God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

'He's bullshitting. He's definitely bullshitting.'

Cain instantly concluded in his mind. Although he was the one who had thought about it first, he really had no hope in his heart. Thinking about who could have possibly made this eternal prison, he knew Ashur would have an even clearer picture of how impossible it was.

In reality, he was also trying to stall for time. While he did have some hope, he wasn't confident at all.

However, for some reason, Ashur seemed to see something he couldn't...

"Your Grace, can you give me some time while I talk with this human?"

Lyx, the colossal female devil went silent before letting out a sound of approval. The pain that had been assaulting him for a while suddenly washed away.

The large Golden Dragon entered his vision and looked down at him,

"We have only two options right now..."

Cain was a bit speechless but still listened earnestly.

"We have a chance of making it alive from this situation. We might even make huge benefits from this as well. From what I have read, Lyx was known to be one of the few devils that kept her word."

Cain rubbed his arms as he spoke, "Alright. What do we need to do?"

Ashur fell silent. Then he spoke, albeit with a bit of hesitation, "That... I cannot help you now. Anything you do right now will be purely through your power. All I can provide you with is a bit of information and prayers. Hopefully, the latter works..."

Heading Ashur's words made Cain feel incredibly anxious,

"Since you are the one who suggested it, I think you understand the odds of breaking this seal."

Cain nodded, "While my knowledge and understanding of magic theory, runes, and magic circles are still very rudimentary, even I can see that..."

One of the reasons Cain's progress with magic was so rapid was the fact that the materials he studied with were top-notch. They were rarer than dragons and phoenixes. The [Record of Akasha I} for example. There was only a single copy in the entire universe. Within it was so much information on the basics of magic theory. He also got to absorb some knowledge from Azazel, the Demon of Sorcery itself...

Seeing that Cain understood him, the colossal dragon continued,

"This seal is an ancient seal that was created by the great monarch of the universe. However, like all prisons that aren't looked after, its iron bars have begun to rust. That doesn't mean you can break them. It only means that the danger is far greater than ever, should you attempt to free Lyx."

Cain shook his head, "You are talking like we have a chance at breaking through the seal and cage. It is impossible."

The giant golden dragon shook its head,

"It might have been impossible if it was only you, or me. However, with my endless pool of knowledge, breaking through this seal shouldn't be as difficult. Think of it as me giving you gloves, enabling you to pull at the rusted metal gate of the prison cell."

Cain was now a bit confused. The eyes of the golden dragon glowed slightly,

"As I do not exist on this plane, I cannot transfer knowledge directly to you, unfortunately. I can, however, give you a hint."

Without waiting for Cain to answer, Ashur muttered something under his breath. Suddenly, a very large magic circle manifested behind him. This magic circle was very similar to the magic circle he had seen behind the tree that housed Lyx.

"You might be under the false impression that this is a magic circle. You are right and wrong as well. This thing is called a Magic Wheel. They are used to execute spells or skills of unimaginable power. You will only be able to use one when you get to the third Tier."

"The third Tier?" Cain said, slightly doubting his hearing.

"That is the power of a Magic wheel. And you can only acquire one more for every Tier you ascend. A Tier 5 being will possess only three Magic wheels. Normal spells usually do nothing to affect very powerful enemies. Using a Magic wheel makes that much more possible."

Realizing he had gone off-topic for a bit, Ashur cleared his throat and continued,

"Ordinarily, you should be unable to break through a seal like this. There is also that Magic wheel to consider. However, we have an advantage..."

"An advantage?" Cain asked, a bit doubtful.

"Yes... An advantage. That bastard, Tian, is very proud of his abilities. While that arrogance is not unfounded, he does overestimate himself sometimes."

The fangs of Ashur were revealed as he sneered,

"He is one of the most proficient runemasters in the known universe. However, I am at the top of the totem pole. I can see through, modify, and decipher any rune or magic circle with no more than a second glance." Ashur unfurled his wings and said with pride dripping from his words.

"As such, while it is not as easy, I can see through some of the seals he has created, especially one this old and worn."

