"Where am I?" Reign slowly stood up, gazing at the blue sky above. The last thing he remembered was the system telling him he was about to break pass the Demon God level.

    It was a painful experience, but nothing he couldn’t endure. Then, out of nowhere, his body exploded into pure energy, and he lost consciousness.

    ’My body!’ he exclaimed, quickly checking himself over. What had once been his powerful, intimidating form was still there, which made him sigh in relief. It was his favorite body.

    There were some minor changes, though. The metallic bone parts were fewer, making him look more like a person with a body made of pure dark red energy.

    Still, some parts of him remained solid. His neck, shoulders, and half of his arms were made of solid material, while his torso and stomach pulsed with energy that look like liquid magma.

    His legs were mostly energy too, but his feet and ankles were made of bones.

    He clenched his fist and immediately sensed the surge of power within him. He was far stronger than before.

    ’So the breakthrough was a success, but where the hell am I?’ He looked around and saw nothing but a vast forest, with mountains and rivers stretching out before him.

    At first, he thought he had been teleported to the same place where he met the divine beasts. But then a familiar sound reached his ears.

    He flew toward the source of the noise and eventually landed on a road.

    "Am I inside a tiered city?" he wondered.

    However, the sun felt too real for that. As he pondered, a car approached, and he quickly decided to hide, not wanting to draw attention before he fully understood what was happening.

    Once the vehicle passed, he noticed the license plate and was shock to see a familiar name.

    "New Canada"

    The name matched the country that existed in his home world.

    But it wasn’t just his appearance. The moment he unleashed his aura, the entire forest began to wither, the sky above him darkened, and the earth trembled, sending a wave of fear through the trio.

    "What’s happening... I thought Father was the only one capable of doing this?" Reya stuttered, her earlier confident demeanor replaced by pure fear.

    Their father had always told them that reaching godlike status meant the world itself would react violently whenever they released their power. It was because this place was never meant to handle such immense energy.

    That’s why the Evil Monarch found a way to seal his power in parts, to avoid accidentally destroying Earth.

    So far, none of his offspring had ever reached such a level. In fact, no being in this world had.

    But now, Reign, without even trying, was destroying the ecosystem around him just by releasing a small fraction of his power.

    With his intelligence, he quickly reached the same conclusion. This world couldn’t handle his presence, unlike the previous one.

    He slowly retracted his aura, and as he did, the destruction and decay gradually subsided.

    Next, he turned his gaze to the trio, waiting for their next move. But none of them had the courage to speak or even attempt to flee.

    ’What a disappointment,’ he sighed, thinking that his step-siblings had lived such a comfortable, spoiled life that even this small display of power had left them speechless. Compared to him, they were like ants.

    This was definitive proof that hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.

    Well, in his case, he was strong—but he would create hard times for others, not for himself.

    As he waited for the trio to compose themselves, he sensed a disruption in space.

    Suddenly, a middle-aged man appeared in the sky.

    "Father!" the trio called out in unison, their voices filled with surprise and relief.