Killed Me? Now I Have Your Power Chapter 448: Let’s dance.

The skill's activation finished before Woeful could even register it fully.

One moment, she was frantically retreating from the seated, exhausted Kaden; the next, she was transported to an entirely unfamiliar location.

The scene before her was utterly terrifying.

This horror wasn't limited to Woeful alone. Kaden himself had no idea what lurked deep within his thoughts. He was unaware of the heavy burden, the agony, and the repercussions that constant time reversals had inflicted on his mental state.

Thus, upon entering his own mind with open eyes, he nearly believed he had stepped into the consciousness of another entity— or perhaps something far more monstrous.

It felt profoundly strange; profoundly terrifying.

A realm bathed in red hues stretched out, where an endless ocean of blood flowed ceaselessly below. This sanguine sea roiled perpetually, foaming and sputtering as if it were a creature gasping for breath.

Instead of fish, it teemed with severed limbs, lifeless forms, floating eyes, guts, and shattered bones.

Mangled remains of countless monsters and creatures intertwined within.

An oppressive force bore down from every direction, while a foul yet sacred odor permeated the air.

Kaden appeared to spot the remains of Shamsi, the Sun Empress, Brain Cerveau, and every monster and being he had slain from the start.

Not a single one was absent. Strangely, there were also faces of those he had no recollection of killing, yet they appeared here now.

Yet that wasn't the full extent of it.

Right at the heart of the sea, resembling a divine fist plunged by a ruthless deity, towered a massive red blade.

Atop its hilt sat a woman clad entirely in red, her beauty surpassing all imagination, posed like a statue crafted for the cursed.

Hovering above this red-clad woman were several orbs glowing in shades of red and black. And within those orbs...

Kaden drew in a sharp breath, his legs buckling, nearly forcing him to his knees. The truth behind those orbs struck him like a piercing blade.

He blinked hard, hoping it was merely a trick of his mind. But it wasn't. In each one, he beheld replicas of the worlds from Fokay and Darklore, though the unfolding events differed entirely.

Identical yet profoundly altered.

’Timelines?’ He pondered, icy sweat trickling down his neck, ’The paths that would have been if I hadn’t gone back in time?’

These were realities without his presence, yet in some eerie, unsettling way...Kaden harbored these entire worlds within his psyche.

’How the hell is any of this feasible?’ Kaden thought in utter shock, his expression filled with horror.

He whipped his head toward Woeful, anticipating she would share the same vision. But her stare fixed on a particular spot.

Tracing her line of sight, he caught a glimpse that elicited a weak, fractured grin on his face.

There stood Rea Thornspire.

Her looks mirrored Woeful's exactly, but their essences and presences, despite the similarities, differed in a manner Kaden could distinguish clearly.

’This is exactly what I requested. A clash among our three consciousnesses within my own.’

A daring notion that had intruded into his thoughts unbidden. He had embraced it, and now he had to see it through.

He glanced briefly at the orbs and the woman, then gritted his teeth firmly. ’Later, Kaden. You’ll figure it out afterward.’

For the moment, Kaden pushed aside the image of timelines dwelling inside him, directing all his focus toward one crucial element...

"Rea, I gave up so much to rescue you." Kaden murmured gently, "I want some recompense."

’Blood and Ashes, I forfeited a whole divinity.’

"I can offer you a child. Shall we proceed right away?" Rea responded, striding across the bloody waves, her steps grinding against bones, entrails, and hearts until she reached Kaden’s side.

She offered a smile devoid of mirth but full of affection, gazing at Woeful opposite them,

"I admire the condition of your mind, Kaden. Why keep something like this from me?"

"Keep in mind, I had no clue I could pull this off. Much less that it would look like this."

"Defeat in this fight will bring you great suffering."

"Undoubtedly. But are we going to lose?"

"Sorrow’s breath, we face a goddess here."

"Who gives a damn? Are you scared?"

Rea’s mouth curved into a smirk, shooting him a look, "I just perished, Kaden. My mind shattered completely, and I sensed my soul seized by something beyond understanding. I really believed that was the end for me, Kaden..."

