Chapter 428: Lies (1)
The second War of the Stars had gathered over thirty thousand Awakeners.
Even with the Seven Stars, humanity’s so-called heroes, and dozens of other Celestials joining, the grand war ended in utter defeat after the Heavenly Demon appeared.
The Black Heaven’s clouds had engulfed the entire city and swallowed roughly twenty thousand Awakeners. That was only the recorded casualties. Many believed the true number was far higher.
Of the Seven Stars, only Bianca Bennett (Alioth), Edward Walton (Dubhe), and Kwon Oh-Jin (Alkaid) had survived. The Black Heaven’s clouds had devoured the rest.
Awakeners weren’t the only ones to fall. The Celestials who had broken the Law to deploy their Sacred Grounds against Mobius and the other Black Star Celestials also paid the price.
Only a few had completely vanished from the world since the Law’s restrictions had weakened. However, chains of light bound those with weaker Stigmas and sealed them within their temples.
Even the twelve Zodiac Celestials or higher suffered permanent damage to their Stigmas and would be unable to manifest on Earth for at least a year.
The absence of both Awakeners and Celestials created a void.
If Earth were a human body, Awakeners were its white blood cells that defended the body against invading viruses.
The world plunged into chaos with so few Awakeners left to hunt the demonic beasts emerging through the rift. Once peaceful cities burned, and crime rates skyrocketed. On top of that, with most Celestials sealed away, no new Awakeners filled the empty positions.
The world sank into turmoil and despair.
In that darkness, Kwon Oh-Jin sat with his eyes closed on the floor of his home with his back against the wall.