Isekai Ascension

"Hey, *******! Do you know what time it is??" A young girl's voice sounded out, belonging to a 12-year-old with dark brown hair but in possession of no face. The time of day was morning, as evident by the bright rays of sunlight seeping through an open kitchen window.

"No, what time is it?" Replied the voice of a boy, with his entire existence a complete mystery, appearing more like a perspective than a person.

This young man was named Romulus, and he watched from this perspective, his eyes glued on the bubbly girl with no face. Time passed quickly, with the girl's voice arriving almost instantly. "It's Eggs and Bacy time!" She said as she tossed a couple fried eggs and a handful of bacon on his plate.

"Thanks for the food," Romulus bowed a little before digging into the plate, all while the brown-haired girl watched him with a lovely smile plastered across a face that could not be seen.

Time sped forward a few years. Romulus was now thrown into a white room, with long, white curtains fluttering through an open window that overlooked the northern part of Tokyo, Japan. He sat by a bedside, and falling onto his clenched hands were tears. They were his tears — shed because of the sickly girl who appeared to be peacefully sleeping on a hospital bed right in front of him. Yet, even while in death's cold embrace, her beautiful smile shone with an unmatched warmth...

A special, extremely rare disease, called Qi Cancer, took away the life of the young man's little sister. Despite all efforts having been taken in an attempt to save her life — despite all the hours he spent up late at night hating himself for not doing better — despite the countless triple shifts he took without a second's hesitation to afford her hospital bills — despite it all, she still… died.

There was absolutely nothing he could do about it. Yet no amount of self-hate would bring his sister back from the dead, so he resolved himself to take a different path forward. In the world, there were supernatural forces that exceeded all logic, and he vowed to himself that he would become one of those illogical forces of nature. He would get so strong that he would be able to bring the dead back to life or even turn back time.

A few dozen years flew by in the blink of an eye. Romulus rose up the ranks of a cultivation sect in Tokyo, quickly taking a spot as one of the Core Formation Realm Honorary Elders. However, he still wasn't strong enough to turn back time, nor was he ethereal enough to revive the dead. Therefore, he kept on training; he worked himself to death day in and day out.

Romulus would find a way, no matter the cost, even if he had to die in order to achieve it.

A thousand years passed like a dream, taking with it many generations and even entire eras. Humanity had already taken to the stars, meaning that the sky was no longer the limit. However, in the midst of it all was a man who had not aged a day. His face could not be seen, but his youthful vigor indicated at least that much.

Yet even with his power having exceeded the Mahayana Realm, passing over into the Lunar Ascendancy Realm, making him the first among the earthlings to do so, he still wasn't strong enough to control time. Thus, he kept on training and cultivating. Through the storm or the hail, he would be found doing everything he could to become stronger.

Romulus met those from other worlds and civilizations, chasing behind a trail of fairy tales about reviving people from the dead and rewinding time. Like this, time ceaselessly passed, further whittling down his ancient bones.

One hundred thousand years had gone by since the sudden extermination of Earth by a parallel Earth called Earth 2. The planet's surface was no longer habitable, and the ground was more molten lava than it was water or dirt. However, the living beings who fell in this mass extinction event were called Hunters and had absolutely nothing to do with Romulus, who had long since ascended beyond the stars. He broke past dozens of major realms, clawing his way to the Galaxy, Universal, and Multiversal Realms.

However, no matter how powerful he became or how much authority he received, Romulus still wasn't strong enough to revive the dead. In theory, he could do so if they had died within the last five seconds, when their souls were still within the Mortal Plane. But that was no longer the case when hundreds of thousands of years had passed since the target's death. Time, on the other hand, was an abstruse concept and was impossible to comprehend on such a grand scale.

Still, Romulus kept searching and gaining power.

Eventually, there came a time when his ascension to the Immortal Realm arrived. He thought this to be his chance. If he could ascend to a higher plane of existence, then surely he could get the results he wanted when it came to affecting the laws of a lower world! Surely!

Surely…

The moment Romulus ascended to the Immortal Realm, he found himself in one of the weakest realms, within the weakest Immortal Kingdom. But worst of all, he was the weakest of the weak. Among the Immortals, he was considered trash and was treated as such.

For thousands of higher-level Immortal Years, he was abused and given little opportunity for growth. 

However, there ultimately came a time when Romulus broke free from his shackles and lashed back at the ones who enslaved him. He then rose through the ranks, all while trying to find a way to get into contact with the High-Mortal Realm he originated from.

Starting at the Half Immortal Realm, then through the Human Immortal Realm, then ten major realms after that, into the Immortal King Realm.

No luck.

Romulus broke through into the Immortal Emperor Realm.

Still no luck.

