Chapter Fifty-Five: The Three Commandments

Because he had recruited Lix, contributing a thousand units of void energy to Harvey, this amount was clearly far from substantial. However, as long as Lix could inspire more of his kin to believe in the Void, the goal of one hundred million void energy would draw much closer.

“You have received my blessing and joined the Void. Therefore, you must remember three rules,” Harvey declared.

“First: After receiving my gift, you may devour any energy-bearing substance to evolve and gain greater power, but you must never consume living creatures whole.”

“Second: If, relying on your growing strength, you incite conflict or cause some deaths, I will not interfere. But under no circumstances may you prey upon your own kind.”

“Third: Always maintain your reason. Do not allow desire to cloud your mind and turn you into a mindless monster. Should you become such a creature, I shall descend personally to execute you.”

“Fourth: The great Void grants all beings the opportunity for faith.”

Harvey spoke, watching as Lix regarded him with awe.

“Esteemed Void God, Lord Kassadin, I will take your teachings to heart and establish them as the lifelong commandments of the temple,” Lix replied solemnly, nodding with utmost seriousness.

He had witnessed Lord Kassadin’s true form—vast as a galaxy, terrifying and boundless—fully aware of this deity’s immense power. Moreover, the blessing Kassadin had bestowed upon him was nothing short of miraculous. At over two hundred years old, Lix was already nearing the end of his life for a Mogri, and even if free from major ailments, in another two or three decades he would succumb to age. His body had long since faded from its former strength.

But now, his hair had turned half-red, half-white, making him look at least thirty or forty years younger. And as long as he consumed food, he could gain ever-greater strength—an unimaginable prospect.

“Very well. I look forward to your future performance,” Harvey said. “As long as your kin are devout and believe in the Void, I shall grant them blessings too, and allow them to join the great Void together.”

“Understood!” Lix was overjoyed by this promise and nodded eagerly.

Meanwhile, the others finished cooking the Desert Calamity, and together they hauled the meal onto large slabs of stone.

“Lord Kassadin, your meal is ready,” Lix announced respectfully, feeling hunger gnawing at his belly as the food arrived. He swallowed hard, but managed to restrain his desire to eat.

Harvey removed his mask, his face veiled in golden light so that no one could see his features.

“Lord Kassadin, please enjoy your meal. Permit me to take my leave for a moment,” Lix requested respectfully upon seeing this.

Harvey waved his hand, and Lix immediately departed for home. He needed to find something to eat himself—if he let his hunger drive him to irrational actions, he might suffer divine punishment.

The shell of the Desert Calamity was exceptionally hard, and the taste was much like pork. Perhaps due to this planet’s gravity being twice that of Blue Star, the meat was especially firm and dense.

Without good teeth, it would not be easy to chew such a thing. Each large chunk Harvey ate granted him fifty thousand evolution points; the Desert Calamity was divided into thirty-four sections, and finishing it would allow him to evolve once more.

Were it not for the need to leave the creature’s head as proof, he might have eaten the several-meter-wide head as well. But the king of the Mogri surely needed the Desert Calamity’s head to pacify the people.

Wishing to leave a good impression with the planet’s king, and to better establish his temple here, Harvey decided not to contest this.

After all, this was not the only powerful creature in the universe; there was no need to be impatient.

The people of Mogri Star saw that the hundred-meter-long Desert Calamity was devoured entirely by this god of the void in just over two hours. None were terrified—only awestruck.

When Harvey finished eating, his evolution points reached 2.17 million. He did not choose to evolve immediately, preferring to wait until he had completed this mission and found a place to settle.

At that moment, the roar of jet engines echoed through the area.

Thirty tan-colored fighter jets formed a circle around a massive battleship, descending from the heavens and coming to a precise halt outside the town.

As the battleship’s hatch opened, a red figure—bare-chested, two meters and eighty centimeters tall, exuding explosive power—emerged.

At his appearance, Lix dropped to one knee; seeing this, the rest of the townsfolk did the same.

The red figure pushed off the ground, leaping over a hundred meters in just a dozen bounds, landing within a hundred meters of Harvey.

He saw that only Harvey, dressed in unfamiliar garb and not kneeling, stood apart. He also noticed, ten meters from Harvey, the nearly six-meter-wide head of the sand-shelled scorpion.

“I am Aub Mogri, king of Mogri Star,” the man declared. “You must be the hero who has dealt with the Desert Calamity.”

He approached Harvey, smiling as he extended a hand in greeting.

“My name is Kassadin, from the Void,” Harvey replied, introducing himself. “You’ve brought the reward for dealing with the Desert Calamity, I presume?”

“Of course. You have solved a problem that has plagued my people for over twenty years; your reward will not be lacking,” Aub Mogri replied, signaling to the men behind him.

One of his men, receiving the signal, whistled. Several strong men emerged from the battleship, carrying five enormous chests.

“Kassadin, your strength in defeating the Desert Calamity is the greatest I’ve ever seen. I hope we can build a friendship,” Aub Mogri said, extending his hand. “If we face other creatures we cannot overcome, I’d like to work with you—and of course, you will be paid accordingly. Might I have your cosmic contact information?”

He knew it was impossible to recruit this alien directly, but establishing a friendship and being able to request help in exchange for payment in the future was already an excellent start.

“I don’t have any cosmic contact information,” Harvey replied. “But I will visit Mogri Star again.”

In truth, this was the beginning of his designated mission and he was willing to exchange contact, but he didn’t even have a universal translator, let alone a cosmic contact code or interstellar bank account.

“In that case, should you visit again, please be sure to come see our capital, Shalin,” Aub Mogri replied, a bit surprised, but understanding that Kassadin intended to take his reward and leave. Knowing there was no point in trying to force the issue, he simply offered a friendly invitation.

“I certainly will.” Harvey shook Aub Mogri’s hand.

Then, with a single step, Harvey crossed several hundred meters to stand before the five chests. He reached out to touch them, and in the next instant, vanished from the sight of all those on Mogri Star.

Witnessing this miraculous, teleportation-like ability, Aub Mogri was inwardly shaken. He turned to Lix.

“Lix, you look younger,” Aub Mogri observed, his eyes flashing as he noticed Lix’s hair had become half-red, half-white. “Tell me about this Kassadin.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Lix replied, rising to his feet. “While you were on your way, I established a relationship of faith and protection with Lord Kassadin, the Void God, and received his blessing…”

“A foreign god, and just sincere faith is enough to receive his blessing…” Aub Mogri mused. “Lix, you are Mogri Star’s only Void believer. I permit you to build a temple in his honor and see how things go. I’ll allocate the funds upon my return—I look forward to your performance.”

Having learned what had occurred, Aub Mogri gazed at the spot where Harvey had vanished and considered his next move.

Miracles had not graced Mogri Star for a long time, and now a foreign god had appeared. If faith could truly bring blessings, this might be an opportunity for his people.

But first, he would continue to observe Lix’s situation. If, after half a year or even a full year, Lix’s body showed no uncontrollable changes or side effects, he would have no qualms about building more temples to Kassadin, the Void God, himself.