Eventually, Shang ceased contemplating Entropy.

Though Shang had a strong desire to invest substantial time in understanding Entropy, as he believed he was making progress, he realized it wasn't the most efficient approach at the moment.

Before anything else, Shang needed to strengthen his Realm. Immersing himself in comprehending Concepts now would be a waste of time, as Concepts wouldn't evade him.

First, he needed to increase his power.

Next, he planned to comprehend a few non-essential Destinations.

Only after that would he decide on his next focus. At that point, Entropy could be a potential direction.

Shang drew the black sphere of Entropy toward himself and absorbed it. This process wasn't any different for Shang than absorbing pure Mana.

Immediately after, Shang summoned another Abomination Lord and attempted to provoke it into fighting him.

Within minutes, the Abomination Lord halfheartedly launched an attack against Shang.

The Abomination Lord demonstrated considerable speed, comparable to that of a Late Beast Lord. Its physical strength also matched that of a Late Beast Lord.

It's worth noting that Shang had summoned an Early Abomination Lord.

Even disregarding its Domain of Entropy, the Early Abomination Lord had the potential to challenge an Early Mage Lord.

Factoring in its Domain of Entropy, the Early Abomination Lord might even pose a threat to Peak Mage Lords and Mid Mage Lord Clouds.

An Abomination Lord could leap a level when facing a Cloud.

This fact was astonishing and was akin to someone possessing a fivefold Spirit Sense.

Each Abomination Lord had the battle strength of a fivefold Spirit Sense individual.

This made engaging an Abomination Lord at one's level tantamount to suicide.

The Abominations fought instinctively, charging headlong with teeth and claws to kill their enemies.

Despite their simple approach, they possessed immense power.

Shang wondered how much more potent an Abomination could become with intelligence and combat experience.

When this thought occurred to him, he glanced at his right arm with his Spirit Sense.

The body of an Abomination Lord was as sturdy as Shang's own body at that level, and they also had access to the Domain of Entropy.

Reluctantly, Shang admitted that an Abomination Lord could potentially match his power if it attained human-level intelligence.

This realization brought one thing into focus: Abominations were not on the same level as other beings.

Humans and beasts were on par with each other.

A Beast Lord could become as powerful as a Mage Lord with adequate training, as evidenced by the Thunder King.

Abominations, however, possessed physical strength two levels above that of a beast and wielded an immensely powerful domain.

Even more remarkable, every single Abomination was that formidable.

This wasn't an exceptional case of a talented Abomination; the average Abomination was this powerful.

The more Shang fought against them, the clearer it became that Abominations were not native to this world.

Everything about them was distinct, and their power surpassed that of ordinary beings.

While the world seemed to maintain a balance, allowing every Path to reach the same level of power, Abominations stood apart.

They were unequivocally superior.

This raised questions about their origin: Were they truly from this world, within Aterium, or had they come from outside?

Could the God truly stop them?

Shang couldn't be entirely certain about his conjectures, but he felt confident that Abominations were not naturally existing in Aterium.

He firmly believed that Abominations originated from outside Aterium and invaded the realm, possibly drawn by the abundant Mana.

In his battles against the Abomination, Shang experienced no difficulties, as its most potent weapon, the Domain of Entropy, had no effect on him, turning them into stronger but less intelligent beasts.

After absorbing the Early Abomination Lord, Shang summoned a Late Abomination Lord and engaged it in combat.

The Late Abomination Lord possessed a body as robust as an Initial Beast King, an entire Realm above Shang's level.

Although the Abomination still fought like an animal, the sheer difference in speed and power exerted immense pressure on Shang's body.

For the next couple of years, this became Shang's routine-absorbing Abominations to elevate his level while also honing his swordsmanship.

Though he hadn't explored the non-essential Destinations for Warrior Kings, Shang believed that refining his sword skills would benefit him in the future.

Over the next 500 years, Shang didn't acquire any new knowledge, as that wasn't his primary goal. However, he managed to reach the Early Sword Lord Realm.

If allowed to utilize his Domain of Entropy, Shang could potentially triumph over Late Mage Lord Clouds and might even have a slim chance against a Thunder.

Undoubtedly, Shang had surpassed the majority of Bolts and all existing Beast Lords.

His strength slowly elevated him to the top of the world, reaching the top 5,000 beings in Aterium.

Only a few thousand entities in the entire realm were stronger than him.

During his second trial, Shang had battled the progeny of the Ice King, but back then, he couldn't have comprehended the true power of the Ice King.

The Ice King had ranked within the top thousand of the world, a position Shang was now close to achieving.

Having attained the Early Sword Lord Realm, Shang left his Isolation Barrier and contacted Amarius, aware that the Empress of Death had likely broken the contract by now.

With the next round of war commencing, the Lightning Manor required his presence.