Reborn With the Infinite Gods System

The Voidwalker stood like a shadow given life, an ethereal entity whose mere presence sent a chill deep into Axel's bones. Its eyes—black, hollow, and endless—never left him. There was something unnerving about the way it focused solely on Axel, as though it could peer into the darkest corners of his soul.

Its tall, emaciated frame barely moved, but the energy it exuded suffocated the air around them.

Axel squinted, trying to make sense of the being in front of him. It hadn't attacked, not yet, but something was terribly wrong. Every second they stood there, he felt weaker, as though his very essence was slipping away.

'What is this thing?' Axel's mind raced as his body grew sluggish. Then it hit him like a sledgehammer. 'It's like my energy is... leaving me?' His throat tightened, panic lacing his words. "It's sucking up all my energy quickly."

"Mine too." Josh's voice was strained as he crouched low, his eyes flicking between the Voidwalker and Axel. "I don't know what this thing is, but we have to hit it together. We'll lose all our mana if we don't take it down now."

Without hesitation, Josh shot forward, his movements slower than they should have been. Even as he pushed himself to his maximum speed, he could feel the Voidwalker's siphoning presence dragging him down. Still, he pressed on, his eyes glowing a sharp blue as the air around him turned icy.

From the ground, jagged pillars of ice erupted, racing toward the Voidwalker's throat like spears aiming for a vital point.

But just as the ice neared the creature, it shattered into glittering fragments, dissolving into nothingness before it could even touch its target. The Voidwalker had absorbed it all, leaving no trace. A bitter curse slipped from Josh's lips, but he wasn't finished.

His foot glowed with a cold sheen as he swung it toward the creature, encasing his boot in solid ice before he struck its face with all his might.

The Voidwalker staggered, moving back a few feet, but it did not react as a living being would. There was no cry of pain, no flinch—nothing. It merely paused, as though reassessing them.

Josh quickly recoiled, pulling his leg back and checking the melting ice that dripped from his boot. 'That confirms it,' he thought grimly. 'It can't absorb our attacks unless it makes direct contact with the source of energy, but if it had grabbed me…' He shuddered to think of the consequences.

Before Josh could react further, the Voidwalker lunged. Its elongated arm extended unnaturally fast, its fingers outstretched like claws ready to sink into his flesh. Josh's stomach lurched. There was no way he could dodge it in time. His body felt like it was swimming in molasses.

In desperation, he summoned a thick wall of ice between them, buying himself just enough time to leap backward, putting more distance between himself and the creature.

While Josh struggled to keep the Voidwalker at bay, Axel was already charging in. He sprinted past the ice wall, his eyes locked onto the Voidwalker. This thing—whatever it was—had to be stopped, and Axel wasn't going to let it drain him dry without a fight. He could feel his energy bleeding away with every second, but he gritted his teeth and pushed through the exhaustion.

Axel's fist collided with the Voidwalker's chin, and once again, the creature staggered back. But just like before, there was no sign of pain. The blow didn't seem to affect it at all. Axel cursed under his breath, frustration mounting.

"What the hell is this thing?" Axel yelled, his voice raw. "It's draining us fast, and our attacks aren't doing anything!"

Josh, catching his breath a few feet away, could barely look Axel in the eye as he shouted back. "I think it's absorbing everything we throw at it! We need to get out of here, Axel. This fight is suicide!"

Axel's heart sank at the grim truth in Josh's words. As much as it pained him to admit it, they weren't winning this fight. They were only growing weaker. Josh had already started making his way toward Loki and Troy, grabbing both of them by the arms. Axel could see what Josh was doing—he was preparing a teleportation spell to get them all out.

'Good plan,' Axel thought, pivoting away from the Voidwalker. He bolted toward Josh and the others, adrenaline pushing him forward. He could feel the Voidwalker's gaze burning into his back, but it hadn't moved to stop him. Not yet. That eerie, ominous stillness sent a shiver down Axel's spine.

'I can make it. Just a few more seconds.'

But then, something shifted. Axel's body faltered. His stride broke, his balance wavered. A sharp, burning pain ripped through him, and for a brief moment, his brain couldn't process what had happened. His breath hitched as his eyes slowly trailed down to his chest.

His right arm—gone. Completely severed. Blood poured from the stump where his shoulder used to be, staining his clothes in an ever-growing pool of red. His heart pounded in his ears, and a wave of nausea hit him as the notifications popped up in his vision.

[You are losing too much blood.]

[Mana: 14]

[You are low on Mana. You cannot activate the system's healing process.]

'Damn it!' Axel's mind raced, the reality of his situation sinking in like ice. 'It attacked from a distance… It's been playing with us this whole time!'

