Max straightened, his crimson aura flickering faintly. His tone was cautious, but steady. "What is it?"
If it was anything about shackling him again, about forcing him into a cage, he would refuse outright—even if the one asking was the leader of the Phoenix God Nation, one of the strongest beings in existence.
Aden’s eyes sharpened slightly. "I want you to enter the Heavenly Lord Secret Domain."
Max blinked once. Then, after a mont, he exhaled and shrugged, his crimson wings spreading lightly. "That, I’m planning to do anyway." His voice carried no hesitation, only steel. "But hear clearly. Do not place prohibitions on . Do not dictate where I go in the Middle Domain. I despise being controlled—especially by those I put my trust in. If I am to trust you, I’ll need more than just your words."
The air grew tense.
Lady Divine’s expression darkened imdiately, her eyes narrowing at Max’s words. She said nothing yet, but the heaviness of her silence pressed against the skies like a storm brewing on the horizon.
"What do you want? Ask anything." Aden’s deep voice carried confidence, his lips curving into a smile that was both warm and calculating. His tone was steady, but the faint glint in his eyes betrayed a thought lurking behind his words.
Max caught it imdiately. His crimson gaze flickered with cold amusent, though his face betrayed nothing. ’Damn this old man is cunning. He thinks he can win over by dangling trust, while also paving the path to make his son-in-law?’ His crimson aura stirred faintly, his thoughts dripping with sarcasm. ’Too naïve, old man. Far too naïve.’
It was true—Max did want Alice. He wanted her with a longing that even the infernal flas burning within him could not smother. But now was not the ti. How could he care about love, about peace, when demons were slaughtering his people, when nulls were waging endless war, when ascendants were pulling strings from the shadows? His heart had no room for tenderness.
Right now, his heart wanted only slaughter.
And the more he indulged in that desire, the more his infernal energy form seed to grow. It was as if his rage, his will to kill, was feeding the flas inside him. He feared what Alice might see if she looked at him now—this version of him, soaked in bloodlust and vengeance. She deserved better than that.
His crimson eyes hardened as he looked directly at Aden. "I want to enter the Celestial Beast Temple," he said firmly. His tone was steady, unyielding, his wings flaring behind him. "If you can get inside that place, then I will enter the Heavenly Lord Secret Domain for sure. Otherwise..." He paused, his eyes narrowing, "forget about it."
The words hit the gathered leaders like a thunderclap.
"Celestial Beast Temple?" Gasps rippled among them. Shock and unease painted their faces. This was not the demand they expected. They had thought Max would ask for freedom from restrictions, perhaps even recognition of his authority. But this—this was sothing else entirely.
Confusion swirled in the air, but more than that—disturbance. For all the leaders present, the Celestial Beast Temple was not just another place. It was a domain tied to ancient secrets, to Mark’s fractured soul, to forces better left untouched.
The tension thickened, and then President William stepped forward, his aged face grim, his tone sharp but edged with worry. "Tell sothing first, Max." His eyes narrowed as they swept over the boy’s figure. "Why are you releasing so much infernal energy? Don’t you know what this ans? This energy is the source of power for the nulls. The very force they use to devour worlds."
The other elders and leaders nodded subtly, their expressions tightening. It was a question hanging over all of them since Max appeared, wrapped in an aura that scread of destruction.
Max’s lips curled into a cold, mocking smile. He tilted his head slightly, his crimson hair catching the faint starlight. "Now you ask this question?" His voice dripped with scorn, every word laced with venom.
Although Max respected President William for his work in leading the Hunter Association, he could not forgive the man for being one of those who tried to cage him, to lock away his will beneath pretty words of "safety."
"I thought it was better that you all never asked about my new look," Max sneered. His crimson eyes glowed brighter, his infernal energy flaring like wildfire around him, suffocating the air. "So I let it be. But since you ask now—" His voice lowered, sharp and cutting. "Don’t act like you care about the reason. You don’t care about . You care about what I might beco. About whether I’ll end up being sothing you can’t control."
The words struck deep, leaving silence hanging heavy in the air.
"Tell us what William asked," Aden said, his tone carrying both curiosity and weight. He, too, wanted to know the truth behind Max’s impossible strength—why this youth alone could wield infernal energy so freely.
Max’s crimson eyes narrowed as he turned toward Aden. "You don’t know?" His tone dripped with disbelief. "Strange. I would’ve thought you, of all people, would know. After all, Alice—and her mother—should also be able to control at least so wisps of infernal energy. You’ve heard of the Mourning Depths, haven’t you? And the infernal demon tattoo?"
He lifted his arm slightly, the faint outline of the ominous tattoo glowing through his skin. "That’s how I control it. Through the sa tattoo."
The air grew tense. The gathered figures exchanged subtle glances, their expressions shifting. Of course they knew of the Mourning Depths. Of course they knew of the cursed tattoo that occasionally surfaced in humanity’s history. But never—not once—had they seen anyone use it the way Max did.
For others, the tattoo was a curse, a shackle, a dangerous fla that could consu its bearer. For Max, it was sothing else entirely. He didn’t just suppress it—he commanded it, wielded infernal energy as if it were no different from his own mana.
And that... frightened them.
President William’s eyes lingered on Max the longest, his gaze sharp, suspicious. He could not shake the feeling gnawing in his chest—that the Max who now stood before them was not the sa boy who had once been heralded as humanity’s rising genius. There was a gulf between the two, sothing dark and unfathomable.
Max caught their expressions easily. His crimson eyes swept across the circle, reading the doubt, the unease, the fear. His lips curled into a bitter smile.
"What’s with those looks?" he asked, his voice sharp, carrying the faintest tremor of mockery. "Ah, I see. You all seem to have a trust problem. Let guess—you think that just because I can wield infernal energy like this, I must be an Ascendant, don’t you?"
The silence in the air was confirmation enough.
Max’s crimson aura flared, his wings spreading wider. His eyes glead, glowing with an eerie scarlet light. "If that’s the case... if you think I have anything to do with the Ascendants, then let save us all so ti. Forget this eting ever happened."
His tone hardened, each word edged with finality. "Because I won’t work alongside people who will stab in the back the mont I turn my head. If you fear just for what I am—then I’ll walk alone. It’s better that way."
The pressure of his aura pressed against them, crimson flas licking across the night sky. His voice cut through the silence like a blade.
"I am not your pawn. And I will not beg for your trust."
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