Chapter 40: The Dawn Citadel (2)
"Well...."
Akasha muttered as before him was something he expected perhaps the least. He then turned as he began to take in the sight before him
"This... is indeed something."
Before the trio were anything but "Ruins."
Though it looked old, it was utterly majestic.
They stood in a single long grand hall that looked more like a Grand Chamber.
There were towering columns covered in golden murals depicting Sun Gods and epic battles fought in space rose high above them.
It showed colossal figures of radiant light clashing with shadowy figures among the stars and swirling galaxies.
The air here was heavy and beyond ancient, carrying a faint, warm scent like sunlight on polished metal.
The floor beneath their feet was smooth, dark stone inlaid with glowing golden patterns that pulsed faintly, as if the entire place still held a lingering heartbeat.
At the very end of the ruins sat a single grand golden throne of flames, its surface flickering with eternal, living fire that cast shifting golden light across the entire hall.
While Akasha looked around, Yume suddenly disappeared from his left side.
[You have created a new artifact.]
[You have created a new pill.]
[Tome of Eternal Ruins (God) (Tier ??/??) - A complete compendium containing the full Multiversal knowledge of all known and unknown ruins across existence.
Every mechanism, formation, legacy, trap, hidden realm, and secret ever recorded or theorized is contained within its pages.]
--
[Mind Unity Pill (God Rank) (Tier ??/??) - This pill permanently fuses the minds of a Star and its Bearer, allowing their thoughts, memories, and knowledge to become nearly inseparable.
What one knows, the other will know. What one experiences, the other will feel. A perfect bridge of consciousness.]
---
A few moments later, Yume reappeared smoothly in front of him, holding a small, glowing pill in her palm.
Her expression was soft, pleased, and quietly proud of her work.
Akasha turned from the breathtaking murals to look at her, nothing but warm pride in his bloody eyes.
"I knew bringing you into the waking world would prove to be a good thing," he said, voice low with genuine appreciation.
With her ability to slip in and out of Dream Land so effortlessly, she would save him countless hours and trouble.
Not only that — these two things she had created were honestly perfect.
Yume smiled gently as she spoke.
"Well, since none of us knows what to expect from these ruins, I saved us all some time and learned all of the knowledge for you."
"Not bad, Yume," Akasha replied, reaching out to take the pill. "This will honestly make you no different from Luna at this point."
Luna stepped forward with a graceful smile, pulling Yume into a warm hug.
"Now we can just enjoy the ride while he does all the hard work," she said softly, her voice carrying quiet amusement.
Yume let out a light, delighted laugh and nodded in agreement.
"Mistress, that sounds like a wonderful idea~"
In the next moment, Akasha swallowed the pill, completely ignoring Luna’s teasing and corruption to Yume.
HUMM!!!!
A seamless, warm fusion washed over his mind.
And since Yume was a Star Entity, the only thing he would truly gain in this moment, aside from access to her mind, was something far more intangible.
It was pure, boundless knowledge—an understanding of both the ruins and everything he needed to know about his path of power ahead.
’This... is absurd,’ he thought, stealing a brief glance at what the power of Dreams could achieve at its peak.
’It’s basically turning dirt into diamonds...’ he mused.
Though he couldn’t wield this power yet, he fully grasped what it would take to reach that point.
In essence, to command potential was to decide whether something could be overwhelmingly powerful or utterly meaningless.
Shifting his focus away from the details of his abilities, he sat cross-legged on the smooth stone floor, letting his mind turn over the knowledge of the ruins.
In this moment everything came to him in clarity.
Ruins were essentially the remnants of old factions that had vanished.
Smaller factions often misunderstood what Ruins truly were, assuming any faction could become one after being destroyed, but that wasn’t the case.
Only Pantheons could form Ruins, thanks to certain protective measures.
Ruins didn’t have ranks or an inherent hierarchy, except for the significance of their age.
Like many things, they were judged by Eras, with older Ruins generally considered more important and valuable.
Across most worlds, whether Pantheons ruling the cosmos or smaller groups like Academies, factions would send people to discover and explore Ruins regularly, or maintain squads dedicated solely to ruin exploration.
"The Language of Gods..." Akasha muttered, the last thing that seemed to matter right now.
Once a place became a ruin, every bit of information inside would automatically transform into murals covered in the script of Pantheos.
This script wasn’t entirely unfamiliar to him, as he remembered spotting the title in the description of his Divine Eyes.
----
At that moment, Akasha rose to his feet, casually scanning the ruins, and before him, a vivid description unfolded.
[The Dawn Citadel – The ancient remains of the forward command center of the Celestial Sun Pantheon. Once a vault of war records, strategic intelligence, and schematics of their long-time foes, it served as a crucial hub of knowledge.
After the devastation of an ancient war, the citadel was abandoned and sealed away from the world.]
[The steps to clear the ruin are simple... The closer you get to the throne, the more battles you must face... There are five Sun Gods in total, each matching your current power, growing one rank each fight.
Once they are defeated, all the information will be yours.]
----
Watching the scene unfold, he couldn’t help but feel things were only getting more interesting. With a half-smile, he turned to Luna and Yume.
"Well, since you two are only planning to watch... you might as well get comfortable."
"Fufufu~ Oh, you really didn’t have to mention it, Love," Luna replied, and with a wave of her hand, two pinkish-purple thrones appeared for her and Yume.
Seeing this, and without further words, Akasha stepped deeper into the ruins.
HUMMMM!
The moment he crossed a set threshold, the air grew heavier, warmer, and charged with ancient power.
A sudden burst of brilliant golden light flared before him as a being took shape — a True God Rank Tier 10 construct matching his own power.
Majestic and radiant, it appeared as a humanoid form wrapped in living solar fire, burning with stellar intensity as golden flames danced across its body like tiny suns.
Akasha gave it a quick once-over, his Divine Eyes of Origin flaring to life as he quietly recited its basic abilities under his breath.
"Hmm, so it’s just a regular construct without any sentience, huh?" he mused, absorbing every scrap of information.
In truth, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it; even though the construct matched his bloodline rank, it was exactly what one might expect from a standard fire user.
It carried both light and fire affinity, but what really drew his attention were the specific type of fire affinity it possessed and the race it represented.
[Solar Fire Affinity: Grants the ability to control flames in a more conceptual way, with these flames the user is capable of burning through all curses, shadows, and fate.]
[Kami – A race of spirits often connected to elements such as the Sun, mountains, rivers, objects, or even abstract ideas.]
---
The Kami before him was a Sun Kami — a being naturally attuned to light and fire, and all of them were born with Divine Sight.
This gift allowed them to see through illusions and discern truths with ease. Lastly, Sun Kami always regenerate under sunlight or when close to death.
Akasha cracked his neck slowly, the sharp pop echoing through the grand hall as a predatory grin spread across his face.
The warm, ancient air of the ruins pressed against his skin. As despite all this and the construct having his equal power... it did nothing more than fuel his excitement.
"Well.... bring it on," he said, voice low and eager as he launched forward.
HUMMMMM!!!!!
The construct answered without hesitation, its stellar flames flaring brighter as it summoned a blazing spear of pure solar fire into its grip.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
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