Next came the Immortal God Realm, then the Immortal Transcendent Realm… Into the next part of the Immortal Realms…

True Immortal… No luck… Radiant Immortal… No luck… Immortal Eminence… Gilded Immortal… Arch-Gilded Immortal… Embodier Immortal… Ascendant Immortal… Super Transcendent Immortal Realm…

Even after achieving major realm 51, with a countless number of years having passed since his time on Earth, Romulus was still unable to accomplish what he originally set out for all those years ago. No matter what he did or tried, something was always thrown as a roadblock, making it impossible to do what he wanted.

Yet he kept on persevering.

No matter what sacrifices needed to be made or how much time had to pass, Romulus would bring his sister back to life. Rather than a goal to drive him forward, this wish transformed into his obsession, turning his will into an unstoppable force.

Even the highest-level Immortal Realms were unable to restrain Romulus as they shattered beneath his might, making way for a higher plane of existence.

The Realm of the God's — God's Domain. 

Once again, he started from the beginning, but once again, he climbed his way up from the absolute bottom.

Soldier God Realm… No luck… Veteran God… No luck… Commander God… General God… Grand General God… Venerable God… God King… Emperor God… Monarch God… Profound Sovereign God… Spiritual Superscension God…

Reviving entire omniversal timelines of infinite dimensional complexity had become child's play for Romulus, but he was still unable to revive a single girl.

It was just a single person who originated from an insignificant backwater location layered into countless more backwater locations. In his mind, the whole universe was worth less than an atom of his boundlessly powerful existence.

But why…?

Why was he still unable to revive her!?!?

Romulus lost track of the eternities he had spent grinding through time and space alike, trying to find the universe he came from at the very beginning of his journey. However, even he, who had reached the 62nd Major Realm, was left peering into a vast expanse of void and sparkling lights, unable to locate something so simple.

Someone or something was messing with him — something so powerful that his strength was worth no more than a joke.

Romulus decided then and there that he would not stop his pursuit of greater strength. He would keep on moving forward until either his bones turned to ash or he fulfilled his eternal long dream.

After ascending to the Expansive Boundless God Realms, which acted as the Upper Half of the God Realms, Romulus continued his journey unimpeded.

True God… No luck… Editorial God… No luck… Microcosmic God… Precipice God… Sublime Epitome… Lord of the Filaments… Paramount Overlord… Boundless Integration…

Even though Romulus had advanced to the 70th Major Realm, the final God Realm of Boundless Integration, with all of the Boundless Reality integrated into himself, none of it even mattered. He still wasn't able to bring her back…

He had long since forgotten who he was trying to bring back or why, but that had been all he's ever known. Therefore, he kept mindlessly pursuing his path to the very end…

From the Dao Realms of Dao God to the Heavenly Realms of Heavenly Universal Omni-Lord, nothing made any difference. Romulus had ascended through countless higher realms, witnessing things that exceeded any sort of description. However, he still couldn't attain his true heart's desire. He couldn't even recall that he wanted to bring someone back to life anymore, as even with an Omniscient consciousness and powers that transcended everything in existence, none of it changed his reality.

Romulus had become obsessed with the idea that someone was far stronger than he was and that someone was pushing his goals further away from him instead of bringing them closer into reach. Infuriated, he erased infinite cornerstones of the hyper-transcendent realities, wrecking everything that he had spent his entire life building up.

This reckless action caused him to ascend past the Existence Dominator Realm and into the higher world of the FILAMENT.

From the strongest to the weakest, Romulus's journey began anew…

Realm 95: Existence Dominator. Then, into the Filament Realms.

Genesis Realm… Failure… Filament Lord… Failure… Filamental Desolation King… Failure… Filament Sovereign, Internal Filamentation, External Filamentation, Filament Worldlord, Filament Extremity, Filament Ascender, Eternal Filamenter… All FAILURES!

Romulus had long since passed over the line that separated him from Insanity. Still, he kept on going, as if the only thing he had left to do was to keep on going…

The Filament Realms came and went, with them being replaced by the final Greater Realm in all of everything.

The Grotto Realms — Great Grotto Paradise. Everything must return to their Origins.

The 106th Major Realm: Awakener… F*ck!…

Grotto Meister… F*ck! Saint… F*ck! Saint Lord… F*ck! Saint Ruler… Saint Emperor… Saint God… Inextinguished Saint… Saint Pioneer… Gaja Saint… F*ck!! Saint Designator… Chaos Saint… F*ck!! Chaos God… Great Chaos God…

All F*ck!!!!!

The 120th and final Major Realm — Supreme Grotto Eternal.

