Dancing on the golden ashes-Chapter 247: Reaching for Eternity

Raising my hands to the sky, I felt the powerful energy surge within me. My soul — the perfect reflection of myself — began to change.

Clad in robes identical to mine, my soul's form grew stronger, the faint outline of wings stretching wide from its back. A tail and curved horns soon followed, rising proudly from its form. Its face became clearer, the familiar features fully etched across its skin.

The orbs of sin — once spinning freely within my soul container — drifted to the very center of my being, surrounding the pyramid that now housed the remnants of my system. The two forces, one born from sin and the other from creation, intertwined like coiling serpents, feeding each other energy in an endless cycle.

And then... the flames in my palms shifted.

They began to spiral, twisting and spinning until they no longer resembled fire at all. Instead, they bloomed into something far greater — a swirling mass of galaxies and stars, a cosmic universe condensed into my grasp. It pulsed with radiant energy, glowing brighter and stronger with each breath I took.

I felt my body change again, my muscles tightening and reshaping beneath my skin. My organs twisted, reforged by the overwhelming power that now coursed through me. A faint silver glow settled over my skin, washing my body in an ethereal light.

And my eyes...

When I lifted my gaze to the sky, the world no longer appeared the same. The heavens above shimmered with vibrant hues — endless ribbons of cosmic energy weaving together in brilliant patterns that seemed to dance in celebration of my awakening.

But I wasn't quite at the Eternity Stage yet. Something was still missing — something crucial. The tribulation had yet to arrive to greet me, and without overcoming it, I felt incomplete. That emptiness lingered inside me, gnawing at my thoughts and reminding me that I hadn't reached my goal.

But more than that, I knew I had to ensure my friends were safe. They couldn't remain here — not with what was about to happen. I had to send them away, far from this place, far from the wrath of the tribulation that would soon descend. They needed time to grow, to recover, and to live without the threat of my battle looming over them.

Reaching out, I guided that energy into my body, allowing it to fill me with power before releasing it outward once again. The energy surged from my palms, rushing into the orbs that hovered around me — the souls of my fallen friends.

"Live," I whispered.

The souls rose higher and higher, their dark orbs now shining like tiny stars. They soared into the sky, climbing so high that they disappeared from view — each one carried by the cosmic winds to a place I could no longer see.

And then... my heart followed.

It shattered into thousands of tiny fragments, each sliver glowing faintly as they spiraled upward, joining the souls they would now sustain. The last piece disappeared into the endless sky, vanishing into the brilliance above.

It was a beautiful sight — like thousands of tiny stars soaring from the earth to the very edge of the universe. Each one flickered with faint light, their brilliance growing stronger as they climbed higher, vanishing into the endless canvas of the sky.

That's right... stars.

They were my stars — my people, my friends, my family. Every soul that once stood by my side, now rising to reclaim their place in the universe.

So let them be reborn as stars that shine brighter than ever before.

I clenched my bloodstained fists, feeling the fading warmth of my heart still lingering on my palms. They would be reborn, all of them... but not as they once were. No, they would return stronger — reforged by the cosmic energy that now flowed through me. Their bodies would be reconstructed from the very moment of their birth to the point where they stood at their peak.

All of you... no matter if you were my closest friend or just another soldier who stood beneath my banner... you will rise again.

I swore to it.

You all chose to stay, to defend the empire, to protect the world... and you died because of me.

I stood atop the blackened mountain, my feet soaked in a pool of my own blood. My body ached, my breath came in ragged gasps, yet my hands remained stretched toward the heavens as if I could still feel them... as if my fingers could grasp the fading light of their souls.

But something was missing.

Something important.

I lowered my hands slowly, fingers twitching as a familiar sense of rage coiled inside me — cold, sharp, and undeniable.

No... they cannot return like this. Not yet.

"Come here and face your death..."

I extended my hand toward the void, my fingers curling as I reached through the unseen fabric of the world itself. Something pulled back — a powerful force thrashing wildly like a beast caught in a snare. I felt it struggle, twisting and resisting with everything it had, yet it was no match for me.

You can't run anymore.

The air distorted before me, rippling like heat over desert sands, and from that haze, a monstrous figure emerged.

The beast stood tall, its twisted humanoid form towering above me. Jagged horns crowned its head, and its crimson eyes burned with hatred. A guttural roar tore from its throat, shaking the earth beneath my feet. The sheer pressure radiating from its body clawed at my skin, each wave of power crashing against me like a relentless tide.

Yet none of that mattered.

It was his soul — that soul brimming with overwhelming strength — that mattered most. The sheer presence of it crushed the air, forcing the sky itself to ripple as if gravity itself bent to his will.

No wonder he survived this long... this soul could defy death itself.

"You've managed to hide yourself for long enough," I said coldly, my voice laced with venom. "You filthy demigod... but now that I've caught you, tell me... what will you do now?"

"He will rip you to pieces, you filthy human! You have no idea who you're messing with!"

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The monster's roar struck like thunder, the sheer force of his voice tearing through the air. The earth beneath my feet groaned and splintered, cracks spreading like jagged veins across the charred ground. If I hadn't reached this level of strength, that alone would have been enough to kill me.

But I wasn't the same Gaon I used to be.