Chapter 1482: Chapter 1482
In a panic, Jenkins desperately fumbled in his breast pocket again, only to find a scattering of black dust at the bottom.
Despite the light rain and the chilling wind, sweat beaded on Jenkins's forehead. The ring wasn't lost—it had been absorbed. And in that moment, he finally understood why the Beast of Calamity, which was meant to have been sealed by this epoch's Savior, had still been born in the land of Black Town.
"So... it was all my fault."
The moment the realization hit him, he was tempted by the horrific thought of digging up the man he had just buried to demand the sealing method. But the dead could not be resurrected, and after absorbing something so lethal, Jenkins had no idea if the creature about to hatch from the egg could even be sealed again.
Cradling the egg, Jenkins could already feel the life force stirring within its shell. It was immense and twisted, more terrifying than the spirit of any living being he had ever encountered.
He carefully extended his spirit, attempting to connect with the creature inside and soothe it, but it was a futile effort. He couldn't even understand his own cat, let alone an egg.
The black stone of calamity was like a powerful tonic for the egg. In just a few minutes, it began to grow rapidly. The egg itself started to squirm, trying to wriggle free from Jenkins's grasp.
Jenkins clutched it to his chest with both hands, continuously channeling his own life spirit to temper the spirit of the creature within. He hoped that with his mastery over life spirit and his newly acquired [Hero] ability, he could at least purify its soul and weaken the black aura before it hatched.
Jenkins, however, did not panic. He cradled the still-growing egg in one arm, summoned his cane from thin air with his free hand, and plunged it deep into the black earth at his feet.
Even as the land withered under the black halo that was once the primeval moon, the life force within the earth remained inexhaustible. Wrestling with the egg, Jenkins struggled to sit, leaning back against his cane. The cane drank in the power of the land, taking root and sprouting like a planted sapling. As he settled, a small tree rose behind him, its canopy quickly spreading to shield him from the rain of black ash.
The tree grew, and Jenkins drew spirit from it to continue his struggle against the egg. The sapling quickly grew into a large tree, which in turn swelled into a giant.
The sun never rose again, and Jenkins lost all track of the days and nights. He knew only that the tree born from his cane now rivaled the giants of the Evergreen Forest. Survivors of the war had gathered beneath it, seeking shelter from the deadly rain and black fireballs that fell from the sky.
The egg swelled to the size of a human head and grew no larger. The creature within was absorbing, compressing, and transforming the power. The nascent life was not yet a match for Jenkins, and as the tree grew, it was gradually brought under control. A fragile balance between taking and giving was struck, one that held for the time being.
More days and nights passed, countless and unrecorded. The tattered walls of space near the battlefield finally gave way, and the Shadow Realm bled into the material world. The power of shadow eroded the land, starving the tree and cutting off Jenkins's source of strength. The egg, however, began to absorb the encroaching darkness, and the fragile balance tipped, slowly but surely, against him.
One day, the people gathered beneath the giant tree came to pay their respects, as they always did, to its master—to Jenkins, who slumbered at its base, still cradling the egg.
Jenkins suddenly opened his eyes, his voice low and hoarse:
"I can't hold on any longer. You must all leave, as fast as you can. I can no longer stop it from hatching. This world isn't completely lost yet. There are other survivors scattered across the land. Find them. Endure the long twilight that is to come, together." Get full chapters from novel·fıre·net
The eggshell in his hands had turned completely black, a color that represented the power of sin and shadow—a force that directly countered his own. It had drained too much of his spirit, and his control was on the verge of collapsing. The creature seemed to possess a unique talent for consumption, gaining abilities based on the nature of the spirit it devoured. It had absorbed shadow to master shadow. It had absorbed Jenkins's spirit, and now it could even freely wield the life spirit provided by the great tree.
"You saved us. Is there anything more we can do for you?"
the people asked loudly.
Jenkins shook his head, then noticed some elves in silver armor among the crowd and asked:
"How fares the World Tree?"
In this era, elves still walked the material world. As long as the World Tree stood, they would have a sanctuary, one that might even shelter the other races.
"Oh, Priest, we fear the World Tree has been gravely wounded. Please, return with us. The World Tree cannot afford to lose a priest such as you."
