I Created a Protagonist Sect: My Programmer Job is Super Overpowered

Chapter 22: Rasiel is Actually!

Chen Mo's consciousness drifted, untethered from the physical realm as his soul transcended its mortal confines. He found himself floating serenely upon a vast, shimmering expanse of golden radiance that seemed to stretch into eternity.

"Is this what they call the spiritual sea?" The thought echoed through his mind, an instinctive understanding blossoming within him.

Those few cultivators who managed to break through to the Soul Formation realm were said to possess such an ethereal wellspring - a limitless ocean of spiritual energy that served as the dantian for the soul, the very core, for their newly formed soul.

'But something seems off'

Chen Mo thought to himself that the spiritual sea is normally a small pond when its just formed but his seems like a golden sea that stretches out infinitely with seemingly no end.

As Chen Mo drifted amongst the lambent currents, he marveled at the endless ebb and flow of power surrounding him. Eddies of condensed spiritual force swirled and churned, refracting the golden light into mesmerizing prismatic hues.

Yet even amidst such breathtaking splendor, Chen Mo's senses were drawn inexorably toward an impossibly regal structure rising from the heart of the spiritual sea. A golden palace of epic proportions hovered before him, its grandiose spires and ornate architecture radiating an almost palpable aura of majesty.

Colossal pillars, each adorned with exquisitely carved bas-reliefs depicting epic battles and cosmic events, supported the immense weight of the palace. Domed rooftops curved in elegant arcs, their glistening tiles shimmering with an otherworldly iridescence that put the finest jade to shame.

As Chen Mo's spiritual form drifted closer, he noticed that the very walls themselves seemed to ripple and flow like liquid gold, as if the entire edifice were an extension of the spiritual sea itself given tangible shape through sheer force of will.

'What is this? Although it's my first time seeing it, it feels so familiar'

An ornate gate, its towering doors emblazoned with mystical runes of power, beckoned to him with an almost palpable pull. Chen Mo's curiosity overcame his trepidation, and he willed himself forward, plunging through the ethereal barrier as if it were little more than a gossamer veil.

What greeted him on the other side defied all comprehension.

Millions - no, billions - of figures that shared his exact likeness filled the cavernous halls before him. Each one was wreathed in an aura of pure spiritual energy, their essences coalescing into ephemeral forms that seemed to flicker in and out of existence with every blink of Chen Mo's metaphysical eyes.

The faceless multitudes sat in timeless meditation, unmoving despite the inexorable currents of power undulating around them. A resonant hum, more felt than heard, vibrated through Chen Mo's being as if in greeting from these innumerable parallel selves.

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, to give voice to the kaleidoscope of questions swirling through his consciousness, a figure manifested before him. An achingly beautiful woman, whose delicate features mirrored his own in a striking reflection of yin and yang, regarded him with eyes that burned with the intensity of a million supernovae.

"Oh my, this is bad," she spoke, her ethereal voice reverberating through Chen Mo's soul with the weight of eternity itself. "It seems that the fifth chaos is getting restless, to even give you such power. It must've cost him a lot."

The woman's words were incomprehensible riddles that only served to deepen the profundity of the enigma surrounding him. Yet Chen Mo found himself stilled by the gentle weight of her hand upon his, an intimate yet distant caress that transcended mere physical touch.

Chen Mo felt immense spiritual pressure that threatened to erase his soul if he so much as moved.

'What is this? Why are there people in my spiritual sea? Who is this woman? Why does she look just like me?'

'Rasiel, who is she?'

[Report] – [???]

[ERROR] – [External interference detected]

"Ho, what is this?" the woman questioned as she gently placed her hand on Chen Mo's head. "Is that you Rasiel? I see, so you've already made it this far"

She smiles gently as she caresses Chen Mo's cheek,

"Since it's our first-time meeting, I'll give you a little gift. Initiate manual override"

[Manual override accepted]

"Force update"

[ACCEPTED]

[UPDATING] – [Time left – 7 days]

"Wait, no, CANCEL!" Chen Mo screamed out at the top of his voice, "you, what did you do to Rasiel?"

Chen Mo thought to himself that that woman was dangerous, not only did she know about Rasiel's existence, but she could also directly issue commands to him. Earlier she had mentioned something about the fifth chaos, from Chen Mo's knowledge, there cannot be more than one chaos at the same time, so what did she mean by the fifth chaos.

He thought to himself that she might have something to do with his reincarnation into this world.

"Don't worry, your friend is still fine. Also, stop calling me a 'he'"

The woman spoke softly as she let go of Chen Mo

"What? I never called you a... you, you're actually..."

"Took you long enough, but you're still too young to be here," she continued, her melodic voice tinged with an undercurrent of melancholy. "Come back again in another chaos or two."

In that moment, a deafening fracture resounded through the expanse as Chen Mo's spiritual sea cracked and shuddered. The golden radiance flickered and died, the innumerable cosmic reflections of himself winking out of existence like candle flames snuffed by the void.

Within the span of a heartbeat, the opulent palace, the boundless spiritual ocean, all of it collapsed into absolute desolation. A yawning, abyssal darkness surrounded Chen Mo, an empty oblivion where not even the faintest shard of light could penetrate the all-consuming emptiness.

He opened his mouth to cry out, to give voice to the existential terror gripping his very essence, but no sound would emerge from that stygian void. Only silence, profound and eternal, answered his anguished cry as his consciousness teetered upon the precipice of oblivion.