God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 334: What am I?

The listless black ocean was calm, waves breaking its still surface every once in a while.

Standing upon his black ocean, was the blurry figure of a teenage boy and a gigantic creature that had risen from the depths.

"Took you long enough."

The golden dragon let out a steamy breath,

"I was busy."

Cain nodded. He fell silent, his eyes gazing into the black water beneath him. He then turned to the golden dragon,

"What happened?"

"Your soul was about to be destroyed by Og-solath."

Cain scratched his head, "Does he really hate me that much?"

The Golden Dragon chuckled, "More than you think. You better watch your back in the future."

Cain fell silent, "That means I'm still alive?"

The golden dragon let out a hum,

"More or less."

Cain let out a sigh, "I figured."

Ashur directed a long stare at Cain,

"What made you think you could face a Primordial Devil and live?"

Cain shrugged, "False bravado, I think... Arrogance?"

Ashur burst out laughing, "I'd say it's foolishness."

Cain snorted, "I'll have you know my plan was foolproof. If I could have hit him with Maximum output {Implodong Star} that was boosted by the {Flames of Darkness}, there is no way he would have stood a chance. I could have used that opportunity to tamper with his seal..."

Ashur threw him a sideways glance before his body began to move in the water.

A strong current began to move Cain as well, causing him to be stuck in motion at the side of the golden dragon.

Cain fell silent.

The serenity of this place made him relax subconsciously. It was different from the usual abyssal void he usually saw Ashur in. The dark ocean should have been scary, but it only made him feel at peace. The ocean radiated majesty in its solitude.

The grey sky helped set the mood and the golden sun didn't produce a scorching heat. Rather, its warmth was pleasant...

As they drifted along the currents, Cain opened his mouth,

"I what happened after? How did he not succeed in destroying my soul?"

The golden dragon threw him a glance,

"I saved your life."

Cain raised a brow, "I thought you said you couldn't interfere."

The Golden Dragon let out a sigh that seemed to contain a thousand and one different emotions,

"Not that I can't, but I shouldn't. I've used up too much soul strength protecting both of our souls."

Cain could see a grim look flash in his large eyes. He couldn't help but frown,

'That bad, huh...'

Cain knew that fighting the Primordial Devil of Madbess was a bad idea. However, his encounters with Lyx and Bemethshal had severely stroked his ego to the point where he had forgotten that these creatures were hundreds of times stronger than he was at their weakest.

The difference wasn't something that could be made up easily...

They continued drifting for some time before they came to a stop.

Ashur began speaking in a deep, forlorn voice,

"Strictly speaking, taking the front seat in your body was a bad move regardless of the situation. Now that your body has traces of my divinity, there will be no escaping it."

He turner to Cain, a serious look in his beastly eyes,

"You'll need to fight as hard as you can to survive. Azazel might be able to help you to an extent, but you'll need to rely on yourself the most."

Cain frowned, "You know that old demon?"

Ashur snorted with pride, "Know him? Who do you think taught him everything he knows?"

Cain stared at him blankly...

Clearing his throat, Ashur became serious once again,

"This will probably be the last we will see of each other for a very long time."

Cain felt a deep sense of panic rush into his body when he heard this. Staring at Ashur in disbelief, he couldn't help but shake his head,

"What? Why?! Is the damage really that bad?"

Ashur smiled to the limit of what his beast snout could allow,

"You have no idea. There is no way I can explain it to you now, but you will understand in due time. For now... for now, you will need to grow. Grow as fast as you can so you can protect those you will come to care about."

Cain gritted his teeth, "I do not care about anyone."

Ashur let out a grim chuckle,

"You will have to. If you think you can take on what is to come home, then you are going to end up dead faster than you can imagine. You will need an army, a strong one if you want to face the Heavenly Hosts of Tian."

Cain fell silent as his mind was absorbed with thoughts. Seeing this, Ashur let out a sigh,

"Don't let it weigh down on you too heavily. Your growth is important, but be careful not to let it consume you. That is probably a fate worse than death."

Cain shivered when he heard this. Getting a bit frustrated, he couldn't help but tell angrily,

"Then help me, damn it! You tell me I need to do all this, but you haven't given me a single helping hand all this while!"

