Whew...
Taking a deep breath, Damian reached out and touched the headstone again. A Cosmo even stronger than before flowed up his arm into his body, flooding his limbs and bones.
His whole musculature tightened and trembled; he couldn't help a shiver, feeling the Cosmo within grow a bit more robust.
In addition, a strange scene surfaced before his eyes.
In a daze, Damian found himself in an ancient Greek palace, ruins and flames all around. Opposite him stood a Specter clad in black-violet armor.
The air reeked of smoke; the scorched smell of burning fire reached his nose, making it feel all too real.
He himself wore a Gold Cloth, facing the Specter ahead.
Damian tried to turn his neck and body, but could not move an inch. He couldn't even blink. It was as if he merely inhabited this shell—sharing sight and the five senses but able to do nothing else.
Indeed, he had entered the residual memories of the previous Cancer Gold Saint, Manigoldo, becoming a "temporary spectator."
"Specter, die!"
Damian opened his mouth, but another man's heavy voice came out.
The Specter burst into laughter. "Hah! We'll see who goes down to the underworld. Don't stand in my way, or I'll show you a Specter's might."
The Specter attacked.
Hah...
His opponent suddenly unleashed an unmatched roar, his body sinking into shifting shadow.
In a blink, a large hand thrust from the shadow behind "Damian." The hand streaked like lightning, reaching his back in an instant, its gleam cold like a steel-clawed spear.
Dream on!
Manigoldo reacted fast, stepping forward to evade the ambush, but was still struck from behind.
With a muffled grunt, he swung a fist and smashed the attacker square in the face.
The ambushing Specter staggered back seven or eight steps; teeth spattered with blood clattered to the ground.
"Sekishiki Meikaiha!"
Manigoldo raised his index finger and aimed at the Specter.
Damian felt a majestic surge of Cosmo rise and circulate through the body, and the method for invoking Sekishiki Meikaiha unfurled in his mind.
Pfft!
At his fingertip, Sekishiki Meikaiha coalesced into a spiral of dusky violet light, then shot forth like a ghostly arrow and slammed into the Specter's chest.
In an instant, the man's body went still. He toppled over and lay lifeless.
As the vision blurred, his own sight returned.
He was panting, as if he had fought a real battle.
Those scenes just now were illusions—memories from the dead in life—but they were so real it felt like firsthand experience.
At this moment, the principle of Sekishiki Meikaiha—its circulation route, meridians and acupoints, key thresholds—was imprinted in his mind without a single omission.
Sekishiki Meikaiha separates the enemy's body from their soul, drawing the soul into Cancer's gate to Yomotsu Hirasaka. It is a fusion of spatial and spiritual technique, one that does not rely on brute strength but erases the enemy's existence at the level of "concept."
Unleashed, it pulls the enemy's soul into the underworld with no impact or physical damage.
It is, essentially, a finisher that fuses space and soul.
After gathering his thoughts and taking a few breaths, Damian began circulating his own Cosmo.
As expected, he handled it with ease, as if he had long known how to use Sekishiki Meikaiha.
He had Manigoldo to thank for that.
Damian bent his arm, his Cosmo racing. He felt explosive power channel into his index finger; his gaze burned like a torch.
Sekishiki Meikaiha!
In a flash, a ghostly green spiral of light shot from his fingertip and struck an old tree deep in the cemetery.
The tree shuddered slightly, and then, in an instant, its once-green leaves withered, losing all vitality.
"...Sekishiki Meikaiha targets the soul and doesn't have much physical destructive power. Who knew it would work on plants too."
Damian was a little excited. He had actually learned a Gold Saint's finisher so easily.
"The previous Cancer Gold Saint's skills are far more than just this!"
Damian's mind was clear.
As the previous Cancer Gold Saint, Manigoldo was much stronger than this generation's Cancer, Deathmask, and he had mastered many lost techniques.
Compared to his predecessor Manigoldo, Deathmask was simply poorly trained, knowing only Sekishiki Meikaiha.
Next, all Damian had to do was keep raising the grade of Manigoldo's grave, and he could learn this Gold Saint's other techniques.
No time to lose—let's get to it now!
Huh...
Someone's coming to the graveyard this late?
Gazing toward the cemetery's edge as night slowly draped over it, Damian sensed a Cosmo rapidly approaching. His figure quickly vanished toward the graveyard's rim.
There's time enough. No need to rush.
.
Not long after Damian left, a lightning-like figure arrived at the Sanctuary graveyard.
It was a man in a loose white robe, with long, pale purple hair and two curious dots for eyebrows.
His figure flickered several times, each flicker like a moment of teleportation.
After a few such flashes, the man stood where Damian had just been.
He looked at a headstone with no writing.
The dot-shaped brows dipped slightly as he lowered his head and gave a deep bow to the Saints buried here.
These graves were too ancient. The words on the stones had long been worn away by time. Out of respect for his predecessors, he still bowed deeply.
"Was that an illusion just now?"
"My senses shouldn't be wrong. It seemed someone used a Seventh Sense Cosmo."
"In the Sanctuary, only Gold Saints possess the Seventh Sense."
"Did Deathmask come to the graveyard?"
"There are always strange things in the cemetery... perhaps it was my mistake."
"There should be residual Cosmo, then."
The man gave a slight shake of the head, dismissing his own thought.
He had only been taking a shortcut back to the Sanctuary and happened to pass the graveyard's edge when he sensed an unusually strong Cosmo. That was why he had come to have a look.
In the end, there wasn't a trace to be found.
Suddenly, sensing something amiss, he turned toward a shadow behind him and barked, "Come out. Stop hiding!"
From behind a dark mound, a small, childlike figure leaped out.
It was a boy of about eight or nine, with a head of brown hair, sturdy build, and the same dotted brows.
"Kiki, how many times have I told you not to follow me everywhere."
The man spoke in a clear voice.
"Don't be mad, Mr. Mu."
Kiki glanced at the thin mist around them. "This is the Sanctuary graveyard. They say it's haunted at night. You came here so late, Mr. Mu, and I got curious, so I followed."
Mu shook his head. "Haunted? The Sanctuary graveyard isn't haunted. It's just remnants of Saints' Cosmo."
Kiki scratched his head. "Remnants of Cosmo? The people buried here are all from two hundred years ago. Would there still be remnants after two centuries?"
Mu smiled.
"Cosmo tempers the body. In some powerful Saints, Cosmo remains in their bones, cells, even blood."
"This Cosmo can extend a person's life. Even after they die, it lingers for a long time. Their corpses may not decay, and can long retain their living form."
"I've heard many Gold Saints from the last Holy War were extremely strong. Even after two hundred years, their Cosmo is hard to erase."
Mu's deep gaze swept the vast graveyard. "When strange phenomena appear here, they are most likely the Saints' residual Cosmo."
"Kiki, try not to run around the graveyard in the future, so you don't disturb the Saints who slumber here. That would be a grave disrespect."
Kiki nodded, thoughtful. "I understand, Mr. Mu."
"Then let's go back."
With that, Mr. Mu led Kiki away without looking back from the gloomy, mist-laden cemetery.
He did not notice a pair of eyes watching from the depths of the graves, nor the deep voice muttering to itself:
"Mr. Mu has returned to the Sanctuary early?"
"This plot is getting more and more baffling..."
Thanks for reading!If you enjoyed the chapter, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and leave a review.Your support keeps the cosmos burning and helps me write more epic Saint Seiya battles!