Dancing on the golden ashes

Sometimes I wonder, why me? In life, things never seem to go as I wish. This time, I felt a sharp pang in my chest—a feeling so strong it almost made me think I was about to have a heart attack. The moment I tried to upgrade my stats, the system message that appeared made me feel like puking.

My stat upgrade window was blocked. How could this happen you might ask. Well, who else but the fucking Creator himself could have messed with me? It didn't make sense. Why else would I be blocked?

I stared at the screen again, wondering if I had done something wrong, or maybe I didn't wish hard enough. As if... What?

No matter how much I tried, the + button wouldn't work.

"System help!" I called out, frustration spilling over.

[Welcome to the customer service center, Lee Gaon. It's been a long time]

"Piss off with your bullshit! Why the hell can't I upgrade my stats?!" I roared, my voice vibrating with fury. The rage inside me burned hotter than ever, like a flame that refused to be snuffed out. It raged, building in my chest, fueling a storm that I could barely control. One more stupid answer from the system, and I felt like I was going to shatter. Everything in me was screaming for release.

[There does not seem to be any problem with your upgrade option. The system has determined that it is working fine]

I clenched my fists, nails digging into my palms, as I stared at the screen in disbelief. "What the fuck? No, no, no... wait, you're messing with me, right? This can't be real. Are you really telling me everything's fine?"

[The system never lies. Your upgrade function is working fine. Have you tried clicking on the + button?]

The words felt like a slap to the face. How could it be working fine when nothing was happening? How could I be so powerless in this moment? I could feel my blood pressure rising, my frustration turning into something that was beginning to feel dangerous. Why couldn't anything go the way I wanted?

I wanted to shatter this useless thing. Why did it have to mess with me like this? I swore to myself, I would end this system and its damned creator, no matter what it took.

"Are you calling me an idiot?" I shot back, my voice seething with rage, the words barely containing the fury surging through me. Find your next read at My Virtual Library Empire

If someone were to see me now, they would think I had completely lost it—arguing with the system like a mad person, trapped in a losing battle that no one else could understand.

[The system is not capable of the insults]

The response hit me like a slap, but I tried to steady my breath, forcing myself to calm down. Think rationally, Gaon. It must have been the Creator who did this. There was no other explanation.

And yet, I couldn't understand. Why me? Sure, I swore to kill him, yes, I'd messed up his plans a few times... but was that really enough for him to target me this way? After everything I've been through, after all the hope I was clinging to, why now? Why did he have to make things even harder for me?

"Fine, forget it. I'll just fight the monster with my current strength," I muttered, my voice dripping with frustration.

[The system is confused by your words]

"Just piss off," I waved my hand dismissively, silencing the system. It felt like the only way to regain some semblance of control in this maddening situation.

"It's alright... I can do it," I muttered to myself, trying to steady my nerves. "Over all this time, I've overcome countless difficult battles. Even if they weren't anywhere near as tough as this one, I've mostly come out on top..." I sighed, trying to calm the storm inside. But deep down, I knew there was no hope of making things easy. This would be different.

How am I going to explain myself to Seong-hoon and Eun-woo? They had looked so happy, so relieved, and now... this hope was lost. I could feel the weight of that crushing down on me, and I couldn't help but curse my fate.

But no matter what, I had to find a way to overcome this battle. I couldn't let it end here. And there was one thing I could do until then. If the system messed with me, then the cultivation of my soul would save me in the end. That's what I'll focus on from now on.

But I still had so many questions that I couldn't shake. I wasn't certain how fast I could cultivate, or where I should go with this path. My soul was now the most powerful force I had, but it felt like I wasn't using it to its fullest potential. It was as if the true power it held was lying dormant, waiting to be unlocked.

I glanced inward, focusing on myself. My souls floated in harmony, each one aligned, yet nothing about them stood out. That was the feeling I got—they were there, but their presence was subdued, almost as if they were holding back. A sense of dissatisfaction lingered within me.

But I couldn't understand why my heart felt this way. It was a strange, mysterious sensation—one that called for an explanation, a reason that I hadn't yet uncovered.

Determined, I decided to study it, to delve deeper into the enigma within me. The passage of time seemed to slow, as if it had paused for a moment. And as I continued to observe my fire soul, I felt a shift within me.

A new understanding began to blossom, like a flame igniting in the depths of my mind. The urge to study the ways of the flame surged through me, as if it was a calling that had always been there, waiting for me to answer.

I wanted to understand why I felt this way, but as I thought about it, all I could grasp was that something deep within was calling to me, urging me forward. So, I focused all of my attention on the soul that took the shape of a flame.