"It has been a long time since we have seen you, Orion."
Despite being continents away, my clone back in my home country was meeting with some of my old school friends. It has indeed been a long time since I last saw them, and I haven't realized how much I missed them until now.
But still, I feel distant from them. I try not to think about how I am infinitely more powerful than all of them combined. A single thought is all that I need to end their lives. Our worlds are so different from each other, but I care for them still.
I looked at my friend who just spoke and smiled, "What can I say? Work has been taking all of my time."
"Work? You could have at least told us," said another. "No word from you and no visits for so many years!"
I smiled wryly and said with a helpless tone, "Things have been pretty... hectic. And saying it was complicated is an understatement."
The questioning about my absence lasted for a few minutes, with me trying to give reasonable answers. I wasn't going to tell them that I am on a quest to find the scattered axe shards that used to belong to the creator of the universe, who is also the soul of said axe.
We chose to meet in our school. So many memories were created here. I could clearly remember everything about this place. The interesting lessons, the boring ones, the sports period that everyone rushed to in order to make use of every moment of that short hour... It seemed only yesterday when I was one of the students at this school.
While we were chatting in the open space outside the school building, my physics teacher passed by us. Like my friends, I haven't seen this woman in ages. She was one of my favorite teachers, and her lectures were never boring as she had a fun way of explaining concepts.
Her eyes widened when she saw me, but it was soon replaced by a smile. I don't know why, but I suddenly felt uneasy. Ever since I became a dragon, other than improving the potency of my senses, my reliance on instinct has grown as well. So, if my instincts were telling me to be careful, I would be careful. The problem is, I had no equipment on me.
"Fistore! what a great surprise! Why haven't you visited us? Or are we not good enough for the Lord of Ice?" the teacher exclaimed, still smiling as she said something she shouldn't even know about.
My expression changed almost immediately. It took me a moment to understand what just happened. She isn't supposed to know about this. Is she a cultivator? Seems so. Has she always been one?
"Hey, Orion?" said my friend who had first spoken, cutting short the countless thoughts that were racing in my head in the span of seconds, "Lord of Ice? Cool nickname, man." He patted me on the shoulder, then continued, "Why the long face?"
"Get away from this woman, now!" My voice was low at the beginning, but it became a shout at the end. I do not know anything about this teacher of mine at the moment, and getting my friends away from her is a good move in case she is hostile. If she wasn't... Better safe than sorry.
Despite being stunned by this sudden change of attitude, they did as I asked immediately.
...
The East, Mount Evergreen.
It was night, Tulip was asleep beside me, but not much sleep could come to me. Suddenly, I sat up quickly as the events were being transmitted from my clone. Tulip woke up and asked, her voice so low, "What is it?"
"A cultivator back home. Stay here, my clone will come," I said.
"Take care of yourself," she said, but by the time she was finished, I was already away from here, and my clone replaced me. I learned this body swap from Richard a second ago after I contacted him through our soul link.
...
My friends, who were staying behind me, suddenly jumped back after my appearance changed. Now was not the time to conceal my true reality from them, as there were more pressing matters.
A simple spell would erase whatever transpires from their minds, but this would come after the end of this matter. I unsheathed Pangu, made a defensive stance, and asked, my voice colder than the air around me, "Who are you?"
"Does it matter?" the woman replied with a shrug.
I narrowed my eyes and said, "What did you hope to achieve by revealing that you are a cultivator?"
"The one before was your clone, and I can only do my mission if you were here in person, my Lord," she replied, and performed a courtesy bow.
I wasn't amused by this stunt and continued to ask, even though I could already guess the answer, "And what is your mission?"
She grinned, "Why? To kill you, of course." As soon as she said that, a long wooden staff appeared in her hand, and she chanted.
Despite being prepared myself to dodge whatever spell she was going to cast, I didn't think that it would be a curse that hits the soul as it is cast. I felt my soul being ripped to shreds, and the only reason I wasn't dead yet was that it was on the brink of death when I made my clone.
Yet again, I fell into a sea of darkness.
Time was infinite in this state. I drifted in nothingness with my eyes closed. I would be dead in the next two seconds. I desperately tried to think of something to keep me alive, but I found nothing.
I felt something, or someone, appear in front of me, so I opened my eyes. I faced myself. No. The similarities between the two of us are obvious, but there were many things that differentiated us from each other.
I looked at this person. Muscular, bare-chested, and short hair the color of blonde oak. The most noticeable thing about him was the aura of majesty around his body. It felt like he was a being not of this universe, and I didn't know that there was a difference until this moment.
I knew the identity of this person, but I still wanted to make sure, "Pangu?"
Pangu nodded. Serious for once, he said, "Give me control of your body, Orion. Otherwise, we will both die!"
I frown, not really on board with giving away control of my body, even if it is Pangu, "Why would you die? You would just return to sleep just like before."
"Not this time, my friend. You are the first person to collect this many shards, so my life is connected to yours. If you die, I will face the same fate."
My frown deepened. No cultivator would be pleased if someone else used their bodies. There is a reason the act of possession is frowned upon in every corner of the universe. Pangu is trying to save my life. I understand. Yet I am still hesitant.
My objection to this didn't need words. Pangu sighed, gritting his teeth, and said, "Fine! Fine! I really didn't want to use the other method."
"What method?"
"Fusion. Fusion of our souls and minds. It is very dangerous; we can end up staying fused for eternity."
"I am willing to take the risk."
"Are you?"
"Yes, even though I could end up as a crazy man."
"Ha Ha. Very funny. Enough talking, let's do this." Our bodies were pulled towards each other and somehow merged.
Outside, the woman who used to be my teacher was preparing to leave. Her mission was supposedly completed, so there was no reason for her to remain. Just before she teleported, the wind suddenly got colder.
Snow started falling and converging around my body, forming a globe. However, it was soon shattered and spread out in the area.
I hovered above the snow. The pupils in my eyes fused with the whites. Around me, the space was trying to keep itself stable because my otherworldly aura was trying to rip it apart.
I took a deep breath, and when I let it out, the world trembled. A small smile appeared on my face as I exclaimed, "What a great power!"
My voice, however, did not come from my mouth even though my lips moved. Instead, it came from every bit of the world. Space, time, wind, ice... All the laws in the area surrounding us were transmitting my and Pangu's combined voices.
The woman who killed me looked scared, and I do not blame her. Her voice trembling, she said, "I killed you, Orion Fistore!"
"You are wrong to call me in that name for this form, darling. Right now, I am called Pangu!"
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Updated on: 21/8/2025