Dyon coughed violently, blood spilling from his lips. No matter how hard he tried, it was seemingly impossible for him to catch his breath.
Was this how one was supposed to feel when facing danger? It seemed too foreign to Dyon. He almost questioned himself… Was he truly brave? Wasn't bravery about overcoming your fear? How was it brave if you were simply too stupid to feel fear?
The first time in his life that Dyon felt fear was when facing the true body of the entity. His body trembled and something shouted at him to give up. Still, he stubbornly persisted.
But, could he have done the same thing had the entity not been chained? Could he have faced his fears had his enemy been it instead of Elder Daiyu and Loki?
The abyss of his black flames filled him with such an unceasing panic that he felt like he was drowning, like there wasn't enough air to breathe, as though a shadowy hand had reached into his chest and squeezed his lungs into nothingness.
His blood ran cold as his body trembled in a never-ending shiver. "Cold… Too cold…"
Dyon's lips inexplicably turned blue as his master watched, broken hearted. Despite having awoken, Dyon's mental state was in pieces. He hadn't even realized that the spirits within his mind's eye had been imprisoned by his soul, making them completely unable to move or speak.
The only two by Dyon's side who could do anything were the celestial hamster twins, but even they couldn't get through to Dyon. As for the blond twins within the tower, they had no real control over their cultivation and didn't have any idea about how to leave. Still, even if they could, what difference would it make?
Dyon, a young man of barely 30 years of age was dealing with the weight of the end of everything as he knew it. He felt what others couldn't feel, and that inevitability was living, growing and festering within him.
In an instant, Dyon's comprehension had touched on the door of the dao. Yet, that comprehension completely shattered his resolve. It was far too early for him to understand… Far too early for him to understand that everything must come to an end… Far too early for him to understand that no matter how powerful he grew, there would be a day that he and his loved ones became nothing more than dust…
He couldn't speak, he couldn't move… He simply curled up on the ground, vomiting whatever contents of his stomach remained undigested.
His death will never made him feel this way. His death will's path subdued the feeling… It wasn't about comprehending death, it was about bending it to his will… It was this path that lead Dyon to forming an undead body far more powerful than any other death will user could match…
Yet, something about his black flames were so real, so sinister, so much more powerful than even death itself that it shattered the mind of a man who had faced his own death countless times.
Head Arie's eyes watered. 'There's only one will that could cut down my grandson like this… I really was right about his flame's third characteristic… His talent crippled him…'
The truth of the matter that death wasn't difficult to accept. It was saddening and heartbreaking, but it was something we all faced. At the end of the day, many found their own way to justify the lives they led so that they could one day face their ends… Whether that be leaving behind a memorable legacy or turning to religion or simply enjoying your time to the fullest.
In the end, there was something about death that was controlled… orderly… something that gave it meaning and consistency. There was a method, a reason… a certain logic to it that was easy to accept. This was why even a child could know that one day, they would no longer exist, yet they could still smile and happily play around with their friends. It was why a bed ridden elder could still muster their last bits of energy to bid their families fair well.
However, some things were without order… Some things were so completely without meaning that they were completely unacceptable.
Dyon had comprehended an evil he had no business comprehending… A malevolent wickedness marred with disgusting intentions… Without any rhyme or reason… A will that wanted to see the destruction of all things not because it had a purpose or a greater goal, but simply because it didn't want anything in this world to exist.
Dyon clenched his head, his teeth chattering to the tune of illusory cold while his fingers became stained with blood.
His eyes filled with tears. Even he didn't know why they were shed… Something inside of him just wouldn't let them stop.
Dyon's whimpers were overwhelmed by his quick and short breaths. "It shouldn't exist… I shouldn't exist…"
At that moment, the stream of transparent tears that coated Dyon's cheeks turned red… then black…
A young man who once stood with his back straight, willing to face down any danger was shedding tears of blood for a tragedy he had no idea about… It wasn't for his parents, it wasn't for his wives, it wasn't even for his friends…
In the next instant, an audible cracking sound reverberated through the second tier.
"No!" Head Arie shouted, completely beside herself.
There was no mistaking it… Dyon's dao heart had shattered completely.
Dyon's eyes became blank, as though he was completely soulless. His mind was still there, and his thoughts still moved… But he seemed… Completely empty.
The shattering of one's dao heart occurs either due to a direct or indirect questioning of one's dao path. Whatever it was that Dyon saw within his black flames not only made him question himself, but even reached the point of questioning all of existence itself.
He couldn't understand what the point of it all was. Why did we all exist if it just ended in this way? Where was the purpose? What should drive us?
Shockingly, despite his dao heart shattering to pieces, the dao array formed within Dyon's inner world only slightly trembled in response, as though its existence was far beyond imagining, as though it no longer needed Dyon's comprehension to continue existing…
However, Dyon's other wills began to slowly crumble… His weakest were the first to go, dissipating into nothingness… His time will shriveled, its small kernel of comprehension withering away… His wind will that had only just been on the cusp of the intent realm shrunk in on itself… His demonic will shattered and his comprehension of the [Demon Emperor's Will] technique regressed to being unworthy of even the first stage of the first act…
His crystal will disappeared. His music will faded. His space will caved in on itself. Even his weapon's master will, the representation of absolute confidence had no arrogance to hold on to, scattering into the wind.
The rate of dissipation for his death will was much slower, seemingly anchored by his overwhelmingly strong soul due to the fact it had entered the one with soul realm… However, although it was slow, it was still steadily weakening…
It really did seem that when someone was suffused with dark days, they completely forgot the good.
Just the same way Dyon touched the gate of the dao with his black flames, he did the exact same with his white flames. Yet, it seemed the comprehension given by the black flames had completely taken over, making Dyon completely ignore his yin.
Still, the fact that Dyon had survived such a devastating shattering of his dao was astounding in and of itself. Under normal circumstances, when one faces the destruction of such a strong dao, the soul would dissipate. But, Dyon's soul didn't even seem to notice that anything was wrong, continuing to suck on its thumb and gurgle, completely oblivious to the happenings around it.
It was only now that the spirits were finally released from their invisible chains. But, it was too little too late…
Esmeralda was racked with guilt. 'If he had more accumulation, more life experience, this wouldn't have happened like this. All he knows is fighting and trials, he hasn't experienced what life is, how can he combat something like this?'
Maybe in the mortal world, Dyon would be an adult at already 30 years old. But, in the martial world, he was nothing more than an infant. In a world where even a foundation stage expert could live a thousand years, what did 30 years count for?
