Chapter 97: Ascension to Aeonhood

[First, Nanook became entangled and immobilized by Yaoshi's branches, then Lan severed its head with a bowstring.]

[For an Aeon, decapitation isn't fatal, but it left Nanook temporarily incapacitated.]

[Without ceremony, you plunged your hand into Nanook's chest, forcibly extracting the authorities of Destruction, Death, and Termination from its being.]

[Stripped of its authorities, deprived of Path control, and cut off from Imaginary Energy replenishment, Nanook's headless form gradually withered into lifelessness.]

[Lan, having repaid his debt, departed without a word.]

[Gazing at the seized authorities in your hand, you knew absorbing Nanook's power and fully mastering the Path of Destruction would make you the second Destruction Aeon.]

[But the grand scheme you'd orchestrated aimed far beyond such petty ambitions.]

[From the Swarm Emperor's remains, you extracted numerous authorities, discarding all insect-related aspects while retaining those of Life and Procreation.]

[You combined these with Nanook's authorities.]

[Then you turned to Yaoshi.]

[Clasping your hands in reverence, you bowed.
"Master, I beg your assistance."]

[After a long silence, Yaoshi sighed.
"So be it. If I don't enter hell, who will?"]

[Plunging a hand into its own form, Yaoshi extracted and surrendered the authorities of Life and Growth.]

[With this final act, Yaoshi sat in meditation, chanting the Medicine Master Buddha Sutra, then peacefully entered Nirvana.]

[With solemn gravity, you merged the three Aeons' authorities before absorbing them.]

[Having long mastered the principles of Abundance, Destruction, and Propagation, assimilating their authorities came effortlessly.]

[You began reciting the Sutra of Past and Present Causation. As the verses unfolded, the absorbed authorities coalesced into a new philosophical concept—Samsara, the Eternal Cycle.]

[Destruction begets rebirth; endings seed new beginnings. An endless, self-perpetuating loop.]

[As this new concept crystallized, a nascent Path manifested, elevating you to a new divine throne.]

[Yet this wasn't the end.]

[The Path of Samsara—forcing the cosmos into infinite cycles of destruction and rebirth—wholly negated the Terminal Aeon's raison d'être.]

[The moment you ascended, the enigmatic Terminus King materialized silently and struck.]

[You met its assault without hesitation.]

[Victory would mean assimilating the "Terminus" concept, completing Samsara's infinite loop, and elevating your power to rival IX's Void.]

[Conversely, the Terminus King's triumph would cement the cosmos' inevitable end, augmenting its might exponentially.]

[This was a cosmic gamble where the winner takes all!]

[The Terminus King's attacks defied logic—erasing existence itself, whether living, inert, or energetic.]

[Fortunately, you'd foreseen this, having claimed Nanook's authorities of Destruction, Termination, and Death.]

[Your mastery over these overlapping aspects of "Terminus" gave you an edge, while Life-based authorities remained alien to your foe.]

[Gradually, you corroded the Terminus King's power.]

[Then, eerie laughter echoed through the void.]

[Aha, that conglomerate of circus horrors, materialized nearby.]
["What fun game are you playing? Let me see!!"]

[Your guard snapped higher—while the Paths of Nihility/Terminus naturally clashed with Elation, Aha cared only for amusement. Its allegiance was as unpredictable as its whims.]

[True to form, seeing the Terminus King falter, Aha immediately assisted it against you.]

[Yet when you began losing, Aha switched sides just as capriciously.]

[Like a deranged spoiler, Aha maintained perfect equilibrium, preventing either side from prevailing.]

[Anyone observing would've seen your expression darken like scorched iron.]

[All contingencies accounted for—except this self-sabotaging jester.]

[Only Aha's boredom could end this farce.]

[As deadlock persisted, a meteor streaked across the cosmos, striking Aha mid-chortle.]

[A distant voice whispered:
"Now you owe me."]

[Aha screeched as the blast sent it careening. Seizing this opening, you unleashed your full might against the unbalanced Terminus King.]

[The equilibrium shattered. Before Aha could interfere again, you devoured the Terminus King whole.]

[A monochrome lotus bloomed in the void, encasing your form as terrifying energy rippled across reality.]

[The entire universe pulsed with a primordial heartbeat, as if witnessing the birth of something terrifying.]

[As Aha debated fleeing, the lotus unfurled into a twelve-petaled dais.]

[There you sat, resplendent in black-and-white kasaya, atop the lotus throne. Behind you loomed an enormous serpent biting its own tail—a perfect ouroboros.]

[Upon manifesting, you flicked your sleeve toward Aha.]

[Black death and white life merged into gray samsaric energy, becoming a cyclonic storm.]

[Where Aha's fragments touched the storm, they withered to ash instantly.]

[Shrieking, Aha retreated chaotically:
"No fun! You're absolutely NO FUN!"]

[With that final complaint, it vanished completely.]

[Thus you ascended not just as the Samsara Aeon, but by consuming the Terminus King, achieved perfected form. Your existence ensures the cosmos will never end—only cycle eternally.]

[After extensive deliberation, the Intelligents Guild named you: "The Infinite Ouroboros." Some simply call you: "The World Serpent." You neither acknowledge nor care.]