NOVPUBSiva stared at the ground.
A set of golden bones lay just a few meters away.
He tapped the arm rest of his chair. The subtle noise traversed through the empty hall and into the infinite void overhead like waves upon an ocean.
"Hmm..." The skeleton hummed to himself.
There was a clacking sound as the golden bones rose up.
Within the dark sockets of the golden skeleton's skull, two golden flames burned.
Siva shook his head, a look of exasperation on his face.
Anfused sound came from the skeleton on the floor,
"I am..."
"Weme back, human. I hope you enjoyed the experience."
The set of golden bones turned to face Siva,
"It's over?"
Siva nodded. If bonesuld smile, he would have,
"You even did better than I had expected, human."
Indeed, it was unprecedented.
Over the eons he had dwelled within this place,untless beasts hadme to him with the intention of passing his trials.
Many of them had passed, many of them had failed. For most, failure meant death, and for others, success would give them power that would propel them towards the heavens.
However, there was onenstant between the two.
Regardless of whether the failed or were successful, none of thosevthat had taken his trials had managed to understand and, therefore, assimilate Sunfire.
They didn'tmprehend what it was. Instead, they used methods to femd it off, curb it, dampen its power so theyuld bear its urge, and many other methods.
None had been mad enough to try absorbing it into their bodies, and those that were had already beennsumed by the void.
But thenstant had finally been broken by this anomalous human, or rather human skeleton sitting before him.
Golden runes saturated with Sunfire pulsated across the human's skeleton.
A tremendous heat came from his bones.
Cain tried to frown, but realized heuldn't do so.
He had turned into a sack of bones.
But for some reason, he was not panicked. Instead, he felt a calm that would not go away, so much so, that it was borderline eerie.
"What happened to me?"
Siva chuckled, "Well, you sought after knowledge, didn't you? Now you know the true essence of Sunfire. Eternity has decided to accept you into her bosom."
Cain shook his skull and stared at the skeleton in front of him,
"Is that what this is?"
The flames in his eye sockets burned brighter,
"Where did the rest of my body go?"
Siva shrugged,
"The heat from your bones is stopping your regeneration process. You now understand the fire and you have absorbed it. But you have not learnedntrol yet. If you want to return to normal, I suggest you do so quickly, or you might get stuck just like me forever."
The panic that was supposed to sweep over his mind was burned away.
Cain calmly nodded his head andncentrated.
A moment later, the flames that locked his bones subsided into the runes.
It took a while, but after some time, the temperature surrounding him reduced, and his vines stopped glowing red.
The moment that happened, in a rather gruesome fashion, threads of muscle tissue, fat, and blood began growing back onto the bones in layers.
If it was any other being watching this process, they would have gagged, maybe even thrown up. But Siva prided himself for his ability to stomach anything.
Mostly because he didn't have one in the first place...
Cain felt all this happen with utmost clarity. There was nothing to dull the pain, so he was forced to endure all of it whilst gritting his teeth.
Eventually, the process wasmpleted.
Cain looked down at his naked body with furrowed brows.
He was surprised to see that his skin seemed to glow in the dark. It had taken on a lighter hue, and all the impurities in his flesh had been burned away, making him feel perfect.
And it was not just a feeling.
The Sunfire within him had purified his body, spirit and soul.
Right now, of there was anything perfect in all the realms, it would be him.
Even the hairs on his skin felt soft and delicate. However, they were also strong and tense, like threads of steel.
And for some reason, his raven black hair had grown longer and darker.
His horns had also grown a few inches. He clicked his tongue, wondering how he was going to get rid of them.
He was pulled out of his thoughts by Siva,
"You have given me a pleasant surprise, human. You havempleted your trial."
Cain nodded, then he waited...
Nothing happened.
He let out a small sigh, then he asked,
"If the trial is over, shouldn't I be getting out of here?"
Siva chuckled,
"Ofurse you can. However, things are not yet over."
