Chapter 115 – The First Heaven
The staircase seemed different this time.
Azrael noticed it immediately.
The walls were no longer plain stone.
Golden lines ran along them, forming enormous patterns.
Some resembled constellations.
Others looked like ancient writing.
Seraphina walked beside him, still holding the memory crystal they had obtained on the previous floor.
Caelan followed quietly.
Orin and Lyanna remained behind them.
Nobody joked.
Nobody complained about the Tower.
The revelation from the previous floor had changed something.
The Tower had existed before the current realms.
The records of history had been rewritten.
And their mother had once stood within the Tower.
The twins needed answers.
But neither wanted to rush toward them blindly.
Eventually, the staircase ended.
Azrael stepped forward.
And stopped.
Seraphina nearly walked into him.
"What is it?"
Azrael didn’t answer.
She looked past him.
Her expression changed.
"...Heaven."
The entire floor looked like Heaven.
White clouds stretched endlessly beneath their feet.
Golden palaces floated in the distance.
Massive bridges connected islands of light.
Countless waterfalls descended from the sky and disappeared into clouds below.
Beautiful trees grew beside enormous crystal lakes.
And above everything...
stood a colossal golden city.
Seraphina stared.
"It’s beautiful."
Azrael’s expression remained serious.
"Yes."
Then he noticed something.
"There are no people."
She looked again.
He was right.
The city was enormous.
Yet there wasn’t a single person anywhere.
No angels.
No gods.
No spirits.
Nothing.
Only silence.
The Tower System appeared.
[Tower System]
Floor: 34
Trial Type: Historical Exploration
Objective: Explore the First Heaven
Restriction: Do not alter the environment.
Special Condition: Historical records may be observed.
Seraphina slowly turned toward Azrael.
"The First Heaven."
Azrael nodded.
"So the figure wasn’t lying."
Lyanna stepped forward.
"Then this isn’t the Heaven we know."
"No."
Azrael looked toward the golden city.
"This came before it."
They began walking.
The clouds beneath their feet felt solid.
Yet every step created tiny ripples of golden light.
Seraphina stopped beside one.
"Look."
Inside the ripple was an image.
A group of angels walking through the city.
Another ripple showed children playing.
Another showed warriors training.
Another showed a massive gathering beneath a golden throne.
Seraphina crouched.
"These are memories."
Azrael nodded.
"The floor is preserving them."
They continued.
The farther they walked, the clearer the memories became.
The First Heaven wasn’t simply a realm of angels.
It was enormous.
There were academies.
Libraries.
Gardens.
Training grounds.
Markets.
Cities.
Even ordinary homes.
Seraphina smiled faintly.
"They lived normal lives."
Azrael looked at the memory of an angel father carrying his sleeping child.
"Even Heaven had ordinary people."
"Not everything was about power."
Seraphina looked at him.
"You sound surprised."
"I am."
They eventually reached the golden city.
At its entrance stood an enormous statue.
Azrael stopped.
The statue depicted two figures.
One was surrounded by golden light.
The other by black darkness.
Genesis.
Oblivion.
But unlike the previous records...
They weren’t standing apart.
Their backs were touching.
Their hands were extended in opposite directions.
One created.
One ended.
And together...
They formed a circle.
Seraphina stared at the statue.
"They were honored."
Azrael walked closer.
"There was no conflict between them here."
Lyanna examined the pedestal.
"There is writing."
Seraphina brushed her fingers over it.
The symbols immediately translated themselves.
She read aloud.
"To the two who guard the beginning and the end."
She paused.
Then continued.
"Through them, existence continues."
Azrael looked at the statue.
"Beginning and end."
Seraphina nodded.
"Genesis and Oblivion."
A loud sound suddenly echoed through the city.
BOOM.
Everyone turned.
A massive golden gate opened in the distance.
Light poured through it.
A procession emerged.
Hundreds of angels.
Thousands.
Then tens of thousands.
They marched toward the central palace.
Seraphina looked confused.
"Another memory?"
Azrael nodded.
"But this one is different."
"Why?"
"Because we’re inside it."
