Chapter 1171: Final Stretch Rowan was startled for a brief moment, and then he smiled and continued his caring motions. With the present state of his consciousness, of all his children, the Lost Flames was the only one he had access to that could slightly delay the onset of Calamity. He could not use his Destroyer because he needed it to collect the Will Chains, and as these were among the only two abilities he could access at this time, the Lost Flames became his only choice. The Lost Flames had never been one for complicated plots or a leading figure in a fight, yet that never stopped the boy from stepping forward when he was needed the most. He was an extremely talented and powerful mage, but he was a boy that had never grown, and unless Rowan gathered the rest of his scattered flames from the leader of the Children of Fire who was the Supreme Magus and the ruler of the Magus Supreme World, the Lost Flames would remain a child forever. Rowan did not much care if Lost did not grow up, he had never truly needed this power the Flame controlled, and the boy was happy with his reality, if not for the presence of Eva who tried as much as possible to always instruct the Lost Flames in tactics and combat, Rowan would simply let the child roam the immensity of his dimension forever, getting into little fights and being a headache to anyone he came across. He saw a little of himself inside Lost, which represented the innocence he had lost. Rowan had never thought he would be calling on the flame again to save his life after the last battle in the universe where he had nearly lost the flames, and he was grateful to Eva who took the time to make sure Lost had the basics in combat and tactics. Allowing the flames to cry away the stress that had gripped him for the last few days, Rowan looked at the golden giants whose hands were raised to cover his face, unable to stand the presence of Rowan. The moment Rowan turned to him, he flinched, fell to his knees, and began to cough blood, but more quickly than Rowan had expected, the giant was acclimating to his presence, no longer coughing blood and slowly standing straight. Rowan chuckled, "You know, you are not supposed to be able to do that." "Do what?" the golden giant groaned in pain, "Barely stand in front of you when I am supposed to be able to duel you in the future?" Rowan cocked his head to the side, "Well that...and also the fact that you could receive the Blood Core above. I never intended that Core to be used without my direct supervision, because I believed no mortal being would be able to suppress the pride of the Ouroboros. I don't know why I should be surprised, you have done this same thing before." The golden giant wanted to say something but he paused and he remained silent before he looked around and said, "So, what's happening now? We are no longer hidden from the heavens above. I have seen it, the endless continents that roam above the threshold and the monsters they contain." Rowan looked at the sky, "The end is coming, and battle lines are being drawn. With me awake, this city is protected, and it may not appear like it, but no one else can see it unless they come extremely close to it. I control Ascendant energy you see, and with that power, I can shade the entirety of my city to merge with the direction of this World's Will. You are all safe for the moment." The golden giant sighed in relief, and then he struggled to face Rowan directly before saying, "You are leaving." Rowan nodded, "At this moment, the greatest danger to you and everyone here is me. I am awakening my powers, and when I do, I won't be able to hold back my presence. If you all are around me, death would be your most favorable outcome." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺 The golden giant sighed, "Even with this power I have now, it is not enough." Rowan smiled, "Your time is soon to come. You are still extremely young and eternity is in front of us. Take this moment and appreciate it for what it is and the lessons it can teach you. In the future, there will be extremely few times like this when weakness is a good thing." "I will put it in mind, Creator." "Call me Rowan, I prefer it. I will tell you my real name, but..." "I know," the golden giant smiled, "death would be the most favorable outcome if I hear it." Rowan rolled his eyes and vanished, and for a long time, the golden giant could not even stare directly at the spot he vacated. Gritting his teeth, he sat down cross-legged and began to meditate on the position. R Rowan had left his ascended body behind in the city and was roaming Doom Star with his soul alone. Free from the influence of the Will Chains and his solitary position, Rowan's senses could finally fly free and he could see the realm in a manner that he could not before. The first thing he checked upon was the Shiik, she was to be the tip of the spear in this battle, and he almost smiled when he saw the name she had given the continent she now ruled- Trion. Accompanied by Nyla, the Shiik had made great progress, converting a greater number of Temple maidens every day, and soon a greater portion of the Temple Maidens would be under her control. Although he had expected it, he was still surprised when it turned out that she had already reached the fifth-dimensional level, and with every moment that passed she was knocking on the sixth. Knowing that acquiring Will was relatively easier on Doom Star was one thing, actually seeing it in action was another. It has been six years only, approaching the seventh and the Shiik had already taken two major steps into the higher dimension in such a short time. However, despite how quickly she was progressing, Rowan wanted her to go much faster, he would need her to be extremely powerful before he could summon the last part of his consciousness. Unlike the previous three times he had summoned the portions of himself, the fourth time would be different, because he would be awakening his entire dimension from dormancy placed upon him by his death. When Rowan entered this realm, his entire dimension was shrunken into a stone egg, and much of his glory was hidden, but his reawakening would be different. He had hypothesized that one of the reasons Doom Star was able to affect him as much as it did was because the moment he entered this realm, he had begun the Tribulation for his Supreme Circle, and if he could regain the last part of his consciousness, that would mean his Tribulation was over. What did that mean? It meant Rowan would have completed his Nine Supreme Circle, learning a technique destined for the next Primordial for the Supreme Era, he had essentially become the face of this Great Era. It meant that Rowan could begin walking the higher dimensions, freeing himself from the mortal circle that had plagued him for so long. It meant that his entire dimension would be unleashed inside Doom Star, all of his powers laid bare for all of reality to see, and as the Primordial Record had once told Rowan, it would no longer be able to shield him from the eyes of the higher powers.