Nostalgic Gamer in a Cultivation World

The dream that Dyne had continued to play out. The powers of each Element and how they wrestled with Calamitus were shown.

The struggle was painful for everyone as they were corrupting their souls with great darkness. Calamitus Slime was also screeching in pain. With Light entering his soul, it was like a painful purge occurring.

The Weaver continued to oversee the process correcting each Element should they stray off course in the process.

“Phoenix? What has that to do with anything?”

“The scene I am showing you is what turned the wicked Slime Calamity into one of Eternity’s strongest protectors. The truth is, among all Elements, Calamitus Slime is the strongest. That’s why I call him His Majesty had he not found… desire in that god-forsaken invention your perverted kind created.”

“I- I don’t enjoy Slime Hentai. I- I just saw it! Honest! Check my memories!”

“Whatever. What I am trying to say is that your act of creating a Digi-Egg gave me a greater understanding of how I can grow stronger. I never thought about this and didn't believe I could live through this tribulation. But now, I'm all the more confident of this, and I am already making plans for my future!"

"So now you trust me so much that you are already sure you will return? I guess I should be flattered."

"I would have praised you if not for that very childish and weird dream. But what you managed to show me was not just hope. I now understand their growth which they imparted to teach me. I never really understood it then, even after how Calamitus grew powerful and became a reliable Element. I was next in line to be the leader of the Halls of Light. I would probably be its leader in the coming millennia. But this process forever took away my shot at becoming one. The Light desired purity because as they harnessed it, they gained strength. The Darkness desired to remain tainted and be more tainted, as is their growth path. So my Master tried to teach us to be moderate. To pursue purity for its goodness, but to have balance and enjoy life as we should.”

“What about Minerva? She seemed like a happy soul who learned balance.”

“No. Minerva is carefree, happy, and ever-changing. But Wind cultivators are not welcomed among the Light. Should a wind cultivator ally closely to the Halls of Light, they would be chained, and their freedom lost to them. Among us Elements, Minerva is the one who suffers the most.”

“But why?”

“The problem with Eternity, which I now understand thanks to you, is this... The leaders that claim to be free from their Temperaments all pursue the Inverse of their Elements. Light has become Cruelty and has rejected many groups of people, all in the name of love and balance. But, of course, it is within reason. Everyone is tipping the scale and trying to increase Death Energy to challenge Basileus Basileon. And I know now that if I were to save Eternity, I’d have to be more than Light. After all, you are the corruption of Brimstone, but it is in you that Eternity might be saved.”

“I still don’t understand why you are showing me this now.”

“As I said, you are Brimstone. The element of the Phoenix. Your miracles in creating the Seru and the Digi-Egg forced me to consider something. There is another way for me to survive this calamity. It was an option that I never considered before.”

“Wait. You plan to assimilate with the poison!?” Dyne finally understood.

“Yes. The poison in my soul is also a soul in itself. And it’s very dark. That is why it’s impossible to draw out as it is clinging to my soul. So I showed you the vision to propose another possibility. I will assimilate with this poison. We will allow it to corrupt me. This will mean more tasks for you.”

“So you want me to grow stronger as a Brimstone Cultivator… That’s the gist of this dream. With my current mana pool, doing the things you and the Elements did to Calamitus is simply impossible.”

“Yes. You already have the basics. And I want you to focus on improving your Mind Cultivation. It’s now possible with the book devouring power you received from Calamitus. Because you won’t just be cleansing me with Brimstone, you will help me rebuild my soul in it! I want to be purged and slain but reformed in the ashes like a Phoenix.”

“Wow. You really have faith in me, huh? To think, at first, you decided to die, and then you had hope to be cured, and now, you are using me to redo your cultivation and become stronger!”

“I am your console. Why not upgrade me?” Strafe laughed.

“Alright. This sounds fun. But about this dream, you showed me… It had a lot of discussion about changing the soul. So you want me to use my powers of Brimstone to recreate your soul, right?

