MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

In a distant location, a newborn lay silently in a cradle, his gaze fixed upon the ceiling.

Though not a single sound escaped his lips, his wide, unblinking eyes held an eerie awareness far beyond his tender age.

Within the infant's mind, thoughts swirled, vast and intricate, filled with imaginings no mere week old child should possess.

Thoughts beyond his age played out in his mind, defying the very nature of infancy.

Then, without warning, his musings were shattered.

A figure materialized from the void, its sudden presence jolting the baby from his thoughts, a shock rippling through his tiny frame.

The figure appeared utterly drained, his breath ragged, his posture unsteady.

With a weary motion, he channeled mana into his ring, summoning a vial of mana and stamina potion.

Without pause, he uncorked the bottles and drank deeply, his exhaustion momentarily abating.

This man was Aaaninja.

His gaze fell upon the infant before him, his expression devoid of hesitation.

Without a moment's delay, he raised his sword high, its gleaming edge poised for a single, decisive strike.

The baby remained motionless, its wide eyes reflecting the descending blade.

There was no cry, no resistance, only silent awareness as death approached.

But just as the sword was about to meet its mark, a katana flashed into place.

With a sharp clang, the two blades collided, the force of impact reverberating through the air.

Before Aaaninja could react, before he could utter a single word, Anthony's voice rang out with quiet authority.

[Mirror Dimension]

At first, nothing seemed to change.

Space itself did not tremble, nor did the air ripple with energy.

The very fabric of reality remained eerily undisturbed.

And yet, something had shifted.

A new dimension layered itself seamlessly over the existing world, encasing both Aaaninja and Anthony within its grasp.

Though their surroundings appeared unchanged, an undeniable sensation of detachment settled upon them, as if they now stood outside reality itself.

This ability was born from Anthony's false enlightenment during his journey to the Starborn Tournament, a ridiculous formidable power.

Mirror Dimension was not merely an illusion but a distinct plane of existence, seamlessly layered over reality.

It perfectly replicated the world down to its finest detail, yet it remained entirely severed from it, untouched and undetected.

Within this dimension, Anthony wielded absolute control, shaping the space to his will.

Most significantly, it granted him an unparalleled advantage, allowing him to observe the real world in real time, no matter his location, without leaving a trace of his presence.

As Anthony and Aaaninja vanished into the Mirror Dimension, an overwhelming presence descended from above, a force so immense that the very air seemed to tremble in submission.

Then, with a thunderous boom, the building was reduced to shreds.

A shockwave erupted outward, sending dust surging in every direction while debris soared skyward.

The remnants of the structure barely had time to settle before elemental energies flared violently, flickering and crackling as an oppressive bloodlust engulfed the estate.

Mitchelle Crimson had arrived.

Though the infant now rested safely in her arms, she paid it no heed.

Her thoughts moved with blinding speed, unraveling the situation in an instant.

But reason could not temper the storm within her.

Her fury swelled, raw and unrelenting.

Her piercing gaze swept across the ruined estate, searching, demanding, her very presence escalating with every passing moment, a silent promise of devastation to come.@@novelbin@@

Every soul within the Null Estate crumbled beneath the sheer weight of Mitchelle's aura.

Servants, guards, and even high-ranking figures collapsed to their knees, their bodies trembling, their very existence suffocated by the unfathomable pressure.

Her voice, laced with unmistakable killing intent, cut through the air like a blade.

"How dare someone make a move against my child?"

The estate itself seemed to shudder under her words, the lingering traces of elemental energy around her flaring erratically.

Her crimson eyes burned with fury as she scanned the surroundings, her mind racing.

"Is it the other families… or the Forsaken Cult?"

She had felt it, the subtlest shift in space, so delicate, so imperceptible that it should have been impossible to detect.

She hadn't sensed an arrival, but she had felt the moment something vanished.

Meanwhile, the infant Anthony, still cradled in her arms, could only curse inwardly.

His thoughts seethed with frustration.

'What kind of world did ??? send me to?! I haven't even been here a month, and I already almost died! Fuckkkk!!!!!'

"Investigate. I want an answer by the end of the day, do whatever is necessary"

Mitchelle's voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable finality, a command that brooked no defiance.

She spoke to what seemed like empty space, yet not a single voice responded.

There was no acknowledgment, no whisper of movement.

And yet, she knew her words had been received.

