Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Chapter 1588: Fifth Paradigm

Hell. The Ashenheart Domain.

The pale sky was choked with thick mist, and the bitter wind ground gravel and loose stone together in a steady, grating crunch. With his heavy cloak dragging behind him, Arthas crunched his way up the Ossuary Trail, stepping into the cavern that led directly to the core of the Ever-Burning Volcano.

Inside, a sharp creak echoed—like the lid of an old tomb being forced open—as something ancient slowly stirred.

"Ugh, that wretched stench of burning sulfur again." Leonidas’s demigod phantom awoke from its slumber. The moment he spotted his old friend, the complaining began. "Arthas, for the love of the gods, can’t you cast a ward or something to clear out this brimstone and rot?"

Arthas merely cast a sidelong glance at Leonidas, entirely ignoring his whining. A moment later, the sharp ring of a drawn blade filled the cavern as a sword-shaped phantom coalesced beside the Spartan.

Feeling the awakening of Leonidas and Alexander, Deputy Commander Edward—appearing as a wizened old mage—stepped out from the shadows. He swept his gaze across the gathered demigods.

"Where is Hulk?" Edward frowned, noticing the titan’s absence.

"I told him to leave," Arthas replied. He wasn’t surprised by the Deputy Commander’s confusion. Though Arthas guarded this Minor Hell, he wasn’t cut off from the outside world. As the one closest to Orion, he knew exactly what the titan was about to do. Orion had even briefed him before his departure.

"Makes sense. If the kid is pulling off something that massive, he needs to recall his demigod phantoms," Leonidas nodded, thoroughly approving of Orion’s tactical retreat.

"So, why are the rest of you waking up?" Arthas asked, turning his attention to Deputy Commander Edward. The old mage had always been their omniscient source of information. "Did something major happen out there?"

"Major?" Leonidas interrupted, suddenly wired. The moment the topic shifted to Orion, his voice pitched higher, words spilling out in a rush. "Of course something major happened! Arthas, did you know the kid actually chose to fuse with his Titanion Realm? Do you know what that means? It’s a literal deathmatch! He’s going all-in against his enemies!"

Arthas remained silent. Knowing Leonidas, the real bombshell was still coming.

"And that’s not all," Leonidas continued. "He just flared the aura of the first, second, and fourth stages! The kid is terrifyingly strong! The craziest part is that his first and second-stage auras are flawless. So, even if you ignore his half-baked fourth stage, he’s a bona fide second-stage powerhouse."

Leonidas leaned in, narrowing his eyes. "Arthas, level with me. Did you really recruit the kid? Or did he hold you at sword-point?"

Faced with the absurd interrogation, Arthas just gave him a deadpan look. "Idiot."

Arthas glanced at Alexander, but the sword-phantom merely shook, indicating he was just as clueless. Naturally, all three of them turned their gazes back to Deputy Commander Edward.

"I only found out myself after a quick trip to Blade’s Edge Peak," Edward said, clearing his throat and stroking his non-existent beard under their expectant stares. "Leonidas is right. Hulk has been hiding his true strength. He beat all of you to the punch; he’s already broken through to the demigod second-stage."

In truth, as a second-stage demigod himself, Edward had harbored suspicions for a while. He simply hadn’t confirmed them until his recent meeting with the Commander.

"Deputy Commander, do you know how he pulled it off?" Leonidas demanded, ever the impatient one.

Edward was quiet for a moment before dropping two distinct clues. "The Abyssal Dreadfin. The underwater palace in the World of Eldoria." He paused to let that sink in. "Furthermore, do not forget that Hulk possesses a true Divine Kingdom. It is fundamentally different from the pocket worlds we control. The faith energy generated by the believers within his Kingdom is on an entirely different echelon of quality compared to what we harvest."

A heavy silence fell over the cavern. If Edward hadn’t pointed it out, they would have completely forgotten. In their minds, Orion was still the rookie they needed to look out for.

"There is one final point. I only learned this myself after consulting the Commander," Edward said. "Standing on the shoulders of the Giant race, Hulk has carved out his own path. He forged his own distinct lineage, unlocking The Fifth Paradigm for the Giants."

