Mad God – Reborn

“Ah, thank you for coming!” Ariana bowed to Reignar and Orsi, who came to Thunder Valley after receiving the request from Ren.

“Hey, no problem.” Reignar nodded, while Orsi happily smiled at Ariana after not seeing her for so long. “How’s she doing?” Reignar asked as they walked inside their tower, while outside the evening sky slowly lit up with stars, thanks to the sun having already disappeared under the horizon.

“Not good. After she got back home, she closed herself into the cultivation room.” Ariana said, looking up at the ceiling. “She has not come out for 4 days by now.”

“I heard what happened from Yanda and… is it true?” Reignar asked with incredible light flashing inside his eyes.

“It is.” Ariana nodded. “I was also surprised, but now I finally get some things that were confusing for me before.” She shook her head, but said no more. It was a shock for her and not the part that her Master had Leinor’s soul inside her… but the resurrected God that she brought back. Hearing him, seeing him, and talking with him made her realize some words that Ren previously spoke could only mean one thing...

She was now sure that she herself was the disciple of the reincarnated God who brought the original change to the world. Not knowing whether her Master had ever told anyone, or if he did not want to make it public, she decided to keep it to herself, not letting it affect their lives.

“Can I meet him? That… God…” Reignar asked, gulping loudly. “When Sect Head heard about it, he made sure it was the highest secret in our Sect. He ordered everyone to take an oath, powered by his own affinity. We now physically can’t share it with those who are not permitted to know about it. For now, only the current Elders know it, and it is going to be kept this way, no matter who ascends to the position later on.”

“Mm, that is a good decision.” Ren’s voice came down as she appeared downstairs from nowhere. She had black bags under her eyes, looking tired and exhausted. “The fewer people know about Kai, the better.”

“Master!” Ariana rushed forward with worry in her eyes.

“You look horrible.” Reignar sighed, shaking his head. “Let me brew you a coffee.” He offered with a smile as he walked up and patted her shoulders.

“Thanks. Ariana will take you to Kai after we have drunk it. He is studying the demons. He said he wants to compare ours to the ones in his memories.” Ren said as she stretched, scratching her head.

“They had demons too?” Orsi asked, as she also helped out, preparing the cups and setting the table while Ariana prepared some snacks without even thinking about it.

“That's what he said." Ren nodded with a yawn. "He said the energy from outside has the property of life itself. In his original realm, there were even special kinds of demons, like living swords or buildings. They also had a method to draw down tribulation while forging a weapon or pills and giving life to them. But as he said, it was the secret of masters, a select few, and he was not one of those.”

“Ugh… that would be… weird!” Reignar twitched his mouth, thinking about living coffee cups and chairs.

“Why?” Ariana asked as she tilted her head. “Elder Poli’s sword, if it could gain sentience, wouldn’t it be an even greater asset?”

“Maybe… but wouldn’t there be a possibility of resisting him then? I wouldn’t want to be used as a sword!” Orsi said, thinking of the same thing Reignar was.

“We can’t tell how it would react, think, or what it would decide is good for itself.” Ren shook her head as she sat down while Reignar poured coffee for all of them. “But the thought alone is interesting. You can talk about it with him; he is a surprisingly relaxed person. Even though he spent who knows how long in a state of emptiness.”

After finishing her words, Ren just sipped on her coffee with closed eyes, falling silent, gently rocking in her chair as nobody said anything. When her cup was finally emptied, she reopened her eyes and gave Reignar a thick stack of paper, rolled up and sealed.

“Give this to Sect Head.” She said, while looking into his eyes.

“Sure. Can I know what it is?”

“The design for a new cultivation room. We can build a few; probably that new Elder of ours I keep hearing about is going to fall in love with the plans.” Ren smiled, talking about Levictus. “But it must be kept a secret.”

“Is it that good?” He asked with a grin, making Ren see Leinor’s face in his for a moment.

“Yes. My suggestion is to only let selected members use it. Only those who have genius-level talent. The rest need not know about it.”

“Then it is really something, huh?” Reignar whistled as he put it away with expectations. “Maybe it is going to help Frenir. He is stuck in his cultivation, and for him this means being stuck for who knows how long.”

“Then let him test it out first if we build one.” Ren chuckled. “He needs the power for his Junior Sect Head title.”

“Won’t you be the one with it if you come back?” Orsi asked with a surprised voice, but Ren just shook her head.

“I don’t want to. I don’t know if I am even staying after everything is done.” She said with a calm voice.

“What?!” Ariana exclaimed as she stood up with a shocked expression, almost knocking off everything from the table as she slapped her palms on it.

“Easy there…” Ren smiled. “I did not say I’m going away right now. But I thought about a lot of things in the past days, and I came to a conclusion. I will need to meet with the Immortals. I am going to leave sooner or later, yes, but not now. I still have a lot of things to do.” She explained calmly. “But as I won’t stay here, I can’t lead a Sect.”

