Soul of Searing Steel

Panda Novel

“Israel, how does it feel to ascend from human to god?”

In the silent Void, as two streaks of light were about to reach the Combined Fleet’s frontlines, Joshua suddenly asked curiously after having stayed silent all along. “I mean, you were a Legend as well, so what I would like to know is what actually sets divine and Legendary abilities apart.”

In response, Israel, who had also been silent and doing all he could to direct the powers moving within his body, could not help but turn to Joshua’s unusually interested face.

Is this another excuse for a sparring?

It certainly was a biased view, since not even Joshua would simply seek a practice bout with a friend under such circumstances. “Becoming god…” Israel thought about it a little before answering seriously, “I believe it feels like omnipotence, and yet there are burdening restraints.”

“How do I put it…it is actually very similar to being Emperor, perhaps even identical.”

Joshua’s expression remained unchanged, while Israel appeared to be aware of the ambiguity of his description, which was why he continued, “There was a time I felt omnipotent in the past, when I rose to the throne as a Legend. Joshua, you may not be aware as you have never deliberately pursued the power to rule, but you should be able to understand that when a person stands alone against an entire nation with his own fighting capability while holding the greatest ruling authority within, he would certainly feel very relaxed.”

Israel smiled at that. He was unlike the Seven Gods who were often calm like machines most of the time, having retained his personality as Emperor. “At the time, I believed that I could change the world easily,” he said in good humor, “that none could stop or control me. As long as I was willing, I could simply indulge in debauchery and have the entire country become a theme park.”

“But you didn’t,” Joshua added and nodded at that. “You still focused on changing the nation.”

“Yes.” Israel’s tone had become rather cold; he appeared to have recalled unpleasant matters. “I had been a frontline general from the Imperial Family who then became Emperor. My authority had peaked, and reasonably speaking, I should have been doing what I wanted—but that was not reality.”

“As long as I hoped for stability and no infighting within the country, the nobles’ revolt would crumple Order within the Empire and bathe all life in ashes. All I could do was plan slowly over decades to change things gradually.”

With that, the new divine being laughed. “And that is the same for a god.”

“I felt as if countless layers of shackles had been freed in the single instant I ascended from Legend to god, and I knew at once that many things I couldn’t do before was possible now. Details that previously bothered me such as strength, endurance, and reservoir of energy are unlimited for gods. Recently, in the moment I had just awakened, I felt as if there was nothing I couldn’t do. But like how it had been after my coronation, many things turned into shackles after I became god.”

There is clearly unlimited power, but was it limited from being used as much as possible due to divinity? No, that factor existed but was not it… it was a limit on another aspect instead.

Joshua nodded thoughtfully beside Israel. He had actually guessed how Israel felt, but did not interrupt his description.

Meanwhile, Israel continued softly while looking up towards the distant Void—the forward base of the Combined Fleet. “Aside from the upper limit of divinity which could cause godly death, the duty alone was much greater than when I had been Emperor. Millions believe in me, in the name of the God of Might and Justice. A hundred thousand clerics preach my doctrine to help me alleviate the burden of divinity erosion while drawing divine strength from the Root. All of the Empire and the civilization of Starfall care about me, because they need a guardian, a patron deity, and the great power I command as a god to maintain Order upon this world.”

Israel then paused for a moment before turning to Joshua, and said with mixed feelings, “In truth, there is no meaning to me in becoming a True God. Before my ascension, I had always considered deities as a rather free existence and with ability do anything that came to mind, using the gravitas as a superior being to change norms that do not sit well with me. However, I was wrong—gods hold such great responsibility that every word and act must be considered carefully… the feeling of being a god is like being another kind of emperor who certainly commands unrivaled power but has to limit themselves for various reasons, caged and unable to unleash full power.”

“That is so.”

Even Joshua could not help but to sigh softly in response.

He had thought about similar issues recently, having attempted to use his power to crisply pacify the unrest that the Evil God of Death had caused. Still, he quickly gave that up as he wanted all of civilization to undertake that task, and hence would not have denied the people of an opportunity to experience conflict and think out of haste. Civilization could never grow without impact on mindset, and without experiencing true conflict, none would care for true peace.

Just as maintaining stability in a nation meant being Emperor Israel, who had practiced restrain and was forced to compromise with the aristocracy in order to change the world little by little, being a god also meant having patience and slowly guiding civilization in the name of progress. Moreover, he had risen as a god only recently, and would still have to think about ways to slowly reform doctrines and construct his system of Order.

Both Joshua and Israel fell silent once again.

In the Void, two streaks of light darted.

Then, when the pair was about to reach the Combined Fleet, Israel suddenly spoke again after a long silence.

“To be frank, Noble Radcliffe…”

There was a hint of strong worry in Israel’s tone as he asked softly, “Is it exactly because I have become god that I am now doubtful—can civilization and gods coexist?”

