Chapter 139 – Verdict of Fire

The Vault trembled in silence, no longer a prison, but a sanctum reborn.

Chen stood at its center, the Judgment Brand still seared across his chest, glowing faintly beneath his skin. It felt different from any divine power he had known — not explosive like Soulflame, not seductive like Lustforce — but final. It was law, reforged. Truth without compromise.

Lanmei remained vigilant near the exit, her twin blades resting across her back. Ye Yue stood closer, fingers brushing Chen's as if grounding herself beside the storm he had become. Auraleth, the unbound Arbiter, sat upon one of the cracked stone thrones, studying him.

"You intend to use it quickly," she said without looking. "Even I hesitated before casting judgment on the divine. And I was created for it."

Chen nodded. "We don't have time. The Flame Court has already unleashed a weapon. The balance is broken. I'm done waiting for permission."

Auraleth's silver eyes narrowed, but not with judgment — with memory.

"I remember another who once said that."

She raised a hand, and a window of light shimmered into being before them. Not real, not illusion — memory. Within it: a younger Auraleth, bound in white, standing before the Flame Court ages ago. Her wings were pure back then. Her voice, calm as she pointed a sword not at a mortal — but at a god.

"He condemned an entire mortal city for the sin of disobedience," the younger Auraleth declared. "I passed judgment. Not on the city — but on him."

The vision ended in fire. And chains. Hundreds of them.

"I was sealed for breaking divine unity," she said quietly. "For choosing fairness over obedience. You understand that now, don't you?"

Chen met her gaze. "I understand it too well."

Auraleth rose from the throne. "Then prove it."

They emerged into the outer chamber of the Vault — and already, they were not alone.

A line of Flame Court inquisitors had encircled the perimeter, sent by the Ember Throne's last command before its fall. They stood with glowing brands of divine law, ancient sigils ready to bind the rebels where they stood.

"Halt, by decree of Divine Code 773—"

"Denied," Chen said.

The Judgment Brand ignited on his chest.

A wave of silver fire pulsed outward — not violent, not scorching. Instead, it burned away lies. The inquisitors staggered. Their brands flickered. One by one, the divine decrees they carried began to unravel, unwritten by a higher authority now walking before them.

"W-what is this power?!" one gasped, their sigil turning to ash.

"Truth," Auraleth said, stepping forward beside Chen. "Truth, unchained."

One of the inquisitors dropped to their knees, overwhelmed — not by force, but by clarity. "He carries the Final Flame… he is Judgment now."

The rest scattered. Not in retreat — in disbelief. Everything they had believed about divine hierarchy was coming undone.

Later, as the Vault closed behind them, Lanmei exhaled sharply.

"That wasn't war," she muttered. "That was doctrine shattering."

Ye Yue looked at Chen, voice soft. "And now they'll all see you differently."

Chen clenched his fists, staring at the distant horizon. "Let them. We're rewriting the heavens."

Auraleth turned to him once more, more solemn now.

"Then it's time you knew what lies ahead. There are more vaults. More relics sealed not by mortals, but by divine guilt. The Spiral was only the beginning."

She traced a path in the air. "Your next step… lies in the Oblivion Spire. Where the First Decree was written."

Chen looked to his allies — lovers, warriors, rebels. And nodded.

"No more chains."