In Akares Star, within the Valroy family’s mansion, Randolf sat inside his private room with a frown clearly visible on his face. He leaned back on the sofa while staring at the system screen floating before him.

The screen looked unstable. At times, it blurred and flickered, showing error messages before returning to normal again.

Recently, those errors had become far more frequent, to the point that he had almost grown used to living without the system.

That realization irritated him.

After living without the system for some time, his confidence had begun to waver. He had long relied on it to make his life easier and to grow stronger. Now that something had clearly gone wrong, unease naturally crept into his heart.

The problem had started eight months ago.

At that time, he suddenly sensed a change within his system. It felt as though the connection with his system had weakened, as if something was interfering with it. Since then, many of its functions had become unusable.

For example, he could no longer use the system to view information about other beings. No matter whose information he tried to access, the screen would show nothing.

Even the system’s spatial storage, which he had relied on countless times in the past, had become inaccessible. Several other functions had also been affected.

He had never experienced anything like this before, which left him deeply unsettled.

He had reached his current position because of the system’s power.

Without it, everything felt uncertain. The sudden disturbance made him question what had truly happened.

Could something have happened to his god?

That was the only conclusion he could arrive at.

After all, the system was directly connected to his god, Arvegis.

There was another reason that led him to that conclusion.

He had noticed a change within his family. To be precise, anyone who cultivated using the cultivation method provided by the system had grown weaker. The power output of their cultivation had declined compared to the past.

All members of the Valroy family reported the same issue. They felt a weakness in their bodies, and controlling heaven and earth energy had become more difficult. It was as if that energy had grown heavier for some unknown reason.

Because of this, many cultivators in the Valroy family had lost various opportunities in their cultivation journey. Some failed to achieve breakthroughs and some had even lost their lives because of it. And some failed to obtain treasures due to their reduced strength.

The sudden changes within their bodies left the family members restless. The family’s overall strength had declined, making them far more vulnerable to pressure from those with ill intentions.

Rumors about their condition had also begun to spread, circulating through casual conversations among the populace.

People spoke of the Valroy family falling into misfortune, especially after the deaths of several elders and talented cultivators. With those losses, the family had entered a dark period, becoming weaker than they had been in many years despite once standing at the peak.

Randolf was still trying to uncover the cause, or at the very least, establish contact with his god. However, all he received was an unresponsive system filled with errors.

’Dammit... I still can’t do anything. What the hell happened to god Arvegis?’

He tried to command the system as he had done countless times in the past, but the screen blurred before displaying another error message. It returned to normal for a few seconds, only to distort again.

While he was still trying to force the system to respond, his father entered the room with hurried steps. He walked over and sat across from him, his expression filled with irritation.

"We lost another elder because of cultivation deviation," he said, his tone clearly showing his anger.

"I’ve decided to issue an order to halt cultivation for all family members for now. Until we understand the cause behind this abnormality in our cultivation techniques, it is safer to stop."

He had become more expressive with his negative emotions lately, something that had rarely been seen in the past. The calm patriarch who always appeared in control no longer seemed the same.

Patriarch Elliot had been under increasing pressure recently due to the deaths of several powerful elders and promising younger cultivators. The Valroy family’s position was already on the verge of slipping in the power hierarchy of Akares Star.

"Is our god still not responding to your call?" Patriarch Elliot asked.

Randolf sighed and shook his head.

"No. There’s still no response. I’ve tried repeatedly, but there hasn’t been any reaction at all."

Patriarch Elliot gritted his teeth before letting out a long breath.

"If we don’t find the cause of this problem, I’m afraid our family will soon be overtaken by the other three great families. They will certainly take advantage of our weakness. In fact, I believe they are already planning something to push us further down."

Randolf closed the system screen, which was still flickering with errors, and let out a quiet sigh.

"I will find a way to deal with this, Father. At worst, I will visit Aldrian the Great if he comes out of seclusion. Although I would rather avoid it, he might know something about this matter."

Hearing that, Patriarch Elliot frowned even deeper.

"Aldrian the Great? Why bring him into our problem? It would not be wise to involve an outsider in this. Moreover, he is far too dangerous for our family’s interests. In our current weakened state, that danger would only grow."

"That would only be a last resort, Father. As for why I chose him..." Randolf paused briefly. "I have never told you this before, but he most likely shares the same situation as me. He is also blessed by a god, though not the same one."

Randolf’s words made Patriarch Elliot’s eyes widen in surprise.

"He also has a god supporting him..." His eyes narrowed as realization dawned on him, and he slowly nodded. "I see. That explains why he is so powerful... why he can do things beyond what others consider possible."

Randolf nodded. "I suspect his seclusion is related to this situation. I want to confirm whether he is experiencing the same issue as us. If he is, then we can conclude that something has happened to both of our gods. I also want to see if he has found any way to resolve it."

A faint smile then appeared on his face.

"If I confirm that he is facing the same problem, then wouldn’t that mean our chance has finally come? Aldrian the Great has been a threat to our interests for years. If he has lost his power, there will be no better opportunity than this."

The frown on Patriarch Elliot’s face eased slightly, and a faint smile appeared as well.

"I see... although we are in a difficult situation, it is not entirely bad. If Aldrian the Great has lost his strength, we can use various methods to bring him down. Even if we are weakened, we are still a major family with extensive connections and influence."

Randolf nodded. "But as I said, that is only my last resort. I don’t know his true situation, so I must be cautious if I decide to meet him. If he is not as I suspect, then that would be the worst outcome. I might die at his hands, and our family’s survival could be placed in danger."

Patriarch Elliot nodded before standing up.

"Alright. You continue searching for a way to resolve this problem. I will hold those great families at bay." His expression turned serious. "You must act quickly, Randolf. Our family’s fate is drawing closer to the edge of destruction."

Randolf nodded. "I will, Father."

Patriarch Elliot then left the room.

Left alone, Randolf let out a heavy sigh and then his frown deepened. He clicked his tongue and opened the system screen once more. The same error message appeared, flickering before briefly returning to normal, only to distort again moments later.

’Dammit!’

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In the central region of Heaven, the space surrounding the poisonous nebula was heavily guarded by patrolling devils.

They maintained a strict watch while searching for a way to enter it. Until they found a method to enter the region, they would ensure it remained completely sealed.

Several immortals were also stationed there. With the absence of the four overlords, it was ultimately decided that the strongest among the devils would take the role of leader.

That position naturally fell to one of the immortals.

At first, there had been resistance from many devils native to the First Heaven, as they were not aware of the existence of immortals.

However, the moment they witnessed the immortals’ power, all opposition vanished. They willingly accepted one of them as their leader.

One immortal stood above the rest. His cultivation had reached Immortal Warrior stage.

A man with long brown hair and a youthful appearance stood in the space, dressed in a white robe as he gazed toward the nebula. His cultivation at Immortal Warrior stage could be clearly sensed by anyone present, establishing him as the absolute ruler of the devils in the first heaven.

Another immortal floated beside him. He, too, stared in the direction of the nebula as he spoke.

"How long do we have to keep waiting? It has already been two years. I don’t think he is still in this region anymore... or perhaps he is already dead?"