Crule crawled out of the corpse of the Antlion feeling satisfied. It was the first time he had something to drink in what seemed like an eternity. His entire body was now covered in markings, each of them tells a tale of death.
“Who knew Antlion blood could taste so refreshing,” He said after wiping his mouth. To finally be able to take down such a beast too countless efforts. He had to die countless times to find any weakness on the creature. Then using his weakened and battered body, he had to set a trap. Eventually it all paid off as the Antlion was bisected in two by a piece of the stone stele that got picked up by the flowing sands. The piece of stone eventually reached extreme speeds and hit the awaiting Antlion square on the crack on its forehead. It penetrated its touch carapace and killed it immediately.
Finally, Crule’s thirst has been quenched. At the same time, he felt a new strength. It was as if the blood he drank granted him a new power. He felt inside his stomach, not only was it absorbing its usual nutrients but also energy. He felt the new refined energy travel through his parched body, slowly repairing itself.
“So this is what master mean by the true cultivation method.”
He was doing it all wrong from the start. He was not your normal cultivator on Noxia. They all absorb the energy permeated in the air, which came from the nodes of Chaos. Inside their body, it was refined into a purer version. Crule’s attribute meant he was a consumer. He’s not a plant that photosynthesis their own food. He was higher up in the food chain. He eats those who make their own food.
The Antlion was also like Crule. It only ate creatures that refined their own energy. As if sudden enlightenment had his him, Crule sat down in the corpse of the Antlion and reorganized his thoughts.
He realized who and what he was. All of the horsemen are antagonists of existence. They are not supposed to exist until apocalypse is imminent. The very existence of a horseman means mankind was doomed.
He was an Antagonist of the world. His prey was the creatures of the world. He will be their greatest enemy.
Crule though back on his life. His entire life was following the path of antagonism. From the very beginning, he had been a thorn at the side of humanity. He had been public enemy number 1, although not willingly.
Fate decided to make him an Antagonist, and thus he shall be one.
Crule smirked again for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.
“I guess it’s time for me to go Antagonize the other Antlions.”
______
The Sage looked up at the twin suns. He could feel something was wrong, but he just couldn’t pinpoint it. Normally when he gets this feeling, a glimpse into the future would occur and he would understand what was wrong. But this time, it didn’t manifest itself.
As a man of his power, he hated the unknown. It left him with great fears, though he never showed it to anyone. His mask of innocence must remain intact.
He already has control over two horsemen and the third one is sealed. Only one remained and that particular one doesn’t bother with the world of the living.
His plan will soon come into fruition. Oh just how long did he had to wait. The sweet savory flavor of power was so close to his fingertips.
He had seen real power, and now he wants it. He craves it. Because deep inside, he was afraid. Afraid of what’s out there, afraid of the unknown.
The older he gets, the more he wanted order. Chaos was his arch-nemesis and disorder his bane. Conformity was his agenda and everything will soon fall in place.
His tale was not one who went mad with power lust, but rather a tale of the fears of an old man. The Sage perhaps already realized this, perhaps he doesn’t. But with no one he could talk to anymore, it stayed bottled up inside him.
______
Crule finally finished off the final Antlion, this one with his bare hands. The task just got easier and easier as the refined energy flowed through his body, giving him herculean strength and stamina. Everything he touched now began to erode as if his hands were acidic. Perhaps it was due to inheriting the poisonous features of the Antlion.
“I could take in the ancestral traits of those I eat,” Crule smirked. “This is going to be more fun than I thought.”
Originally, having to start over made Crule frown. But after seeing how fun the true method of cultivation was, he couldn’t wait.
Finally, a black hole opened up in the skies above him. Crule looked up and saw the room where his master was. With energy gathered in his legs, he leaped and nearly flew. Like a missile, the shockwave blew away the sands near him as he shot upwards, into the black hole.
He landed in the room with kneeling. In front of him was a smiling woman in her throne. She was cold to the touch, not a single feeling of life remained.
Crule looked up in shock.
“M-master?”
“She gave it all to you,” The horseman of death walked out from behind the throne. “You bastard better treasure it well.”
Crule seemed to have understood what he meant. He kowtowed to his master and stayed there for as long as he could. Drops of blood flowed silently from his eyes as he cried.
Finally, the horseman of death made him leave. “Go, you have a task you have to accomplish. Don’t waste your master’s efforts. Go free your beloved ones from the old man’s control.”
Crule looked up and nodded. There was something he must do first. This memory treasure was now the resting place for his master. He had to respect it. He must pry it from the jaws of the offspring of Leviathan he followed.
Crule walked out of the tall tower and back into the bustling city. His body renewed, his black cloak once again covering him.
He soon was in the middle of a crowded street. Many people were avoiding him due to rank signified by his clothes.
Crule smirked and exploded forth with his energy. All the people around him immediately went insane with hunger and started to eat each other.
“They are just a memory anyways,” Crule smirked. Perhaps, this will lure the creature out.
And it indeed has. The offspring of Leviathan brought along the other Demigods with him after he sensed Crule’s energy.
“So you did follow me,” He said with a toothy grin. The golden teeth shined brightly on his upper jaw. “How foolish of you.”
Crule just smiled. He vanished and with blinding speeds, picked up the man by the neck. His eyes bulged out in both shock and from the force of Crule’s hand gripping his neck.
“You have something that belongs to me.”
Crule squeezed and the man turned back into a small sized serpent. Its neck snapped and the head separated with the body. Crule tossed the corpse aside and yank the golden teeth out of the severed head.
The other Demigods looked on with horror. The speed that Crule performed could not be seen by any of them. They considered themselves the peak of existence on the Ark. No one was stronger than they were. But this boy in front of them had just surpassed their limits by an enormous margin.
“W-who are you?” One Demigod finally asked.
“Me? I’m the Antagonist,” Crule said with a smirk as he activated the treasure and returned to Noxia.
