Shang waited in front of the Isolation Chamber for a while.
Even for him, entering wasn't easy.
He had trained inside the Isolation Chamber three times before, and all three times had been terrifying.
"One month, 24 days, six hours," Shang said.
The Sweeper took a deep breath.
That was three hours more than last time.
Shang had nearly died last time.
"I understand," the Sweeper said.
She wanted to convince Shang not to do something like that. If he didn't stop, he would one day die to his insane training.
However, she remembered how Shang had coldly brushed off her concern earlier, and she decided not to say anything.
Shang approached the Isolation Chamber and stopped near its entrance.
His heart was racing, and his entire being was screaming at him not to enter.
It didn't show on the outside, but deep inside, Shang was terrified.
He was in deep fear.
Eventually, he took a shaky breath and entered.
Then, he sat down in the middle of the Isolation Chamber.
"Do it," he said.
The Sweeper's expression wasn't visible beneath her black cloak, but she was also anxious.
She had gotten to know Shang quite a bit over the past couple of years, and in some sense, she had a lot of respect for his willpower.
She didn't want to see Shang die.
Nevertheless, it was his decision.
The Sweeper only took a deep breath and closed the entrance.
From the outside, it looked like a black plate appeared at the entrance of the huge black cube, which then fused with the walls.
Lastly, the Sweeper activated a couple of Magic Circles, one of which was a reminder to get Shang out.
Then, she only sat down and waited beside the black cube.
Inside the cube, Shang was sitting in silence.
Funnily enough, after the door had actually been closed, Shang's fear and anxiety calmed down somewhat.
There was no way out anymore.
No Mana and no Spirit Sense could exit the Isolation Chamber.
Some of the Magic Circles absorbed all shaking of the Isolation Chamber and kept it in place.
Shang couldn't destroy the Isolation Chamber, and since it was made of Entropy Ore, Shang couldn't even use his Entropy ability to break out. Entropy Ore was immune to the powers of Entropy.
Shang was stuck.
No matter what he did, he would remain in this Isolation Chamber for one month, 24 days, and six hours.
Shang didn't move at all.
Even his mind almost shut down.
Shang's mind and body entered a deep state of trance.
And so, time passed.
After two days, all the Mana inside the Isolation Chamber was used up.
Mana was the very thing that allowed Mages and warriors to live.
Being in an area without Mana was like being underwater as a mortal.
Mana was as important for Shang as air was for a mortal.
If Shang were to be teleported to Earth as he was now, he would die within two months.
The amount of energy necessary for Shang's body to keep operating was unreal, and only Mana could produce that much energy while simultaneously being absorbable.
At this moment, the only Mana that Shang could feel was the Mana inside his own body.
Four days after all the Mana vanished, Shang's body began to crave Mana wildly.
All the Mana stored in secondary locations had vanished. These were locations like skin, hair, and nails.
From now on, Shang's body would consume the Mana stored in his Mana Pathways and Beast Core.
At this moment, Shang felt like he was slowly dying.
The sensation Shang was feeling could be compared to someone that had a plastic bag taped around their head. There was still gas in the bag, but the person knew that all the oxygen would vanish soon.
Shang felt a cold feeling of approaching death.
Just like the last couple of times he had been in here, Shang was reminded of the time in Jerald's garden when he had landed on his back and couldn't breathe for half a minute.
These two sensations were very similar.
Just this time, the feeling would hold on for infinitely longer.
By now, Shang's mind had extreme difficulties staying calm.
'Just wait. Don't think. I NEED MANA! I NEED- just calm. Don't think. MANA! MANA!'
Shang's mind was in a constant battle with itself.
Shang's rationality was telling him that panicking now would result in his death, but the feeling of approaching death was so overwhelming that Shang couldn't stop thinking about getting Mana.
'I need to stay calm. I'm dying! I need to stay calm. I'm dying!'
It was so very difficult.
It was horrifying.
'I should have never come in here! Why did I decide to come here?!'
But on the outside, Shang seemed calm.
'I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I don't want to die! Just stay calm. Just wait. As long as I stay calm, I will survive. I don't want to die!'
It was like Shang was drowning.
Yet, this sensation of drowning would keep persisting for more than a full month without any pause.
Shang had thought about suicide more than once.
It was too much.
He just wanted it to end.
Yet, he always somehow managed to keep going.
In this state, Shang spent almost 40 days.
40 days of constant drowning.
And after these 40 days, all the Mana inside Shang's Beast Core and Mana Pathways had been used up.
This was when the real terror started.
In order to keep producing life energy, Shang's body was turning itself into Mana.
The non-essential parts like skin, muscles, and bone were being turned to Mana for Shang's organs and mind.
BANG!
Shang slammed his fists against the wall of the Isolation Chamber.
"Get me out!"
"Get me out!"
Shang knew that all this hitting, kicking, and punching wouldn't accomplish anything, but his body was essentially moving on its own.
Shang was screeching in fear.
He was dying!
He was dying!
He was dying!
"Get me out! Get me out!"
"Help!"
"I'm sorry!"
The bones in Shang's arms broke as his flesh and blood started to coat the Isolation Chamber.
Shang could no longer stay calm.
He screamed whatever came to mind.
He punched whatever he could.
The screeching of nails scratching against hard stone.
The crunch of teeth breaking apart and digging into the gums.
The squelch of bloody flesh hitting the ground.
The screaming of a wild animal that was slowly dying.
The pleading of a scared child.
Shang was trying everything.
He was apologizing for all his evil deeds.
He was pleading for the God to kill him.
He was scared.
He was so scared.
Two days later, nothing inside the Isolation Chamber moved anymore.
A sack of flesh, blood and broken bone lay in the middle of the room.
It didn't move.
Shang was dying.
His mind was vanishing.
He didn't think anymore.
He only looked at the wall where the door was supposed to be with his desecrated Spirit Sense.
The wall wasn't moving.
He was dying.
The wall wasn't moving.
He was dying.
He was dying…
He was dy…
Dying…
He was…
Was…
Was…
For just a moment, clarity returned to Shang's mind.
He knew that he wouldn't survive.
One last time, he swore to himself that if by some miracle, he survived, he would never do this again…
Just like the last three times he had been in here.
This was not the first time Shang had been in this situation.
And it wouldn't be the last.
This was Shang's Path.
This was his determination.
He was going through the most terrifying experiences imaginable.
And if these experiences increased his power, he would go through them again.
It was horrible.
It was terrible.
But it increased Shang's power.
And that was all that counted.