***

The new God of Might and Justice even stopped, lifting both hands and said with a low voice, “Such infinite power can allow any god to leave their own civilization, simply heading for another corner of the galaxy to create a race that consecrates themselves and maintains their own eternal existence…Gods can really ignore any conditions, a true one-individual civilization. Should their homeworld be destroyed, a single god would definitely be able to re-create their species, to start again in some isolated spot.”

“Unlike emperors who would no longer be emperors without their subjects, a god who has lost devotees can simply create some or find another race in another world to rebuild their Order.”

Just like Father Nature, Joshua thought quietly. The deity had precisely led some elves to another small world to seek refuge, and as a Prime Deity, had actually altered the world’s construct, modifying the World Will in order to form a special environment. Even if he had ran off alone without those loyal elves, it would have merely been a few centuries or millennia before the god created a new population of elves.

If that was the case, it was easy to comprehend Israel’s worries.

Since gods were so powerful, binding them in service to their homeworld and not bringing along a group of followers to some corner of the Multiverse for self-indulgence genuinely depends on the god’s makings. Maintenance of the connection between god and civilization actually relied upon a one-sided quality—it really was not easy to keep original intentions as time passed.

It was a cruel joke.

Nonetheless, Joshua was not too worried about Israel’s question and anxieties.

“Don’t dwell on it, Your Majesty, but let us first set aside the most basic problem that gods actually require the returns from strong native civilizations to become powerful.” The warrior said, dampening the tension at once, “You might not actually live until your essence deteriorates—I won’t live that long either, just like the other Six Gods, so don’t give me that look. Either way, most gods would not live until the day they have a change of heart. Since your character is too great, the question you raised is hence apprehension about something that may never come.”

Joshua was, in fact, laughing with those words, although he quickly reverted to his solemn face and shook his head. “Our Starfall Era, eighteen hundred years old, has had Seven Gods who remembered nothing and yet held on steadfastly to beliefs they had long since forgotten until Zinsen’s recent sacrifice. Even without mentioning that, there has been no person in the Glorious Era’s five-thousand-year history who ascended as god being so inferior.”

“Your Majesty, you may not be as old as those gods, but should the Mycroft civilization suddenly be struck by an apocalypse—such as being crushed by some galactic-class Evil God passing by—doesn’t having a surviving god mean someone survived? At the very least, civilizations would never be wiped out as long as gods exist—they are insurance for civilization, and whether it runs eternal matters not, since it is a different question.”

Indeed, Joshua’s perspective was so practical that the worried Israel was left at a loss for words. Most importantly, the warrior was not wrong—no god had changed with time in both the Starfall and Glorious eras, and his worries were purely theoretical without actual examples in reality.

“…A divine enemy of mine resides in these alien stars.”

Israel switched the topic and started again, although he sounded troubled, “It is exactly because I sensed a belief of the alien civilization that ran counter to mine, that I have awakened from the root. I would have slumbered another two years if I had not been triggered by them to affirm my ideals.”

“It may be a theory, but a similar method can be applied to hasten any awakening should someone else ascend after myself—having an enemy is like adding a lively, thrashing catfish into a fish tank that is one’s spirit. It would definitely help exceptionally.”

“Alright. I would remember that and relay it to the others.”

Joshua’s expression became abruptly solemn—it was an experience culminated by Israel, who used himself as a test subject. The Seven Gods of mankind did not have such experience, given that they were already divine beings at their awakening. Israel was meanwhile the first Divine Evoker, whose ascension itself was a great reference to anyone else intending to do the same, and therefore holding immense value.

That was when a familiar presence reached them. Both Joshua and Israel hence looked up. Nearby, the four Legends positioned at the frontlines left their stations and gathered in the Void in anticipation of the arrival of one person and one god. Vahina, Galanoud, La Motte, and Yana Milo, along with other fleet members waiting behind them, had formed a long line, welcoming their return. Behind them were the massive Void Behemoth fortresses of the Starherders, the ramparts that Mycroft’s Combined Fleet set the borders with, along with the Knowers’ boundless iron fortress that stretched across the Void.

At that very moment, Joshua rather dully realized that they had truly entered the swirl that was the Multiverse.

They were already a part of them.

***

The Twelve Sanctuaries, a mysterious planetary system.

“They are definitely not some newly founded civilization.”

An old Takurian sat upon the highest throne at the central shrine in the First Sanctuary, his expression somber and prudent as he spoke quietly to five other differently ranked seats beneath him. “Their single fleet boasts more than five Magnus, and they had only appeared unformidable because they were not using their full power in combat. Each of their Extraordinary ability is different as well, every path they assume being very complete.”

Beneath the Patriarch’s throne, the five Takurian Prophets each made quiet exchanges psionically. None would dare doubt the information which the Grand Patriarch had gathered with his personal clone, but that had been precisely why they were in shock.

