Past Life Returner

He and I were similar in many ways, but there existed an absolute difference between us. Because of that, I discarded the suspicion long ago that we could be brothers. While the source of my divinity was within me, his was external. For some reason, he was slowly losing his power, and the cycle was shortening.

I was confident that ‘that day’ was the turning point. That day.

When I recalled that day, the scars etched in my eye sockets and the source of divinity burned as if they were freshly damaged. I only had one eye at that time, and that day, I lost the remaining one, which was part of my divinity. I did not care what ability I lost that day as it had not hindered my ongoing war with him.

Anyway, that day was the most intense battle since the beginning that I did not remember. I think it started with a single name. I had forgotten that name now, but I still remember that he tried to leave the battlefield after its death was known.

That was his first attempt. Since that day, he had consistently tried to change the battlefield. I did not know why he wanted to do that, but if that was truly what he wanted, he might have found a way to completely defeat me there.

I needed to stop him as I was created to kill him. He was also born to kill me. Thus, the reason for our existence was to kill each other. So, I wondered why I hated him so much.

Look. Nothing happened by mere coincidence. It was just forgotten. There was the beginning to this, to our endless war to kill each other. However, unlike him, why did I prioritize his death above all else? Why was my ambition to be the strongest so small?

This was another big difference between us. While we both hoped to end each other, our purpose for doing so was different. He wanted to kill me to become the only divinity in the world while I prioritized his death above all.

I could do anything if only I could kill him. Just the thought of his death filled my heart with emotion. Until now, his death was just a lofty goal. However, there was a guiding light to this eternal traveler lost in time. The lights that were slowly extinguished… When each beam of light disappeared, a milestone appeared for a traveler.

Originally, he had over five hundred rays of light. However, now! He only had about two hundred. We were finally equal when judged solely by raw power.

Look again. Everything did not happen by coincidence. Was it really a coincidence that he was losing his strength like that?

No. The entire universe was demanding it.

Now is the time. The entire universe is helping you. Kill him. Kill that evil god! Even if it means sacrificing your own body!

I intended to respond to that message. I attacked while suppressing the pain of scars that filled my body. I did not stop striking him with my proud creations. He was drawing near to me by slicing my soldiers.

***

The assault he unleashed painted everything red before me. The eyes I just made could not withstand even his faint breath.

Euk.

For a brief moment, I felt the blood trickling down, wetting both cheeks. The vision cleared as I widened my eyes again. If they burst again, then I could make them again. The energy consumed in that direction was so insignificant compared to the power he just lost. It was almost zero!

As soon as I regained my normal vision, I saw something that wasn’t perceivable by my sensory network. It was his eyes. There was a scar on him too, running diagonally from the left forehead to the right jaw, crossing over the eye. Unlike me, his eyes glowed with divinity. It contained a unique power that allowed him to see beyond the battlefield.

However, what I wanted to confirm was not that. It was his line of sight. Even while staring at me, I could feel that something was not fully focused on me. He was still prioritizing shifting the battlefield.

I did not know what was beyond the battlefield, but I had to stop. Just as I had resisted so far! It started almost simultaneously.

Pat!

The energy he produced was black, and mine was golden. The energies of black and gold intertwined, spreading throughout the battlefield. At that moment, I realized he came prepared for today’s battle as much as I did.

He did not take care of himself. When his scar widened and spilled precious energy, my pain got so intense that I felt like extreme heat was melting my skin.

“Euk…”

The sound came from my lips. As I was pulling power against his exploding energy, all of my scars widened too. Despite our powers being equal, I had accumulated an overwhelmingly more number of scars over time. The real problem was the scar near my heart, revealing the source of divinity.

The warning flashed in my mind that I must not let anything harm the source of my divinity. Painful calculations spun rapidly. If I could sacrifice the source of divinity to kill him, I would love to do it. But that would embrace him and plunge into the abyss of annihilation together. For now, it was impossible.

After my calculations, I distributed the power to protect the source of divinity. Then, the struggling energies of black and gold began to lean in his favor, as always.

A blade whizzed by unexpectedly and scratched somewhere on my skin. Shit. Another major scar had formed.

His dark hand, formed by his power, gripped my ankle. It was aimed to slam me into the ground with significant force, accompanied by a dreadful crushing sound.

Crack!

It was the sound of my leg bone breaking. Golden energy leaked out like blood from the ruptured skin. Given the numerous scars I had, the rapidly escaping energy could be life-threatening to me.

However, why would I allow such a blow?! Even if one foot was torn off, there was something I had to snatch from him. Especially now, when he was recklessly not looking after himself, I had to do it now. I had perfected the same power as his just before.

Whoosh-!

The golden hand stretched towards him, vividly visible in my Sense.

You will never escape from me!

The pain struck me intensely again as my right leg was ripped off despite my resistance. Nonetheless, my Power succeeded in tearing through him as well. Although I could not tear off any of his limbs as he did to me, the goal was right in front of me.

If I could remove his power to control the space! It would be worth sacrificing one leg as an offering. I gripped what I had torn from him.

Crack!

It burst in my hand. Then, the heavens and earth shook, which meant that the battlefield was on the verge of destruction.

This was unexpected. Only then did I realize a fact from the distant past that the battlefield was created by him! As the battlefield collapsed, both his and my soldiers dispersed.

***

I was falling somewhere, but I could smile. There was a sense of déjà vu. I recalled a time when I had laughed like this after sustaining injuries, in both my remaining eye and the source of divinity.

While I suffered physical damage inwardly, he had suffered externally. Due to this, he could not even attempt to change the battlefield now.

Then I felt a hard impact on my back. It was a massive barrier. All this time, it protected the dimension outside the battlefield, now amplified by some life force. Even without being made of divinity, it seemed to be crafted in a way to withstand either of us, at least for a short time.

However, a bigger surprise was the alignment I felt from within the barrier. What it meant was clear that I was the owner of this barrier. If I wished to enter, it would accept me.

Then, I felt the vibrations resonating throughout the barrier. It was shockwaves, and he seemed to have collided with the barrier as well from a distance.

I raised myself by creating a new leg in place of the one that had flown away. Although they were created just seconds ago, they would be of great help in the battle as long as I could distribute power to protect them.

His power seemed to be weakening at a faster rate. The next moment of him losing more power would come sooner. By then, I would be in a position strong enough against him to forget my annihilation.

It was regrettable that I did not have enough power to put on my eyes and legs. Then, I felt a surge in my mind due to the force arising beneath my feet, below the barrier. The power was being used to hold onto the time beneath the barrier, which was the power I had left at the beginning.

Even if I collected amplified power with the strong boundary, it would not be much help. But if it was the power that bound a single dimension’s space and time… It would buy me time to fight him until the next cycle!

I collected the power bound beneath the barrier.

This will be our final, decisive move.