I Can Assimilate Everything

Selamira floated quietly above the wild, unblemished expanse of the Cenotaph Wild Lands, her eyes gazing with thinly veiled contempt at the man who stood alone at the heart of it all.

The mile-wide landmass of the Vessel of Adrastia shimmered behind him like a throne crafted from wonder.

Around him, the abominations waited- silent hybrids, titanic beasts, winged Draconic legions watching without breath.

And yet, he smiled.

That maddening, nonchalant smile.

Her voice was smooth and sharp, like an executioner's blade dipped in honey. "One of the direct commands passed down to me by the Primordial Light of Darkness... was this."

She floated lower, her expression unreadable to most- save for the glint of reverence that danced in her eyes when she uttered her master's name. "Even with all your transgressions. Even after the destruction, the blasphemy, and the deviation… you would still be forgiven."

Her gaze narrowed.

"You could join us, Primal. And work together with us to protect this plane from what is coming."

Her eyes remained locked on the man whose expression did not change in the slightest. That careless smile still lingered on his lips. Her eyes pulsed, her composure steady in the silence that followed. And silently, she…hated him.

She hated people like him.

Because she used to be one of them.

A long time ago… she had been human!

An Empress, once.

A blazing soul who led great uprisings against Ancient Ones, proclaiming salvation for humanity- believing that freedom lay in rejecting all that came before.

She had thought herself righteous. A liberator. She thought that through her rebellion, through her vision, she would bring change. Through her hands, however…

Millions upon millions died.

Entire dynasties turned to ash in a fruitless war of pride. A war she led.

Until she met Him.

The one who showed her a greater truth.

The one who offered her something greater than her own pride. Who reshaped her body, her soul, her destiny. The Primordial Light of Darkness. Through him, she evolved beyond human- transcending weakness and embracing the light… and shadow, that shaped existence.

And that was why she knew.

This so-called "King Primal" would say…

"No."

…!

WAA!

Her heart didn't even flinch when he said it.

He said it the exact way she expected. Calm. Proud. Arrogant.

Just like the old her.

He likely believed himself to be a savior. Believed the rulership under Ancient Ones was tyranny, not cooperation. He clung to his throne, to the illusion of control. As if destiny could be swayed by a single mortal will. As if the billions that called this plane home mattered less than his title.

His rejection wasn't born from logic. It came from fear- fear of relinquishing power. She knew this clearly!

Selamira's jaw tensed as her voice rang out, cold as the void.

"I despise people like you the most, you know."

Her eyes scanned the massive army of hybrids and monstrous beasts that filled the land around him. A mockery of harmony. An insult to evolution.

"You cannot see the bigger picture," she said. "You cling to illusions of thrones and kingship while the stars above begin to seethe."

She extended a hand, her fingers glowing with Astral venom.

"I am glad you said no," she said. "Because now I have the authority to end your delusions. To erase you."

She swept her hand across the field. "You are surrounded. Your army is malformed, your allies sent away. I know men like you. You'll fight to the bitter end. But I'll offer one last mercy."

Her tone softened, a lie in her voice.

"Will you surrender early, and spare the lives of these... creatures you've brought under you?"

She asked.

Achilles' answer was calm.

His voice, unshaken.

"No. I don't think I will."

…!

All those here seemed to pause.

The ground trembled.

And then, Solmyron moved.

The Golden Pyre of the Acheron Phoenix Assembly erupted forward, his voice a stellar roar that cracked the air.

"HUMAN! Because of your hands, human, six thousand seven hundred and eighty-six phoenixes of the Acheron lineage were slain!"

HUUM!

"You enslaved their flames. Defiled their purity! Their deaths…will be carved into your bones! Between the two of us…one will not be leaving here alive!"

His golden body expanded, wings outstretched to eclipse the skies.

Solar winds whipped from his feathers, and the temperature of the Cenotaph Wild Lands nearby spiked by hundreds of degrees in seconds.

His stellar eyes flared with wrath.

Neuronova Stage.

The very skies began to fracture with starlight. Starlight twisted into the shape of a roaring Phoenix as his aura bled into existence.

A solar sun ignited behind him, golden flames casting a new dawn.

Achilles simply raised his eyes.

And smiled.

"I know exactly which one of us will walk away from this," he whispered.

…!

Solmyron struck first.

And the skies were set ablaze as they burned with star light!

And above it, Solmyron, the Golden Pyre, reigned like a second sun.

To the untrained eye, he was simply a furious Phoenix King unleashing his wrath. But to those who understood the Astral Core Ascension Realm, this moment was a terrifying unveiling of the highest form of natural evolution- Neuronova Stage.

There were three great thresholds of Astral Core Ascension.

Each one a transcendence over the body's natural limitations.

Luminblood Stage was the first threshold.

This was when a being's blood became infused with starlight. No longer did they rely on oxygen or mundane energy. Every heartbeat pumped liquid solar radiance through their veins. Their bodies regenerated rapidly, their movements accelerated, and their senses sharpened to the edge of the definition of mortality.

A single Luminblood could crush hundreds of mundane Dharma Kings beings without effort.

A Luminblood might be able to swing a blade faster than sound, causing it to blur like a comet across the battlefield. They could burn forests with a breath or fly at hypersonic speeds!

Celestbone Stage was the second threshold. It wasn't just the blood now. It was the bones- core structural pillars of the body that were turned into conduits of starlight. They became what was known as Celestbones- glowing, pulsating with stellar might.

One could grow these bones outside the body- projecting colossal skeletal constructs of stellar energy capable of razing armies.

A Celestbone warrior might punch the ground and summon a thousand-meter-long astral femur to crush a mountain. Their bone constructs could split the sky like celestial siege engines.

But then...

There was the third threshold.

Someone like Selamira or Solmyron.

Neuronova Stage.

The most sacred stage of Astral Core Ascension!