“To reach the threshold of ‘Falsehood’, ‘Magnus’, and ‘Spectral Wraith’ in the path of psionic power alone was the result of the Takur Cult’s millionfold trials and errors and precious experience we gained by incessantly engaging the Amos in war. Each path of Extraordinary power requires substantial experimentation, a road of blood that countless geniuses had fallen to set… and yet, those alien visitors had each such a complete path—even if they were all prodigies, they are not a civilization who have risen in the recent millennia.”

As he recalled the young silver giant god who had unleashed Steel Strength and yet fought veteran champions such as them for so long, as well as the one who came later and almost disintegrated Imperator Amos’s clone with a single strike, there was wonder in the aged face of the Grand Patriarch. “Moreover, they have thorough research of divine energies, even developing a unique way of fighting that imbued sources of that power into their bodies. Even if was a waste of a genius’ life and the power cannot be shared, it would at once create an Extraordinary form of great strength.”

“There are things to learn from them even if they are alien infidels. First Prophet, come with me to the ‘Shifting Divine Energy Source’ later—I have gained new inspiration. The rest of you, direct all personnel to collect data on ancient civilizations—such a powerful world is definitely not some anonymous body, and they would definitely possess ancient legacies even if not that old. We must uncover every hint and clue about them.”

***

The outer layer of a supermassive nebula was within the core system of the Amos Court.

A weirdly-shaped living Amos fleet was patrolling the nebula, checking for any possible deviation of stellar forms and correcting them. It was as if they were the maintenance workers or gardeners of the stars in charge of the galactic garden’s interior, fine-tuning to ensure it looked good and was useful.

Nevertheless, that was the moment when a profound and imposing consciousness emerged, prompting every Amos individual to stop whatever they had been doing and pay respects to the core of the nebula with full reverence.

A calm voice resounded.

“Search the ancient text from seventeen thousand years ago.”

Imperator Amos was irritable and quick to anger, but it was merely a question of personality, since he had the right to whimsically vent his emotions. Still, he could calmly and rationally handle any problem as long as he wanted to, and now, that profound will in the center of the nebula was simultaneously conveying his orders to the Amos vessel that was protecting his true form. “Go to surviving archives in the ruins various civilizations and access every purged data in any form. They may be weak, but knowledge and truth have no divide between the strong and the weak—I must know the name and description of every ancient civilization in history.”

“Your will, our honor!” every Amos entity replied and steered their ships to each planetary system where civilizations that they decimated once dwelled. Meanwhile, at the core, the supermassive nebula which size actually dwarfed a planetary system, was having a rare moment to ponder.  That silver fellow had clearly fought more viciously and was even more of a threat, Imperator Amos thought perplexedly, but why do I feel more disgusted by that golden one who appeared later?

Was it because he had taken a sly advantage to destroy his clone with a single strike? Even so, the battle between champions did not dispute against typical strategies, which meant he was himself at fault for not being strong enough to free himself from the foe’s entanglement—he could not excuse himself from that weakness and had to overcome it instead.

The Imperator thought about it for such a long time that even the light emanating from the nebula began to shift, turning from white-hot into the colors of dawn.

“Fine.”

“Compared to that and the damned Takur Cult, it is more important to resolve the issue of the World Eaters.”

***

Meanwhile, as Joshua and Israel both reached the Combined Fleet’s base, the Takur Cult and the Amos Court had withdrawn in search for the former history of the Mycroft civilization. Vigorous magical energy fused and interacted within the Knowers’ endless fleet.

“Their appearance fits the description of the ‘First Standard Human Model’.”

“Their technology fits the description of ‘profound and unidentifiable, reaches the source itself’.”

“Multiple variants of Extraordinary powers that fits the description of ‘diverse races, diverse doctrines, masters all’.”

“They use primitive vocal reverberation to communicate as well as psionic, magic, even advanced techniques such as pure spirit and Steel Strength information. It fits the description of ‘fantastic oddities of every description without anything in common’.”

“They have come from the Lost Galaxy which has been sealed all along, fitting the description of ‘hidden from beyond, watching the stars at a side’.”

“They call themselves the Mycroft’s Combined Expeditionary, their mana-powered communications is pronounced ‘Mycroft’ when spoken in primitive vocal communication, (the Knowers could use meaningless spells as language and vocal means of communication did not exist in their society, which was why conversion was needed) they fit the description by a hundred percent.”

“The four hundred and forty-seven fleet marshals have unanimously agreed with everything stated above. This civilization from the unknown galaxy fits the thirty-seven descriptions of the grand worlds, and it is confirmed that they are the Ancient Forerunners, the heirs to what remained of Glorious Mycroft. It is ascertained that they are one of the superior civilizations who had once repelled the World Eaters from the frontline, and had probably triumphed… which is why the Multiverse has survived until now.”

“They are still alive.”