Her tone trembled slightly,

"Yet it looks like the goddess repaired it for me. How kind of her, right?"

"My dislike for her has lessened a tad." Kaden grinned, "Shall we hold back?"

"Hold back? Sorrow consume me, I’m going to slay this wench." She rolled her eyes, "And yes, Kaden, I died for you just now. Got anything to say about that?"

"You love me?"

"I absolutely do."

"Oh—!"

"Finished with your little playacting?" Woeful inquired in a dull, melancholic tone, "You disgust me. Let’s finish this."

"Feeling envious?" Rea cocked her head.

"Indeed, I confess. But that won’t last." Woeful answered, then turned to Kaden, "You’re an idiot, Kaden, battling here. You will—!"

"You mentioned it yourself—it’s my domain." Kaden interrupted seamlessly, spreading his arms like wings, "And since it is, I get to dictate the rules of engagement."

"What?" Woeful questioned, though she anticipated the outcome. Yet Kaden pressed on, his grin broadening, wielding the power of his inner realm.

"I suggest a fair contest!" His voice elevated, "Within my mind, all is deceased."

He gestured broadly around,

"Yet the departed always bequeath remnants. And those remnants are, more often than not— if not always— shadows."

He halted dramatically for effect, eyeing the two women who resembled twins before him. Then, gradually,

"Here’s the deal," he murmured, "observe these shadows, and whoever avoids letting any of them taint their spirit..."

A brief hush followed.

"...claims victory over all."

Without allowing either to fully grasp it, the confrontation now...

Rea burst into manic laughter.

...

At the same time, in the City of Cats, the Trial of the Blessed of Meris continued unabated.

She lay sprawled on the bizarre, ever-morphing terrain, her form riddled with injuries she had never endured before.

The torment was paralyzing to her thoughts.

With painful clarity, Meris understood she could no longer stir, her frame too weighted and depleted for any action beyond remaining prone.

The earth and atmosphere still cycled erratically through ice, liquid, flakes, and mist.

By now, her psyche had adapted to the relentless shifts, and she neared it. Ah... so near to whatever it was.

Still, something eluded her. Thus, she forced open her bloodied eyes— a frigid, indifferent glow bursting forth from them.

They locked onto the Third Ancestor peering down at her with equal or greater chill.

"One question." Meris uttered, "Are there any rules in this realm?"

The Third Ancestor flinched noticeably in astonishment, caught off guard by the inquiry.

But that response was precisely what Meris required. For it confirmed that beneath the chaos of this space, regulations existed.

If regulations were in place, then countermeasures must exist as well.

And that counter had been revealed to her from the outset, she now comprehended, prior to stepping into this constructed labyrinth.

It was inscribed prominently on the entrance to this dungeon.

Those very words had repeatedly echoed amid the thrashing from the Third Ancestor.

How could they not?

Numerous aspects, especially the erratic elemental transformations, evoked thoughts of choreography.

However... the elemental shifts were far too random and illogical to qualify as true dance.

’That’s where my mistake lay.’

Her error stemmed from misunderstanding dance’s deeper essence.

’Rhythm, motions, delight, grief, wistfulness, purpose...’

Dance embodied countless facets, and to Meris, that made it...

’Life itself.’

Refraining from dance— from existence— due to surrounding constraints that clashed with one’s personal rhythm— one’s unique dance— ranked among the swiftest routes to demise.

If not physical, then spiritual.

So, what action should she take?

Oh... the answer rang out sharply. It was simply...

"To never cease dancing." She declared openly.

The Third Ancestor swiftly retreated a few paces.

For never halting the dance equated to never halting life. And while life persisted...

’Even if obstacles arose... at times, defying rules meant expanding them.’

Today marked a day to shatter conventions and forge from the fragments something superior. Something uniquely hers.

Something attuned... to her individual style of dance.

With this insight...

A blend of blue and black radiance burst into being, wrapping Meris in a profound, protective shroud.

Meris Elamin, the only child of the Primordial of Frost, attained enlightenment.

—End of Chapter 448—