He looked at the group. "Do you realize what that means?"

"It means Hulk is now a focal point. He is passively hoarding a fraction of the collective faith energy generated by every Giant across the infinite realms." Edward paused, still visibly shaken by the sheer scale of that revelation. He let out a slow breath. "As Hulk and his Stoneheart Titan race continue to expand, his share of that racial faith will only grow."

He met their eyes, his expression grave. "I need to correct a fundamental misconception you all share. Hulk no longer represents a mere faction. He represents an entire species. To quote the Commander: Hulk is a true epoch-maker. The age of heroes is his for the taking."

Silence. Dead, absolute silence.

The Deputy Commander’s words echoed through the volcanic cavern, deafening in their implications.

"The Commander asked me to pass along a message to you all," Edward said softly. "’We all walk the same path, so why is it that some manage to walk it with such unparalleled brilliance? Think more. Act more. A demigod’s lifespan is long; we have plenty of time to shake things up.’"

Edward swept his gaze over his comrades one last time. They were all lost in deep thought. Not wishing to disturb them, the Deputy Commander’s phantom slowly dissolved into the shadows, returning to his slumber.

***

The Titanion Realm. The Astral Tide.

Orion merged seamlessly with his glowing trident, slicing Moriphara’s colossal insectoid form cleanly in two. There was no spray of blood, no visceral gore.

In this realm of absolute law, such an attack didn’t even qualify as a scratch, let alone a grievous wound. Orion lowered his weapon, watching the severed halves of the Queen.

The stumps didn’t even bother to heal. Instead, a new head and tail erupted from the severed ends instantly. The now-two giant insects lunged, clashing violently with Orion’s mirrored avatars.

"And here I thought you were just a strategist," Orion remarked. The brief exchange had proven that Insect Queen Moriphara was no fragile mastermind. She possessed centuries of brutal combat experience—a perfect, all-around broodmother.

"Is that a compliment?" Moriphara’s shadowy silhouette coalesced before Orion. Her form was drastically smaller now. Compared to his towering titan frame, she appeared deceptively fragile.

She studied him, intense curiosity burning in her gaze. By her calculations, Orion’s path to demigodhood was entirely inferior to hers. Yet, his manifested form within The Astral Tide dwarfed her own. In this space, sheer size equated to raw power and a deeper foundation.

Her wariness deepened. "Before ascending to demigodhood, every broodmother must shore up her vulnerabilities in personal combat," she explained. "If the broodmothers in your territory survive long enough to grow, they will undergo the same crucible."

Facing Orion’s appreciative gaze, she didn’t know why she had offered that piece of advice.

"You talk too much." Did she think a little small talk would de-escalate the situation? Impossible. Orion knew it, and so did she.

Orion reached out, clamping his massive hand around her throat once more. Moriphara had expected this. This was a realm of pure law. She was a manifestation of those laws; he couldn’t physically strangle her.

Or so she thought.

Just as she attempted to dissolve back into the ambient laws to slip through his fingers, shock rippled through her. She was trapped.

What? Confusion, disbelief, and finally, a creeping sliver of genuine terror cracked her icy facade.

Her shadowy form flickered wildly—vanishing, mutating, and reforming in a desperate cycle. "What did you do?" she demanded. No matter how many times she tried to shift, Orion’s grip remained absolute.

Staring at her blurred visage, Orion could easily imagine the utter panic twisting her usually flawless features.

Then, a voice echoed.

"Ants..."

"Ants..."

The voice was cold, merciless, and terrifyingly divine. It rolled across the expanse like thunder, originating not from the sky, but from outside. It bled in from the chaotic void beyond the Titanion Realm.

In an instant, the projection-like canopy of the Titanion Realm shattered like cheap glass. An invisible, supreme weight pressed down upon reality, threatening to crush everything into dust. Every living soul—the very realm itself—trembled. It was the harbinger of total annihilation.

