The Witch Hunter System
chapter-823

Within the solitude of darkness, Thanatos did not resume his slumber after Helcan left. Instead, he sank into deep thoughts.

The things Helcan told him weren't things he had never thought about.

After all, he was the Realm Lord of Gehenna. He wielded the greatest authority in Gehenna and enjoyed the best resources it had to offer. Naturally, even he would feel reluctant to surrender them to someone else.

However, his Death Law wasn't an omnipotent power.

While it seemed like an invincible power, the instant death spell had several weaknesses: It did not work on those who cultivated its opposing law, those with stronger soul force, or those with imperishable souls.

'It is rumored that Soul Masters are born with special Soul Constitutions because they have very impressive past lives, and the speed of their growths are directly related to the height of their past life selves...' Thanatos recalled.

If there were any chance that the Soul Master was at least a True God-level being in any of his past lives, his soul would undoubtedly carry the everlasting trait, making it imperishable.

The Death Law did not work on an Imperishable Soul.

Thanatos could not grant death to something that was immune to death. Of course, he could still kill the mortal body of the Soul Master. However, there was no point if he couldn't slay the soul.

After all, if he failed, he would only be making enemies with a True God-level being, and his days would be numbered.

There was also a chance that his instant death spell would backfire by triggering the Soul Master's Imperishable Soul to awaken his past life memories completely.

The law comprehension of a True God-level being or above was far beyond his reach.

After all, what kind of an existence was a True God-level being?

It was a Rank 11 Divinity.

As such, Thanatos would never take the risk of offending a Soul Master, or even worse, an extremely talented Soul Master.

Nevertheless, the potential risk wasn't the main reason why he chose to stand against the Soul Master.

'Offending a Soul Master is never a good thing, but it doesn't seem to be the source of my dread... No, my dread stems from the name Vaan Raphna...? No, that is not exactly correct, either...' Thanatos thought, feeling puzzled.

For an undead being who cultivated the Death Law over the Sea of Darkness, there shouldn't be anything that could instill such fear into him.

And yet, there was something.

However, Thanatos couldn't quite understand it himself. He could feel great fear from the depths of his soul when he thought of the name Vaan Raphna, but at the same time, it didn't seem to be the case, either.

That was most puzzling.

After pondering for a while, Thanatos realized it wasn't the exact name that induced such fear in him but just the surname.

'Raphna... That is it; that is the source of my unease. My very soul trembles at its name... But as to why, I do not know... Was there someone in the past that also carried such a surname?'

Thanatos frowned.

No matter how hard he pondered, he couldn't recall anyone with the surname Raphna from the past.

How could he not possess memories of someone with such a fear-inducing surname?

'Perhaps it is my instincts telling me that offending people with the surname Raphna will be my doom... Yes, this seems to be the most logical reasoning...' Thanatos thought.

...

...

Meanwhile, Helcan left the Shadowcage Territory and returned to his Titanfall Territory, the land of Titans.

The Titanfall Territory was the largest and highest earth-based planet in Gehenna. It was a giant rock planet, rich in earth minerals but poor plant life. Geo-storms constantly plague its surface, creating spikes in its already high gravity level.

It wasn't an easy place to live unless one was part of the powerful Titan Clan.

As such, the Titanfall Territory's population was predominantly Titans, while the other earthly races existed in small fractions.

"Welcome back, my King-"

Helcan ignored the welcome of his Titan subjects as he headed for Titanfall Castle and buried himself inside the council room, where a large star map could be found.

'Since I can't rely on Thanatos to deal with Vaan Raphna, what can I do? Who can I rely on? Do I really have to watch that human grow strong and powerful?' Helcan pondered hard. 'When will you stop seeing him as the problem and start seeing him as the solution?' Hecate's words suddenly replayed in Helcan's mind before he scoffed with contempt.

The Great Devils' promises to help him reconcile with the Soul Master didn't mean shit to him. After all, they did not have a feud with the Soul Master like him.

Even if Vaan Raphna didn't pursue the past, Helcan couldn't forgive him for burning his divine consciousness and damaging his divine soul. He originally had hopes of reaching Rank 7, but now, they were dashed due to the soul damage.

Even if the Soul Master could repair the soul damage, how could he lower himself before his hated foe, let alone butter him up like a slave to earn such an opportunity?

He would rather pay a great price to commission a different Soul Master for the job. "The Redsong Territory..." Helcan's stubborn gaze paused on the red planet under Astarte's control before wondering, "Can Astarte help me? No... She cannot. The Great Devils are all in favor of Vaan Raphna's ascension."

"Even if I have a good relationship with Astarte due to the long trading history between our territories, she won't be able to help much even if she agreed to..." Helcan thought.

After all, even the powerful Abaddon, who comprehended the Asura Law, suffered a pathetic

end at Vaan Raphna's hands.

How could Astarte do any better?

"Astarte won't do. I need a stronger helper... But there is none in Gehenna..." Helcan shifted his focus to the neighboring star realms, Nightmare and Hades.

"Hm..." Helcan suddenly had a thoughtful look.

The Hades Realm was full of spiritual beings, and their Soul Kings held great interests in the study of souls. A Soul Master's soul would be a great temptation to them if they could ignore

the risks.

On the other hand, the Nightmare Realm was ruled by dark witches who looked down on men. They might become furious if they learned about a man ruling over witches...

"I could reach out to either side, but would that be enough? Maybe I need a bigger guarantee

to ensure success..."

Helcan frowned as he searched beyond the neighboring star realms.