Chapter 85: The Second Awakening: A Hellish One
Ding!
[Initiating the second awakening of Host’s bloodline.]
[Initiating the second awakening of the Primordial Anchor Body.]
[Initiating the second awakening of the Infinite Origin Core.]
A draconic chant resounded from Lucien’s body. This time, it was stronger. More domineering. It echoed through the air like a declaration of war against the heavens themselves.
But then, Lucien gritted his teeth. His blood was boiling. His entire body turned red, as if he had been thrown into a fire. The heat was unbearable, spreading through his veins like liquid fire.
Then it got worse.
The boiling blood began to hit and slash his body from the inside. Like blades. Like knives. Like someone was carving him from within.
Lucien coughed out a mouthful of blood. His body convulsed. His hands clenched the ground so hard that his nails dug into the earth.
This awakening was vastly different from the first. The first awakening was like heaven. It had been gentle, almost welcoming. Like stepping into warm water. This one was almost hell.
His blood screamed. His bones ached. His Origin Well churned violently, threatening to tear itself apart.
Seraphina’s eyes widened. "Darling!"
She moved forward, but Lilith grabbed her arm.
"Don’t," Lilith said, her voice sharp. "If we interfere now, he could die."
Seraphina froze. Her hands trembled. Her golden eyes burned with helpless rage.
Lilith’s own crimson eyes were fixed on Lucien. Her usual playful demeanor was gone. Replaced by something cold and serious.
Lucien coughed again. More blood. His body trembled violently.
The draconic chant continued, growing louder and louder. It was coming from his Origin Well, from the depths of his soul.
When he thought this was the end, it turned out that this was just the beginning.
CRACK!
Lucien’s bones began to crack, just like when he took the Primordial Reforging Elixir. They broke down. They were reforged by the boiling blood. Carved by the blade energy in the blood.
Lucien was almost running mad from the pain. His will was tethering from the immense pain.
"Darling, don’t give up!"
He heard the voices of his wives. Unsettling. Panicking.
They could see that Lucien was losing it due to the pain. And if he gave up, he would explode from this unknown energy.
Hearing their voice seemed to invigorate Lucien in a unique way. Thinking of how short he had lived in this world. His family members. Everyone.
He was like a phoenix reborn in the ashes. His will got itself back. He bit his tongue, increasing the pain in a unique way that it woke his will up.
He couldn’t die yet. There were many questions waiting to be answered in this journey he was on. And he hadn’t found an answer to any of them. So how could he die?
He wasn’t giving up yet.
As he thought of this, a draconic chant resounded in his mind.
"Hahaha!"
Delighted laughter shook him. Lucien shook.
"Who’s that?" Lucien asked in his mind, because that’s where it came from.
And suddenly, his view had changed. He was no longer in the desolate broken land. He was floating in a large expanse of stars that glowed with different light.
He immediately became vigilant. Surprisingly, he felt no pain again. Where was he?
He looked around. Nothing but the expanse of stars. He then tried to move. But strangely, he couldn’t move. He could move his hands. But he couldn’t move his legs to walk. It was as if they were fixed in this single point. He immediately tried to move because he couldn’t get what was happening.
He called on the system. There was no response. He didn’t know whether the system didn’t hear him or it heard him but decided not to reply.
"Don’t stress yourself."
An ancient, domineering voice resounded, shaking Lucien’s entire being.
He instinctively glanced up. And he saw a scene he would never forget.
A massive head stared down at him. It was so large that it seemed to fill the entire expanse of stars. Its scales were silver and black, shifting like liquid shadow and starlight. Each scale was bigger than a mountain. Each one gleamed with ancient power.
The head itself was draconic in shape. But it was unlike any dragon Lucien had ever seen. It was more ancient. More primal. Its snout was long and angular, lined with rows of teeth that looked like they could tear through reality itself. Its eyes burned with primordial fire, two suns of molten gold and crimson that held the weight of ages. Horns of obsidian curled back from its skull, their surfaces etched with runes older than the world.
Its presence alone pressed down on Lucien like a mountain. Like the weight of the entire universe. Like the beginning and end of all things.
Lucien froze. His heart stopped. Then it started again, pounding against his ribs like a trapped animal. His breath caught in his throat. His hands trembled at his sides. He had faced volkoids. He had faced enemies. He had faced the heaven’s lightning.
But this? This was something else entirely.
His mind went blank. The words he wanted to say, the questions he wanted to ask, died before they could reach his lips. His entire body felt small. Insignificant. Like an ant staring up at a god.
What... what is this?
The dragon’s massive eyes fixed on him. It studied him. It assessed him. The weight of its gaze pressed down on him like a thousand mountains.
"Who are you?" Lucien wanted to voice out these words but he found out he couldn’t speak.
His mouth opened. Closed. Opened again. Nothing came out.
His body was frozen. His mind was racing. The dragon’s presence was overwhelming, suffocating, ancient.
"Me," the domineering voice replied, shaking him into confusion. "I am you. You are me."
What does it mean by these words?
Lucien’s mind spun. How could he be this thing? This ancient, terrifying dragon that looked like it had existed before the stars themselves.
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