”Yes. Instead of purging the darkness, I want to become neutral. I want to be free from the light. While I can make logical choices that subvert my temperament, it still holds sway over me. I take inspiration in the orders of Basileus Basileon, which says that I should be ‘a new creation’. So, with you surely finding the right herbs and materials to heal me, I think it's best to use whatever power I have to help me begin my rebirth. I will take the poison and allow it to infest my soul to purge out the Light in me.”

“Honestly, this sounds too crazy even for me.”

“It is!” Strafe laughed.

“But your Brimstone can hold it back for a time. This will also force you to act in haste and gather the necessary things that can purge my soul.”

“But this rebirth thing sounds like you will have to lose your current power and begin cultivating again from the start.”

“Yes. I want to do that. With a freak like you by my side, I can easily grow stronger at a rapid anyway. My memories will also slowly return. It sounds impossible, but I believe the Basileus Basileon will aid us in our growth. Maybe by the time you meet the real body of Calamitus, I’d already be a god again.” Strafe laughed.

“You plan to balance the light and dark with Brimstone. You really have changed! Strict, Cheapskate Strafe is becoming a gambler!”

“Your miracles changed me. My Master was right. The Cultivation world needs a bit of Brimstone. And we, the Four Elements, need it too! We have to start now since I am certain you will be doing similar things to the rest of the Elements. Although Calamitus said that Minerva and Gaiadeen are dead, I don’t believe it. I never showed sadness because I knew they were still alive by some miracle and plan by Basileous Basileon. And so, as early as now, I decided to go through this process to learn together.” Strafe explained.

“Hmmm… Sounds like a lot of work…” Dyne thought.

“I knew you would be too lazy to do this. But too bad. You won’t get to experience the full power of ‘that’ game.”

“...That game?”

“Breath of Fire IV. If I were to be reborn, we could follow that game as it really is. After all, there are only Saint-level cultivators masquerading as Gods. They are roughly at the same strength as the gods of Legaia…”

“...So if I do this… I’ll be fighting a real god?”

“Yes. The cultivators in Legaia have, at most, only succeeded in performing their Severing. They are the weakest of Saints. Saints are divided into three stages. Saint Advent, the Saint Enlightened, and the Saint Surpassing. I saved the Surpassing for Breath of Fire. But imagine, not just having that. I am a powerful God. If I disperse my powers and allow myself to be reborn as a half god just like Fo-Lou, all the other Saint Surpassing can receive a fraction of my power and become the first stage of God cultivators. They could be Divine Beings or Daemon Beings. Now that would have been the real Breath of Fire IV.”

“So… you plan to fight me? You’ll be the last boss in Breath of Fire IV?”

“Yes. But it’s much more complicated than that. I plan to erase my memory. If I want to become neutral, all my memories must be sealed until you defeat me. It’s a fitting end. The game will be drastically harder, of course. You will need everything you gained in the two worlds to save the world of Breath of Fire. Also, the side quests can become even harder. I will unlock all the demons locked inside the Imaginarium Bond to live in that world.”

“Alright! Alright! I’ll do it…” Dyne sighed.

“Very good! For now, you have to keep meditating here. I want to see how well you understand wielding magic. So this dream will definitely help you.”

“Ugh… Even in my dreams, I have to cultivate…”

The dream continued with the scene, and no longer did the fantasies of Dyne appear once more.

A scared and wounded figure emerged out of a deep cave back in the dream world.

“That power… Was that a Wild Arm?” A red-haired man frowned. As if led by Fate, this red-haired man was partnered with a powerful purple being once more.

Songi was wielding a Wild Arm that was like a shoulder cannon. His entire body was coated in a shiny layer of purple armor.

“That couldn’t be a Wild Arm! But stay away from that place! It attracted Zeto’s attention!” The strange Wild Arm called out.

Songi closed his eyes to sense the remnant power. The power of Time and Space fluctuated as Songi tried to revert the passing of time to sense the power that appeared. It was a power that exceeded his control over Jedo.

“That power. It must be him! He’s back! Vile, we have to act faster! Dyne Valiant is back!”