The sky above was the same. The empire, the mountains, the lineage… everything was just like it was when he was ten. But Ashok was different.
Unlike Avinash, whose reincarnation spanned eras, Ashok was a Regressor, one who returned to an earlier point in his life with full memory of the future.
He already knew the outcome of key battles. He knew the timing of tribulations, the secrets of ancient ruins, and even the flaws in Heaven Chosen from other factions.
As his emotions from experiencing rebirth finally calmed down, he got a moment's clarity as to what he needed to accomplish urgently and how he was to choose the immediate path ahead.
Then he turned and walked toward the palace.
As he enter the palace the strong will scanning him and frizz him in one place. He raise his head to see and faond.
Bindusar Maurya, a Supreme (Rank-8) powerhouse and the king of the Maurya Empire.
Bindusar's dark eyes narrowed. His voice was deep and steady as he spoke.
"Who are you?" he asked. "You have my son's body and soul… yet something about your presence feels off. Your soul, it feels aged, as if it's been through lifetimes. But your body… is still that of a child."
Ashok said nothing. He kept his gaze steady, fists clenched at his sides.
Bindusar rose from his throne and took a step forward.
"Even your behaviour has changed overnight," he said. "There's grief in your eyes… I see sympathy where once there was only innocence. These… these are not the eyes of my young son."
Ashok stared up at him, unblinking.
"You haven't answered me," Bindusar said, his voice calm but probing. "What happened to you?"
Ashok didn't respond right away. His fingers twitched at his side.
I have to tell him. We can't afford the same mistakes again. Even if I hide the truth now, Guru Chanakya will see right through me soon enough.
He exhaled slowly. His eyes didn't waver.
"I've dream"
Bindusar frowned. "A dream?"
Ashok nodded once. "In that dream, I show the ramparts of Pataliputra and watched the sky split open. Fire rained down like judgment. The Ganga boiled with corpses."
He paused. His jaw clenched, the memory flickering behind his eyes like a dying flame.
"Our people died fighting. We weren't ready."
The king straightened slightly, confusion turning to concern. "You speak as if—"
"I lived it," Ashok interrupted. His voice darkened. "I died in it."
He stepped forward. The torches lining the hall wavered in their sconces, casting long shadows across the marble floor.
"When it ended… I woke up here. Back in this palace. Back in this body."
Bindusar stared at him. His gaze narrowed.
Ashok took another step. His voice now cold, honed like a blade.
"I was the strongest Heaven Chosen of our time. I had everything bloodline, power, destiny. And I still lost."
He paused. His next words were softer but they struck deeper.
"We were great. But it wasn't enough."
Bindusar didn't speak. But something shifted in his eyes regret or maybe guilt.
Then he moved. A slow step off the dais. Down from the height of his throne. Across the stone floor. Each step deliberate. A king descending, but more than that it was father closing the distance.
He stood in front of Ashok and placed both hands on his son's shoulders. His voice… softer than before.
"You don't have to carry that weight alone. You're back now. Whatever you saw… we still have a chance."
Ashok blinked. For a moment, his breath caught.
Then he said, steady as iron:
"This time, I won't let that future repeat itself."
In the shadowed depths of Asur Amar Lok, the Daitya Clan's obsidian fortress loomed like a monument to eternity. Its towers rose like black spears into the clouds. At the highest spire, a young boy stood alone on a balcony, his gaze fixed on the horizon.
His name was Avinash, and though his body was that of a child, his eyes carried the weight of lifetimes.
He gazed at the three moons. He murmured to himself, his voice barely a whisper against the wind. " In my first life, there were five moons but endless Wars tore them apart. Two fell, their moons shattered and their essence consumed by the surviving three Lok and the Eternal Ocean.
His expression darkened.
I don't know if reincarnation is a blessing or a curse. With each return, I'm fated to fight the strongest Heaven-Chosen of the era…and every single time, I died by their hand.
Avinash gripped the cold obsidian railing. He closed his eyes, As his emotions finally calmed down.
But now… this is it. I can feel the edge of my soul fraying. it's light dimming under the weight of reincarnation. This is my ninth life. My last chance.
To become Emperor.
To become immortal.
To end this once and for all.
Avinash was born a genius, his soul carried the mark of reincarnation power.
When he was born, the heavens above the Daitya fortress trembled.
A vision rent the sky:
A colossal serpent appeared, coiling through the clouds. Its golden scales shimmered like suns. its body twisted endlessly, its jaws locked around its own tail. It devoured itself as it was reborn, over and over, with no beginning and no end.
This vision drew the eyes of ancient powerhouses who had reached the limit of their lifespan believed that they could find the way of immortality from the power of reincarnation.
Although it is known that only Great Emperors are immortal. Driven by desperation Old monsters in human skin, desperate to find a path to immortality are not willing to just accept such a fact. As such, many people believed that their chances lied in the power of Reincarnation.
But they had forgotten where he was born.
Unfortunately for these attackers The Daitya Clan is among the oldest and darkest immortal lineage, with six Great Emperors born from their bloodline. They were not the only demons in this world, but they were among the most terrifying.
When the attackers came, the clan's wrath was swift and merciless. Formations of black flame and blood runes encircled the fortress, reducing intruders to ash.
"I've died eight times, each time I become stronger than the last," Avinash whispered to himself. "This time, I'll break the cycle. I'll claim the throne of the Emperor and seize immortality."
Avinash opened his eyes, his gaze sharp as a blade. A faint smile curved his lips, cold and resolute.