Ashur was silent as he continued drifting along the waves. Cain became even more infuriated. However, while brooding in the silence that followed, he came to realize that he was wrong.

The Golden Dragon had helped him in many ways. He had given him the [Records of Akasha I], he had given him priceless advice, he had even saved his life not too long ago.

And now, he was being ungrateful...

Just as he was about to apologize for his outburst, he heard Ashur speak,

"You are right. Placing so much responsibility on you means I should provide more support."

After a short pause, he continued, this time, a trace of distant sadness could be heard in his voice,

"However, there is only so much a dead dragon can do."

"Cain, I want you to promise me. No matter what, protect the ones you love and will grow to love. No amount of power is worth sacrificing your loved ones over."

Cain had an expression of not understanding what was said. Ashur sighed,

"You'll understand in due time. You'll understand..."

Cain felt an indescribable emotion well up at the back of his eyes all of a sudden. He could sense something strange was about to happen.

Ashur gradually stopped moving along the dark waves,

"Looks like our time is up, Cain."

Cain's lips quivered he couldn't remember the last time he had shed a tear, if he had ever done so. Ever since he was a child, he wasn't the type of person to wear his heart on his sleeve. He had never been shown love and in turn, didn't show it back. He was like a piece of dry wood. Not receiving or taking much of anything.

The arrival of this strange, majestic beast into his life had opened him to something he had never felt before. Ashur had filled the position of a semi-absent guardian in his life. Whenever they spoke he felt that this enormous beast really cared about him. Why? He had no clue...

Cain let out a shaky breath as he forcibly swallowed his emotions. As he organized his brain, he finally phrased the question that had been bugging him for so long.

"What am I?"

The silence that floated above the waters was heavy...

"What am I? Am I you?" He repeated.

Ashur sighed, then shook his colossal head,

"You are not me, but you are me and I am you."

Cain frowned, "That doesn't make any sense."

The Golden Dragon grinned, "It isn't supposed to."

Seeing that Cain wasn't in the mood for jokes, he hummed for a while. Then, he spoke,

"You are a remnant."

Cain was confused, "A remnant?".

Ashur nodded, "Yes. While some Celestial leave relics and leagues behind, I decided to follow a rather.... unorthodox path."

Cain fell silent...

Ashur continued,

"You might be a part of me, but you are not me. Not in the literal sense, anyway..."

Ashur's eyes produced a solemn radiance as he spoke,

"The direction of your growth and evolution is quite different from mine. I tried giving you a few boons that were supposed to push you in a similar direction, but they ended up doing the opposite."

Cain was incredibly confused. However, Ashur disregarded his confusion and continued speaking,

"The affinity to use so many elements, as well as Ki and Devil Essence... Very few beings can boast of the same talent in this universe." Ashur praised.

"I didn't expect you to get your hands on a skill like {Draconic Transfiguration} so early, but here we are. You are honestly a piece of work..." Cain couldn't tell if this was praise or not.

"In a way, I am glad. Maybe you will be able to find a way where I couldn't. Fate may have dealt me a terrible hand, but she is oddly favorable of you. I think..."

Cain let out a tired sigh, "Again with the cryptic messages..."

Ashur smiled. The black ocean suddenly bubbled. Seeing this, Ashur turned to Cain who stared at him with complicated emotions in his eyes.

Ashur said nothing more.

Suddenly, thousands of inky-black chains shot out of the water and wrapped themselves around the body of the colossal creature.

These chains were massive, some as wide as entire streets. Regardless, they seemed small when compared with Ashur's gigantic frame. Still, the chains wrapped around him tightly and began contracting.

The Golden Dragon was unable to break even a single one of these chains. Almost as if he had accepted his fate, he allowed the chains to pull him deeper into the black waters until he had disappeared completely.

Cain gritted his teeth as he stared at all this happening. His face was pale, and his eyes were bloodshot. He finally couldn't contain it anymore,

"DAMN IT!"

Still, there was nothing he could do. To save him, the Golden Dragon had to make sacrifices.

As Cain let a stream of curses flow out of his mouth, he made a silent vow in his heart,

'I'll fulfill your wish.'

Indeed, he realized that he and the golden dragon were bound by the strings of fate. So if he didn't have any goals of his own, he would adopt his instead.

He would become stronger so he could claim the head of the Heavenly Emperor...