The staircase twisted and spiraled endlessly upward. I stepped quickly along the steps, and with each stride, more stairs appeared beneath my feet. I kept climbing higher and higher; the forest below was now far out of reach.
All around me, a force pressed down, keeping me from floating upward. The Heavenly Soul stood below, waving at me again and again.
I had no idea what awaited me next, but there was a vibrant energy all around, a force so alive it seemed to renew everything old and decayed.
With anxiety gnawing at me, I slowly reached the edge of the sky, where an opening appeared, flooding everything with a blinding light.
The moment I ascended, I was stunned. Before me stood a colossal tree, so tall I couldn't see its top. Its trunk was translucent and glowing, and its countless branches intertwined densely, stretching on and on, beyond sight.
"What is this?"
I had just muttered the words when a low, muffled voice suddenly echoed, as if it sounded directly inside my head.
"You have arrived."
I nodded.
"Are you Origin?"
"Origin and Endbringer, we are two absolute opposites. The reason we exist here is because of you."
I nodded, as if I understood what Origin meant.
"Is it my instinct, Coexistence?"
I asked, and Origin burst into laughter. I clutched my head—the sound of his laughter in my mind was like countless giant bells ringing in my ears.
"Tell me, how can a dead ghost soul be revived?"
I immediately shouted.
"Then tell me, how can you retrieve water once it’s been spilled?"
"So, it’s truly no use crying over spilled milk, isn’t it?"
As I spoke, Origin laughed again, his attitude deliberately difficult. But I knew—he understood how to restore a ghost soul that had died, yet still retained a trace of breath.
"What are your conditions?"
I immediately asked, but Origin fell silent. After a long pause, he finally spoke.
"The life and death of others has nothing to do with me. I won't tell you—you must find the answer yourself."
"How do I find it?"
At that moment, the ground beneath me began to loosen. A violent force pressed down on me, trying to push me lower. It was Origin—he was rejecting my attempt to continue the conversation.
"Wait, I haven't finished speaking!"
I shouted anxiously, but Origin ignored me and continued to suppress me. My legs bent under the pressure—I was nearly unable to withstand it.
"Why do you exist? Is it to stop Endbringer?"
I shouted again. This time, the oppressive force stopped.
"I exist for you—to exist here for someone named Ethan Zhang."
With a thunderous crash, I fell downward. Everything above was instantly swallowed by white light as I plummeted toward the vast forest below.