My strength is being overwhelmed, as countless energy blasts grind me against the burning planet below, shredding away my immortal body with impunity.

It doesn't happen in an instant since I am sill fully aware of what is happening, but it might as well be an instant since I barely experience the pain personally.

My body does not register itself being destroyed.

Only my mind does.

And as powerful as I am, I am not powerful enough to withstand the combined might of a thousand suns, let alone the strength of a million, a billion suns.

There is a limit to how much my body can take before it inevitably breaks apart, forcefully.

And what is grinding against me is the total energy output of a thousand billion suns.

Possibly more.

Most likely more, considering that I couldn't even do anything but be destroyed before being brought back to life once more, just so I could be destroyed again, in a slightly different manner.

My soul didn't even have time to leave the body, which is strange since it should the moment my body get vaporized.

As a matter of fact, I cannot feel my soul within my body nor the connection to my domain and realm. I didn't notice that I am detached from most of my power even now.

That explains why Max could hurt me from pure physical strength alone.

I notice that the only thing remains after my body is destroyed is my will as well as my consciousness. This is consistence with being a clone.

I am a clone of Zeus. How did that happen?

Oh. I see now.

His power is strong enough to clone me, and the real me is no longer within this reality. Zeus probably doesn't even know what is happening to me in this reality right now.

He is probably back at the Citadel, informing on the success of the mission along with the rest of my team. No. No longer my team. They are his team.

I am merely a clone of Zeus.

Zeus.

The original is called Zeus.

If that is the case, what is the meaning of my existence?

I ponder the question as my body is being vaporized repeatedly by the strength of the cosmos, condensed into a laser beam.

And to be honest, it is getting boring since my physical body matters not as I've already reached the level of Soul Enlightenment. Even without resorting to my cultivation, it still matters not since I am a God.

Killing a God on the physical plane does not really do anything. Other than being annoying, of course. And even if my body is destroyed, I can always recreate a brand new one as long as my will remains.

But for Max to continue destroying my body despite the obvious fact, he is likely testing his weapons against my durability.

I really wish he stops doing that and takes me seriously. I am a God after all. Do he not fear Gods?

I guess not since he did impersonate one, even if it is a fictional one. The Ori are very real, at least within the confines of their own universe. I have fought an Ori before.

In any case, I suppose that Max will finish his tests eventually, giving me a lot of time to think to myself. The pain is just a mild irritation as my immortal body is being destroyed over and over again.

It isn't the first time someone has taken advantage of me to test their weapons or otherwise. And it certainly will not be the last, so I shouldn't get upset about such pointless thing.

As a matter of fact, I and my teammates do it all the time to each other. It is in order to strengthen out willpower and build up our natural resistance.

The willpower training is not required for those who have Indomitable Will trait or blessing. Zephyr is an example of this. In contrast to her, I have to go through such training since I am not blessed with the trait despite wielding the Power of Lightning.

The reason is because I am not the original master of the Power. I have taken it from its rightful owner, immediately after I killed him and ripped apart his soul.

That idiot is not worthy of wielding the Power of Lightning.

Only I do, for I am Zeus.

Yes, I am a clone, but I am a clone of Zeus. I have all his memory. His goals and his dreams. I know what he wants for we are the same.

The Power of Lightning also sees that and accepts me as its master many years ago, but not before it tries to painfully burn away my soul and spirit in order to control my body.

If I have lost that battle, I would cease to exist. My body will become something akin to a puppet under the command of my power. It will then rain destructions onto everything and everyone.

That is the common fate of those who aren't chosen by their power in the first place.

I am very envious of those who have been chosen by Powers. Not only they are blessed with incredible power and abilities, they are allowed to reach Zenith.

A place where only the truly strong resides. Not even she is able to step into the promise land despite her power greatly dwarfs mine.

Those there are truly Gods in all sense of the world, not like me, who really is a God for the sake of being a God.

I wish for a chance to prove myself and be allowed to reach that place, and it is also the reason I despite those who squander their gifts and the chance to reach Zenith.

It is also because I have earned each and every bit of my powers. None of it are given to me.

I was stripped of my divinity and power the moment I was born and then casted into the depth of Tartarus by my own father and mother after all.

But I didn't die. I climb the ladder slowly and painfully, one step at a time until the day I return the favor to my parents and devour their divinity, thus restoring me to my rightful place as King of the Gods.

King of nothing, apparently. She have shown me that I am a speck of dust in the infinite cosmos, and the cosmos itself is merely a grain of sand in the oceans fill with unfathomable powers.

And those who are riding the waves are truly Gods. Their powers are not given like those who come after. They have earned it, and I respect them greatly.

I also respect Max.

To condense the unfathomable might of a supernova, one of the strongest and most devastating explosion found in the universe, the power of the stars is truly within the palm of his hands.

Most Gods are not capable of such a feat, at least not by themselves.

Apollo certainly did not, despite being heralded by the countless mortals as the God of the Sun.

I faintly recall that Apollo proudly claims that the sun is the most powerful thing in the universe. He also pride himself in the fact that he could wield the power from the sun itself.

I find his pride amusing, considering that I have now seen the wider cosmos and beyond this mortal realm. Fate and Death and all the other cosmic entities are no longer have any control over my destiny.

I am truly awakened, and I thank her for opening my eyes and allow me to break free from the endless cycle of creation and destruction as well as the wheel of Fate.

As such, I am no longer bound to a single planet, being empowered by those at my feet, worshipping me with their unwavering faith. I am an unbounded God, not being restricted to a single planet or a solar system or even the universe.

