Blackout Ascension: Return of Primordial Heir-Chapter 15: White Flame

The Infernal Colosseum rumbling like a mythical beast in anger. The air inside the arena filled with raw fire mana thickness increased, forming the mirages in the arena. Suffocating smoke swirled convulsively in black clouds, covering the bright light of the sun. The breath of the audience has particles of hot ash, which makes them cough and suffocate.

High up, the Grand Chancellor raised his golden staff, signalling the end of break.

CLANG!!

The bronze bell echoed across the arena.

Phase Two.

Honoer Kyle Pyrosend moved immediately after the bell rang. He bent his head back and screamed with anger and primal ignition. "Phoenix Ascension!"

The flames fused wavering over his armor, his skin, and his mana core. Massive, blazing wings formed from the shoulder, spreading ten feet behind him. The core temperature was so high, that the colors of the wings were shifting frequently. They changed from crimson red to blue, and then to violet.

He hovered inches above the ground, looking like an angel of heaven.

"This is my full power, Karl!" Honoer roared, his voice trembled in suffocating fire. "I will absolutely surpass your legend right here! Right now!"

He raised both of his armored fists high up and slammed the arena platform with full force.

CRACK...!!! BOOM!!!

The arena erupted into a natural catastrophe. Thick boiling lava burst upward from the cracks in the ground, looking like fountains. The lava is swirling, molten whips of lava melted the small jagged rocks instantly. Even the Eid Pyres flames trembled to the high-tier magic it witnessed. They leaned inward toward the center of the ring, their eternal flames drawn toward Honoer, roaring in primal acknowledgment of the apocalyptic fire magic the young prince had just unleashed.

The audience murmured in genuine terror, pressing hard back against their seats as the arena’s magical barrier shook from the intense fire.

"He’s going to melt the whole arena down to the bedrock!" a veteran shouted over the chaos, covering his face with his cloak.

But down inside the apocalyptic storm, one single thing remained calm and steady.

Karl Wade Vedaryan.

His steady footsteps kept walking forward.

To Honoer, the sight looked like impossible. It felt exactly like watching a mortal man taking a normal walk into the rage of lethal fire.

Honoer’s attacks violently melted the solid volcanic stones into liquid puddles. But the moment raging lava reached Karl, something weird happened.

It P A R T E D from him.

The split open like a curtains when they reached Karl. They obeyed and bent down sideways like they recognised the true master of fire.

"Why won’t you burn?!" Honoer screamed in genuine panic, trembling his loud voice.

He unleashed a chaotic barrage of highly compressed violet fireballs. Each individual sphere was powerful enough to purge a castle gate. Karl simply walked forward, touching the incoming fireballs with his bare hand. The lethal, high-tier spells are instantly extinguished upon contact .

Phfft! Phfft! Phfft!

He just kept walking.

Honoer was panting with exhaustion. His chest heaved and sweat was boiling off his skin the moment it formed due to heat. His muscular body was shaking uncontrollably from the sheer, terrifying force of his own untamed magic. He was dangerously burning away his own life force just to keep the enhanced Phoenix form active for a few more seconds.

His legs finally gave out. He fell heavily to one knee, the solid volcanic rock loudly cracking and splintering. But he was a Prince of Pyrosend. He stubbornly refused to quit. He slowly looked up at the older man. He forced a faint, exhausted smile through the agonizing pain, with sheer willpower and determination.

"I can... I can still... fight...!" Honoer wheezed, coughing blood.

He desperately tried to raise his trembling hands to summon a lava ball.

Karl stopped walking suddenly. He stood three feet away from the kneeling, burning Prince.

The older man looked down at Honoer with calm eyes, only with deep, profound respect towards the younger warrior.

"I know," Karl said softly, his calm voice reaching out to the prince. "You have the true, undeniable heart of a King, Honoer."

Karl slowly lifted his right arm. He opened his bare palm, facing it upward toward the smoke clouds filled sky.

"But a true King must also know exactly when his sun sets for the day."

The arena went terrifyingly silent suddenly.

The fire that Honoer had just desperately summoned, the chaotic energy, everything froze to death instantly.

"Why did they stop? ATTACK HIM!!!", Honoer commanded, his voice trembling in panic.

Then, they reversed their direction. The fire spiraled backward, ignoring Honoer’s panicked commands. It all converged towards Karl’s hand, compressing into a swirling sphere. As the mana compressed, it changed color into a bright red. The red burned hotter and turned to a brilliant orange, and then to searing yellow. Finally, the yellow became white with pure fire. The flame color was pure peaceful white, but it’s terrifyingly hot.

The audience froze in disbelief and awe. Even the roaring flames of the twelve Eid Pyres dimming their light in the presence of the true apex on Karl’s hand.

Karl looked at the sphere swirling in his hand.

"True fire does not ever need to roar to prove its strength," Karl whispered softly, his voice with pleasant kindness.