Without another moment's pause, she vanished in a flash, leaving behind only the shattered remains of the estate.

____________

Within the Mirror Dimension the atmosphere was thick with tension.

Aaaninja stood frozen, his gaze locked onto Anthony as if staring at something utterly impossible.

"Ho... How are you here?"

His voice wavered, disbelief etched across his face.

This was beyond anything he had anticipated.

Anthony, however, remained composed.

His reply was simple, almost casual, yet it carried a weight that made Aaaninja's breath hitch.

"If you can travel back in time, why can't I?"

Aaaninja's mind reeled.

Words failed him.

For the first time in his life, he was left utterly speechless.

The Eyes Of Genesis granted Aaaninja an ability beyond comprehension, the power to traverse time itself.

Unlike traditional time magic, which devoured vast amounts of mana, this ability required no mana whatsoever.

Instead, it allowed him to return to any moment in the past, remain there indefinitely, and return to the present at will.

However, such a gift came at an unforgiving cost.

The Eyes Of Genesis did not consume mana, but something far more precious, vitality.

For every year Aaaninja traveled into the past, the Eyes of Genesis would shave off an equivalent number of years from his lifespan.

To relive a moment from twenty years ago meant sacrificing twenty years of his own life, a price that even the strongest beings would hesitate to pay.

Aaaninja had given this terrifying power a name, [Chronoportation]

Anthony did not speak of morality, nor did he lecture Aaaninja on codes of honor or the ethics of manipulating time to kill an infant version of his enemy.

There was no need.

In this world, power dictated everything.

The mindset of the strong here was utterly different from the ideals of his former world.

Victory was all that mattered.

Anthony had already suspected that Aaaninja had vanished from their current timeline, but suspicion alone was not enough.

He needed certainty.

That was why he had activated the Authority of Information, to confirm what he already believed to be true.

As for how Anthony had traveled through time?

It was simple.

The system had helped him.

At first, Anthony had considered using the System Shop to purchase a one time time travel scroll.

However, the moment he saw the price, he realized just how absurdly difficult time travel was.

Even rewinding a single second required an astronomical amount of points, far beyond what he currently possessed.

Time was no small feat to manipulate.

Left with no other option, Anthony had turned to the system itself.

'OP System, take us back'

A brief silence followed before the system responded.

[Ding… Affirmative, Host]

And with that, reality warped.

Anthony and Aaaninja vanished from the Mirror Dimension, their presence erased in an instant.

The Mirror Dimension itself unraveled, dissolving into nothingness, as if it had never existed.

As they reappeared on the barren planet, it was as if time itself had not moved.

The desolate landscape remained unchanged, silent, still, and indifferent to the battle that had just unfolded.

Aaaninja stood motionless for a moment, lost in thought.

His mind replayed everything, every clash, every decision, every moment where he had been pushed beyond his limits. Explore hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

Then, slowly, his gaze lifted to Anthony.

"I have been searching for someone to push me to my absolute limit… and I'm glad you were the one to do it. All I can say is, thank you"

His voice carried no bitterness, no resentment, only acceptance.

Anthony met his words with a simple nod.

There was nothing to say.

The battle had already spoken for itself.

Aaaninja's eyelids grew heavy as exhaustion took hold.

Yet, despite his loss, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

"It's my loss"

With that, Anthony turned away, offering no further words.

His victory was already sealed, and there was nothing more to do here.

Without hesitation, he shot upwards, soaring into the vast sky, leaving Aaaninja behind.

The Overseer, observing Aaaninja's stillness, assumed the worst, that he simply could not accept his loss.

After all, a Celestial, a being of higher existence, had been defeated by a mere human.

It was an unprecedented event, one that shattered expectations and defied reason.

Yet, before the Overseer could take a step forward, a blinding golden light descended from above.

A deep, serene humming echoed across the barren world, reverberating through space itself.

The galaxy's will made itself known.

The very fabric of reality shimmered as the world was bathed in an ethereal golden glow.

The radiant light engulfed Aaaninja, lifting his body into the air.

His expression remained calm, his eyes vacant, as if he had transcended into a higher state of being.

The spectators could do nothing but watch in shock.

Disbelief, awe, and jealousy filled their hearts.

For they knew what they were witnessing.

True Enlightenment.

A blessing bestowed by the galaxy itself, a phenomenon so rare that even the strongest beings could only dream of attaining it.