Chapter 5: Awakening of the Infinite Hydra: The Fate Codex Emerges
Ezra shifted slightly in the cradle, testing the flow of mana once more. The threads responded immediately, brightening as though they had recognized him—recognized intent, will, potential. Colors he had never seen before danced and twisted in the air before his newborn eyes: azure spirals coiling like living galaxies, crimson arcs slicing through space like comet tails, golden ribbons weaving in and out, and countless others—emerald, violet, amber—all intertwining in impossible patterns. Even in this fragile infant form, he could feel the threads' responsiveness, their latent energy whispering to him, waiting to be shaped, bent, and drawn inward.
"I have to focus," he told himself, the tiniest crease forming on his forehead as his brow furrowed. "First the core… then the foundation. Everything else can come after. The Voidbane can wait. But my core… my core cannot."
He shut his eyes against the brilliant radiance of the Nine Suns, their light refracting through the translucent sunstone walls of his chamber and scattering into prismatic arcs that danced across every surface. His room was a cathedral of light and artistry: sunstone inlays glimmering with captured sunlight, gold leaf walls etched with murals of elves and dragons frozen in mid-battle, delicate crystal sculptures floating midair, their magic softly humming in resonance with the room. Even the air seemed alive, vibrating faintly in acknowledgment of the power stirring within its smallest occupant.
Ezra visualized the core forming in his chest: a perfect, glowing heart of energy, threads of mana spiraling inward like miniature galaxies collapsing into a single, incandescent singularity. Slowly, deliberately, meticulously, he coaxed the threads, merging them, stabilizing them, guiding them with precision. Every pulse he drew was intentional. Every twist and spiral was deliberate, each a thread in the tapestry of his own creation. The warmth and resonance of energy spread through him, suffusing his tiny body with purpose, power, and inevitability.
And then—a flash of brilliance. A white, radiant core ignited in his chest, linking seamlessly to the veins of mana coursing invisibly throughout his being. Its glow was soft yet absolute, filling him with a sense of completion and certainty. He had chosen the knight path, the safest and most harmonious for Sun Elves. He could have taken the mage path, leaning on the latent gift inherited from his Moon Elf blood, but without supervision, it was far too risky. The knight path grounded him, gave structure, and protected him.
The moment the core solidified, a playful, almost teasing "boo" echoed in his mind. A golden book, its pages endless and shimmering, appeared floating above his cradle, flipping open as though moved by invisible fingers. Words formed directly in his consciousness: Fate Codex.
He had never encountered such a thing, yet it felt… familiar, as though a shadow of memory brushed against his mind.
"What is this book? Is it the one that brought me here? Why… why does it feel like I've seen it before?" The thought dissolved into awe as the book flipped to a page covered in alien, divine script. The characters pulsed with power; if anyone else looked upon them, death might have seemed a mercy. Yet Ezra could read it. That fact alone was astonishing. something unusual happened—a translucent interface formed in his mind, shimmering like a magical projection, hovering over the warmth of his chest. Words and numbers etched themselves into his consciousness in the familiar style of a webnovel system.
[STATUS SYSTEM – FATE CODEX]
Name: Ezra Aurelius / John Smith / ???
Bloodline: Aurelius bloodline, Lunaris bloodline
Age: 1 day old / ???????
Race: Sun Elf (House Aurelius)
Realm: Initiate Knight (Core Formed)
Mana Core Status: Stabilizing
STATISTICS
Strength: 1 / 100
Vitality: 10 / 100
Agility: 1 / 100
Intelligence: 20 / 100 (enhanced due to reincarnation knowledge)
Spirit: 1000 (normal initiate knight is 10)
Mana Control: 1 / 100
Mana: 350 / 1000
Ezra's tiny mind reeled at the numbers. Spirit: 1000. That alone was inconceivable, even for the most talented elven prodigies. And Intelligence: 20, bolstered by memories from a life he had already lived—an existence beyond this world—gave him an advantage no ordinary infant could hope for.
"So this is me. This… this is what I am right now," he thought, heart racing. His gaze drifted to the sunstone walls, the golden decorations, the miniature statues of elves and dragons. Every object shimmered, resonating with the newfound awareness inside him. The world seemed simultaneously enormous and intimately connected to him.
A neutral, ancient voice echoed in his mind, neither male nor female, older than the stars themselves.
"Requirements for awakening of Fate Codex fulfilled. Initiating second phase."
"Found two Divine-level bloodlines. Initiating devouring."
Pain tore through his tiny form—sharp, all-consuming, unlike anything he had felt before. His cries mingled with the quiet hum of the sunstone and golden chamber.
Shards of foreign memories exploded in his consciousness. He saw beings of unimaginable power tearing through reality itself—legions of eldritch monsters clashing with towering silver-haired man wielding a scepter that bent space and time. The figure, a man of commanding presence, fought desperately against impossible odds, his motions fluid and deadly. Ezra watched, mesmerized and terrified, as reality itself twisted around them. Then, with a sudden snap, the vision shattered. He was back in his crib.
The voice resonated once more, calm, absolute, cosmic:
"Devouring complete. Infinite Hydra bloodline gained. Complete aspects of the two bloodlines are now one with it."
For a brief, incomprehensible moment, Ezra's form was no longer infant or elf, no longer child or human. He was a gleaming, undulating mass of jelly-like potential, radiant and raw. Then, from the golden book above, a single drop fell—a drop of liquid beyond mortal or divine perception. At one moment, it was multicolored blood. The next, an entire universe condensed into that drop, followed by a blazing sun, then a void of infinite darkness.
As it sank into him, the agony he had felt moments before melted into absolute comfort, infinite and pure. His body shifted, first into a small white-gold baby hydra, nine tiny dragon heads curling around each other, body sleek and powerful despite its miniature size. Then, in a final surge of transformation, he returned to his infant elf form, now undeniably changed: golden hair streaked with white at the front, silver-toned skin etched with luminous golden patterns.
He floated down gently into his cradle, the silk and sunstones beneath him quivering faintly in recognition of the new depth of his being. Every thread of mana in the room pulsed in harmony with him, each shimmering light acknowledging the Infinite Hydra bloodline devouring the Aurelius and Lunaris lineage.
"I… I've changed. Fundamentally. Completely… and there's no going back." His mind raced, exhilarated and terrified all at once. The world itself seemed to hum with anticipation, and he realized with a clarity that shook him to his core: he was no longer just Ezra. He was infinite potential made manifest, a nexus of bloodlines, magic, time and fate.