Divine Mask: I Have Numerous God Clones

The elders, along with Velkar Malachor, fought furiously as wave after wave of Abyss Beasts and grotesque humanoid monsters poured out from the gate. The battlefield was a chaotic symphony of clashing steel, the crackling of spells, and the thick stench of blood.

The oppressive Abyss Mana swirled around them like a storm, dark and dense, birthing even more twisted creatures from the depths of the Abyss Hole.

Velkar moved with the precision and lethal efficiency of an eight-star cultivator, his face a mask of fury tempered by cold calculation.

His blade tore through the Abyss Beasts, each swing sharp and deliberate, leaving a trail of carnage in his wake.

But behind his composed exterior, his mind was in turmoil, thoughts consumed by a gnawing fear for his son, Vesperin. The last he knew, his son had ventured into the Abyss Hole, but now with the unexpected surge of power from the gate, something was wrong.

Elder Feris, who was battling nearby, glanced at Velkar, his voice strained as he deflected an incoming monster. "Velkar! Focus! You're too distracted!"

Velkar's gaze snapped back to the battle, his face tightening. "I'm focused," he muttered, though his heart pounded with a different fear. Vesperin's face flashed before his eyes, and with each passing moment, the dread grew deeper.

Suddenly, a massive humanoid Abyss Monster lumbered out of the swirling darkness, its grotesque form towering above the other beasts.

Its misshapen body radiated with a corrupt, violent energy, and its eyes glowed with malevolent hunger. The monster let out a deep, bone-chilling roar, shaking the ground beneath its feet, before charging directly at Velkar.

"Leader Velkar!" one of the younger disciples shouted in warning, but Velkar didn't need it. His instincts kicked in, his body reacting with the speed of a seasoned warrior.

With a single, fluid motion, Velkar unsheathed his blade, and in a devastating arc, he cleaved through the massive creature with a strike so swift it barely had time to register.

The Abyss Monster's body convulsed before collapsing to the ground, blood pouring from its gaping wound, lifeless and crumpled at Velkar's feet.

Panting slightly, Velkar lowered his weapon, his breathing controlled but heavy. His eyes, however, were sharp and focused as he surveyed the corpse. Something about the creature seemed off—familiar, even.

And then he saw it.

Hanging from the monster's torn belt was a spatial pouch. The sight of it made Velkar's heart skip a beat. His normally steady hands trembled as his brows furrowed in suspicion. Slowly, he crouched down, reaching for the pouch as dread began to claw at his chest.

"Please… no," Velkar muttered under his breath, his voice a mixture of disbelief and denial.

With trembling fingers, he pulled the pouch free, his eyes narrowing on the emblem engraved on its surface. The insignia was unmistakable—the Malachor Clan's crest. His mind raced as he hastily opened the pouch, hoping against hope that he was wrong. But as his fingers grazed the cold metal of an identification card, he knew he wasn't.

He pulled it out and stared at the name engraved on it: Vesperin Malachor.

A cold wave of horror washed over him.

"No…" Velkar whispered, his voice cracking with disbelief. He clutched the card tighter, his knuckles turning white as he looked back at the grotesque creature lying lifeless at his feet. "It can't be… not my son…"

His voice trembled as he repeated the words, almost as if saying them aloud would make them untrue. But the evidence was there—his son had become this… thing.

Elder Feris, who had been fighting nearby, noticed Velkar's sudden stillness and called out, "Velkar! What's going on?" His voice was urgent, but Velkar didn't respond. His entire focus was on the creature.

Gritting his teeth, Velkar forced himself to examine the Abyss Monster more closely. As he knelt beside it, his sharp eyes caught something strange—wounds on the creature's body. But these weren't from his attack. The cuts and burns seemed different, unfamiliar.

Velkar placed his hand over the injuries, his brow furrowing in concentration. A faint but unmistakable energy pulsed beneath his fingers.

His breath caught in his throat as he recognized it—a lingering trace of thunder energy. But this wasn't ordinary thunder. It had a certain purity to it, something that stood out starkly against the darkness and corruption of the Abyss Mana surrounding them.

His eyes widened in sudden realization, his expression contorting from shock to pure rage. "This… this isn't Abyss thunder," he growled through clenched teeth. His voice was low, almost trembling with fury. "This is righteous side's thunder."

The realization hit him like a lightning bolt. His mind raced, piecing together the puzzle. There was only one person he knew who could wield such thunder with that kind of power—one person whose interference had caused him endless grief in the past.

"Zeus…" Velkar spat the name like venom, his fists clenching so tightly that his nails bit into his palms.

His face twisted in fury as the pieces fell into place—the surge in Abyss Mana, the chaos, and now the unmistakable presence of Zeus' energy. It all pointed to one thing: Zeus had been here. Zeus had a hand in this catastrophe.

"Leader Velkar!" Feris called again, noticing the shift in Velkar's demeanor. "What is it? What did you find?"

Velkar stood slowly, his body trembling with barely contained rage. His eyes burned with a vengeful fire as he stared at the remains of the creature that had once been his son. "This… this is Zeus' work."

Feris stepped closer, alarmed. "Zeus? The Celestial Academy disciple?"

"Yes," Velkar growled, his voice thick with malice. "Months ago, he humiliated my son, and now he's come back for more. He's the reason this is happening! He's behind the chaos in the Abyss Hole!"

Feris' eyes widened in shock. "Zeus? But how could he…?"

Velkar's fury boiled over, cutting off Feris. "It doesn't matter how! What matters is that he's going to pay for this. He destroyed my son, and now he thinks he can ruin the Abyss Hole?!" Velkar's voice was a dangerous growl, his entire body trembling with wrath. His eyes narrowed, dark and murderous. "I'll find him.

And when I do, I'll make him suffer."

The air around Velkar seemed to crackle with intensity, his powerful aura expanding as his anger fueled him.

He glanced once more at the card with his son's name on it, a reminder of the destruction Zeus had brought upon his family. His fists clenched tighter, and with a roar of pure rage, he slammed his foot into the ground, shattering the stone beneath him.