Cosmic Ruler - Chapter 495

Chapter 495: Fate XIV
Aiden soared through the Divine Realm, his golden aura crackling as he moved toward the colossal Arena of Ascension.

Even from a distance, he could feel the sheer power radiating from the structure. A massive coliseum of divine craftsmanship, suspended in the heavens by swirling celestial currents. Thousands of combatants, warriors, demigods, and newly ascended divine beings gathered at its gates.

All with the same goal.

To fight. To win.

To climb the Divine Ladder.

Alzrius had already disappeared, leaving Aiden to face this trial alone.

“Good. I work better that way.”

As he landed outside the arena, his presence immediately drew attention.

Hundreds of eyes turned toward him. Some filled with curiosity. Others with contempt.

To them, he was an outsider. A mere mortal who had somehow stepped into their realm.

And they did not like it.

“Look at him. Another fool thinking he can climb the ladder.”

“Wait… isn’t that the one who killed an Overseer?”

“Impossible. A mortal couldn’t have done that.”

Aiden ignored the murmurs. He had one goal.

He stepped toward the entrance, where a towering divine guardian stood, clad in silver armor. Its eyes burned with celestial fire as it regarded him.

“Name and reason for entry.”

Aiden smirked.

“Aiden. I’m here to win.”

The guardian stared at him for a long moment, as if scanning his very soul.

Then—

It stepped aside.

“Enter. And prepare for war.”

Aiden grinned.

He stepped through the gates of the Arena of Ascension.

And his first real battle in the Divine Realm began.

The moment Aiden stepped into the Arena of Ascension, he was met with a sight unlike anything he had seen before.

Thousands of divine warriors, each radiating immense power, filled the coliseum, standing in the massive battle pits below. The arena was structured like a tiered battlefield, where combatants fought their way up through different rings of battle.

Above, floating platforms held the strongest contenders, each waiting for their chance to challenge the Divine Ladder.

The energy in the air was thick, electric, suffocating.

This was a place where only the strongest survived.

A booming voice rang out across the coliseum.

“Welcome, challengers! You stand within the Arena of Ascension, where only the most worthy will claim the right to step onto the Divine Ladder!”

Aiden looked around, taking in the crowd. Some warriors wielded divine weapons, while others were surrounded by celestial flames or cosmic energy.

This wasn’t just a tournament.

It was a warzone.

And he had just walked straight into it.

The announcer’s voice thundered again.

“New challengers must prove their strength! The first test—

Survive the Grand Melee!”

Aiden blinked. “The what now?”

—𝘊𝘙𝘈𝘊𝘒—!

Before he could react, the ground beneath him shifted. The floor split apart, sending all new challengers—including him—plummeting into the lowest battle pit.

The moment his feet touched the ground—

—𝘉𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

A deafening explosion of divine energy erupted as the battle began.

Hundreds of warriors, all seeking to climb the Divine Ladder, rushed toward each other, their powers igniting the battlefield.

It was chaos.

Aiden grinned.

“Now this is more like it.”

He cracked his knuckles, his aura flaring, and charged forward.

The battlefield erupted, divine warriors clashing in every direction. Energy beams, celestial flames, and weapons forged from the very fabric of the Divine Realm tore through the air.

It was absolute chaos.

Aiden landed in the midst of it all, his golden eyes scanning the battlefield with a mixture of excitement and calculation.

Alright. Let’s see what we’re dealing with.

Immediately, a massive armored warrior rushed toward him, wielding a war hammer the size of a mountain.

“Outsiders don’t belong here!”

Aiden smirked. “Then come and throw me out.”

—𝘚𝘏𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘒—!

The warrior swung his hammer down, the sheer force cracking the ground beneath them.

Aiden vanished.

—𝘍𝘞𝘖𝘖𝘚𝘏—

Reappearing above his opponent, his twilight blade already descending.

—𝘚𝘏𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘒—!

A single slash.

The armored warrior froze mid-motion.

Then—his massive hammer split in two.

“W-what…?”

—𝘉𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

A second later, his entire body was sent flying, crashing through multiple other combatants before slamming into the arena wall.

Aiden landed gracefully, rolling his shoulders.

“Next.”

Around him, the battlefield briefly paused.

The warriors who had ignored him before were now staring at him with newfound caution.

“Did he just one-shot Gorgath?”

“That guy was a Demigod already!”

“No way he’s just a normal challenger.”

Then—they attacked.

—𝘍𝘞𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘚𝘏—

A storm of divine techniques came at Aiden from all sides.

Flaming swords.

Spears of lightning.

Chains made of void energy.

Aiden grinned.

He didn’t dodge.

He moved forward.

—𝘊𝘙𝘈𝘊𝘒—!

One punch shattered a spear of light.

—𝘚𝘏𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘒—!

A single slash cut through a group of three divine warriors at once.

—𝘉𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

A wave of pure force erupted as Aiden slammed his foot into the ground, sending dozens of enemies flying.

“Come on. You can do better than this.”

His voice was calm. Almost mocking.

The Divine Contenders were growing desperate.

“We can’t let him reach the upper tiers!”

“All at once! Kill him!”

Hundreds of warriors charged.

Aiden’s smirk faded slightly.

He exhaled.

“Tch. Fine. I’ll stop holding back.”

—𝘞𝘏𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

His aura exploded outward.

Golden and abyssal energy intertwined, forming a pressure so intense that the very air shook.

For the first time, the battlefield hesitated.

“What… what kind of power is that?!”

“That’s not divine energy… it’s something else!”

Aiden raised his blade, his golden eyes burning.

“Let me show you why I don’t lose.”

And then—

He attacked.

—𝘉𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

The Grand Melee was no longer a battle.

It was a massacre.

Aiden moved like a storm.

Every step shattered the battlefield. Every swing of his blade tore through divine warriors like paper. Hundreds of combatants had entered the Grand Melee—each one a warrior who had trained for millennia, wielding power capable of reshaping worlds.

And yet—

They were losing.

Badly.

—𝘚𝘏𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘈𝘒—!

Aiden bisected a divine champion, his golden blade glowing as it ripped through the laws of this realm.

—𝘊𝘙𝘈𝘊𝘒—!

He caught an incoming titanic fist, twisting his grip before hurling the entire 20-foot-tall warrior into a group of combatants.

—𝘉𝘖𝘖𝘖𝘔—!

The ground beneath them shattered, sending debris flying into the sky.

“H-how is he so strong?!”

“This isn’t just divine power! What the hell is he?!”

The once overconfident contenders were now terrified.