad forms to entangle other enemies at the same time, giving another battlefield a numerical advantage.

This arduous task naturally requires the participation of "God" Grisha and "Destructive Catastrophe" Angel.

Although "God" cannot create multiple avatars with pillar positions and can only suppress the two Great Old Ones with His own body, as the Lord of the Astral Plane, He can interfere with all powers and symbols by influencing the Astral Plane, slowly affecting the situation on the battlefield. When necessary, He can even make certain concepts and symbols that restrain the Lord of Mystery ineffective, causing the Outer Gods, who were originally not restrained, to be restrained by the Earth.

Just now, it was because He influenced the Outer Gods who jumped back to reality from the Astral Plane that the "Fallen Mother Goddess" was temporarily isolated and helpless, and had to take the initiative to abandon the "Mother Nest" to restore her own state. Otherwise, Lilith's sacrifice would have been meaningless, and the Fallen Mother Goddess, who had re-incorporated the Source Matter, would have regained her full pillar power, so that the scales of victory would no longer tip in her favor.

While Angel is just an ordinary Great Old One, she possesses a unique symbol that other Great Old Ones do not have: the First Creator in the Mirror.

Although the mirror, which only allows the negative aspect to be active, initially could not grant Angel a status higher than the pillars, it was like a bomb strapped to her body, a weakness that no Old One dared to detonate. This would make some of the Outer Gods' authority hesitant when facing her, and with the help of other Old Ones, she even had the opportunity to fight two against one without being at a disadvantage.

Angel holds off two, Grisha holds off two, and Klein can deal with the remaining Outer Gods who do not restrain him. In this way, if the remaining Ancients on Earth join any battlefield, that side will gain an absolute numerical advantage.

This is the origin of Klein and Grisha's assessment of an "80%" winning probability.

Based on this, the goal of Earth's Old Ones was no longer to win the Doomsday War and expel all Outer Gods, but to find an opportunity to kill two or three Old Ones, deprive them of their source matter and corresponding pathways, making it difficult for these Old Ones to be resurrected, and also adding more extraordinary power to Earth, allowing this planet to develop faster and reach the stars.

Conversely, if all the Outer Gods manage to escape, they will return to the "Uncertain Mist" after a few decades, having recovered from their injuries. At that time, even if Earth retains its current lineup, it will face one more Outer God and an enemy united by a pact, making the battle even more difficult than it is now.

Of course, Klein, who could predict the course of the battle to some extent, Grisha, who could glimpse the minds of other Outer Gods, and Angel, who had a keen judgment of the war's outcome, could all see that although the Outer Gods' alliance was loose and they each harbored their own agendas, they weren't too worried about the battle. In their view, this battle would end in Earth's defeat. Because in this dangerous situation, the Outer Gods had also been awakened by their most primal instincts. Driven by the desire to seize the Source Matter and Uniqueness they needed, they were full of fighting spirit. Moreover, with the help of the Realm's ruler, the "Fallen Mother Goddess," their chances of winning were not low.

The two remained silent for a few seconds, each lost in their own thoughts as they gazed at each other.

Suddenly, Angel vanished from the ranks, using the "Lord of Mysteries" teleportation ability to instantly appear behind the colossal, planet-like "Decaying King," whose entire body was covered in gold. A colorless, dark river had flowed beside this ancient being, further slowing His already aged and sluggish movements, making it even more difficult for Him to dodge.

Even when Angel's black flame greatsword was stretched to its limit, it was still extremely small to this ancient being. However, the difference in size between the two did not represent a difference in strength. At this level, symbolism and authority were the key to determining victory or defeat.

Faced with the sword that symbolized end and destruction, the "decaying king" stretched out his left hand, which was not covered by gold, and grabbed at Angel with his huge, rotten yellow-green and blue palm.

This also symbolizes an end, but it is decay in time and death in irreversibility.

Angel's figure flashed to the other side of the giant golden mummy's body in an instant, only to find himself still enveloped by the giant hand.

Because of the authority of "the inevitable decay of all things and the irreversible entropy", this attack will inevitably hit its target in space!

Suddenly, the power in the astral plane underwent a slight change.

"Inevitable" has become "not necessarily", possessing a tiny probability that can be avoided.

Those who possess the "Key of Light" are often fortunate enough to seize this opportunity.