“It’s not like the Sect Head wants to step down right now; it is only a formal title anyway,” Reignar said, watching Ren’s reactions.

“True.” She acknowledged it with a slow nod. “But it still brings expectations and duties with it. I don’t want to disappoint our current and future disciples if their Junior Sect Head just disappears one day. That would be… not ideal.”

“You won’t… right, Master?” Ariana asked, almost choking up.

“Ahaha, no, I won’t. I didn't mean it that way!” She laughed, hugging her disciple closely, kissing the top of her head. “Just as Sect Head once made a trip, I will too. That is it. Go,” She patted her on the back. “Show Reignar where Kai is. I want to have a chat with Orsi.”

When they left, Orsi was a bit nervous, looking at Ren, who just sat back down and didn't say anything for a long time.

“So?” Ren asked after a long silence, looking at Orsi’s slightly glowing eyes, dancing in the moon’s colors.

“I can feel him.” She said at last, her voice weak. “I am still not strong enough... I can’t tell what he is thinking, but I can feel his presence, yes.”

“He thinks that you are incredible. Not even Ariana noticed him.” Ren laughed, translating Leinor’s thoughts that she could hear inside her head.

“Hauh…” She lowered her head shyly before Ren stretched out her hands.

“Let us try something different. Grab onto my hand and let me in.”

“Yes.” She agreed without hesitation, completely trusting Ren.

As they held hands, she felt Ren’s energy and essence slowly travel into her damaged energy points. Back in the day, this would give her a great amount of pain, but now she could easily endure it. As Ren continued, Orsi’s soul trembled... Then she felt a presence even more clearly than before. Her own being automatically expanded towards the new presence and soon made contact with Leinor’s soul. Opening her silvery eyes, she could see Leinor’s hazy, barely visible figure, standing behind Ren, holding onto her shoulders.

“Elder Leinor!” She yelped as he nodded and spoke up, but Orsi only heard his voice like a whisper the wind brought over from a far distance.

“You have grown again,” Leinor said as Orsi’s eyes were filled with tears, as she never had a chance to thank him for saving her life when they fell into the abyss. “Stop.” Leinor chuckled, sensing her thoughts through the connection. “It was only natural. What happened has already happened.”

“Still…” She sniffled, reigning in her feelings as Leinor’s figure became fuzzier as her thoughts became more troubled or distracted.

“Feel us out.” Ren cut in. “You are more sensitive to souls; feel both of ours out. I’ll maintain the connection.”

“Yes!” Orsi nodded and, as she focused her eyes, trembled again. “Both… both of you are getting… fused.”

“Fused?” Ren asked, raising her eyebrows.

“I’m sure of it! Your soul is… really strong, Elder Ren. But Elder Leinor’s is… very, very weak. Yours are absorbing it, bit by bit... If this continues, you won’t be able to separate once again, I am sure of it. Then even I won’t be able to see him as he is going to be a part of you...”

“I see…” Ren sighed as she closed her eyes. Her voice choked for a brief moment.

“I’m… I’m sorry…” Orsi stuttered, but Ren just shook her head, slowly drawing back her powers and caressing Orsi’s hand.

“Thank you, Orsi. You are an incredible girl.”

“I…”

“Can you leave me alone for a little?”

“Y-yes… I’ll go find my Young Master.” She stood up, bowed, then hugged Ren tightly before leaving her alone.

“Even if you had done everything you planned, it would have been too late,” Leinor said when they were alone, and Ren just sank into the armchair she was sitting in.

“...”

“Well… I always wanted to be with you.” He joked, and his voice was calm and even a bit happy. “This is the ultimate form of it.”

“Heh…” Ren laughed a little. “Idiot…”

“Was it at least an 8 out of 10 kind of idiot?”

“Yeah… yeah it was… and I have a 10 out of 10 response for it!” She stood up suddenly with determination flashing in her eyes.

“Ren? What are you doing?!”

...

..A little earlier..

.....

Outside, Reignar was soaking up Kai’s words like a sponge, while Ariana looked on with an open mouth, listening to what he was saying.

“It is true.” Kai smiled as he watched them, repeating his own words again. “There are sects that span not just one but multiple realms. They are usually warmongering types, but not always. They are focused on battle arts and warfare; that's why they spread the farthest. They are also not the best to come up against; that is why multiple realm-spanning alliances exist. To keep them in check or battle them back to where they came from. Of course, it does not mean they are evil! One such sect is the Martial Heaven Sect. They focus on body-strengthening techniques, and their only known diplomacy is fighting. They conquer, but they don’t do massacres and leave alone those who can match them. They even have allies, believe it or not!” He laughed, but then fell silent. "Or at least... that is how it was in my time."

“Sounds like something a meathead would come up with.” Orsi arrived as she heard him, bowing towards Kai and introducing herself.

“True.” Kai laughed. “It was a maniac who established them. An honest and trustworthy maniac but a bit… eccentric. He won’t stab you in the back, but he would smash your face in with a rock.”