Cain nodded, "I figured as much."
Howuld it be over? He was yet to achieve the lastndition after all.
Siva nodded, "It is a special privilege, offered only to those great enough to pass my trial. However, since you surpassed my expectations, the opportunity I offer you will be greater..."
Siva rose from his chair and slowly approached him.
Cain got up to his feet and quickly summoned his armor, {Embrace of a Dark Winter}.
The pieces clad his body gradually until he wasvered from head to toe.
Siva nodded, "Your potential is limitless, human. Which is why I shall not vore you by summoning any ordinary star from the bowels of the void. I shall give you something special. A star infused with a portion of my own Sunfire."
Cain chuckled,
"Hey, that doesn't sound fair, now does it?"
Siva cackled as he pointed a bony fingers into the void above them,
"Come now, human. Entertain me one last time."
Cain grinned, "I will try my best. Also, my name is Cain."
Siva tilted his skull,
"Cain... I will remember it."
For some reason, an image overlapped with this strange, humorous skeleton in Cain's mind.
The image of someone he had known a long time ago.
Heuldn't help but let his lips curl up.
The void rumbled deeply.
Cain looked up. Deep within the void, a spark has been born.
The moment it was born, it began growing fast.
Cain took this moment before the storm to check the messages he had received from the system.
***
{Congratulations to Host... You havempleted the Trial of Arrogance}.
{The body of the host has been purified}.
{The host's physique has significantly improved}.
{You have acquired the ability, Eternal Sunfire}.
{You have acquired the rune, Sunflame Body Tempering}.
****
{Eternal Sunfire}: "The source of the Eternal Sunfire is Eternity itself. It will burn forever, fueled by the void and the emptiness within."
***
{Sunflame Body Tempering Rune}: Grants host the skill, Sunflame Body Tempering Technique.
{Sunflame Body Tempering Technique}: Makes use of the power of the Eternal Sunfire to gradually improve the physique of the host until it ismparable to that of a Celestial Being.
***
Cainuldn't help but grin.
The rewards this time made his rather pleased.
A rune thatuld improve his physique over time, and a new ability. One that gave him the ability to create Sunfire.
The possibilities were endless.
With this new ability, heuld infuse the power of Sunfire into any of his spells and skills, making them far more dangerous than they already were. Hismbat potential had been greatly increased in just mere moments.
And now, it was time for the grand finale.
Siva's words rumbled through the world as the being of bones draped the piece of black cloth over the lantern, snuffing it out,
"Let the battle begin."
He smashed the bottom of the staff into the ground and a circular ring of flames spread out in all directions, crawling up the walls until they shot out into the void and enveloped the star being born.
There was another rumble as the star sucked in every drop of the Sunfire. Then it ballooned in size as it fell...
Crash landing into the dark Hall's floor with an incredible bang.
Dust and rubble rose into the air, forcing Cain to close his eyes and shield his face with his armored arm.
The light that came was blinding, but Cainuld see through it.
At the center of the 'star' that had fallen from the starless void overhead was a being.
It had eyes like pits of fire and four wings jutting out of its back.
It wielded a flaming beam of light and Sunfire.
It had four horns, two jutting out of each temple.
Engraved into its forehead was an undecipherable rune that made the back of his eyes itch.
'So this is a Star.'
The finalndition formpleting the trial, was to kill a star.
This Star had been born from the Void of Eternity. It also had a fragment of Siva's flame, meaning it was significantly more powerful than a regular 'Star'.
It stared at him through the flames that were gradually dispersing, its eyes filled withld inhuman emotions.
A surge of killing intent flowed from the Star as it stretched its sword of Sunfire out, pointing it at his throat.
It was throwing down the gauntlet, urging him to accept the challenge.
This was his final test.
The crowning act of his tribulations...
Cain grinned underneath the visor of his helmet.
He summoned the {Lonely Dragon} Warblade and activated {Demon Dragon},
"Challenge accepted..."