Angel's body narrowly avoided the giant hand's strike, and the Destruction Greatsword pierced into the body of the "Decaying King".

The black flames of destruction merged with the deathly pallor, the twilight orange-red, and the deathly still gloom shared by Angel from "Eternal Darkness" Amanisis, forming a chaotic vortex that was about to erupt within this ancient being.

But as the yellowish-green pus was drawn into the chaotic vortex, these six colors and powers strangely merged, and a deep, terrifying black dot with a diameter of zero burst forth from its center, seemingly capable of absorbing all power.

Now, not only the "decaying king" who was hit by the attack, but also Angel, who launched the attack, and Amanisis, who provided assistance, realized that something was wrong.

The source energy and corresponding symbols within them seemed to be interfered with, exhibiting a tendency to attract each other and merge.

No, I just wanted to use the special connection between the "City of Calamity" and the "River of Eternal Darkness" to make the power of destruction and end more concentrated, and to severely damage the "Decaying King" in one blow, but now... The thought that had just popped into Angel's mind immediately disappeared, her body returned to the position before the "flash", and the several symbols that had condensed on the greatsword also disappeared directly, as if she had never launched an attack.

The black spots that had just formed inside the "declining monarch" also disappeared as a result.

The "Ring of Destiny" activated the power of "Reincarnation," causing this space to return to a few seconds earlier.

Of course, this was also influenced by His "redemption" instinct, because Angel's attack, which combined his own power with that of "Eternal Darkness," just now demonstrated a kind of cosmic-level catastrophe.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In the mirror world, the battle to protect Earth has entered a fierce stage.

The angels on Earth formed small teams of three to five people. With their cooperation, they barely managed to hold off the first wave of attacks from the Outer Gods and began to familiarize themselves with and adapt to the enemy's abilities, thus developing countermeasures.

They then discovered that the initial pressure they were under had eased, and the situation was gradually improving.

On the one hand, after the seal on the Western Continent was truly broken, the "Source Matter" cultivators who understood what had happened gradually joined the battle. Although they did not have extraordinary characteristics, they gained power equivalent to Sequence 2 in their cultivation of getting close to Source Matter and merging with it. In terms of rank and power, they were almost the same as angels, which greatly alleviated the problem of too few people on Earth.

On the other hand, in the battle in the mirror world, the Earth's legions can obtain the help of "Destruction Catastrophe," the ruler of the mirror world. They can use the mirror to quickly transfer and help each other, and have the "mirror substitute" ability similar to the people in the mirror. Conversely, the Outer Gods not only do not have this convenience, but are also rejected by the spirit world and the astral plane. Most of their teleportation and teleportation abilities cannot be used, and the contracted spirit world creatures are all unwilling to participate in the battle.

With the balance of power shifting, Glad Soren quickly realized that the relative strengths of the two sides had reached a delicate equilibrium.

"It's time to fight back!"

His roar resounded in the minds of every member of the angelic legion, including the cultivators who had just joined the battle, as well as his two old rivals and comrades.

"You don't need to tell me that, I noticed it three seconds ago."

With red hair and a banner mark between his brows, Medici sneered, transformed into a flaming spear, and plunged into the dark mirror passage, tracing an arc whose landing point was difficult to predict, until he arrived behind an Outer God angel.

An old man with completely white hair emerged from his body. He pointed, and a weathered clock appeared on the head of the sea monster covered in chaotic scales, resembling a brownish-green tumor. The figure of the "Leviathan" that was about to hide froze on the spot, as if time had been stolen.

At the same time, countless rays of light of various colors flashed across Medici's body, and the "amplification," "enhancement," and "blessing" from the other angels in the team took effect simultaneously, making him like a towering giant bathed in sunlight.

boom--

A purple-black, almost black, flame-like spear pierced through the massive Leviathan's body, nearly splitting it in two.

Earth's counterattack has begun.

PS: Thanks to the generous patron "I am Lee Locke" for being the leader of the alliance (づ￣ 3￣)づ~☆

PS2: Chapter 121 has been revised slightly, with a few paragraphs added to make the process of the Mother Goddess giving up the Source Matter less abrupt...

　Thank you to the guild leader "I am Lee Locke" for the alliance leader title! (づ￣ 3￣)づ~☆

　　
　
(End of this chapter)