Eternal Cultivation Of Alchemy

“When Two becomes One, All shall become One as well.”

As Alex spoke the final prophecy, he kept a close eye on the two, watching them for their reactions.

At first, both of them appeared confused. But as they realized what Alex was telling them, their expressions changed. Bladedance was faster than the Wine God, already reaching for the papers. She rifled through them, landing on the one she was looking for.

“What the hell?” she spoke out loud. “Are you sure that is the exact way it is phrased?”

“I am confident, master,” Alex said. “I will never forget those prophecies, not a single word of them, for they speak of my inevitable death.”

Bladedance’s eyes narrowed.

The Wine God took the opportunity to speak up. “Is this the Fake and True ones we read about earlier? Perhaps you are involved in the final prophecy too.”

Alex nodded slowly. “That’s why I decided to reveal what I know. The prophecies are similar enough that I can’t help but believe that they might be related to me.”

The old man crossed his arms, his eyes furrowing. “But then… what does it mean?” he asked. “What is None in this context? What is One?”

Bladedance leaned back in her chair. “I think the bigger question here might be how two things become one. I can think of only two ways for such an outcome. A merging, or the end of one.”

“Two come together to become a single thing,” Alex said with a thoughtful look. “That is possible.”

That was what he believed to be the truth as well. With him and the Sun God becoming a singular power, it could make two things into one.

And the result of it would be…

’The reformation of the old planet,’ Alex thought, his eyes widening slightly. ’All the various realms… become one. One planet.’

Was that the truth of this prophecy of his? Was he supposed to merge with the Sun God?

He bit his nail as the possibility suddenly grew a whole lot.

“A duel to the death could indeed be a possible scenario,” the Wine God said. “I’m imagining a future where two individuals come together for a battle. And the victor determines how the prophecy goes.”

“If one wins, it leads to all becoming one. If the other wins, it leads to all becoming none,” the Wine God said. “So it might all depend on how that duel goes.”

Bladedance raised an eyebrow. “So the fate of the entire world rests on those two souls? If the victory of one leads to a positive result, that could only be our survival. And if he is defeated, it leads to a negative result, and that can only be our demise.”

Both of the gods slowly turned toward Alex at the same time, their eyes carrying a hint of enlightenment that Alex belatedly noticed.

“What?” he asked, the entire thing taking him a moment to understand, as he had been lost in his own thoughts. When he did finally figure out what they were saying, Bladedance spoke up.

“They called you the Savior. Yet they also called you the Destroyer. Your existence will lead the world to doom, and yet your survival is critical if we are to live. This can all work if we look at your future from this perspective. You will fight in a duel—the Battle for the End—and the outcome of that duel will determine the future of us all.”

Bladedance’s tone made it sound as if she didn’t question a single thing she said. It was all incredibly obvious to her now, so all she really had to do was wait for the outcome to arrive.

“Savior and Destroyer,” the Wine God said, seemingly accepting that explanation as the sole possibility as well. It did fit everything they had learned, after all. “The ’Two becomes One’ thing isn’t about procreation, is it? I don’t suppose it would say two ’becomes’ one; instead, two ’makes’ one,” he added.

Bladedance shook her head. “That can’t be it. It has to be what we’ve already discussed.”

The two were determined that they had found the truth and began discussing what this meant in that case. If Alex was one of the people to fight in the duel, who could the other one be?

Alex thought of something that the other two hadn’t. He wanted to speak up about his discovery, but on second thought, he didn’t.

’They believe my victory determines a positive outcome for them, but what if that’s wrong?’ he thought. ’What if a situation comes up where only I or someone else can survive, and me winning leads to the actual end? What if my defeat is the requirement that will lead the world to a favorable outcome?’

The prophecy of his death sounded in his head again, as clearly as it had the first day.

You hold the Key to a fallen power. You shall help restore that power, and that shall be your death.

’It has to be the Sun God.’

Alex could only sigh. If he were to make the two aware of the other possible scenario, he could only imagine how they would treat him. If they knew that it was possible that his defeat would be what led to everyone’s survival, would they capture him like the Storm God had wanted to?

The Wine God aside, Alex couldn’t even be certain how Bladedance would react. She was much less receptive to prophecies in general, but that was not to say she didn’t believe them at all.

How would her attitude change toward him if she were to figure this scenario out?

Alex let them discuss other possibilities of what it could mean for two to become one, but they kept circling back to the duel—a battle to the end where a single person fought the other.

And they were fully convinced that Alex would be the one they would have to hedge their bets on.