Three Thousand Warriors

Very thin.

He was so thin he was skin and bones, as if all his life force had been drained away.

He was wearing a large hospital gown, sitting in a wheelchair, his face as pale as paper, his eyes sunken, and his lips cracked.

Only those eyes remained bright.

"You..." Uchiha Kei, "How could you..."

"He's dying," Jiang Hao finished for him, then smiled.

"The Ancestor Fragment resided within me, enduring 379 failures over a thousand years."

"Now, it's almost gone."

"I'm dying soon too."

Uchiha Kei remained silent.

"How much time is left?" he asked.

Jiang Hao raised his hand and looked at his fingers.

My fingers have started to become transparent.

"About... a month?"

"It could be even shorter."

"A-Yi said that the day the Ancestor Fragment completely dissipate will be the day He descends."

"He is waiting for me to die."

"When I die, the Ancestor Fragment will completely disappear."

"Then, He can descend directly and devour this world."

Uchiha Kei clenched his fist.

One month.

Only one month left.

"Those three thousand warriors..." he asked.

"It requires the resonance of the Ancestor Fragment to awaken," Jiang Hao said. "You currently have two fragments, one of mine and one of the Style."

"But we're still missing one."

"One short?"

"The False Ancestor Fragment can only last for three seconds," Jiang Hao said. "Within three seconds, you must awaken all three thousand warriors."

"Otherwise, they will remain asleep forever."

Uchiha Kei remained silent.

Three seconds.

Awaken three thousand warriors who had been asleep for over a thousand years.

Is this possible?

"Maybe," Jiang Hao said, "As long as you're fast enough."

"One strike, and all seals are shattered."

"One strike awakens all warriors."

"One cut..."

He paused, looking at Uchiha Kei.

Just one cut.

Uchiha Kei gripped his Black Blade tightly.

One cut.

Just one cut.

"I'll give it a try."

Jiang Hao smiled.

"It's not about trying."

"Success is absolutely essential."

He reached out and pressed his hand to his chest.

There, a faint light flickered.

"Bring it on."

"Take it away."

Uchiha Kei looked at him without moving.

"Why aren't you moving?" Jiang Hao asked.

"You..." Uchiha Kei said, "Will you die?"

Jiang Hao was silent for a moment, then smiled.

"Meeting."

"But it's okay."

"I have waited for this day for over a thousand years."

"Three hundred and seventy-nine failures, and every single one of them, I bore the burden alone."

"This time, finally someone has taken my place."

He looked at Uchiha Kei, his eyes filled with relief.

"Do you know what I feared most during those 379 failures?"

"What I fear most is not death itself, but that after I die, no one will know."

"Nobody knows I was here, nobody knows what I did, nobody knows why I failed."

"But things are different now."

You know.

He looked at Uchiha Kei, word by word.

"Tell A-Yi for me."

"I, Jiang Hao, have never regretted it."

Not even once.

As soon as he finished speaking, he plunged his hand into his own chest.

A burst of light erupted.

A crystalline fragment was forcibly extracted from his body.

Ancestor Fragment.

The true Ancestor Fragment.

Jiang Hao's body began to dissipate.

Starting from the feet, they gradually transformed into specks of light, drifting and scattering in the air.

"Go," he said, "Go and awaken them."

"Go and defeat Him."

"Go... live."

As the last two words were uttered, his body completely dissipated.

Only one fragment remained, floating in mid-air.

Uchiha Kei reached out and grasped the fragment.

The three fragments came together in his palm.

Buzz--

A terrifying power surged into his body.

That is the power of the ancestors.

That is the source of creation and Destruction.

That is...

The power of God.

Uchiha Kei closed his eyes, feeling the power flowing through his body.

Then, he opened his eyes.

In my eyes, I see the birth and death of the universe.

He gripped the Black Blade tightly.

He slashed out with a single stroke.

This strike was not aimed at the enemy, nor at space, nor at time.

Rather, it was those three thousand warriors who had been asleep for over a thousand years.

Wherever the blade's light passed, three thousand seals shattered simultaneously.

Three thousand sleeping figures opened their eyes at the same time.

Three thousand warriors awoke simultaneously.

They looked at Uchiha Kei, their eyes filled with complex emotions.

Gratitude, awe, curiosity, anticipation...

Then, they both knelt down on one knee.

"Greetings to... the new Lord."

Uchiha Kei sheathed his Black Blade and looked at them.

Three thousand warriors who surpassed true immortals.

Three thousand souls that had been sleeping for over a thousand years.

The hope left behind by three thousand Jiang Hao.

"Get up," he said.

Three thousand warriors rose.

Uchiha Kei turned around and looked towards the door.

Outside the door, the nine apostles were still waiting.

Outside the door, there were even more apostles.

Outside the door, there is also...

He.

"Come with me," he said.

"Go kill the god."

When the three thousand warriors stood up, the entire Heavenly Gate City trembled.

It's not fear, it's resonance.

Their power is too great.

Three thousand beings who surpassed true immortals, each of whom was once a top combatant in the Age of Myriad Gods. They had been asleep for over a thousand years, and the power they had accumulated was released at this moment, forming a pillar of light that shot straight into the gray sky.

Where the beam of light passed, the clouds tore apart, revealing the long-lost azure blue.

But the blue color only lasted for a second.

The next second, a familiar eye appeared in the crack.

Red and black stripes, cold and indifferent.