Cain pondered for a bit, "The ability to see through runes and magic circles, I possess that too, right?"

Ashur shook his head, "For the most part, no. However, that is because your ability hasn't fully matured. It also seems to be developing in a different direction than mine did..." Ashur said with a smile on his beastly face.

He seemed to think for a while before speaking in a low voice,

"Cain, you might be me, but you are also not me. We might be of one being, but we are two distinct persons. As such, our paths are different. No other creature in this universe can be exactly like another."

Cain had known for a long time that he was related to Ashur in some way, so this didn't come as a surprise at all...

"So are you telling me that I used to be you in the past?"

Ashur shook his head once again, "No. It is a bit more complicated than that. Anyway..."

Seeing that he didn't want to continue that line of questioning, Cain relented.

"This seal is a semi-physical seal and is built with the devil of death as its epicenter. It completely seals the power of death around her, but it also allows a bit of her magical aura to leak. That is why she has been able to influence the tree's growth over some time. Now, the tree views her like a loved companion who has nurtured it, instead of its prisoner..."

"This means the tree has strayed from its original path. Although it will continue to imprison the Devil of Death till the day it dies, we can interfere with that process a bit. The way we do this is by interfering with that Magic Wheel."

"Normally, a being like you shouldn't even go close to such a thing. However, we are already past that point, so there is no helping it. The Magic Wheel is connected to Lyx and the tree, so we should be able to access it through her."

"We can tinker with the Magic Wheel's configuration, but we can't do anything about the power supply. The Devil of Death has managed to offset the balance by compelling a few beasts to bring offerings to her, but there is no doubt it is still feeding off her. I suspect Tian's master plan was to let her and the tree become one entity as the tree consumed her until there was nothing left but the tree.

What a terrible bastard..."

Ashur then turned back to the Colossal devil in the distance,

"Thus, we need to ask her to pour her own energy into the Magic Wheel herself. Luckily for us, the tree doesn't have any directly offensive attacks. If it did, you'd have been crushed to death before you could think."

Cain didn't know what to say, "So the tree and the Devil of Death, Lyx, are not the same, but are becoming the same, so we can influence its Magic wheel a bit through her?"

"Yes. But here's the catch... If she doesn't have enough energy left then we are basically condemning her to her fate, should we fail. If she had hope before, then our failure would snuff it out completely, and the absorption process would speed up."

Cain was stumped for words. All this information was just a bit too much for him to digest at a time.

"The only other option we have is for your soul to die and your body to be taken over. If you die, then all my hopes go down the drain with you. However, the final decision is left to you..."

Cain could hear and feel the warmth coming from Ashur's words. Although he felt unsure, he also felt reassured as well. The two conflicting emotions seemed to fight for dominance in his head for a while...

Eventually, he sighed, "Let's do it. We have nothing to lose at this point..."

Turning back to Lyx, Ashur spoke, his loud voice booming through the eternal darkness,

"Your Grace, we might be able to free you from your shackles. However, we need your utmost cooperation."

Lyx stared down at Ashur for a while, "What makes you think I will be willing to do anything you say?! I am a proud primordial devil and I take orders from no one!"

'Fuck!' Cain nearly burst into tears when he saw just how fast negotiations were falling apart.

Ahsur shook his head, "You might want to reconsider, Your Grace..."

Before Lyx could respond, Ashur spoke again, this time saying words that sent shivers down the enormous Devil's body.

"What if I told you that should you cooperate with us, you will leave exactly as you are, albeit with a bit of energy loss."

"That is impossible. The only beings that can decipher seals and runes created by Tian are..."

"You cannot be too sure about that. How about we make a deal?" Ashur said with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"A deal?"

Ashur nodded, "If we are unable to free you, then I will step down, and you can take the human. If we do, you let the boy keep everything..."

Lyx seemed to understand what Ashur meant as she fell silent, her eyes closed as she pondered. Cain had no idea what sort of thoughts could be going on within the mind of such an archaic and incredible being.

After a few minutes of silence, her eyes snapped open,

"I agree..."