Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1149 - 1148 - Trial of Awakening

Bori and the Fiend flattened the rest of the village with their battle. The Fiend was not so easy to hurt once he realized the true danger of the boy's flames.

Bori, on the other hand, had never fought such a resilient being before.

The arm he had burned had regrown as if it was not a major issue! How was he supposed to kill the vile thing?!

He had a clear advantage with his flames but he could feel his body weakening. He would soon be unable to burn him!

[The trial is not over, child. You are still mostly human. However, if you are still willing to risk, we can continue.]

The ancient voice spoke and Bori felt fear in his heart. Yet, he recalled all he had seen. His Master faced impossible odds and protected thousands of innocents as he pushed himself to the limits.

He saw him sacrifice it all to achieve his goals to the point he had to be forced to recover. His Master was amazing but he worked harder than anyone to do it.

Even with how powerful he was, he knew there was always someone stronger.

Bori looked at the Fiend and realized his Master had been fighting them for so long but never gave up. He could not either.

"What do I need to do, Ancestor?" A feeling of respect washed over him.

[You must unify with the flame completely. It will not be kind and if you falter, your soul will be consumed.]

Bori looked at his weeping mother. She was dead and it was only a ghost for the trial but he smiled at her. She made the same choice as him but something failed. Maybe she would not let go or maybe she worried how her beloved would view her afterward.

Bori smiled wide at her and said the words he always wanted to say.

"I loved you, Mom. I loved everything you did and always hoped I could be as brave as you!" He then let his body be consumed in flames once more.

He did not care about humanity or what he could gain. All he cared about was rising up enough to be able to protect all he held dear!

Nothing else mattered. His desire to become like his brother, his existence as a human, nor even his budding relationship with Jur. He could not hold on if he wanted to achieve his dreams!

His body was destroyed over and over in the Source Soul Flame. It was horrible and so painful but he would not bend.

His humanity was burned to a cinder until nothing was left but the bloodline he had awakened.

Primordial True Flame Phoenix!

The first life! The beginning of all life was the phoenix. It was why they possessed the ability to be reborn in their flames. They were the origin of all life!

They were not kind either! Life had to fight to survive. It could not simply be allowed to exist but it had to carve out its own existence!

The flames were not just changing him, but they were challenging him to justify his existence!

If his will wavered in the slightest, the flames would destroy him!

Source Soul Flame was not so kind as to indulge his mere existence. It was the original spark that brought all life to follow after it!

It was intensely painful to feel his body burned each time but the Fiend was restrained by flames on his body.

He was not getting away!

The pain was immense and Bori began to feel fatigue. He wanted to just stop. He wanted to embrace true death but a pair of emerald eyes appeared each time.

He refused to let his Master down!

He would endure the pain each time without pause. He slowly felt like time became a figment of his imagination.

He worried the Fiend would have long escaped but even that thought was lost to the flames. The spark of life was all he focused on. He felt like something important was on the cusp of his thoughts.

Where did life come from? What started it? Qi was a part of everything but it did not create life. It existed alongside it only.

So where had life begun? Heaven and Earth had so many rules and restrictions but had that always been the case? Did Heaven and Earth not exist at one time?

Bori was drifting but he still clung to life. The flames finally stopped rebuilding his body as it could no longer be refined. He thought it was over but then the flames engulfed his soul!

If the pain of his body had been unbelievable, the current pain soared far beyond it!

[The vessel is but a container. It has to be strong but that is all. The true Awakening must come from the core of your existence. The soul]

The ancestor spoke and Bori understood but his sanity was already frayed from the body pain. Now his soul was being burned to a crisp in what seemed to take an eternity!

He was going to die and no soul will even be left behind!

The golden orange flames closed in until there was only a spark of soul left. It was the final piece of Bori.

[Sigh, a pity. He had the drive but was too weak.] The ancient voice expressed his disappointment as the trial space began to shimmer but then it stopped.

The burning village began to move forward in time as the tiny spark did not go out but became the source of the flame!

The orange gold flames were not the color of the new fire. It was a blazing white!

[Ah, not bad.] The ancient voice sounded happy as the trial space resumed as Bori's soul was reforged by the white flames. The roar of a tiger and call of a phoenix were heard but the Fiend that had been recovering felt his soul shatter.

Bori's mom suddenly blinked before a serious look came over her face.

[Unexpected. What an interesting attribute!] True excitement was heard as the ephemeral Bori began to have flesh consolidated around him. The flesh was terrifyingly strong and even the ancestor was intrigued.

[It must be the influence of that True Lord. His Qi is strange but it has allowed for a new life to be born!] Bori's mother looked around for the source of the voice which made the voice laugh.

[I have no body, human. You know you are dead but for a brief moment your true soul has been called to this shell. Once this trial ends, you will return to Samsara. Take this chance as not many can claim to have been given a chance to say goodbye after dying.]

Tears appeared in her eyes as Bori stepped out of the pure white flames with golden eyes and pure white hair on his head. His body was sculpted but lean. His movements were terrifyingly deadly as he quickly found the withering corpse of the Fiend.

"I shattered his soul? Wait, how do I–?" Bori was trying to analyze the new concepts in his mind when 2 arms embraced him fiercely.

"You became so handsome, Bori! Is Lan ok? Are you both safe?" He was about to dismiss the trial version of his mother when he froze. To his eyes, the area around him was ghostly pale and hollow.

He could see the truth of the life around them.

The woman, that before only looked like his mother, was now her! He recognized her soul instinctively!

"Mom?!" She looked up with her gentle eyes full of tears as he hugged her back! His mom was really there!

"Please tell me all you can while we can. I will not endure past this strange place." Bori was about to decry such a result but then froze. He quickly looked around but the trial space was stable. What was going on?

[I am buying you some time but it will not be long, young progenitor. You showed me something new, this is my thanks.]

Bori nodded in respect as he quickly told all he could about his new life. He spoke about Lan and his new Master. He spoke about how the world had been freed from the bloodline array that caused all the deaths in their lives.

He was talking about his current situation when his mother's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Lady Chu is bullying you?" A shiver went down his spine but he quickly shook his head.

"I think she is protecting Jur. She is much younger and had to master her instincts. So did I. Master is clear that we need to control ourselves or we are no better than mindless beasts." She slowly nodded but then looked up at him.

"When you go back, give her a message. You will do it verbatim, do you understand?" A brief flare of a tiger appeared around her and he quickly nodded. She then told him the message and he went pale.

"M–mom! How can I–?" She put a finger on his lips and the stern look only made him swallow his words. He then nodded and they embraced.

He felt a pull on his soul and knew the time had come.

"Mom! We love you! We always honor you and dad with all the other villagers! Master built a memorial!" She cried as her body began to dissolve and put her forehead on his.

"I can go in peace, my son. Live and be happy! Tell Lan to have more fun too!" He laughed and cried as the space finally shattered and the world came back into focus.

He found Lady Chu staring at him in shock as his Master nodded with a smile.

"Fellow Progenitor, congratulations on becoming an Immortal." Bori froze at his words before he realized his dantian and body had changed! He had a crystal with a strange shape. It looked like a beast!

It had four limbs that ended in claws with massive wings made of flames as the head had a beak and fierce eyes. He had no idea what it was!

Then the word came back to him that both the ancestor and Master had called him. Progenitor! He was the first of his kind!