The mountain pierced the heavens.
Its peak was hidden beyond sight, buried deep within storm clouds and eternal snow. This was not a place meant for mortals. The natural energy here was so dense that even thousand-year-old monsters would be torn apart simply by standing still.
Yet a lone figure climbed.
Step by step, the old man forced his broken body upward, braving freezing winds that sliced into his flesh like blades. His back was hunched, his clothes torn and filthy, and his skin resembled cracked stone shaped by endless hardship.
But his eyes burned.
They burned with obsession.
They burned with a dream that had followed him for his entire life.
When he finally reached the summit, the old man collapsed to his knees.
Without hesitation, he began to kowtow.
Again.
And again.
And again.
His forehead slammed against the frozen ground until blood soaked into the snow. Still, he did not stop.
His voice trembled as he cried out to the heavens.
"Oh great God of Strength and Righteousness… I, your faithful servant, beg for power."
Tears streamed down his face as desperation swallowed him whole.
"This has been my lifelong dream. Please, grant this foolish servant's wish.
I wish to become the strongest person in the world.
Let my life as a mere human end today."
His voice rose into a scream.
"I have crossed thirteen realms!
I have endured countless trials!
I have even battled a hundred-thousand-year-old behemoth and nearly died!"
His body trembled violently.
"I need this power! I want it!
It is my life… my obsession… IT IS ME!"
As his forehead struck the ground once more
Space tore.
At first, it was nothing more than a faint ripple. Then the tear widened, spreading across the sky like shattered glass. Blinding light poured forth, engulfing the mountain peak entirely.
The world turned white.
From within the rift emerged a being beyond comprehension.
It was neither human nor beast, yet contained all life within it. Black and white intertwined across its form, radiating a beauty so overwhelming it seemed capable of humiliating the heavens themselves.
The old man's heart froze.
He dared not raise his head.
Even with his eyes tightly shut, his life force was being drained bit by bit.
Then the being spoke.
Its voice was beautiful, yet terrifying.
"Human… I have witnessed your suffering and heard your pleas."
The air trembled.
"But your heart is consumed by obsession."
Silence followed.
Then ***
"Still, I shall grant you power."
The god raised a single finger.
In an instant, the old man was pulled into the sky, engulfed by rainbow-colored radiance. His body was torn apart, reforged, and tempered endlessly. Pain and rebirth repeated again and again.
Golden light erupted from his form.
Weeks passed.
When the light finally faded, a young man descended from the heavens.
His body was flawless, his muscles firm as divine steel. His face was refined and serene, beautiful like the ocean beneath a setting sun.
He touched his face in disbelief.
Then he laughed.
"Finally… I've done it."
Madness flickered in his eyes.
"I have obtained everything I ever wanted."
He attempted to summon his power.
His body glowed faintly.
Then****
Nothing happened.
Shock filled his expression.
Without lifting his head, he whispered:
"H-how… how is this possible?
I was granted infinite power…"
Laughter echoed from the heavens.
"You fool."
The god's voice turned cold.
"Did you truly believe you could deceive me?"
"I did grant you infinite power."
"But you are nothing more than a vessel."
The young man froze.
"You possess all power yet you can use none of it."
"You may only bestow it upon others. Even then… there are limits."
"Now begone."
With a flick of its wrist, space twisted.
The young man vanished.
Moments later, he crashed into the scorching sands of an unknown desert.
His scream echoed into the endless horizon.
"AAAAARRRGGHHHH!"
"He did not Yet know that his life would soon interact with a legend"