[Chaos’s Memory - First Dragon Tribulation]

Chaos had just returned from a hunt after he chased down a merchant who many claimed had over 20,000 drops of Dragon Spirit Essence.

It was a few years after his name started to spread in the Blood Region.

Once he secured the essence, which actually turned out to be more than he expected, he chose to shed his first scale and form a new one.

So he began, absorbing all 25,600 drops. While it was nowhere close to how much he could consume, he didn’t have the luxury to be picky, so he used the little he had to temper the essentials.

When the last was absorbed, the tribulation cloud started to form.

---

[Start of the memory]

"Ah, Elina would have loved this moment. She always wanted to see what my first shedding would be like," he sighed, a pained look crossing his eyes. He gnashed his teeth, pain and a frown appearing on his face

"Forsaken bastards, just wait for me. I will be sure to eradicate your filthy lives from the face of the universe."

He looked up, and for a moment, he wished for a day when he would reunite with his beloved.

But then his moment was interrupted when a Chinese chess (Go) board appeared from the cloud and stopped just before him.

From the cloud, a silhouette of a handsome man who appeared to be in his late 40s emerged and sat opposite him. He occupied the white (yang) side of the board while Chaos stood on the black (yin).

The man had dragon horns and a few silver dragon scales lined perfectly along his neck. He had silver hair, a rather beautiful hair compared to Chaos dirty gold with strands of crimson.

His tail was not visible, but Chaos knew he had one. He himself had one, but thanks to his superior bloodline, he could make it disappear whenever he wanted.

His expression remained calm despite having the faintest idea of who the man was or what his motives were. Also, he could not read his cultivation base, something many would be freaked out about.

Not Chaos, by the way.

Inwardly, he was a bit disturbed that the man in question was wearing a blindfold. If this were before he met Elina, he would have assumed it was a weird fashion that lower existences, or, as he used to call them, humans, indulge themselves in.

However, he now knew the man was blind.

"Who are you?" he asked in his unusual, tired tone.

The man looked at him and smiled.

"Some dragon you are, young man. I have lived since the dawn of time, since the eras before this, but I have never met a coldhearted, strong-willed, and slightly messed up dragon...no person, like you before."

Chaos frowned a bit, but then his expression relaxed. "I am one of a kind."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that," the man laughed. "I have been watching you closely, young man, and I have to be frank with you, the kind of path you are walking will not lead anywhere good. The path of slaughter and chaos, just who wants to live such a life? You had a chance to live a normal life, but threw it away."

Chaos narrowed his eyes at the man but said nothing.

"You could have been different. You could have learned to love, known peace, and learned how painful heartbreak is. But here you are, knee-deep in the chaos of this world, chasing nothing but destruction."

The man smiled.

"You know, I once fought Destruction but instantly regretted it after a few exchanges. Destruction is a variant of Chaos, and since you are the Master of Chaos, I suppose I can see some similarities.

However, tell me this: after all this chaos, all this destruction, what then would you do with your life?"

Chaos did not immediately reply.

Instead, he smiled, something he had never done since the day he left Elina’s side and returned to his homeworld when he learned the Forsaken Race was sweeping across their star system.

Showing a smile now felt somehow wrong, but the blind man did not mind.

Chaos slowly spoke... "If two people decide to fight, there is bound to be destruction. However, the moment one of them dies, that chaos, the destruction, the pain, and suffering will die with them.

You ask what I will do after all of this is done. My answer is simple: I will become the one standing, making sure that in my presence, there will not be anyone brave enough to even dare to start a fight. I will become the rule, the law."

The blind man smiled. "You know, I have this friend, a bit handsome, with white hair like a sage and golden eyes that attract all the ladies. He calls himself the Paragon, claiming he is stronger than everyone. Come to think of it, he indeed is scary. I crossed swords with him once, and I regretted it after a few exchanges."

"Your point is?"

"Wow, chill, bro. You have to allow me to premise the argument."

Chaos glared hatefully at the man and groaned.

"Better. Now, where was I... Oh, Paragon. He was one dangerous dude, perhaps the scariest of them all. In case you two meet one day, do not antagonize him. Ah, come to think of it, you two seem to share some traits.

When I asked him the same question I asked you, his answer was simple: he is absolute, and so he fears nothing; rather, everything fears him. The audacity of that bastard."

Chaos wanted to punch the bastard in the face, but he restrained himself.

Perhaps seeing that he was losing his temper—the irony in that, considering he is blind—he smiled and brought his words to a great climax.

"The point here is, you are crazy, and as it happens, I, the Master of Purgatory, like crazy bastards. So we are going to play a game, one that, if you succeed, as Paragon used to say, you will have the chance to become an absolute.

However, if you fail, then you can forget about avenging your dear girlfriend. Do we have a deal, Master of Chaos?"

---

[Present day]

Kent let a pale smile appear on his face as he looked at the chessboard slowly descending from the clouds. For a moment, he felt like he had a sense of déjà vu, which he did, only that what he saw was a false positive.

The chessboard stopped before him, and like before, the black side pointed toward him.

From the cloud, a silver-haired dragon-man descended, his expression filled with great happiness, even though he was blind. When he reached Kent’s level, his smile widened even more.

"We meet again, old friend," he said, acknowledging Kent.

"We indeed meet again, Master of Purgatory," Kent also smiled and sat down opposite the silver-haired man.

In the distance, Vexthra and the other ladies frowned, their expressions filled with confusion. However, seeing Kent smile with the man, they relaxed a bit.

They could tell he was in no danger whatsoever.

Though the man, whose back was the only thing they could see, unsettled them.

"13 eras had passed since we last saw each other, Master of Chaos. How has life been treating you?"

"Pretty good," Kent replied, maintaining his smile. "How about you? Anything new happen to you?"

Master of Purgatory thought for a moment and nodded. "Indeed. That crazy bastard had to go pick a fight with some beings you and I have no business fighting. In fact, he was the reason why I am here today."

Master of Purgatory grinned and pointed up. "He sends his regards."