In the Shadow Void Land:
After calling nearly all the Absolutes, almost a thousand came to meet Maximus.
From around a hundred, the number of Absolutes in the Aeon Plane had grown to nearly a thousand over the past millions of years.
Seeing this change, the old powerhouses couldn't help but sigh.
It seemed that instead of regressing under the pressure of the Dark Disaster, the Aeon Plane was growing stronger and stronger.
Turning toward the man before them, they suddenly realized something.
Behind all these improvements wasn't the Overlords—it was this man, the one quietly guiding everything into place.
Starting from the Dimensional Alliance, Maximus led the top families and organizations toward change.
Armed with seemingly endless wealth and knowledge, they began to surpass the Devourer Factions in strength.
But as the Dark Disaster became increasingly dangerous, and as his influence shone like a sun that couldn't be hidden, every powerhouse began to unconsciously follow his lead.
When some tried to unite against what they saw as the tyranny of his influence, he bared his fangs and fought them without fear.
Unable to stop him, their ties to him only deepened until the connection became inseparable.
Now, relying on the Void Outpost and the Shadow Void Land to defend against the waves of dark beasts, it could be said that without him, they would be nothing more than helpless lambs.
As time passed, they became stronger, more numerous, and more united.
Instead of fearing the Dark Disaster's arrival, they began to feel excitement.
Excitement to show their strength, excitement to earn more resources, and hope to advance to a higher rank.
At first, they worried about Maximus ruling over them.
But in truth, they had long since started following his will without even realizing it.
Soon, without Maximus saying a word, one by one, the Absolutes began to kneel, pledging their loyalty.
"We hereby greet the future ruler of the Aeon Plane."
"We hereby greet the future ruler of the Aeon Plane."
"We hereby greet the future ruler of the Aeon Plane!"
Declaring solemnly, they looked at Maximus with reverence.
Now, no matter what he ordered, they didn't hesitate, believing he could lead them to a greater path.
So what if the Overlords stood against him?
They had managed to fend off thousands of Tier 12 dark beasts and even a shadow of an Archon of Darkness, how could a mere Overlord be any different?
Filled with confidence, they looked toward Maximus as if ready to march through the harshest terrain and swim through eternal fire.
"It seems all of you have decided…" Maximus muttered with a smile.
Merging their path and source of law with the Source of Knowledge was no different than handing over the keys to their life and death.
With a thought, he could strip them of all their power and erase them from existence.
And yet, knowing this, knowing they couldn't stop his momentum, they could only choose sides and kneel to their new sovereign.
"Since you trust me so much, I will not disappoint you. During this time, even if you hadn't merged your path of law with the Source of Knowledge, I would still provide you the plane origin you deserve." Maximus promised with a smile.
Hearing his words, they were ecstatic.
Receiving their payment ahead of schedule was an enormous favor.
Instead of waiting millions or possibly billions of years, they could get plane origin in advance.
Receiving the plane origin in advance, reaching the Overlord Realm within the next tens of millions of years became a certainty.
"We thank the ruler for his generosity!" they said quickly, afraid Maximus might take back his words.
"No need to worry. I always keep my word. To ease your minds, I'll give you, in advance, the million Plane Origin you'd receive over the coming ten thousand years."
"Thank you, ruler! Your generosity is as boundless as the void!"
"Thank you, ruler! May your power truly reach Eternity!"
"Thank you, ruler! May your grace bless every being!"
"What a bunch of flatterers," Maximus nearly laughed, hearing them say such things.
They were Absolute powerhouses, for heaven's sake, how could they flatter like low-level mortals?
Calculating their number, giving each of them a million wouldn't even reach a billion units of plane origin.
Compared to the tens of trillions his family was spending, this wasn't even pocket change.
Soon, after receiving the million units of plane origin, they could no longer hold back their excitement, as smiles bloomed across their faces.
Celebrating with joy, they turned their attention to Maximus as he took out a unique device.
"This is the Ultimate Ether Device. You'll be using it to merge your path and source of law. Because there's only one for now, just study how it works. In time, each of you will receive your own to begin integration."
"We'll gladly follow your orders, Ruler!"
"Alright, come take the device. I'm waiting for your good news…"
After dealing with the Absolutes, Maximus quickly headed to the space-time lab with the four spirit goddesses.
"Where are we going, Master?" Tintin, the Astral Goddess, asked excitedly.
It was their first time leaving the Etherium Realm in a long while.
"I'm bringing you to a teacher."
"A teacher? What are we going to learn, Master?"
"Everything. I want you to learn everything she knows and surpass her."
"Everything? Can we really do that?" they asked, uncertain.
As spirits, their growth had always depended on external factors and devices. Without those, they were nearly powerless.
"No need to worry. I'll be giving each of you a billion units of plane origin. And once you get the Ultimate Ether Device, you can use it as your external bodies."
"A billion units of plane origin? The Ultimate Ether Device as external bodies?"
Hearing their master's words, the four spirit goddesses breathed a sigh of relief.
It seemed their master had already planned everything; they just needed to do their best and live up to his expectations.