The scorching wind howled across the desolate oasis. The lush serenity that once defined this place had been turned into a storm of chaos, sand, and golden feathers, filling the air like a tempest of death. Bahamut crashed into the shattered trunk of a palm tree, the impact sending cracks splintering through the ground. His body ached, his ribs screamed, and blood trickled from his lips, painting his chin crimson.
The Golden Sun Eagle screeched above, its majestic form gleaming with a blinding radiance. Each flap of its wings unleashed gales that cut through stone. Its body shimmered like molten gold, and its eyes burned with divine fury, a being at the threshold of Tier 2 power, emanating heat so intense that the water around the oasis had begun to boil.
Bahamut staggered to his feet, panting heavily. His clothes were in tatters, skin blistered from the eagle's solar bursts. He could barely feel his right arm, the muscles burned from overuse, and his claws had already receded when his Beast Trait Manifestation failed moments earlier.
[System Error: Skill 'Beast Trait Manifestation' temporarily offline. Cooldown recalibrating…]
"Now? You've got to be kidding me…" Bahamut muttered through gritted teeth, wiping blood from his mouth. His grey, blind eyes flickered with frustration as the Eagle dove down, wings tucked tight, a living comet descending from the sky.
BOOOOOM!
Bahamut barely rolled aside as the ground exploded beside him. The blast sent him tumbling across the sand, his body carving a shallow trench before stopping near the edge of the oasis. His breath came in ragged bursts. His instincts screamed for him to move, but his limbs were heavy.
The Eagle rose again, spreading its radiant wings, sunlight bent toward it, forming an enormous sphere of concentrated energy between its talons. The sky dimmed in response, as if even the heavens feared its wrath.
Bahamut clenched his fists, feeling his bones creak. "Come on… move, damn it…"
The sphere shot downward like a miniature sun. Bahamut barely raised his arm in time; his aura flared weakly, golden sparks fighting against the overwhelming blaze. The explosion swallowed him whole.
KRAAAAAASH!!!
A wave of sand and light tore through the oasis. Palms vaporized. Water hissed into steam. Silence followed, broken only by the crackle of evaporating heat.
Up in the observation area, the spectators were frozen in disbelief.
"Did he...?"
"No way he survived that," muttered one of the candidates, sweat trickling down his temple."That's Tier 2 power… no one at his level could stand against that."
Even the Elders, watching from their golden stands, leaned forward. One of them, a woman in silver robes with hair like snow, narrowed her eyes. "No… he's still alive."
The dust cleared.
Bahamut stood at the center of a crater. His body was smoking, his skin seared and cracked, glowing faintly from the heat within. His breathing was shallow, his right arm limp at his side. His eyes, once sharp and alive, were distant, as though staring through the Eagle, not at it.
Then something shifted.
A sudden pulse coursed through his head, memories, alien yet familiar, flooded his mind. Screams of battlefields, the clash of steel, the rhythm of countless wars. A sensation of holding something long and balanced in his hand. Not claws. Not fists. A spear.
[Dormant Skill Unlocked: "Past Lives Memory" — Accessing…]
The voice of the system sounded distant this time, like an echo from within his soul.
Flashes overwhelmed him, a man with his same face but sharper, older, surrounded by fallen enemies. His movements were elegant, precise. A silver spear twirled in his hands, cutting through the sky like a streak of lightning. And then, pain, blood, the explosion of his core as his cultivation backfired, ending his life.
Bahamut gasped and fell to one knee, clutching his head. His heart pounded like a drum.
"A spear… I need a spear…" he muttered unconsciously. His eyes darted across the ruins, searching. Amidst the wreckage of ancient structures around the oasis, his gaze locked on something: a broken pillar of stone, long and narrow, half-buried in the sand.
He stumbled toward it, every step heavy, the Eagle watching curiously from above, its aura flaring as if sensing something awakening in him.
Bahamut gripped the broken pillar, about the length of a spear shaft. The instant his fingers closed around it, a spark coursed through his veins. His instincts, buried deep within the tapestry of countless reincarnations, roared to life.
The air around him shifted.
Wind spiraled. His aura, once faint and flickering, now surged, coiling around him like a crimson dragon breaking free from its seal.
Far above, the Eagle screeched, and Bahamut raised the makeshift spear, eyes glowing like molten suns. His stance was different, calm, grounded, perfectly balanced; the stance of a warrior born for the spear.
He whispered under his breath, his voice trembling between exhaustion and awakening, "Let's dance again… one last time."
Then, in a blur, he vanished, the sand exploding behind him as he launched himself straight toward the descending divine bird.
...
The wind cracked like thunder as Bahamut launched himself forward, his figure nothing but a crimson streak amid the swirling dust. The makeshift spear, just a broken stone pillar, trembled in his grip, but under the guidance of his resurrected instincts, it felt perfect. Every grain of sand, every shift in the wind, every glint of the Eagle's radiant feathers was burned into his perception.
The Golden Sun Eagle shrieked, spreading its wings wide. Golden light surged from its feathers, forming a blinding halo behind it, an ethereal sun. With a single flap, it sent a cutting wave of heat across the battleground, melting the sand into glass.
Bahamut didn't flinch. His pupils narrowed into slits, and his body moved before his mind could catch up. The spear moved in a perfect arc, fluid, alive.
