Somewhere within the vast universe, a portal opened, and Kai, Arthraxius, Umbra, and Scry appeared, Arthraxius in his humanoid form. The other spirits stayed behind to get used to their new forms and train with the other gods, while only Silver remained within Kai’s ever-expanding inner universe.
Kai did as he had been instructed and released a sliver of his chaotic energy. It was no longer aura, nor even mana. It was something closer to Origin, yet distinctly different.
He inscribed runes into the emptiness of space using that chaotic energy, and as the runes shimmered to life and twisted before them, a massive silver gate materialized and burst open violently.
“This is it. Let’s go meet some crazy gods.” Kai chuckled and stepped through, the others following behind him.
***
They arrived beneath a silver sky above a vast landmass. Five towers rose from the different corners of the continent, even if it could even be called a continent, since it floated in space surrounded by endless silver chaotic energies.
“Love what they’ve done with the place.” Scry chuckled.
“I cannot wait to crush that damn black dragon, the two-headed bastard,” Umbra growled.
“Calm down. Let’s try to be reasonable for now.” Kai smirked.
But before they could even move, the five towers shone, and from each of them a single massive dragon emerged. Every one of them possessed multiple heads, the strongest bearing five.
“The Herald arrives on his own. How wonderful.” Twirax, the shadowy twin-headed dragon, cackled.
“I am Folga the Vortex. A pleasure to meet you, Herald of Chaos. We have awaited your return for eons!” The five-headed icy-blue dragon spoke.
“I have come to ask you to join me in the upcoming war. We will need all the help we can get.” Kai spoke, ignoring all their Herald nonsense.
“We would wish for nothing more, but unfortunately, until you can prove your power, we are not going to obey you. On the contrary, I was thinking of having you join us here and train with us for an eon or two.” Folga spoke.
Arthraxius chuckled at those words. “Really, Folga? After all these years, you are still too afraid to fight. You idolized the Hydragon for all this time, even sprouting all those useless heads, and for what? To still hide on your little floating island.” Arthraxius spat venom as his form started shining with burning draconic mana.
“Arthraxius?! You are alive?!” Folga gasped with all five heads.
“Indeed, and stronger than ever. Now then, listen to my son here. He is quite extraordinary.” Arthraxius smirked.
“Son?!” Folga shouted.
“Twirax, why did you not tell me that he is protected by the dragons?” Folga demanded.
“How should I know that? Who cares anyway? We are stronger than a single dragon, and he is meant to awaken his old memories and lead us to glory, like in the old days!” Twirax snarled.
“How are we even sure that he is the one? I sense nothing from him.” A triple-headed crimson dragon spoke.
“Yes, he doesn’t even smell like a dragon!” Another triple-headed dragon cut in, this one deep green in hue.
“Brother, let me handle them! I have had enough of this bickering!” Umbra growled.
“I mean, they are not wrong. I guess I can show you.” Kai smiled and summoned his World Serpent, which coiled behind him.
The moment the serpent appeared, Kai’s eyes turned draconic and slit like a predator’s, his hair becoming smoky like flowing night, while his hands transformed into claws.
The entire realm froze.
Time and space themselves paused before the World Serpent.
The dragons stared in silence.
“See? They were right. I am not one of you any longer. All my heads have merged back into one, a much stronger one.” Kai said calmly.
Then he raised his clawed hand.
As he did, the silver chaotic energy above their heads erupted into a vast sea of liquid silver and morphed into an enormous draconic hand. The clawed construct was as large as an island.
Then Kai swiped downward.
The colossal hand descended with the force of a falling continent, twisting time and space around it, while the laws of water within the realm bent and intensified, flowing endlessly under its command.
Boom.
The claw struck all five enormous dragons and drove them into the lands below.
As they crashed into the floating continent, the hand detonated into waves of impossibly heavy silver water that crushed them even deeper into the earth.
“Didn’t you tell me to behave? And look at you.” Umbra laughed, amused.
“Hmmm, I didn’t expect it to be that strong. Oh well, if they died, I can bring them back.” Kai shrugged.
“What? You can do that?” Arthraxius gasped.
“Yes. I absorbed the Soul Page and Kaleth’s grimoire alongside the Soul Root. Currently, I am the only being who can manipulate souls the way he could, though I have yet to actually test it. Luckily, I experienced Florian’s memories, so I know how to wield the power of souls, if only at the most basic level.” Kai noted.
“So, Space and Time as well?” Arthraxius asked.
“Not really. Space is still hard for me to use properly; it will take time. Time, on the other hand, is much easier, though I am missing the last three laws that are still with the Witch. But with what Tenebria left me alongside the other three main laws, I can manage Time well enough, mostly thanks to my mastery over water. It is all connected, you know.” Kai spoke casually.
