Volume 2, Chapter 2: The Passing of the Mantle – Two Worlds, One Spirit
The Great Hall of the Phoenix God Star felt different that day. The usual bright, shifting lights had softened into a warm, gentle glow. It was the kind of light that made you think of the end of a long day — not sad, but peaceful, like something important had finally been finished.
The God of Evil and the Goddess of Kindness stood quietly in front of Lakan, Ji Dong, and Lie Yan. Their bodies, which had carried the heavy responsibility of the old Divine Realm for millions of years, were slowly turning into soft specks of light.
"Our time has reached its natural end," the Goddess of Kindness said gently, her voice soft like a calm evening breeze. She looked at Lie Yan with warm, motherly pride. "The world is no longer stuck in the same old shape. It is now a living, growing fifth-dimensional place. It needs your warmth, child."
The God of Evil turned to Ji Dong. There was a sharp but kind look in his dark eyes. "Don't be too soft, boy. Real balance needs a bit of toughness too. But seeing you stand here with Lakan… I believe the Evil seat is in good hands."
Lakan stepped closer. His wings were half-folded behind him as a sign of deep respect. He raised one hand, and the familiar Seven-Tone Harmony filled the hall with a soft, echoing melody that reached every corner of the huge realm.
"Go in peace," Lakan said, his voice steady and warm. "I will make sure the order you protected for so long grows into something better. The cycle of reincarnation is waiting for you. I hope your next lives give you the simple happiness you couldn't have while carrying the weight of heaven."
With peaceful smiles on their faces, the two ancient God-Kings slowly faded away into tiny specks of starlight. Their souls drifted gently into the river of reincarnation, finally free after millions of years of duty.
Lakan watched the lights disappear, then turned to Ji Dong with a small grin.
"Looks like the old folks just handed us the keys to the whole house," he said lightly. "You ready to go down to the basement and deal with that loud pest problem?"
The Forbidden Prison was located in the deepest and most tightly sealed part of the old Divine Realm. As Lakan and Ji Dong started walking down, leaving the wives to handle the merging of the two realms, the air around them changed.
It became heavier. The smell of old lightning and burned stone grew stronger. Lakan glanced sideways at Ji Dong, who was quietly adjusting the flow of his fire power.
"So, Ji Dong," Lakan started casually as they walked through a dangerous area full of spatial traps, "a bartender, huh? That's actually a pretty cool background. My old life was mostly filled with old martial arts books and hospital rooms. I spent way more time reading than actually living."
Ji Dong let out a quiet laugh. The intense fire in his eyes softened for a second. "It wasn't just about pouring drinks. Mixing a good cocktail is like balancing the five elements. You need the right temperature, the right timing, and most importantly, heart. Though I do miss having a proper shaker and good glasses. Being a god is nice, but you can't find decent vermouth anywhere in these realms."
Lakan laughed loudly, the sound bouncing off the damp walls. "That sounds exactly like something an uncle would say at a family party. If we get through this, I'll create a real bar somewhere in the Phoenix Star. We can call it Sovereign's Spirits. I'll take care of the name and the fun part. You handle the actual mixing."
Ji Dong shook his head, smiling. "You're something else. We're about to face the Golden Dragon King, and you're already planning to open a bar."
"Hey, even a Sovereign needs something fun to do," Lakan replied with a wink. "Besides, laughing a little keeps those big cosmic forces from taking themselves too seriously. They really don't like it when you treat them like normal problems."
They finally reached the entrance of the deepest prison chamber. The walls here were covered in old traps designed to react to harmful intent. If you tried to attack, the traps would take your own power and throw it back at you even stronger.
"These are leftovers from Asura's time," Lakan said, his eyes glowing faintly as he examined them. "He loved making rules because rules made him feel strong. Ji Dong, lend me some of that Yin-Yang fire. Let's show these old traps how we solve problems back home."
Ji Dong nodded. He didn't just call up normal fire. He fully transformed. His left side became cold blue-black flames, while his right side burned with bright golden-red fire.
Lakan released his Seven-Tone Harmony, creating a steady rhythm that weakened the traps. At the same time, Ji Dong sent out a spiraling beam of balanced Yin-Yang fire.
The energy didn't attack directly. It kept changing — cold, hot, then something like a musical note. The ancient traps couldn't understand what was happening and simply fell apart.
"Good mix," Lakan said as they stepped through the broken entrance.
"Just something I learned on the Five Elements Continent," Ji Dong replied, keeping his power steady.
At the very center of the chamber, they found the Golden Dragon King.
He was enormous, a mountain of jagged golden scales wrapped in thick purple chains. But something else floated above his head — a featureless orb of bright light. It had no body, yet its presence felt heavy, like the pressure of every rule and restriction in the universe.
This was the Personification of the Universe's Will.
It was the same force that had corrupted the Time and Space Dragon Kings long ago. The same force that had pushed the Dragon God into madness because it feared losing control.
"You are an intruder," a cold voice spoke directly inside their bodies. "The old cycle must continue. The Dragon must stay mad. The new Sovereign must be removed."
Lakan stepped forward without fear. Both of his kampilans appeared in his hands, glowing with deep violet-gold light.
"You talk too much for a floating ball of light," Lakan said, his voice turning cold and sharp. "You're not the Universe itself. You're just the old way of doing things trying to keep its job. And I've always liked putting things like you into early retirement."
He didn't swing his blades. Instead, he used Absolute Manifestation and projected part of his own vast inner world — the ten-billion-kilometer Phoenix God Star — straight into the chamber.
The sheer weight of Lakan's fifth-dimensional power crashed into the orb like a tidal wave. It was a battle of ideas. The orb tried to force limits and rules. Lakan pushed back with infinite growth and possibility.
Ji Dong stood right beside him, his Yin-Yang flames creating chaos that stopped the orb from anchoring itself to the surrounding laws.
"GET OUT," Lakan roared.
He swung Araw ng Kahapon, aiming not at the orb, but at the invisible connection it had to this world. The Temporal Severance cut through those threads cleanly.
With a horrible screech that echoed across galaxies, the Personification of the Universe's Will was violently thrown out of the chamber. It wasn't destroyed — such a force couldn't be — but it was kicked out of the Dragon King's mind.
The orb disappeared.
The silence that followed felt even heavier.
Then the Golden Dragon King roared. Without the controlling Will inside it, nothing remained but pure, mindless rage.
Its eyes opened — two burning pits of molten gold. It lunged forward, shattering the last of its chains, a mountain of pure destructive power charging at the two men.
"Well," Lakan said, gripping both kampilans and dropping into a ready stance. "The landlord's gone, but the angry tenant is still looking for trouble."
Ji Dong stepped up beside him, flames burning brightly on both hands. "There's no talking to this one anymore."
Lakan nodded, a fierce grin spreading across his face. "Then we do it the old-fashioned way. We break the shell to save what's inside. Ji Dong, keep him busy with that bartender style of yours. I'll go for the heart."
The Golden Dragon King charged with a deafening roar — a raging mountain of gold and fury rushing toward the two Earth-born Gods.
End of Volume 2, Chapter 2