Chapter 6: God-Kiln Trials
Location: Core Path — Realm of Failed Divinities
Word Count: ~1060
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The moment Aethan stepped through the gate, he felt it.
Not the cold.
Not the heat.
But the weight—the crushing awareness of something watching, ancient and unkind.
The air was thick with screams woven into silence. The sky was not sky at all, but a membrane of pulsating flesh and cracked halos. Bones of deities long dead formed the pillars around him, each inscribed with forgotten prayers and betrayal-mark runes.
And at the center of it all…
The Kiln.
---
> [System Sync – 67%]
Entering Hostile Domain: Tier-2 Entity Threshold Breached
Adaptive Evolution Path Activated: Emotional Severance Trial
Objective: Survive the Trial of the Hollow Flame
Time Limit: 60 Minutes
Reward: Soul Integration Unlock + Skill Evolution Token (x1)
Warning: Emotions will be stripped and used against you. Resistance = Death.
---
"Aethan," Lysandra whispered, stepping beside him. "This place isn't just divine ruin… it's where forgotten gods were burned to ash—and reshaped into monsters."
He didn't respond. His eyes were fixed on the altar ahead.
Upon it stood a being—tall, with hollow wings, its chest torn open, and from it poured a river of black fire. Its face was covered by a porcelain mask that wept blood, and every step it took rippled with memories not its own.
> [New Threat Detected – Name: Pyrosoul Remnant | Class: Hollow Divinity | Rank: S+]
Weakness: None Identified
Primary Ability: Emotion Devour, Flame Echo Projection, Time-Lapse Reversal (Limited)
Kill Probability: 3%
Recommendation: Soul Weapon Fusion | Initiate Emotional Severance
Aethan's heart skipped.
Only 3%.
---
"Welcome… Echo."
The creature's voice was his own. Twisted, delayed, and dipped in agony.
"I… am what you left behind. Every tear you ignored. Every smile you faked. Every scream you swallowed."
Its wings expanded, made of regret and half-burned love.
"You must die to be reborn."
---
> [System Prompt: Do you accept Soul Weapon Fusion?]
Fusing: Obsidian Remnant Blade + Blood Circuit Core + Memory Fragment (Althera's Laugh)
Outcome: ???
[Yes] [No]
Aethan didn't hesitate.
> [Fusion Initiated]
The blade in his hand dissolved. It wrapped around his wrist like molten ink, drilling into his flesh. Blood surged backward into the hilt, then outward again, forming a new shape—a scythe made of silence.
It pulsed with every heartbeat.
> [Weapon Created: Mourning Crescent – Bound to Echo of Blood]
Effect: Gains strength from memories. Feeding it sorrow increases range. Feeding it guilt causes burn. Feeding it rage… unlocks Hollow Drive.
---
The Pyrosoul moved.
A single flap of its wings—and time folded.
Aethan found himself flying backward, smashed into a pillar of bone. Cracks ran up his ribs. Pain laced every breath.
"Fight, Aethan!" Lysandra shouted, hurling a crimson flare from her palm. It hit the creature—but passed through. An illusion.
The real one was behind her.
---
A scream—and she fell.
Chest impaled by a spike of molten soulfire.
Her eyes wide. Shocked. Still alive.
> [System Alert – Ally Vital Status: CRITICAL]
But Aethan didn't move toward her. He couldn't.
He wasn't supposed to feel.
Yet—
> [Emotional Suppression Failed: Subject Memory Leak Detected]
Reason: Unresolved Attachment (Name: Lysandra)
Penalty: +30% Emotional Consumption Rate
His hands trembled.
"Stop..." he muttered. "I... severed this."
The Pyrosoul laughed. "No, child. You buried it. And I am the shovel."
---
He stood.
Blood leaking from his mouth. Scythe glowing. Eyes burning.
"Then let's dig."
---
The next seconds were chaos incarnate.
He vanished—reappeared midair—and brought the scythe down with a scream that split the sky.
The Pyrosoul dodged. Time reversed. His attack missed.
But Aethan had expected that.
He triggered Echo Step—his afterimage completing the slash in the past.
The creature staggered.
> [Skill Acquired: Chrono Echo Slash Lv. 1]
He followed with a spin—Mourning Crescent cut through the creature's wing. Screams erupted from every bone around them as divine blood splashed the ground and burned the reality itself.
---
"Is this the power you feared from me?" Aethan roared, eyes glowing pitch-black.
The Pyrosoul screamed and released its final move—Flame Echo Projection.
Suddenly, the realm twisted.
Aethan stood in front of Althera—watching her die again.
And again.
And again.
Her scream looped endlessly.
His hands shook.
His knees fell.
---
> [System Emergency – Mind Collapse Detected]
Activating Emergency Protocol: Emotion Severance Overdrive
Injecting Trigger Memory: "Althera's Laugh"
Suddenly—
Laughter.
Warm. Soft. Real.
His sister's laugh echoed in his head.
Not screams. Not pain.
Just the sound of hope.
And Aethan stood back up.
---
With one last surge, he activated Hollow Drive.
His veins turned black. His weapon cried like a child torn from reality.
And with one clean slash, he tore the creature in two—soul, body, and memory.
---
> [Enemy Defeated – Pyrosoul Remnant Destroyed]
XP Gained: 39,700
Soul Token (x1) Acquired
Emotional Severance Trial Completed – Reward: +2 Skill Unlocks, Soul Integration Access
Hollow Drive: Unlocked (Stage 1)
---
He fell to his knees, the realm around him crumbling.
Beside him, Lysandra groaned, still alive—barely.
He didn't look at her.
Instead, he looked up at the shattered sky and whispered,
"One down. How many more gods do I have to kill?"
---
To be continued...