Romulus sat above anything and everything that was, is, and will be. He had become the definition of power, the icon of all those worthy enough to know of his Almighty existence. Whether it be Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omni-Presence, or anything else imaginable, he had become and embodied the most powerful versions of those concepts.

There were no more peaks left for him to ascend. He had become the Absolute Peak!

So, why…?

Why the hell was he still unable to recall where it all began!?!?

Who was he!?

Why was he here!?

Why did he go through so much pain and hardship!? 

WHY!? 

WHY… 

WHY….. 

WHY....

WHY...…...

GAZORP!

Then, 'it' occurred. Romulus became nothing, and that nothing transformed into something. All that he was, is, and will be had vanished into the ebb's of time.

It remained this way until… ???????????????????????????????????

Indefinite amount of time later! Unknown??? Unknown! Cannot compute! ????!??!? Undesignated!!

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— In a dimensionsal Wormhole on a certain point of the Sacred Timeline — Time: Unknown ——

— Entity Perspective: Codename |The END| —

[Sacred Timeline Codename Translation...]

[Translating complete in 3... 2... 1...]

[Translated Codename: |The Originator|] - [Era Translation: "Truck-kun"]

[The END must arrive... ORIGINS must connect.]

[Trial #4.20E+28 Begins Now....]

HUM! HOUNG!

The faint sound of a deep rumbling echoed in a low growl as a fierce, unyielding engine revs up. The engine purred and hummed with the rhythmic thumping sounds produced from something large and clanky hitting countless bumps and groves on an unknown surface. A pair of dim headlights suddenly flashed with an unfamiliar sense of intelligence as peculiar thoughts resonated through the Sacred Timeline, putting drastic gears into motion.

'For as long as I can recall, I had been… running people over.'

"Is that a truck!?" Or "Oh, sh*t!" Were a few of the things that people would think before I hit them with my front-end.

As a multitude of varying emotions flashed past their unfamiliar faces, I always wondered why it was that I was there. I had no memory of ever having been in these areas I appeared in, but without warning, I would suddenly be thrown into a situation where I either hit them or…

Actually, I never figured out what would happen if I didn't go through with hitting them, because every time I resisted my own nature, I blacked out. When I awoke, I would find myself in another unfamiliar land, once again chasing after someone or something in the most outlandish of ways.

Sometimes, I appeared above a mountain, sometimes in the middle of a vast blue sea, but more often than not, I would either appear in the middle of a city, outside a thick brick wall, or in the forest. My victims, on the other hand, ranged from the old to the young, from the fat to the skinny, and from the poor to the rich. Whether beautiful or ugly, I would appear out of the blue and rock their whole world with a single ram.

My instincts told me that all my victims were sent very far away after I hit them, but as for where they went... well, I had no idea...

I hit people, and sometimes other organisms or aliens, simply because I had no choice but to hit them. I knew that a lot of them didn't want to get hit by me, but what could I do about it?

I hit them — that was my only purpose.

That was the only thing I knew how to do. Even if I felt bad for the people I had hit, there was nothing that I could do to alter their destined fates.

I didn't know why I hit people; I didn't know why I appeared all over these many unfamiliar places, but what I did know was that these people were meant to be hit. Or, at least, that was what I told myself to cope...

"Why did that damn truck-kun have to hit me!?" and "What did I do to deserve this!? That bastard truck-kun!" were just a few of the things that my victims thought just before I sent them to a place very far away. I didn't know why or how they unisonly decided my name to be truck-kun, but that name was oftentimes associated with disdain or a deeply rooted hatred. Therefore, I named myself.

Yes, a lot hated me. I wished they wouldn't hate me, but when your sole reason for existing was to hit people down on their luck and ruin their days, you couldn't really hope for anything much…

I wished my life was different.

I wished I didn't have to hit people to continue on existing.

Maybe I could use a sword or something instead? Well, anyway, I just wished things were different—

CRACK—

For the first time in Romulus's eternally long life, he wished for something three times in a row. This created an imbalance in the functioning of reality. From this imbalance, there emerged a flaw, and this flaw blossomed forth an anomaly.

HONK! HONK!

While out on the prowl on the side of a massive flying sea monster, Romulus suddenly heard a loud honking from his left side. When he turned to look in that direction with a bored gleam in his gaze, he saw two giant blaring cones of light. Those lights were right in front of him, and connected to them was…

"Me? Truck-kun—" before Romulus could finish widening his blinkers in shock, another wide-bodied white truck hit him at a speed that exceeded all reason!

It looked exactly like him! Truck-kun got truck-kunned!

CRACK!!!

Reality cracked and shattered like a glass panel as the imbalance was corrected and a new version of Truck-kun replaced the one that had been around since time immemorial. For the first time in a very, very, very long time, the oldest and most well-renowned myth of the modern era received a… vacation…?