Chapter 9 – Ashes of the Limitless Beast
Year 6 inside the Dimension
Theme: No more limits. Only the break point—and what lies beyond it.
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There were no walls. No platforms. No sky.
Only the endless black field stretching beneath his feet. The ground was a plain of scorched stone, shattered by gods, soaked with the blood of monsters.
Yuu stood at the center, alone.
His second weapon—Resonance—rested at his side.
His body was scarred, bloodied, taped with divine cloth and glowing mana seals.
A faint wind howled across the battlefield, but it carried no air—only tension.
The Goddess stood far above, suspended in a ring of moonlight, watching silently.
Then the monster arrived.
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The Limitless Beast
It didn't walk in.
It formed.
Cell by cell, bone by bone, it emerged from the cracked earth like a living curse.
Skinless at first—then plated in armor that pulsed with chaotic mana. Its limbs extended at unnatural angles, and its spine was layered with vibrating crystals. Six eyes blinked open across its face.
Each glowed a different color.
Each read Yuu.
"What is it?" he asked aloud.
The Goddess didn't blink.
"The Limitless Beast. A creature that rewrites its own body every time it's struck. It has no end. Only escalation."
Yuu tightened his grip on his sword.
"So it evolves?"
"Worse," she said. "It studies."
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Opening Exchange
The beast moved first.
One slash—one blink—and it was already behind him.
Yuu blocked just in time.
Clang.
The force sent him skidding thirty meters backward.
Stone exploded beneath his feet.
It was fast. Too fast.
But he moved again, using Phantom Step and Sky Sever in one motion—an arc of wind slashed toward the beast's midsection.
The attack landed.
Steel cut flesh.
But the next moment, the wound sealed—and the beast's arms shifted, now plated in bone that resembled Yuu's blade.
It had copied the attack.
And it was faster.
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Yuu moved.
Clashed.
Ducked under the counterstrike—then drove Resonance into the beast's chest.
Boom.
Blood splashed—but the beast didn't flinch.
It roared.
And grew another limb.
Then another.
Ten limbs now—moving in synch.
He blocked the first two.
The next eight struck him.
Crack. Crack. Boom. Snap.
Ribs broke. Blood burst from his mouth.
He hit the ground and rolled, coughing, dazed.
The beast leapt.
Its entire weight slammed down.
Yuu moved just before impact—barely escaping the crater that swallowed the field.
But his left arm didn't move.
Broken. Again.
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Death #9
The beast struck again—two claws through the chest.
Yuu froze.
Then fell.
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You died – 9
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Void Sequence – The Breaking Core
His soul didn't float this time.
It fell.
Down.
Past the burning image of Celestial Edge.
Past the shimmer of Resonance.
And into a white space of cracked mirrors and empty breaths.
There was no sound.
Only a heartbeat.
His.
He heard the Goddess.
"You can't beat this thing with weapons."
He whispered:
"Then I'll become one."
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Ascension Shell – Forbidden Layer
She hovered before him in the void.
"There's a path beyond this," she said. "But it's not divine. Not mortal. It's unstable. It could erase you."
"Show me."
"Once you enter it, you can't go back. It's the gate to Ascension Shell. Power taken without permission."
Yuu stepped forward.
"I was never asking for permission."
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Resurrection – Ascension Shell Activated
He awoke with a scream.
A white aura burned from his chest outward, warping the ground beneath him.
Silver markings spiraled down his arms, onto his jaw, and across his spine.
His pupils narrowed into slits.
His heartbeat thundered louder than lightning.
The Limitless Beast stepped forward.
It flinched.
For the first time.
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Final Clash – Beyond Mortal Design
Yuu didn't wait.
He moved faster than sound.
His blade pierced through the beast's side—before the creature even reacted.
It twisted midair, slashing with a bone-tail spear.
Yuu blocked.
It shattered his forearm.
He spun with the pain—used it to throw his shoulder forward—slammed the pommel of Resonance into the beast's temple.
Crack.
The creature stumbled.
But regenerated mid-stagger.
Adapted again.
New armor, new claws.
Its legs split into six.
Its eyes became twelve.
Yuu smiled.
"Keep growing."
He slammed his foot into the earth.
The platform cracked.
He lunged forward.
And swung.
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The Arsenal Expands
His blade began to hum.
From within the burning glow of Ascension Shell, the third sword began to form.
Black edge. Crimson hilt. Hollow inscription across the guard.
This one was forged not from memory, not from belief—
But from pain.
Every injury. Every death. Every fracture.
He screamed as it took shape.
The Goddess whispered:
"You've made a weapon out of your scars."
He gripped it.
And whispered its name.
"Remnant Fang."
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Closing Clash
He leapt.
One sword in each hand.
Celestial Edge—light.
Remnant Fang—ruin.
The Limitless Beast came forward, fully adapted.
They clashed.
No spells.
No tricks.
Only raw, physical violence.
Clang.
Boom.
Slice.
Shockwave after shockwave.
The ground split for miles.
Stone spiraled into the sky.
The monster's claws tore into Yuu's chest.
Yuu's blades carved into its throat.
It regenerated. Again.
He burned it with mana.
It adapted. Again.
He slammed both blades together.
And activated Eclipse Arsenal – Gate Two.
The field shattered.
The beast roared.
Its core was exposed for one second.
That was enough.
He stabbed both swords in.
Crossed them.
And pulled.
The creature exploded.
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Aftermath
Yuu fell to one knee.
Not dead.
But nearly empty.
He dropped both swords.
The Goddess stood before him, slowly descending.
"Ascension Shell is eating you," she said.
"I'll survive."
"You keep saying that."
He stood.
One eye shut. Spine crooked. Bones shifting beneath divine energy.
"I'll keep saying it until I don't need to."
She stared at him.
Then nodded.
"You have three blades now."
He looked at the broken field around him.
"No," he said. "I have one weapon. And it's not steel."
She tilted her head.
"It's what, then?"
He turned to the void where the beast died.
"My will."
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End of Chapter 9 – Ashes of the Limitless Beast
Deaths: 1 (Yuu's 9th)
New State: Ascension Shell (unstable divine threshold)
New Weapon: Remnant Fang – third sword of the Eclipse Arsenal
Theme: Endurance through adaptation, breaking physical limits
World Impact: Arena collapse zone now spans 20 kilometers
Yuu Status: Burned. Scar
red. Alive.
"My will."
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End of Chapter 9 – Ashes of the Limitless Beast
Deaths: 1 (Yuu's 9th)
New State: Ascension Shell (unstable divine threshold)
New Weapon: Remnant Fang – third sword of the Eclipse Arsenal
Theme: Endurance through adaptation, breaking physical limits
World Impact: Arena collapse zone now spans 20 kilometers
Yuu Status: Burned. Scarred. Alive.