The Tower System appeared.
[Historical Event Detected.]
[Event: The First Heaven Assembly]
[Date: Unknown]
[Importance: Extremely High]
The procession continued.
At the center were two beings.
One was surrounded by golden light.
The other carried a black aura.
Seraphina stared.
"Those are them."
Azrael nodded.
The original bearers of Genesis and Oblivion.
But there was something else.
Behind them walked a third figure.
A young woman.
White robes.
Golden constellations.
Eighteen radiant wings.
The twins froze.
Seraphina’s eyes widened.
"Mother."
Azrael said nothing.
They watched.
Their mother walked beside the two ancient beings.
She looked younger than the woman they had seen in the previous memory.
But her presence was unmistakable.
The procession entered the palace.
The doors closed.
The memory continued.
Inside the palace was a massive circular chamber.
At its center stood a crystal table.
Around it sat numerous beings.
Angels.
Dragons.
Humans.
Shadow beings.
Sword cultivators.
Representatives from countless races.
Seraphina whispered:
"All the realms..."
Azrael shook his head.
"Not all."
He looked carefully.
"There are no representatives from Hell."
Seraphina frowned.
"Why?"
The memory answered.
One of the angels stood.
"The proposal has been rejected."
Another figure responded.
"You cannot continue hiding them."
"They must be told."
A third voice interrupted.
"If they learn the truth, everything will collapse."
Azrael’s eyes narrowed.
"What truth?"
The voices became louder.
Then their mother stood.
The entire chamber fell silent.
She spoke.
"We cannot continue pretending that the separation was natural."
Seraphina’s heart stopped.
Azrael stepped forward.
"What separation?"
The memory flickered.
Their mother’s voice continued.
"Genesis and Oblivion were not divided by nature."
"They were divided by us."
Silence.
Seraphina covered her mouth.
Azrael’s fists tightened.
The memory began shaking violently.
[Warning.]
[Historical interference detected.]
The Tower System appeared.
[Record Stability: 64%]
[Unauthorized suppression detected.]
[Attempting preservation.]
Their mother’s image flickered.
She turned.
For one brief instant...
It looked like she was staring directly at the twins.
Seraphina froze.
"Did she..."
Azrael stared.
"Yes."
"She saw us?"
"I don’t know."
Their mother spoke again.
"If the twins are ever born..."
The memory shattered.
Everything went dark.
Seraphina opened her eyes.
She was standing inside the empty golden city again.
Azrael was beside her.
The others were there too.
Nobody spoke.
Then the Tower System appeared.
[Historical Event Incomplete.]
[Critical Information Preserved.]
Recovered Truth:
Genesis and Oblivion were deliberately separated.
The reason remains sealed.
Seraphina stared at the words.
"Deliberately..."
Azrael nodded.
"So someone made that decision."
"And our mother knew."
"Yes."
Seraphina looked toward the palace.
"Then she wasn’t responsible for everything."
Azrael looked at her.
"What makes you say that?"
"She said, ’we.’"
Seraphina’s expression became thoughtful.
"She wasn’t talking about herself."
Azrael understood.
"There were others."
"Exactly."
The twins exchanged a look.
For the first time, their mother’s past seemed connected to something much larger.
Not simply their birth.
Not simply Genesis and Oblivion.
But an entire ancient conflict.
A final notification appeared.
[Floor 34 Complete.]
[Historical Exploration Successful.]
[New Memory Archive Record Added.]
Record Title: The First Heaven Assembly
[Additional Information remains locked.]
The golden city began fading.
The clouds disappeared.
The ancient palace dissolved into light.
Only the staircase remained.
Seraphina looked at Azrael.
"We’re getting closer."
Azrael looked toward the disappearing palace.
"Yes."
Then he looked at the memory crystal in her hand.
"But I don’t think the Tower is showing us these memories by accident."
Seraphina nodded.
"Neither do I."
They began walking.
Behind them, the First Heaven disappeared completely.
But one sentence remained in both their minds.
Genesis and Oblivion were deliberately separated.
And somewhere ahead...
was the reason why.