The skies of Eryndora churned like a living storm. Threads of starfire twisted into a colossal vortex above the floating Amphitheater of Eternity, the arena where gods had clashed since the first dawn. The structure hovered above an abyss that seemed to descend into infinity, held aloft by pillars of compressed gravity etched with ancient sigils humming with divine resonance.
Today, those sigils glowed brighter than ever.
Kaizen arrived at the amphitheater's outer gates, his heart pounding with an emotion he rarely felt: fear. He had never stood among the full Pantheon before. Never witnessed the overwhelming pressure of so many divine presences concentrated in one place.
He entered the arena—and felt the entire cosmos press down on him.
Gods from every corner of Eryndora gathered across floating platforms suspended in midair. Each platform radiated the aura of its occupant.
Hikaritsu, God of Radiance, stood upon a disk of pure sunlight. His presence illuminated the entire arena in warm gold.
Midoriya, Goddess of Verdure, was surrounded by spiraling vines of emerald light, each leaf pulsing like a heartbeat.
On a platform of molten battlescar metal floated Takaro, the War God. His armor dripped with sparks, each one forming miniature battle scenes before fading.
Arashihime, the Storm Queen, descended on a cyclone of violet lightning, her eyes like swirling typhoons.
And then, in a cold darkness that devoured the surrounding light, hovered Kuronaga, the Void Tyrant. Silence followed him like a shadow.
Kaizen swallowed. He felt like a candle among storms.
Even the elder gods, those who had not competed for centuries, watched from the celestial balcony. None dared speak. None dared breathe too loudly. The air was charged with suspense and ancient power.
Then a booming voice tore through the heavens.
"THE SEISHIN KETTŌ BEGINS."
A giant rift opened at the center of the amphitheater, and through it stepped Kōrimei, the Arbiter of Divine Law. His form was a drifting collection of floating scripture tablets, constantly rewriting themselves with glowing kanji. Every word was law. Every line reshaped the fabric of reality.
When he spoke, the arena trembled.
"Twenty gods shall enter."
The tablets shifted.
"Only one shall ascend."
Kaizen felt a pang in his chest. Not fear—determination. A spark of something he couldn't name.
Kōrimei continued, "The Seishin Kettō is not a contest of strength alone. This millennium, the trials judge more than power."
The runes around the arena expanded, projecting seven colossal symbols into the sky.
"Seven trials shall decide your fate."
Each symbol radiated a different type of energy—identity, will, balance, chaos, creation, destruction, and truth.
Hikaritsu frowned. Arashihime narrowed her eyes. Even Kuronaga twitched with interest.
"These trials will test your essence, your purpose, and your true nature as a deity. Fail one…"
Kōrimei's tablets cracked with a harsh echo.
"…and your godhood is stripped forever."
The arena went silent.
Losing meant becoming mortal. Weak. Finite.
Tatakai-no-Kami—Takaro—snorted. "Only the weak fear loss."
Arashihime shot him a glare. "Only fools underestimate trials set by the First Pantheon."
Kōrimei raised his hand, silencing all.
The first symbol glowed brighter than the rest. A mirror-like sheen rippled around its form.
"Trial One: The Arena of Self."
Kaizen felt the air freeze around him.
"The first battle will be against the reflection of your true self—your spirit in its purest form."
Kaizen's stomach tightened. He didn't even know who he truly was. His identity, his nature, his domain—they were all unstable, shifting, incomplete.
How could he fight a reflection of something he didn't understand?
Takaro grinned. "A child-god facing himself? He will shatter."
Hikaritsu's voice drifted in Kaizen's mind:
"Your potential is dangerous… even to you."
As Kaizen stepped onto the glowing platform for his trial, the arena darkened.
A figure formed before him.
It had his eyes. His aura.
But twisted—crackling with unstable power.
His reflection smiled.
"Let us see what you truly are."
And the first battle began