More than that, I am an Ascended God, not being bounded to a single reality. I have killed Gods and devour their divinity. I have formed my own realm as well as domain without anyone lending me a hand.

And to think that I am this helpless against a mortal and his mechanical toys.

No, it cannot be considered as toys anymore, considering that it can destroy my immortal body. It might one day capable of destroying my spirit. I look forwards to that day. Not me, but Zeus himself.

I am merely a clone. An echo of the real Zeus. He should be able to do something about getting blasted into nothingness by a focused supernova explosion. But I will never able to witness that battle.

As a clone, my only destiny is being ceased to exist. Without a soul, I am unable to reach ascend and reach Zenith. If I cannot, then there is no reason for me to continue to exist.

I rather die than be a speck of dust being brushed aside without a single thought by those who steps onto the sands and watches those beautiful waves crashing against the shore.

Will you become one of them one day, Max, with all the toys at your disposal?

I suppose there is some merits to the warning from the others. Those seemingly soulless mechanical construct must not be taken lightly. They are actually ghost within a machine. A digital being.

For a mortal to wield the power of the stars, they are far more than capable. In digital space, they are invincible.

And through their technology, they can move planets and stars and wield them as weapons. I suppose that Max can move the planets and stars eventually. How will they feel if he is impeaching on their domain? I want to see.

But I cannot. This is the end of the road for me.

"Why aren't you resisting anymore, Zeus?"

Max speaks up when the bombarding finally stops. He seems to have finish his tests. I stop paying attention after a day or so. It probably has been a week.

"You and I know that there is no point for me to resist. And I am not Zeus. I am an echo. A physical memory, you may say."

I response as I lay there on what remains of the planet, unmoving. Even against the might of thousand supernovas, the planet remains relatively intact.

This is because Max is not attacking the planet. He is attacking me.

"When did you realize that you are just a temporal clone? Is it when you cannot feel your soul?"

Max asks as he lands onto the ground next to me. Within an instant, the titanic metal shell returns into existence and envelop the planet. The planet itself also reverts to its pristine condition.

This just proves that fighting Max on the physical plane alone is meaningless. It is not possible for him to lose with his power over time. But since his power fail to give me a pseudo soul, I suppose he still have a long way to challenge Zeus.

"I have always felt something wrong, Max. I cannot feel the spirit around me in this world, and I had assumed it is because of your machinations. But now, I do know the truth. I do not have a soul. If I did, I wouldn't be beaten like this."

I response.

"Having a soul makes a difference, Zeus?"

I smile faintly at the question. It seems that he has no idea what a soul is capable of. He is even more of a novice than Zephyr. At least she can astral project. She can also leave her body to explore the spiritual world.

Zephyr cannot right now since she is also an echo of her original self. A soulless entity. Since that is the case, there is no point of me trying to rescue her.

There is no point of me being here either.

"Yes, Max. Having a soul does make a huge difference, all thing considers. You are invulnerable thanks to your power of time. Whatever I damage I could inflict on your body, you can undo it without any effort at all, so it is pointless for me to even try."

I response and let out a sigh. My body is beginning to fade due to my realization. This is normally happens when an echo becomes aware of the true nature of its meaningless existence.

Zephyr is probably gone.

"I am ceasing to exist because I wish not to remain, Max. But before I go, I want to give you a word of warning. You only won because I cannot attack your spirit and soul directly."

I speak up.

It is not pride talking. It is the truth.

If Zeus is here personally, I am certain that Max wouldn't be able to do anything more than pointlessly destroy Zeus' physical form.

This is because an real battle between people like us are not only on the physical plane but also on every plane of existence. It is also a clash of will and spirit and soul.

As a matter of fact, my preemptive strike against Max when he was sitting in his throne should have destroyed his soul as well as his body.

I had wrongfully thought the reason it didn't because his cultivation is far higher than mine. I didn't expect that my lightning lost is spiritual aspect, thus did not strike his soul as well as his body.

That is when I should have realized I am merely an echo. To think I am so blind at the obvious fact. To think that I waste time and effort to fight him.

"I see. Lucky me."

Max responses with a smile. He seems to come to the same conclusion. Zephyr must have talked. She is such a blabber mouth. It is good thing that she doesn't know any about the collective since she just recently joined.

"While you are truly powerful in this mortal plane of existence, you are actually very helpless against those who have ascended beyond this plane. I admit that your technology is impressive. It is still pale in comparison to those mechanical Gods. I am not telling you this to make you give up whatever you are doing here in this reality. I am merely giving you a friendly warning. If you continue to travel the multiverse, you will need allies and friends. You will meet people like Zeus, who can pretty much end your existence with a snap of his fingers."

I close my eyes as my body fades away.

While there is life after death as the spirit will live on. There is none for me since I am a soulless creation. I was created by his power from nothing, and I will have to return to nothing.

That is my fate, and I accept it.

At least the real me would have the chance to reach Zenith and becomes a true God. How I wish it was me. How I truly wish it was so.

"Say hello to Zeus for me when you meet him. You will certainly meet Zeus one day, the real Zeus. And I think if it is under another circumstance, we could have been friends. Good luck on your journey, Maximilien Maxwell."

With that, I finally stop holding on.

"I suppose that we could have, Zeus, but that is for the original to decide. As for the Zeus I am talking to right now, if you wish it so, I can give you a new life."

Max speaks up. There is no falseness in his voice. He truly believes that he could give me a new life.

"One that separate from the original, and you can be your own person. Another Zeus in all sense of the word. But if you choose to give up then I won't stop you. At least I still have Zephyr."

I blink. My body solidifies faintly.

"Wait. What?"