CHAPTER 189: ON MY WAY TO THE FESTIVAL

On a landscape that could only be called total devastation instead of endless green, Leon’s naked body lay there with his eyes closed.

Up in the sky, only stretching white clouds floated, which was unique for his dimensional realm, where no clouds ever existed, and only endless blue as far as the eye could see above. Its size matched the last grey cloud from before, but they gave off completely opposite feelings.

Not ominous and rejection, instead warm and welcoming.

Without even a sun present in the sky, the clouds were casting a glow of rays directly onto Leon’s body, waiting for him to awake.

It didn’t take long, as in the next minute, Leon’s eyebrows fluttered and his mystical eyes opened.

"Umgghh." Fwoosh...

He opened his eyes lazily; for a moment, he didn’t remember a thing, but then, seeing the landscape around him, his memory came crashing back from the moment he had unexpectedly gained access to holy energy.

I thought I had died by the attack from the golden-armored giant... so how come I am alive, and why are the clouds in the sky white?

He stood up leisurely, feeling there was no threat around him now.

Then he noticed the Phoenix feather from around his neck was gone. His thoughts worked quickly, and he arrived at a conclusion.

So after my death, the trial was over, and then I came back to life with the Phoenix feather I had.

He had assumed previously that the Phoenix feather had already been used up, which was why he had been so desperate, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

Leon didn’t understand what had happened previously, but he was not complaining.

Phew, the shady feather was the thing that saved my life.

Good job, buddy. I will always remember your sacrifice, and I have never doubted you from the beginning.

But there was one thing that still bothered Leon. He didn’t want to complain, but he didn’t get any reward for the 15th strike against the golden tin can.

His body naturally shuddered as he had flashbacks of how helpless he was in front of that armored giant. Thud-thud-thud.

I need to become significantly stronger than I am right now. I don’t ever want to feel the helplessness I felt in that moment... the dread I had... Never.

He was hundreds of times stronger than before; surviving that nightmare was a feat in itself, but it would have been better if he had gotten the reward for his last nightmare.

Hah! I need that reward... Bu—

I’m alive... against every odd stacked against me. That has to mean something.

He was about to continue his thought when suddenly the ancient letters started to appear in front of him. Shiiing! Seeing this, his eyes sparkled with joy.

My reward!

However, instead of coming to him or shooting golden lightning, as the first transformation had occurred, they started to gather in place.

The weird ray of light that he had noticed before, which was shining on him, had moved to the place where the ancient symbols were gathering.

Then he noticed the massive cloud in the sky was becoming shorter and shorter, as the ray of light had become a beam of condensed golden energy which was being shot at where the ancient-looking, strange symbols were gathered.

He backed out on instinct, as the energy was too much. Vwooom.

The symbols seemed to manipulate the energy, and he didn’t understand how such a massive amount of energy—which had already surpassed the dragon from before—was forming. As for the armored giant, Leon had no idea how strong that thing was.

It started to take the form of a man’s silhouette, which freaked him out. He started sweating buckets. Drip... drip... He neither had the will nor the strength to fight a monster like before, which had killed him like a pig.

Please don’t be a foe...

He could only pray in this situation now, but the fact that those ancient symbols, which had empowered him before, were involved—and the atmosphere was not ominous like before—gave him some hope.

The entire cloud was gone, and what stood before him was a golden body that looked like an exact replica of him, with strange symbols placed all around it, creating a mesmerizing harmony.

Each rune pulsed faintly, whispering secrets older than the sky above them.

Every detail shimmered with power, like a memory etched since the time of creation.

Maybe... just maybe, this is the turning point. Not an enemy, but the key to something greater.

Leon was cautious not to get close, but the thing didn’t move even an inch, nor did he feel any ill intention or anything of the sort from it.

This felt as if it was not even a living thing... but why does it look exactly like me... what am I supposed to do now...

For a moment, he even thought to leave this thing here and go to the festival, which might have already started by now.

Yet both his mana heart and even his mana core—which had drawn him to the elemental paragon class—were choices he still felt happy about to this day.

I don’t feel the beating of the new heart yet, as that thing had almost made me really die many times in such a short period.

He didn’t have much trust in the heart, but in his All Elemental Mana Core, he had complete confidence, as it was what had saved his life inside the dungeon and even made him reach where he was currently. Without it, he would almost have had a B-rank class.

A mediocre life, no access to the cosmic system, no chance to ever climb higher realms or even become immortal.

I still would have become someone, but definitely not where I am currently.

The orb was not just a treasure; it was much more meaningful than that now, and the fact that it was hinting at getting closer to his weird-looking clone made him trust its decision.

He slowly moved close to the clone, yet nothing happened. It stood there like a mesmerizing object made of golden energy and weird symbols stretching all over.

Just for his safety, he decided to drink the elixir before touching the golden figure. Gulp.

His hand made its first contact with the figure around its chest. Fzzzzt.

Then it happened...

——

Leon was out of the dimensional space, in his usual formal attire. He appeared too confident right now. Despite not focusing on the system message or looking through its details, he felt great.

The power.

The control.

The body.

Everything felt different. The whole perception of the world felt different, and holy energy was waiting for his command like a loyal pet—he could feel it.

Let’s pay a visit to the Ascension Academy festival now... Seraphine must be anxious.

His figure vanished. Whoosh! No amount of mana was being used, and even the ground didn’t have cracks or anything as he made his way toward the Academy. It would only take him a couple of seconds to arrive there without even using his precise control of natural strength.

He could go faster, but he didn’t want to destroy the path he would take.