Two centuries of silence had shaped him. His body bore the weight of four flames—Life, Death, Creation, and Destruction—each now pulsing in harmony within his core. Though subdued, they were no longer enemies. They had become part of his breath, his blood, his wings.
But the Earth-Level Universe had not forgotten him.
As Krish stepped forward along the silver road, the stillness shattered. The void twisted, forming a battlefield of fractured constellations. From its depths rose a guardian—an entity born of the Universe's will. Its body was forged of black stone and molten stars, its eyes burning with the fury of endless judgment.
"You have walked too far," it thundered, voice shaking the void. "These roads are not yours to claim."
The giant raised its hand, summoning chains of law that lashed toward Krish like a storm.
Krish's wings flared, scattering fragments of silver light. For a moment, he relied only on his steady foundation, deflecting the chains with raw force. But the guardian pressed harder, its blows splitting entire star-fields, its power fueled by the very laws that bound this level of existence.
The void shook. The silver road cracked beneath his feet.
Krish exhaled slowly, his gaze steady. For the first time in two hundred years, he allowed one of the hidden flames to stir.
The green spark of Life flared within his chest.
At once, his wings pulsed with vitality, scattering seeds of essence across the battlefield. Where the guardian's chains struck, forests of luminous growth erupted, twisting and absorbing the blows. Stars that had shattered were reborn in his wake, blooming brighter than before.
The guardian faltered, its molten eyes narrowing.
"Impossible… the flame of beginnings, hidden within a mortal frame?"
Krish's figure shone with the radiance of renewal. His voice was calm, carrying the weight of his long struggle:
"For two hundred years, I endured them. I will not hide them any longer."
He stepped forward, the forests of light surging behind him, swallowing the chains, binding the guardian's arms.
The giant roared, tearing free, unleashing another storm of destruction. But Krish's wings flared brighter, the flame of Life growing more ferocious, no longer a burden—now a weapon.
Every strike he endured birthed new stars. Every wound he received healed before blood could fall. His very presence became a tide of endless renewal, smothering the battlefield in vitality that refused to fade.
With one final beat of his wings, the flame of Life erupted outward, engulfing the guardian. Its black stone body cracked, molten stars spilling out like blood. The forests of radiance pierced through its chest, blooming until the giant collapsed, dissolving into dust.
Silence fell.
Krish stood amidst the glowing forests, his wings folded, his eyes calm. For the first time, he had unleashed one of the four flames—
And the Earth-Level Universe had witnessed it.
Far beyond the silver road, ancient beings stirred, their gazes falling upon him.
The child who carried Time had now revealed something greater—
The bearer of the Four Hidden Flames.
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