Chapter 78: Cosmic Pillar

Cassian stared directly into the golden gaze of the Eternal Serpent after asking his question.

​The reason he had asked it was simple: he hated the feeling.

​Ever since entering this metaphysical space, he had encountered beings and primordial forces that made him feel utterly vulnerable. Insignificant. Weak.

​He loathed those feelings with every fiber of his being.

​A weak person could be controlled, a vulnerable person could be threatened, and an insignificant person could be discarded without a second thought.

Cassian refused to ever be any of those things again.

​After all, if he felt weak... if he felt insignificant... if he felt vulnerable...

​Then how was he supposed to protect those who stood beneath his banner? How was he supposed to protect his territory, his summons, his loyal subjects, and his family?

​Strength was not merely a selfish desire; it was a non-negotiable necessity, an absolute responsibility.

​That was why he needed to know. He needed a scale, a summit, and a true peak to surpass.

​In his previous life, the Sovereign Lord who had annihilated the Astral Dominion had seemed unfathomably powerful, an existence far beyond mortal reason.

Yet, after witnessing the Eternal Serpent, Cassian realized that the Sovereign Lord was merely a speck of dust in the grand cosmic scheme of things.

​There would always be stronger beings, higher realms, and greater heights.

​And if he wished to obtain true, absolute strength, then there was no better benchmark than the most powerful existence he had ever personally encountered: the Eternal Serpent.

​The ancient being stared down at him for a long, heavy moment.

​Then, a faint, intriguing smile appeared within its colossal golden eyes.

​"Your ambition is commendable, Cassian Voss."

​Cassian nodded slightly, secretly relieved the bold question hadn’t offended the entity.

The last thing he wanted was to spend his divine reward session being erased from existence because he accidentally bruised an ancient cosmic ego.

​The Eternal Serpent’s smile widened slightly, as if it had easily plucked that exact thought from his mind.

​Knowing it almost certainly had, Cassian wisely chose to remain dead silent.

​The serpent’s vast voice echoed across the sea of stars:

​"To surpass me..."

​Its golden eyes seemed to pierce through the fabric of eternity itself.

​"First, you must become a Cosmic Pillar."

​Cassian’s focus sharpened instantly as every trace of humor vanished from his face.

The Eternal Serpent continued, its voice echoing across the boundless sea of stars:

​"There are nine realms of a Lord."

​"Novice Lord."

​"Established Lord."

​"Noble Lord."

​"Grand Lord."

​"High Lord."

​"Archlord."

​"Sovereign Lord."

​"Divine Lord."

​"And Eternal Sovereign."

​Cassian listened attentively, committing every single designation to memory.

​The Eternal Serpent’s golden eyes narrowed slightly. "These nine realms are further divided into three major stages: Mortal, Ascendant, and Transcendent."

​"The Mortal Stage encompasses Novice Lord, Established Lord, and Noble Lord. At this stage, power remains quantifiable. Regardless of how vast the difference between two Lords may seem, it can still be measured, calculated, and logically understood. A stronger Lord remains stronger, and a weaker Lord remains weaker."

​"The Ascendant Stage encompasses Grand Lord, High Lord, and Archlord. At this stage, one has already surpassed ordinary mortality. Their power remains quantifiable, but only in theory, the numbers still exist, yet they have become so immense that calculating them serves little purpose. The difference between an Ascendant and a Mortal is akin to comparing a journey measured in inches to one measured across light-years."

​Cassian silently absorbed the information, his mind mapping out the vast hierarchy of the multiverse.

​The Eternal Serpent’s gaze deepened. "The final stage is the Transcendent Stage. It encompasses Sovereign Lord, Divine Lord, and Eternal Sovereign."

​The surrounding cosmos seemed to tremble at the mere mention of those titles.

​"At this stage, power can no longer be quantified, not because it is too great, but because it has fundamentally surpassed the framework by which power is measured. A Transcendent existence is no longer merely a being that possesses power; they become a phenomenon unto themselves."

​The serpent’s golden eyes burned brighter. "Their existence distorts reality, their thoughts shape destiny, their will becomes absolute law, and their deaths can alter the course of entire cosmic ages."

​Even Cassian felt a cold chill run down his spine hearing those words.

​The Eternal Serpent then added softly, "A Cosmic Pillar exists far beyond even the Transcendent Stage."

​Cassian’s sky-blue eyes narrowed into sharp slits.

​The serpent’s massive body shifted gracefully around the distant sun. "Cosmic Pillars are the true foundations upon which the Lord’s Domain rests. They uphold the Twelve Eternal Concepts, without them, the Lord’s Domain would collapse into absolute, irrecoverable chaos. Because of this, there are only twelve Cosmic Pillars in existence."

​The Eternal Serpent’s golden eyes glowed with divine light.

​"I am one of them: the [Cosmic Pillar of Order]."

​Cassian stood stunned.

​Yet, as he processed the revelation, it made absolute sense, the being before him was a fragment of the Eternal Will itself. If such an existence was not a Cosmic Pillar, then what could be?

​What truly baffled him was the terrifying implication behind that statement: there were eleven others.

​Eleven entities capable of standing on the exact same cosmic tier as the Eternal Serpent. The mere thought was enough to make his scalp tingle.

​The Eternal Serpent seemed to read his thoughts effortlessly. "Surpassing me will not be simple."

​A faint, ancient amusement entered its vast voice. "In truth, it borders upon absolute impossibility. A Cosmic Pillar is not a realm one simply cultivates toward; it is an existence one is born as. The Twelve Concepts manifested themselves as the Twelve Pillars, existing since the very dawn of the Lord’s Domain. They were not created, they simply are."

​Cassian fell completely silent, his mind churning in the stillness of the void.

​If Cosmic Pillars were born rather than cultivated... if they were literal manifestations of fundamental concepts...

​Then did that mean there was no path forward? No way to surpass them? No way to ever reach that ultimate peak?

....

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