"So when they called me a descendant of priests, they meant priests of the World Tree... Is the Williams family bloodline really that extraordinary?"
Jenkins thought to himself, then shook his head at the weeping elves:
"I am fated to remain here. No one can take up my duty. This business with the egg began with me, and I cannot abandon it. Leave this place. Go and find your homeland's World Tree. Other priests will rise to the responsibility. Trust me, even this long night will eventually see a dawn. When the next epoch begins, do not forget to help those who have been hurt."
Both his hands were occupied suppressing the egg, so he could only open his mouth and exhale his remaining life's breath over the kneeling crowd. It was a breath of the purest life spirit, enough to heal their wounds and give them the strength to survive the arduous journey ahead.
The people departed one by one. The elves were the last to go, and before they left, they honored him with an ancient rite, singing an elven dirge for the dying priest.
Watching their retreating figures, Jenkins closed his eyes once more. Time passed, seasons turned, trees bloomed and withered. He lost track of how long he and the egg remained there, and he had no idea just how much of himself the egg had taken.
Then one day, Jenkins fell. His body dissolved into nothing, and the egg rolled free from his embrace. With his passing, the giant tree that was his cane crumbled, its immense life spirit, gathered over ages, seeding the ancient forest that would take its place.
The egg lay quietly in the earth, bathing in the dual powers of shadow and life, and continued to grow.
But even the longest night must end, and every long story must have its magical beginning.
When fate deemed it time for the dawn of the next epoch, the egg, slumbering in the ruins of an ancient city, gave a shudder. A wave of power, born of sin and shadow, swept through the ruins. As the first crack spiderwebbed across its shell, a colossal surge of spirit blasted through the forest and its crumbling walls.
The creature within pushed determinedly against its final prison. A bolt of black lightning descended from the heavens and struck the egg. A tiny black kitten broke through the shell, its fur bathed in the aura of a bygone age.
It was tiny, yet its power was boundless. Amber eyes slowly blinked open, and the newborn kitten gazed at its surroundings with innocent bewilderment.
It was special. As a Beast of Calamity, it possessed a great deal of innate knowledge. But during the long eons spent with Jenkins beneath the tree, it had received something more from the man.
The kitten lifted its head and meowed, a desolate and mournful sound. It couldn't find the man—the man who had given it warmth and strength when it was at its weakest.
The kitten's stomach rumbled. It was newborn and starving, and its innate gift for devouring urged it to find something to eat.
Unwilling to destroy its own birthplace, the kitten looked up at the massive black halo in the sky. Its essence was fundamentally similar to the cat's own power; both were born from the condensed sins of the previous epoch. The only difference was that the cat had not used its power to destroy the world.
It leaped lightly into the air, soaring to an impossible height. The kitten's mouth opened, wider, and wider still. Drawn by their shared origin, the destructive halo that had been the primeval moon was pulled, piece by piece, into the tiny cat's mouth.
The kitten landed gracefully on a branch and let out a small hiccup. Then, in a very human-like gesture, it hid its face behind a tiny paw. Above, an azure sky was revealed. Bright sunlight streamed through the leaves, illuminating the black cat's fur until it seemed to glow.
The apocalypse was over. With the black halo gone, the material world saw blue skies and white clouds for the first time in millennia. A new epoch was dawning. Everything would begin again. And the newborn cat would begin its own story.
It craned its little head, searching for the man, but the sorrow in its feline eyes showed it already knew the truth.
It cried out to the sky again, a shrill and sorrowful sound. The cry drew the gods, who descended to the material world in pillars of pure white light. A new covenant would be forged. The mighty Beast of Calamity would wait.
It was the Moon-Devouring Spirit Cat. It was the Calamity of the Epoch's End. It was a monster of boundless power, and it was a kitten, patiently waiting.
At the end of the Eighteenth Epoch, Jenkins sat up in bed, raising a hand to shield his face from a sliver of light piercing the curtains. The old town was already stirring. Outside the church, an unknown minstrel softly recited a verse passed down through the ages:
"I will wait, I will wait.
No matter how long, I will always wait.