"Incandescence." He slowly closed his fingers into a tight fist.

FLASH...! BOOM!!

The white flame instantly burst outward. The invisible wave filled the entire arena in blinding light.

Honoer braced himself with all of his remaining power. He quickly enclosed his bruised body completely within his Phoenix wings, trying to protect himself from the blast. But the white fire ignored everything and went right through him.

The spell targeted intent. The wavering blast instantly consumed all his mana. It gently removed all of his physical strength. It was a legendary, Grandmaster-level fire spell that used to burn away a warrior’s will to fight, without killing or harming the person.

A white flame that burns the will itself!

The powerful, invisible shockwave easily staggered Honoer backward. He slid helplessly back, with smoke hissing steadily out from the cracks in his crimson armor. His mana core was drained with exhaustion. He collapsed to one knee right at the edge of the platform. His right fist was still stubbornly clenched tight and tried to stand up.

He tried once...

His armored leg trembled with agonising pain and gave out.

He tried twice...

His vision blurred with breath exhaustion, the world became fuzzy. His rageful body simply would not obey his mind’s commands anymore.

Karl calmly lowered his right hand. The blinding white light faded away, a calm lingering kind look filled in his eyes.

CLANG!!

The bronze bell rang out loudly.

"The match is concluded! Karl Wade Vedaryan is the absolute winner!"

For one long second, the arena was silent. Then, the Infernal Colosseum erupted in cheers.

It was a fascinating battle they witnessed. The cheers of pure shock and disbelief from tens of thousands of people who had just watched a living legend dominating a one-sided battle without throwing a single punch. But intertwined with that awe, there was a genuine respect towards Honoer Kyle Pyrosend, the brave fire prodigy who had managed to be acknowledged by the Fire Grandmaster and stood still for complete two rounds before him.

Honoer fell back and looked down at his shaking, empty hands. He slowly started to laugh, it’s a gentle raspy sound.

"You’re a total monster, Karl..." Honoer said, a tired grin spreading across his grey ash stained face. "But... a truly beautiful one..."

Karl walked slowly over to Honoer. He looked like a proud, caring father. He gently extended his right hand for help. Honoer looked up at the older man, surprised by the gesture. He stared closely at the calloused, scarred, hardened hand of the humble commoner who had mastered the powerful element of Kings. Karl’s hands. Honoer grinned widely with exhausted pride. He reached up and gently took the offered hand. Karl pulled the bruised armored prince up to his feet.

"Your flames were incredibly strong today, Honoer," Karl said very quietly, leaning close so only the prince could hear his words over the roaring crowd. "You have a good heart. You will surpass me one day for sure. I saw it clearly in your fire."

Karl had acknowledged Honoer’s potential.

Honoer blinked in surprise. He wiped a layer of dark soot from his bruised face, and laughed softly.

"No, General," Honoer whispered back, looking past Karl’s shoulder toward the Zephyros competitor bench. "Your son is going to do it long before I ever do. I heard the rumors from the market. I heard he actually stood his ground before the second strongest general in the entire demon army."

****

Karl turned his head slightly. He looked at Kairos. Kairos met his father’s steady grey eyes in the distance. It was a beautiful mix of strong emotions, immense pride, a touch of lingering sorrow for the years they had lost, an undeniable feeling of strength, and the vivid memory of holding a rusty training sword in their dusty village courtyard.

He’s still the strongest in the world, Kairos thought to himself, his hands gripping the stone railing. He felt the fractured primordial seal inside his soul humming. I have a very long way to go. I have to catch up to him.

And suddenly a screeching blackout blinding his vision.

[BE CAREFUL!!]

[FATAL TERROR INCOMING!]

[RISE??]

"What the hell is this??" Kairos confused and suddenly blackout vanished. Kairos went to deep thoughts for a moment but instantly he lingered back to arena, ignoring the warning.

****

In the Royal Pavilion, Princess Seyana looked down at Kairos. She clearly saw the resemblance in their eyes. She saw the exact same unbreakable will in the son that the father had just shown. She looked at Kairos with soft admiration.

A few seats away, Brandon Sylphyros noticed everything. He saw exactly the way Seyana looked at Kairos. He saw the connection flowing between them.

A terrifying resentment darkened Brandon’s handsome face.

You look at that filthy, dirt-poor peasant exactly like he is a legendary hero, Brandon thought, his pale eyes suddenly filling entirely with an uncontrollable, toxic, and dangerous murderous intent. He bruised his own palms with fingernails dug into them, and they drew fresh blood. I will make him bleed. I will break him into pieces right in front of you.

****

Down on the floor, the flame towers slowly dimmed their light. The jagged, black volcanic rock began to rumble.

The battlefield was automatically resetting for the next clash. But the intense heat of Karl Wade Vedaryan’s victory lingering in the arena air. It set a reminder to the young generation.

True, absolute power doesn’t ever need to shout to prove its existence. It just needs to remain calm, steady, and kind.