CLANG!
The air screamed as the pillar-spear met the blast head-on, splitting it apart. The remnants of molten glass scattered into the air, glowing like shattered stars.
Bahamut slid across the molten ground, bare feet searing but steady. He gritted his teeth, muscles twitching with strain. Blood ran down his arms, but his stance never wavered.
Then the Eagle descended.
It came like a falling star, its wings cloaked in divine fire, talons gleaming with lethal light. The ground shook beneath its descent.
Bahamut's instincts screamed; left. pivot. thrust.
He spun, his body twisting low as he drove the broken spear upward.
SWWWISH!
The sharp edge of the stone tore through the air, grazing the Eagle's abdomen. A streak of golden blood splattered across the sands, sizzling like molten metal. The Eagle screeched in fury, its entire body igniting in wrath.
Its aura exploded.
The pressure crushed the air, forcing Bahamut to one knee. His chest heaved, ribs threatening to crack from the force. Still, his eyes burned with determination, wild, unwavering.
"You're not taking me down," he growled.
He lunged again, spinning the spear around his body with terrifying grace. Each motion carved whirlwinds into the battlefield. The Eagle countered, sending feather blades flying from its wings like knives of sunlight.
Bahamut ducked, sidestepped, rolled, too close. One blade sliced across his shoulder, another buried itself in his thigh. He cried out but refused to falter.
His counter came fast, a powerful thrust. The stone spear pierced the air, striking the Eagle's wing joint with a loud crack. The beast screamed, staggering back, its balance faltering for the first time.
The spectators gasped.
From the viewing platform, murmurs erupted among those who had failed and those still waiting for their turns."He's fighting that thing with a rock?""No… not fighting. He's dancing with it."
"What kind of technique is that? Those aren't normal movements!"One of the Elders leaned forward, her expression unreadable. "That… stance. That precision. Those are spear arts. But no one in the lower realms should move like that."
Another Elder in black robes chuckled darkly. "Interesting boy. His aura doesn't match his form, and yet… he adapts mid-battle. As if his body remembers what his mind has forgotten."
The Eagle roared again, wings spreading as the air shimmered with oppressive heat.
It gathered solar energy between its beak, forming a miniature sun, brighter and denser than before. The sky dimmed, as though fearing the radiance.
Bahamut squinted, sweat and blood dripping into his eyes. The heat clawed at his lungs. His makeshift weapon began to crumble under the energy emanating from the Eagle.
Then, his mind flashed.
A memory not his, yet his.He stood on a mountain of corpses, spear glowing in his grip, eyes calm and merciless."Breathe with the world, and let the strike follow the rhythm."
He inhaled deeply. The world seemed to still. Even the roar of the Eagle faded.
He exhaled......and moved.
His entire body blurred, a crimson afterimage sweeping across the field. The ground caved under his feet, sand scattering in concentric waves.
The Eagle released the solar sphere, a blinding beam of destruction screaming toward him.
Bahamut met it head-on.
BOOOOOOM!
The explosion devoured the oasis. Trees vaporized. Rocks shattered.
Through the smoke, a silhouette burst forth, Bahamut, his body wreathed in faint golden flames. His broken pillar had been reduced to half its size, but his grey eyes burned brighter than ever.
He thrust.
SHHHK!
The tip of his weapon pierced the Eagle's chest, right between its glowing breast feathers. The creature's screech tore through the heavens as the radiant light inside it shattered like glass.
The Eagle crashed into the sands, convulsing violently before going still. Its golden light faded, leaving only the faint shimmer of heat around its fallen body.
Bahamut stood above it, trembling, his chest rising and falling like a drumbeat of survival. The pillar crumbled in his grasp, turning to dust.
He staggered back, barely catching himself before falling.
His body trembled violently, every nerve screaming in pain. The scent of scorched sand and burnt blood filled the air, and his lungs heaved as though he were breathing fire. He could feel the heat fading, the tremors beneath his feet slowing… but see nothing.
Darkness.
Only darkness.
Like always. And he was too weak for the side effects of his death intent to kick in.
[Trial 5 — Completed.][System Notification: Skill "Past Lives Memory" synchronization in progress.][Warning: Mental load exceeding safe limit. Commencing partial shutdown.]
"...Ren…" he muttered weakly, falling to one knee.
Far away, Ren, who had been flung aside during the Eagle's first attack, scrambled through the dunes, his fur dirty, ears twitching in panic. The small creature's red eyes widened when he saw Bahamut collapse.
Ren dashed forward, hopping onto Bahamut's shoulder, pressing its tiny paws against his face with soft squeaks of worry.
Bahamut smiled faintly, eyes half-closed."Heh… still here, huh? Told you I'd win… I'm not doing this shit again..."
"You fucking psychopath!" Ren exclaimed with a chuckle.
Then his body slumped to the side, exhausted but victorious.
High above, the Elders exchanged silent glances.
"The fifth stage…""He's still standing.""And he hasn't even reached Tier 1 Circle of Spirit yet.""Keep watching. That boy… is not ordinary."
The golden shimmer of the Eagle's corpse reflected in their eyes......and in that silence, Bahamut's unconscious form began to glow faintly, the mark of something ancient awakening deep within him.