Chapter 130 - 125: The King Beyond Time (Part 3)
The golden notifications slowly faded into the air.
John remained standing before the True Heart, but his thoughts were no longer on the System.
Instead...
They were on Aurelius.
The First Dragon King.
The founder of the Dragon Kings.
The being whose mere remnant had caused the System—something John had always relied upon—to fail its analysis.
John looked at the ancient king carefully.
"You said..."
"...the System couldn’t measure you."
Aurelius nodded.
"Correct."
"Because you’re too powerful?"
A gentle smile appeared on the ancient king’s face.
"No."
"Because I no longer exist within the boundaries it governs."
John frowned.
"I don’t understand."
---
Aurelius walked toward the crystal pond once more.
With a wave of his hand, the pond changed.
This time...
It no longer showed mountains or continents.
Instead...
The world itself appeared.
John saw the planet floating within an endless sea of stars.
Beautiful.
Small.
Fragile.
Then the image expanded.
The stars became a galaxy.
The galaxy became one among countless others.
The universe unfolded before him.
John’s breath caught.
"I..."
Before he could finish—
The image expanded again.
The universe itself shrank until it resembled a tiny sphere of light.
Around it floated countless other spheres.
Some burned with blue radiance.
Others with crimson, emerald, silver, or violet.
Each one...
Contained another universe.
John’s pupils contracted.
"...Impossible."
Aurelius calmly replied,
"No."
"Merely beyond the understanding of your current world."
---
The vision continued expanding.
Clusters of universes formed immense currents of light.
Those currents drifted through an endless ocean of existence.
The sheer scale overwhelmed John’s mind.
His Dragon King’s Instinct screamed.
Not in warning.
In awe.
"So many..."
He whispered.
Aurelius nodded.
"What you call your world..."
"...is only one reality among countless others."
John stood speechless.
Everything he had experienced suddenly felt...
Small.
---
The image froze.
Several immense lights drifted far beyond the cluster of realities.
Unlike the universes...
These lights moved.
Slowly.
Purposefully.
John couldn’t distinguish their forms.
Every time he tried to focus...
His vision blurred.
His Dragon Core began aching.
He instinctively looked away.
"What..."
"...are those?"
For the first time since they met...
Aurelius’ expression became solemn.
"You are not meant to perceive them yet."
John felt cold.
Even seeing them from an unimaginable distance had caused physical pain.
---
"They exist beyond this world’s laws."
Aurelius spoke quietly.
"They are not gods."
"They are not dragons."
"They are not spirits."
"They simply..."
"...are."
John swallowed.
"They’re stronger than you?"
Silence.
Then...
"Yes."
The answer came without hesitation.
John’s eyes widened.
"But..."
"Aren’t you the First Dragon King?"
Aurelius smiled faintly.
"I am."
"And I was once considered among the greatest beings within this reality."
He looked toward the distant lights.
"But beyond reality..."
"There are always greater existences."
---
John slowly lowered his gaze.
His thoughts drifted toward the monsters Aurelius had shown him earlier.
The Catastrophe-Class creatures.
Ancient Beasts.
Primordial Creatures.
He had assumed they represented the pinnacle of power.
Now...
He realized they weren’t even close.
Aurelius noticed his expression.
"Do not misunderstand."
"The creatures of your world remain unimaginably powerful."
"A Catastrophe-Class beast can erase kingdoms."
"An Ancient Beast can threaten civilizations."
"A Primordial Creature could bring about the end of an age."
He paused.
"But none of them..."
"...can step beyond the laws of this reality."
---
John asked quietly,
"And you?"
"I once could."
Silence.
"But not anymore."
---
John looked at him in confusion.
"What happened?"
Aurelius turned toward the True Heart.
"I chose."
"To protect this reality..."
"...I surrendered something precious."
"My existence."
The chamber became silent.
"I did not transcend."
"I remained."
"So that others could continue living."
---
John slowly understood.
Aurelius hadn’t been defeated.
He had sacrificed his future.
Just as Asterion had sacrificed his own.
Different choices.
The same burden.
---
The First Dragon King raised one hand.
A single golden feather appeared above his palm.
"This..."
"...is not me."
John frowned.
"What?"
"You believe you are speaking to Aurelius."
The ancient king smiled.
"But you are mistaken."
"I am merely..."
"...a fragment."
The feather dissolved into countless particles.
"My soul shattered long ago."
"My will scattered across countless realities."
John’s breathing stopped.
"What?"
---
"Every reality where hope still burns..."
"...contains a fragment of my will."
"Some sleep."
"Some guide."
"Some have already faded."
John looked around the chamber.
"So..."
"You’re only one piece?"
Aurelius nodded.
"A memory."
"A wish."
"A lesson."
"Nothing more."
John found it difficult to comprehend.
If this...
This kind, wise being...
Was merely one fragment...
Then how powerful had the complete Aurelius truly been?
---
The First Dragon King seemed to read his thoughts.
"You are imagining my strength."
John nodded honestly.
"I am."
Aurelius laughed.
"Stop."
John blinked.
"What?"
"If you begin chasing power alone..."
"You’ll repeat Asterion’s mistake."
He looked directly into John’s eyes.
"The Legacy I left behind..."
"...was never meant to create another me."
"It was meant to create..."
"...someone better."
---
John remained silent.
The words settled deep within his heart.
Not another Aurelius.
Not another Great Dragon King.
Not another legend.
John.
Walking his own path.
---
The True Heart pulsed once more.
This time...
The chamber trembled.
Aurelius slowly looked upward.
"Our time grows short."
John immediately noticed the change.
The ancient king’s body had become slightly transparent.
"The trial is ending."
"There is still so much I want to ask."
"There always is."
Aurelius smiled warmly.
"But answers gained too early..."
"...often become chains."
John slowly nodded.
"I understand."
"Good."
The First Dragon King raised one hand.
A single golden scale materialized before John.
Unlike ordinary dragon scales...
Its surface contained countless tiny runes that shifted continuously.
"This is not power."
"It is a key."
John accepted it carefully.
"A key?"
"It will awaken only when your Legacy reaches the next threshold."
"Until then..."
"It will remain dormant."
The System immediately responded.
---
**"SYSTEM NOTIFICATION"**
**Unique Legacy Item Acquired**
**Dragon King’s Sigil (Dormant)**
**Classification:** Legacy Relic
**Status:** Locked
**Requirement:** Synchronization with the Ancient Dragon King’s Legacy must reach the next awakening threshold.
**Current Synchronization: 8%**
---
John looked back toward Aurelius.
The ancient king was fading.
Almost transparent now.
One last smile crossed his face.
"Remember this, John."
"There will always be someone stronger."
"There will always be another mountain beyond the one you’ve climbed."
"But strength alone..."
"...has never decided the fate of the world."
As the light surrounding him dissolved into countless golden motes, his final words echoed through the chamber.
"One day..."
"When your journey reaches beyond this reality..."
"We shall meet again."
The chamber fell silent.
Only the steady heartbeat of the True Heart remained.
**Thump.**
John stood alone.
Yet somehow...
He no longer felt alone.
Far beyond the countless realities, where even the First Dragon King’s will could only reach as scattered fragments...
Something ancient stirred for the briefest instant.
Not because it had awakened.
But because, somewhere in one insignificant world, the heir of the Dragon Kings had taken his first true step.
Then...
The presence became still once more.
As if the vastness beyond reality had merely acknowledged John’s existence before returning to its timeless slumber.
---
100 ps = 1 extra Chapter
200 ps = 2 Extra Chapter
1 Golden ticket = 3 Extra Chapter