Chapter Eleven: Promise of Meeting III
The air in the Forbidden Red Sky Tomb shimmered, thick with the power of my recent transformation. My new, perfect human form felt vibrant, alive, humming with the Creator class's potential.
"Little being," the Primordial Dragon Spirit's voice, now tinged with awe, echoed one last time. "Oh, now your race is superior to me. May I know your name?"
"Aka Zema," I replied, the name feeling solid on my mental tongue, a declaration of my new existence.
"I will say my goodbye, for if fates permit, we meet again and fight side by side," the spirit said, and then, with a gentle swirl of dark energy, its form turned and vanished completely, leaving behind only a lingering sense of ancient peace.
Almost immediately, the gruff, booming voice of the Red Lord filled the silence. "Little friend, you're done with the lizard?"
"Yes, Master Red Lord," I responded, feeling a surge of curiosity. "Between you and the Black Dragon, who is stronger?"
A huff of what sounded like ancient irritation rippled through the air. "Huh! You are comparing me to a damn lizard which couldn't even protect themselves after me and my senior sister's absence!" His tone was indignant, almost offended. "Apart from my master, no one comes even close to me."
My mind sharpened. "So, who is your master?" I asked, a sense of wonder growing. To be the master of such a powerful being, a Red Lord sealed in this tomb... that was a power beyond my comprehension.
"My master," the Red Lord began, his voice losing some of its bluster, becoming strangely wistful. "I haven't met him before, but he promised that someday we would meet. I followed my master's steps and created my own legends. And my senior sister went searching for him 40 million years ago, but she didn't return. I went after her, but it was a trap they set for me. In the end, I was sealed here. Those lizards, after my sealing, they are close to extinction and now in hiding."
His story painted a picture of immense ancient conflict, of beings so powerful they measured time in tens of millions of years. This "master" sounded like someone who truly defined reality.
"Come where I am," the Red Lord commanded, his voice returning to its usual deep rumble. "Let's talk more, and you won't be erased, because you are immune to that damn air."
I felt a subtle shift in the oppressive red aura around me, almost as if it was parting, inviting me closer to the source of his voice. As I considered his invitation, I quickly questioned the System.
"System, do you know his master?"
The System's response was immediate, yet unhelpful. "I don't know."
"System, you're hiding something," I thought, a flicker of frustration passing through my mind. I had a feeling the System knew much more than it let on, especially about beings of this incredible age and power.
I stood there, processing the Red Lord's incredible story. A master so powerful he was only a legend, a senior sister lost for millions of years, and a trap that sealed him here. My mind reeled. The System's earlier "I don't know" felt like a lie.
"System, please tell me, please?" I urged, focusing all my mental energy on it, a desperate plea.
The System finally responded, its voice resonating with an ancient, deeply familiar truth that sent shivers through my new body. "You are me, and I am you. So, he is your disciple that inherited your fragment you left in this universe."
My mind buzzed with this revelation. My disciple? A fragment I left? It was almost too much to take in, yet it clicked into place with a strange sense of rightness.
"It was two fragments, but the last one, I don't think anybody can reach that place," the System continued, hinting at even more profound secrets. "You're growing stronger, so I am recovering our memory."
As the System spoke, fragmented images and bizarre feelings began to flood my mind. A flash of a grinning face, wild and free. A sense of playful mischief. Then, the System's voice took on a slightly amused, almost regretful tone as it pulled up memories that were somehow mine.
"If he inherited our fragment, then he was extremely weak and went through so many stupid things like dancing naked before learning, cutting your penis or you will die, and many more," the System chuckled mentally, a sound that felt like my own forgotten humor. "And I quite remember no sex or you will explode. I created for fun in a journey to explore the world."
A wave of embarrassment, both ancient and immediate, washed over me. I created those ridiculous rules? For fun? My own disciple had suffered through my bizarre sense of humor from an age long past!
"But he grew up fine, without resentment," the System concluded, a hint of satisfaction in its tone.
"I don't believe he harbors any resentment," I agreed, a faint smile touching my lips. Even with the absurd trials, the Red Lord's loyalty and respect for his "master"—me—were clear. The thought filled me with a warmth I hadn't expected.
My ancient past was slowly piecing itself together, revealing a playful, powerful, and deeply strange being. And now, one of my former disciples was inviting me closer.
"Come where I am," the Red Lord had boomed, and despite the lingering strangeness of the System's revelation, I began to move. I trekked through the Forbidden Red Sky Tomb, deeper and deeper, towards the very base where the Red Lord was sealed. The air grew heavier with each step, the crimson glow around me becoming a suffocating, dense fog. This place felt ancient, forgotten, and truly unwelcoming.
As I neared the lowest point, a horrifying sight unfolded before me. There, at the very heart of this desolate realm, was the Red Lord. He was a colossal, dark figure, barely visible through the oppressive red mist. What truly sent a shiver down my spine, though, were the chains. Thick, ominous, and incredibly dense, they wrapped around him countless times, binding him completely. They pulsed with a dark, suffocating power, rooting him to the very core of the tomb. The air here was almost solid with the suppression they radiated, pressing down on my new body, making my breathing halt, even with my immunity to the red air. It was a pressure designed to crush the very will to exist.
Just as the weight threatened to overwhelm me, a shimmering, dark barrier instantly formed around my body, pushing back the oppressive force. It was the Red Lord's doing.
"You're welcome to the First Hell," his voice rumbled, closer now, a dry amusement in his tone. "But you will be okay."
I stood within the barrier, gasping, but now able to breathe. The "First Hell" indeed. The chains, the overwhelming suppression—this was a prison of unimaginable power. He was sealed, yet he radiated such confidence. This was a challenge unlike any I had faced.