He glanced over at Josh, Loki, and Troy, all of them stretching out their hands to him, yelling something—anything—but Axel couldn't hear them. Their voices were muffled, drowned out by the sound of his own blood rushing through his ears. His vision blurred, darkening at the edges.

'Just a little further,' Axel thought, stumbling forward. His legs felt like they were made of lead, his energy draining faster with each step. He reached out his hand, fingers trembling as they stretched toward Josh's.

Two feet. One foot.

Then everything stopped.

Axel's body was frozen in place, not by magic or fear, but by the sudden realization that he wasn't whole anymore. His legs—his entire lower body—was gone. Severed cleanly at the waist. Blood spurted from the wound, splattering across the ground as Axel's upper body slid forward, hitting the ground with a sickening thud.

He blinked, staring at the ground beneath him as his strength ebbed away. 'I've been... cut in half.'

The Voidwalker's oppressive presence loomed over him, and the last thing Axel saw was the shadow of its figure standing just behind Josh and the others, its hollow eyes never once leaving him.

***

The moment was brutal, swift, and utterly unforgiving. One second, Axel had been surging forward, full of determination, and the next—he was severed in half. The shock hit him before the pain did, and for a brief, terrible moment, he felt utterly human. Vulnerable. His body, a machine of battle, had been torn apart, and his life was spilling out onto the battlefield with each frantic heartbeat.

His mind, still reeling, struggled to process what had happened. The world was spinning, the edges of his vision blurring.

*Is this it? Is this how it ends?* The thought came unbidden, filling him with a cold dread. Faces flickered through his mind, haunting him in these final moments. **Mum, Dad, Annie, Luxiam, Trisha...** The people he cared about most. Would he never see them again? Would this be the last time their faces graced his memory?

**No. Not yet. I'm not done yet!**

The defiant thought pierced through the haze of pain, driving Axel to act. His upper body, now weightless without the support of his legs, plummeted toward the ground, but even as he fell, his willpower surged. He *couldn't* die here. He *wouldn't*.

With a final, desperate effort, he stretched out his hand, his fingers reaching, clawing for Josh. If he could just grab hold, if he could just make it, there might be a chance.

The ground rushed up to meet him, cold and unforgiving, but Axel's focus remained on his outstretched hand. **Josh—he had to reach Josh.** His vision darkened, his strength failing him, but in that last instant, he thought he felt the faintest brush of contact. Or was it just his imagination? Darkness closed in around him, and Axel's world faded.

***

The morning sun filtered through the large windows of the facility's dining hall, casting soft light over the room. It should have been a peaceful scene—S-rank soldiers eating their breakfast in relative silence, the clinking of cutlery the only sound in the air—but the atmosphere was thick with tension. Everyone knew what was at stake.

At the far end of the table, **Trisha** sat hunched over her plate, her eyes fixed on the food that she couldn't bring herself to eat. Her spoon moved aimlessly through the mess of scrambled eggs and toast, but her mind was far from the meal. The anxiety that had gripped her for days had now festered into something darker—**depression**. Axel and his team had been missing for too long.

There had been no word, no sign of them, and the silence was suffocating.

Trisha's thoughts churned with worry. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Axel in danger, fighting for his life, and every time she opened them, she was met with the harsh reality of his absence. The sleepless nights were beginning to show. Her face was pale, her eyes bloodshot from the hours spent staring at the ceiling, waiting for news that never came.

Across from her, **Williams**, ever the opportunist, leaned back in his chair with a smug look on his face. His arms were crossed over his chest, and a cruel grin tugged at his lips as he watched Trisha. "You're looking rough, Trisha," he said, his voice dripping with false concern. "Worried your precious Axel won't make it back this time?"

His words cut deep, but Trisha didn't respond. She knew Williams was trying to provoke her, to get under her skin. He had always been jealous of Axel's strength, of his status, and now he saw an opportunity to twist the knife. But Trisha couldn't muster the energy to fight back. Her heart was too heavy, her mind too clouded with fear. She kept her eyes down, her spoon stirring listlessly.

Seeing that he wasn't going to get a rise out of her, Williams sneered. "Guess it's true what they say—heroes don't always come back."

Before he could say anything more, **Commander Asher**, standing tall at the head of the room, shot him a cold glare. "Enough, Williams," he said, his voice sharp and commanding. "This isn't the time for your petty comments."

Williams rolled his eyes but said nothing further, leaning back in his chair and returning to his meal with a look of satisfaction. He didn't care about the reprimand. The damage had been done.

Trisha's hands trembled slightly as she set her spoon down, unable to pretend any longer. The pit in her stomach had grown unbearable. Her mind was filled with images of Axel—of him fighting, of him bleeding, of him… **no**. She couldn't think like that. He was still out there. He had to be.

She just had to believe.