“How would our realm fare if one such outside force came here?” Reignar asked him.

“Depends,” Kai said as he thought about it for a little longer. “If it were a sect like the one I was part of, you could repel them. If it's only one sect, of course. My four disciples are strong; even though they did not cultivate with the Cosmos’s energy, they would still have the home-field advantage. You know, an invasion’s most daunting hurdle is that every realm has its own set of laws. They are created naturally, formed by time and evolution. They may be similar so cultivators can adapt more easily… But it would take a long time to properly invade one. Even if someone comes down, without understanding the rules for real, they will have a severe restriction on their powers.”

“Even if it's created, like ours?” Ariana asked.

“Naturally. If an outside force arrives, their people would need to figure out the differences in this realm’s laws and the one they came from. Until then, their powers would be weakened or even rejected. Only the strong could come in freely and bear the reduction in their own strengths. So my disciples, if prepared, could fight them back. Of course, numbers could change everything. If a horde comes, this realm is done for.”

“Ugh…” All three of them exclaimed at the same time.

“Mmm?” Kai flinched suddenly, and before they could ask what was going on, they felt it too.

Turning towards Ren's tower, the sky suddenly disappeared, and the true Sky and the Tear itself took its place.

“Master!” Ariana screamed out, but Kai grabbed onto her shoulder, holding her back.

“Stay! She probably found her way. What you told me about… How you all cultivate in this era, I came to understand how you do it." Kai said with a smile on his face, taking a deep breath, "She forcefully reached the stage she is at now. The only way for her to find her way back to the road she started walking down is to come into Harmony with herself once again. Her only chance to do that is... letting go.” As he said it, red lightning came down from the sky almost instantly, and as it stabbed into the ground, it remained there, starting to morph into a formation.

“What is going on?!” Niji arrived with a shout; most of the demons didn't know what was happening, but they realized it was connected to Ren.

“You are seeing someone advancing to the next level and forcefully calling down the Lightning of Cleansing. Usually, if it comes down again for a cultivator, it means it is a punishment...” Kai answered him as they watched on while Ariana’s face turned pale. "These lightning strikes shouldn't be red... But..." He smiled, his eyes flashing, "There are always exceptional cultivators in every Realm."

“That is… that is the Soul Tearer formation!” Ariana said, almost forgetting to breathe when she recognized it, as more and more lightning strikes got implanted into the ground. Right then, Ren appeared above their home, in the middle of the formation. The chains that once tore Harimau’s soul apart stabbed right onto hers, instantly starting to pull on it, yet Ren’s face remained calm, and she even smiled while she heard Leinor screaming at her.

“What are you doing?! Are you trying to kill yourself?!”

“No. Don’t forget! It was made for my soul in the first place.” She answered as the chains pulled and everyone could hear something tearing apart, like when flesh is being chewed off from a bone. The next moment, a chunk of Ren’s soul just came out of her own body, making her groan, “Ugh…” She flinched, feeling a kind of pain she never knew was possible.

“Ren…” Leinor gawked, finally realizing something, and his eyes were filled with tears at that moment.

“Don’t sweat it. I’ll be whole again when you are back with me!” She turned towards him, looking at him as the chains retreated, letting her go, but still holding onto a part of her torn-off soul. “I told you. I’ll bring you back! I don’t know if you will remember me, LeiLei… but I’ll wait. I won’t go anywhere until you are back to me.” She stepped forward, trying to hold onto his soul, but instead of her fingers, the chains wrapped around Leinor, covering him with her own soul, just like a warm blanket.

“Why are you so reckless…” Leinor moaned, but he tried to smile as he watched Ren’s gentle, warm eyes. He was trying to etch her face into his soul, so he would never forget her.

“Because I am the Mad God… silly.” She grinned as tears trailed down the side of her face.

Finally, the lightning pillars completely disappeared, and so did the Sky and the Tear, as now Leinor’s soul was wrapped up in Ren’s ‘soul blanket’, tightly chained up. A moment later, it started to glow brightly, as if the sun itself rose once again above Thunder Valley, and they could barely make out each other’s silhouettes.

“I won’t forget you!” Leinor shouted. “I promise!”

“Mm… Don’t you dare… or I’ll be very… very angry!” She shouted back, watching him slowly start to disappear. “LeiLei…” She stretched out her arms as they said the same words to each other.

“I love you!”

Just as their voice reached the other, the light disappeared in an instant, without making a noise or any impact. It was as if it was never even there. Ren was still floating up in the sky, trembling, watching the emptiness, before finally closing her eyes. She was letting out a small, suppressed cry, while her body gently descended to the ground and she just knelt there, head raised towards the stars. She watched the night sky as clouds appeared and soon rain started to pour down from nowhere, but her face was smiling, ever so softly.

“Please hurry…” Ren murmured to herself as Kai slowly released Ariana's shoulder, whispering to them.

“Your Master did it. Don't you feel it...? She finally found her way back... and reached the 3rd stage of Harmony.”