"My path."
Noah spoke those words as his eyes lost focus, and his soul and mind entered a state of profound enlightenment. Not even the mighty Epoch Explosion could distract him from the changes inside him, and it reached the point he even forgot about his own existence.
Zatiel's eyes revealed surprise, and then a wide smile appeared. He showed Noah an Epoch Explosion, not for the young man to learn from it or harness the powers related to Samsara in the cataclysmic event.
The sole point of this journey was for Noah to look inside his soul and bloodline, to see that the power within him was not something he had to follow, and to widen his understanding of existence beyond the limits of a single universe.
There was no point in remaining inside this universe anymore. Although watching the birth of the Law Matrix would be a marvelous sight, it would take millions of years for that to happen, and there was no time.
Zatiel sent a seed of golden light containing a piece of his willpower into the chaotic universe. It would set root in the universe's nucleus and act as a source of knowledge and wisdom for the new generations.
Once the Samsara Thearch ensured that the seed fully integrated into the universe, he put his hand over Noah's shoulder and started the journey back to the Daybreak Universe.
The distance between universes was nearly incomprehensive, and the state of the Emptiness made it almost impossible to land on one by luck.
Zatiel obtained information about this universe and many others during his hunt for Rank 10 life forms to get the energy to return Sophia to life. He could have also used Omnipotence to find these universes, but the drain on his energy would put him into a coma for thousands of years since he had to overcome the Emptiness obstruction.
Using special wormholes, Zatiel was able to reach the Daybreak Universe extremely fast, and just as he was about to cross the Cosmic Wall and return to his home, he looked into the distance.
It was extremely far away, and it would take an average Rank 10 life form hundreds of years to travel, but Zatiel could see it as if it was right before him.
"What an interesting life form. It will be a good warm-up upon my awakening."
What Zatiel saw was a threat that could have made Endless Darkness look like nothing more than a child throwing a tantrum, but he had grown so much since then that there was no doubt in his mind he could take it with ease.
Not wanting to waste any more time, Zatiel went through the Cosmic Wall and reached the coliseum in the center of the Daybreak Sector in a second.
Venganza and Ezequiel saw the duo return and immediately focused on Noah. Both Thearchs used the power of their souls to perceive the changes in the young Neo-Demon's consciousness.
Almost a year passed since Noah left with Zatiel, but due to the time dilation, it only felt like ten seconds for all the other life forms in the Daybreak Universe.
The Emptiness Thearch and Revenge Thearch felt the change in Noah's mind, but it was one of mentality and born from within. There was no trace of external power or force influencing his mind, meaning that the Samsara Thearch kept his words, only showing Noah a path and nothing more.
Venganza stared at Zatiel before nodding. The tournament rules were respected, and the battle between Noah and Aion could continue.
Zatiel smiled at the duo and clasped his hands, pushing Noah's consciousness back into his body and vanishing.
Once Zatiel's incarnation disappeared, time returned to its normal flow in the Daybreak Universe, and the battle carried on as if nothing had ever happened.
Only those at the level of the Sacred Kings felt the disturbance in the laws once the time dilation vanished, but none were able to pinpoint the source of the feeling. Many look to the Thearchs for answers, but Ezequiel and Venganza ignore those gazes and focus on the battle.
Noah's body had been resisting the golden light coming from Aion instinctively over the last few seconds, but when his mind returned, there was a flash of confusion in them, breaking his stance.
"¡BOOM!"
The young Neo-Demon crashed against the arena's walls and felt his body breaking beneath that power. There was still a flash of confusion in his mind, but that vanished once he heard his father's voice.
"Victory or defeat doesn't matter. Just grow stronger and follow your path to the apex."
Noah smiled, and all his worries and frustration he had felt when facing Aion's golden light and The Flow vanished.
Aion's eyes narrowed as he felt a change in The Flow. He was about to crush Noah, but something happened to this one.
Before Aion could figure out what was happening, and just as the rest of the Daybreak Universe thought Noah's defeat was inevitable, shadows emerged from the crater the young Neo-Demon made in the arena's wall.
Those shadows slowly pushed the golden light back, and when people focused on them, it made many tremble as it was full of malevolence and corruption.
Ezequiel, Venganza, and the Sacred Kings were surprised to see Noah walk out of the crater, and an evil force flowed through his right and left eye.
When the ancient powerhouses that fought in the Ultimate Multiversal War saw Noah's figure, they could not help but think of the final enemy of the Prima Universe, Endless Darkness.
It was not just the energy he manipulated, but Noah's aura was also incredibly cold and full of malice. He raised his right hand, and the shadows pushed the golden light of The Flow back with even more strength.
Aion's eyes widened as he saw that an evil force had emerged from Noah, and he could not understand how this one had changed so much in just a few seconds. However, his willpower was too strong for something like that to affect his strength.
A halo of plasma made of countless threads that embody the connection of all existence manifested behind Aion, and the power of his golden light grew exponentially.
Noah's advance halted as the power of The Flow was mightier than the shadows he manifested. He stared at Aion, and an evil smile appeared as the Samsara Pentagram emerged behind him.
That manifestation of the Samsara Force did not make the shadows grow stronger since they represented different forces, and that was why Noah raised his right fist and clenched it, shattering the pentagram.
The broken pieces of the Samsara Pentagram melted into the shadows, and the next second, a new metaphysical structure manifested behind Noah.
"Moon of Darkness."
Noah's right and left eyes grew even darker, and the Samsara Eye began to bleed as its light vanished. That construct embodied all forms of corruption, doubt, and fear that the mind could envision, filling him with even greater strength.
The evil shadows that emerged from Noah grew powerful enough to once again fight off against Aion's golden light.
Conflicted feelings appeared in those that supported Noah when they saw that the young Neo-Demon was able to finally fight against Aion but was using a power that embodied the antithesis of the utopian universe his father created.
Noah saw how his shadow could fight against the Aion's golden light but was not their equal yet. It was clear that the power of the Flow was still greater than the embodiment of malice behind his back.
Noah rose to the sky before adopting the same meditative stance as his enemy. He looked right into Aion's eyes before speaking.
"There is infinite potential for darkness in everybody's mind and soul. Doubt, hesitation, greed, and anger can rise at any second, but why do we think of them as weaknesses?"
Aion's face grew cold as he saw the way the young Neo-Demon spoke to him was similar to how he did when explaining the Flow. Still, he did not interrupt this one since that dark moon was truly impressive.
The darkness in Noah's right and left eyes peaked, and slowly a new light emerged in his blinded Samsara Eye.
"They have a purpose. There is no need to cast them away or seal them. You can use them, channeling their power as a source of strength on your path to the apex.
Doubt, hesitation, fear, anger, frustration, envy. All are fuel for your soul and mind. As a universe rises again after succumbing to the darkness of the end of times, intelligent life forms can grow from those corrupted thoughts."
Noah's aura changed with those words, and a small sphere of white flames emerged in the center of his third eye. At the same time, a white sun formed behind the Moon of Darkness.
"Resurgence Sun!"
An eclipse formed behind Noah and transformed the shadows into white flames that embodied a new power that belonged to Noah and no one else.
As his smile turned from evil to harmony, enlightenment appeared in Noah's eyes.
"Daybreak Force!"