From the depths of the cosmic chaos, a terrifying entity strode forward. It was so impossibly massive that its bounds couldn’t be seen; one could only make out four heads and eight arms radiating endless, suffocating pressure. The entire world shuddered and began to collapse under the titan’s approaching footsteps.

Within The Astral Tide, Moriphara saw it too, right over Orion’s shoulder. The chaotic giant was using Orion as a dimensional anchor, steadily closing the distance to the Titanion Realm.

"Is that a... God?" The final word caught in her throat. She couldn’t believe it. She refused to accept it. Faced with such a majestic presence, her current strength was insufficient to see through the illusion to Orion’s true foundation.

But while Moriphara couldn’t see the truth, someone else could.

"That... is that a Demigod Artifact?"

Far away, in the Profane Lands of the Lifeless Realm.

Above the tallest of the Demonic Pillars, the Idol of the Archfiend soared from its black palace. It gazed across the dimensional void, locking onto the Titanion Realm, straight onto Orion as he choked Moriphara.

This idol was The Lifeless Dreadgod, the master whom the cloaked Vaelian served.

The Lifeless Dreadgod’s gaze pierced through the illusion of the colossal titan behind Orion. Where others saw a world-ending giant, the Dreadgod saw a single, radiant phalanx bone.

A severed pinky bone.

That was Orion’s Divine Vessel.

Having cultivated within the primordial chaos, enduring countless years of consolidation, Orion had exhausted his limits just to solidify that single digit. The apocalyptic titan Moriphara witnessed was nothing more than the bone’s projected phantom.

"Against an entity wielding a Demigod Artifact, that broodmother stands no chance," The Lifeless Dreadgod concluded instantly.

Making his decision, the Dreadgod slowly raised his hands.

In that breath, the Lifeless Realm plunged into a deep, visceral crimson. The sun and moon were swallowed by ink-black clouds. The Demonic Pillars towering across the dead world began to violently tremble. Huge fissures tore through their stone surfaces, venting torrents of concentrated profane energy like a burst dam.

Sensing the shift in the pillars, every vile creature in the realm erupted into cheers and unholy howls. To the denizens of the Lifeless Realm, this cataclysm signaled the start of a grand new feast.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The Demonic Pillars roared on their own, the ancient demonic runes carved into their surfaces rusting and flaking away at a visible rate.

"When the blood moon and blood sun rise once more... When all matter and flesh begin to warp... When your own shadows detach from your bodies... When every living soul sprouts limbs that are not their own..." The incantation echoed. "New Demonic Pillars will tear through the earth!"

The Lifeless Dreadgod’s wicked laughter—sounding like fingernails dragging across a wooden coffin lid—reverberated through the void, slowly bleeding into the Titanion Realm. It was a vision of doomsday far more vivid and visceral than any recorded in the annals of history.

CRACK!

It was a sound defying description—like the shattering of two massive glass marbles colliding, yet carrying the heavy, resonant ring of a blacksmith’s hammer striking an anvil.

Amidst his manic laughter, The Lifeless Dreadgod steered the entire Lifeless Realm. Using The Chapter of the Profane as a homing beacon, he ruthlessly slammed his world directly into the Titanion Realm.

Originally, his target had been Insect Queen Moriphara. Now, he intended to slaughter Orion alongside her and claim the supposed Demigod Artifact hovering behind him.

The collision of the two worlds felt like an eternity, yet ended in an instant. Within the realm of absolute law, it manifested as a violently chaotic restructuring of reality.

During this restructuring, the Idol of the Archfiend materialized within The Astral Tide. Its statuesque form was significantly denser and more tangible than Orion’s Stoneheart titan phantom.

"Hahaha... Welcome to the profane Lifeless—"

Before he could finish naming his realm, the situation inverted once more.

Within the ocean of laws, a brilliant tetrahedron rune suddenly manifested. Its holy light aggressively bleached the entire world. Bathed in the tetrahedron’s radiance, a gloriously massive structure slowly phased into reality: The Dais of Judgment.

BOOM!

With another deafening crash, The Lifeless Dreadgod’s manic laughter was abruptly choked off.