“You make it sound so easy.” Arthraxius shook his head.
“Tell me about it. I tried to steal a bit of that knowledge, but my mind cannot process it whatsoever.” Scry frowned.
“Hah, serves you right, you damn thief.” Umbra mocked.
“What, you want to go? I am stronger now; remember that!” Scry growled.
“Stop it, you two. Come, let’s go see if those five are alive.” Kai descended slowly.
***
Kai landed next to the twitching dragons. Luckily, they were alive.
The four-headed golden one was the first to stand.
“Ilda, the Golden Chaos, greets the Herald!” As she rose, she bowed all her heads toward Kai.
“Hahaha, this is what I am talking about! You have grown so much, so fast, my Herald. I cannot wait to see more!” Twirax roared as he tried to raise his broken second head.
“He is a psycho. But he is not wrong. The pure power of Chaos that you wield, my Herald. Oh, the joy of experiencing it with my flesh.” The green dragon moaned.
“Forgive me for doubting you.” The crimson one spoke, his eyes shining with a crazed look.
“I see. By merging your heads back into one, you have multiplied the power of Chaos to its very limit and have actually reached the level of Origin itself. Not that divided, filthy mana, but the Source, the spark of destruction and creation. How did you do it?!” Folga rose, shaking with excitement.
“I mastered all elements, including Life and Death, alongside Soul, Time, and Space. Took me two years, give or take.” Kai shrugged.
The dragons gasped. Not a single maw remained closed, while Scry sighed. “Yeah, I know how you feel. It’s damn ridiculous. But such is life. Some people are just crazy like that.”
“It’s not like he didn’t fight his way there. We came from nothing!” Umbra cut in.
“You truly are the Herald, the one meant to lead us. Wait here, my lord; I will assemble our forces.” Folga roared, and the other four followed.
“Well, that worked out well enough.” Kai chuckled.
“No shit.” Scry chuckled. “You are literally the being they worship,” Scry muttered.
“You should expect a nice boost then.” Arthraxius cut in, amused.
“What do you mean?” Kai asked, confused.
“Well, what do you think gods gain from being worshipped? Why do they create lower races and fill their inner realms with life? The more souls you have looking to you for guidance and protection, the more power converges upon you, fueling your strength. And with gods worshipping you, well, the boost is that much greater.” Arthraxius explained.
“Sounds complicated, and I don’t care about such things...” Kai shrugged.
He would rely on his own power alone, not on something external sent his way by others, just as he always had.
Just him, his blade, and his family.
***
As they waited, the entire continent shook, and countless dragons, reptiles, and humanoid twin-headed draconic creatures rose into the sky, led by the five Hydragons.
“We greet the Herald!” they all roared.
Kai sighed and shouted back, “Hello, I am Kai, and I will be needing your help in fighting the armies of the Elemental Gods as well as the Enemy. The realm walls have begun to weaken, and we do not know the Enemy’s numbers, so any warrior is welcome!”
“Just say when and where!” Twirax roared excitedly.
“Alright. I will absorb your realm into mine for the time being to make everything simpler. You can still leave the realm through the same gate. The only thing that will change for you is your realm’s location.” Kai explained as the dragons and their warriors stared in shock, their eyes shining with admiration.
“They are looking at you as if you were their father.” Umbra chuckled.
“More like little ducklings.” Scry laughed.
“Herald is mighty!” Folga cried out.
“Alright then, I will see you when the time is right. Until then, continue as you have so far.” Kai ordered and opened a gate into the void beyond.
***
“How can you absorb other realms already?” Arthraxius questioned.
“I haven’t tried it yet, but their realm is very simple. I possessed a realm like this within me as a simple Master Knight. I don’t think it should be a problem. Let me try.”
Kai released his divine sense around the location of the gate and focused inwardly on his Thunder Tree, which now resembled a Tree of Life more than a simple thunder technique.
He forced one of the empty branches to pierce through his palm and stab into the realm gate.
As he did, the entire space began to vibrate and crack until the branch sucked everything in and sprouted a small silver light at its tip.
Then it retreated into his inner world and re-established the connection to the outside universe.
“There, done. This way they can still travel to Sacra and the Infinite Universe, and I can call upon them whenever needed.” Kai spoke, satisfied.
As the realm connected to his own, a vast rush of mana surged into his being, mana intertwined with the emotions of his worshippers, fueling the expansion of his universe. As the power poured in, his Source energy grew more abundant, and his solar system expanded into a small nebula, within which new stars began to shine into existence.
Kai closed and opened his eyes. They shifted between slit draconic pupils and human ones before finally returning to normal.
“I have grown stronger once more. No wonder Luminarius fought with Solivus over his followers. This boost is crazy.”
“Well then, let’s return to Sacra. We have a Witch to hunt.” Kai smiled and opened a tear in space.