The heavens cracked.
Not metaphorically—literally. The sky above the ruined Temple of Ilyranthus split with a thunderous scream of power, fracturing like glass under a divine fist. The clouds ignited, streaks of red and gold spiraling down in serpentine trails as the Shard of Destruction impacted the altar floor. The earth quaked. The pillars split. And in the eye of the storm, Liam Carson stood, untouched by the chaos blooming around him.
Fire did not consume him.
It recognized him.
The flames bowed like subjects to a king returned from exile. Not out of fear, but something deeper. Reverence.
He had entered this trial full of fury—still grieving, still angry, still wanting blood. But what had met him was not another enemy to destroy.
It was a mirror.
Elenari, the Herald of the Forgotten Flame, circled overhead like a phoenix wrought from ancient suns, her wings battered from their duel, her eyes burning with awe and pain. Her voice echoed like divine thunder:
"You carry it now. The Godspark. The weight. The ruin. The seed of rebirth."
Liam raised the Staff of Judgement—no longer inert crystal but molten light wrapped in dark runes. It pulsed with each heartbeat. A symphony of destruction and salvation.
"Then why did you try to kill me?" Liam asked, voice quieter than it had ever been—yet somehow heard even across the chasm.
Elenari descended slowly, her body flickering like candlelight in the wind. "Because fire must burn to reveal its core. And you… had not yet remembered who you are."
As her bare feet touched the fractured altar, runes long buried beneath centuries of ash and marble began to glow.
System Notification:Trial of the Flamebound One – Complete.Outcome: Success.Divine Witness: Elenari, Herald of the Forgotten Flame
Elenari has submitted to your Divinity.Reward Unlocked:— [True Name Revealed]— [Origin Class: God of Ruin and Rebirth]— [Active Skill: Immolate Soul]— [Divine Title: The Reforged Flame]
Stat Increase Applied.
Faith Points Gained: +21,000 (via Seraphina, Rune, Lio, and Temple Resonance)
A pulse of golden-red light spread from Liam's chest, and for the first time, his body felt full. Not stretched thin. Not fractured. But whole. Reforged.
A voice clearer than the System spoke within:
"Kaelen is no more. Rise, Liam Carson, God of Ruin and Rebirth."
He fell to his knees. Not from pain—but clarity. Visions flooded his mind.
An angel with broken wings kneeling before him. A city of silver where thousands chanted his name. A blade of flame plunged into the chest of a horned god.
And most vividly… the memory of his mother's face, smiling before the cultists arrived.
His fists clenched.
This power was not just revenge anymore. It was judgment.
Seraphina approached through the smoky remains of the courtyard, her golden armor cracked and scorched. But her eyes—soft, shimmering with unspoken relief—were fixed only on him.
"You… you really ascended," she whispered.
Liam turned slowly. "I didn't just ascend. I remembered."
She dropped to one knee. Not out of submission—but awe.
"You're not Kaelen," she said softly. "You're something else. You have his wrath… but also his heart."
He stepped forward, raising her chin with a hand glowing faintly gold. "I don't want to be a god of rage. I want to be a god of reckoning."
Behind them, Rune flickered into existence, his blue-hued form less hazy now—more stable. "Looks like the system and your soul are in full sync. I hate to say it, but... you're terrifying now."
Lio trotted up from the edge of the temple, eyes wide. "Does this mean… you can bring people back from the dead? Like my sister?"
Liam's chest tightened.
"Not yet," he said honestly. "But one day, maybe."
The boy didn't frown. He nodded, like a knight accepting a royal decree.
That night, beneath a sky washed clean by divine fire, the group rested. The temple walls glowed faintly with living runes—echoes of faith embedded in stone.
Inside the sanctum, Liam sat cross-legged in meditation.
System Notification: Stat Growth Registered
Strength: +7Speed: +4Endurance: +6Magic: +10Charisma: +5Control: +5
Updated Stats:Strength – 109Speed – 95Endurance – 114Magic – 132Charisma – 83Control – 100
Faith Points: 180,000
New Divine Title Unlocked: The Reforged Flame— Passive: Increases Faith generation by 20%, lowers enemy morale in a 200-meter radius— Active: [Immolate Soul] – Burn part of your essence to purify or destroy. Enhances next divine ability by 200%. 3-day cooldown.
A golden glyph spiraled around his chest, permanently etched into his skin—his divine mark. It shimmered with threads of fire, each one humming a single word:
Judgment.
Hours later, Seraphina entered silently, setting her blade beside her.
"Couldn't sleep?"
"Didn't want to," he replied.
She sat beside him. "You really scared me back there."
He turned his head. "I almost lost myself to the flame."
She took his hand. "You didn't. You came back."
Their fingers interlaced.
"Thank you," he whispered.
"For what?"
"For reminding me who I'm supposed to protect."
Elsewhere…
In the obsidian cathedral of the Demon Cult's high sanctum, dozens of acolytes knelt in silence.
A bell rang, one not struck in centuries.
High Priest Calroth opened his eyes. His veins glowed red. His mouth curved into a cruel smile.
"The Flame stirs. Kaelen walks the world again."
He rose, arms outstretched to a mural of Liam's former life, now warped by prophecy.
"But this god will not walk alone," he said.
Behind him, twelve cloaked figures knelt—each bearing the Mark of the Abyss.
"And we shall burn the world to greet him."
End of Chapter 67