It came sooner than he had expected. Yet, the transition took its time.
The pain disappeared.
Rui gasped in relief. He had almost forgotten what it was like to not feel pain. Pain had been his only reality for extensive periods of time, more time than he knew. He clenched his fist as raw power coursed through his muscles. He felt invincible.
Yet, he grimaced.
('My brain... My mind... This body is too much for them as they are right now.') He winced as flashes of pain coursed through his head.
This pain was not from the evolution procedure, it was pain from his brain straining.
The human brain had limits to the amount of information it could receive an influx of from the senses. Normally, the human body did not exceed the limit, thus the brain was never strained. However, due to the evolved nervous system and the evolved sensory organs, the influx of information that his brain was receiving had risen tremendously, beyond its ordinary limits.
That was what was causing his momentary pain.
This was the reason that it was impossible for normal humans to simply avoid brain evolution. It was not possible to evolve the rest of the body without evolving the brain. The brain would quickly be overwhelmed.
In fact, Rui was certain that had he not been a Martial Apprentice or reincarnated man, his brain would have already begun suffering seizures and strokes due to the overwhelming influx of information.
Just as he tried exploring the new sensations of his new body. The world disappeared once more.
He could feel nothing.
All that was there was an infinite void.
Soon, even that void was swept away as he reached a familiar place.
('These are my memories...') He looked around as strange visions of memories of two lifetimes flashed before his eyes. He recalled going through something similar in the implantation process of the Mindmirror Symbiote.
It was peaceful and blissful, especially in comparison to what he had gone through prior.
Just as he was beginning to forget that this part of the procedure was supposed to be the hardest, he was reminded of it.
The world inside his mind shook. A strange force struck it, causing it to rumble.
Yet, it wasn't done.
He watched in horror as his memories began crumbling bit by bit. Breaking down to bits as they were destroyed by a mysterious outside force.
A wave of destruction spread through his mind world, destroying everything in sight. He watched helplessly as the countless memories and experiences he had forged across two lifetimes began crumbling to dust.
('NO!') His eyes widened as he watched his Mind Palace break down in the distance. It held strong initially, resisting the destruction. The Mind Palace was a technique that had been enhanced by the Mindmirror brain, giving it greater resilience.
Yet in the face of evolution breakthrough, it eventually crumbled as well.
Everything broke down.
Too much had broken down.
His anguish was replaced by confusion as his memories were scattered.
('Who... am I?') He wondered, uncertain. He knew nothing anymore. Nothing of who he was, where and when he was, or why and how he was.
He looked around. ('Everything... is gone.')
The wave of destruction had rippled through the entirety of his Mind world.
Suddenly, his eyes caught something in the distance. Something that was resisting destruction. It held strong. Waves of destruction crashed into it over and over again, yet it remained unfazed. It was the only thing so far that had successfully survived the assault of destruction.
('What... is that?')
It was a path.
To his shock, it was a path he was standing on.
It extended far beyond the depths of his perception. A path that elevated towards the heavens above growing in height the further it extended.
It was a path that no one else was on.
It was a calamitous path that wound through all kinds of disasters and dangers.
Ferocious beasts of various shapes and sizes.
Earthquakes
Volcanoes.
Tsunamis.
Meteorites.
It was a terrifying path.
Yet as terrifying as it was, it was even more beautiful.
It inspired fear.
Yet, it also inspired awe.
The path called out to him. Lulling him. Whispering to him.
It was a path he wanted to walk down.
The waves of destruction crashed harmlessly against the path, unable to put so much as a dent in it.
It protected Rui from the destruction, it was the sole reason that he, his consciousness, had not been annihilated by the waves of destruction.
He had lost almost all of his memories. He was beset by fear, anguish, and confusion.
Yet despite everything, an epiphany thundered in his mind.
('This... is my Martial Path...') He realized.
It was his consciousness's interpretation of it. A beautiful path that he wanted, but fraught with danger and risk.
At that moment, the wave of destruction retreated.
To his surprise, the fragmented memories pieced themselves back together, one by one. With each step the wave took back, a memory was restored.
His eyes widened as he regained the tiniest of motes of his memories every moment.
('John Falken... Rui Quarrier...') He remembered.
Recognition dawned on his every moment.
It was only after what seemed like an eternity, the wave of destruction had completely retreated. Everything had returned to how it was previously.
('No... That's not quite right.') He realized. ('It's... stronger. Greater. Larger.')
His mind had grown sturdier. Almost as if what didn't kill him only made him stronger.
('Was all of this my subconscious mind's interpretation of the evolution process to the Squire Realm?') He wondered.
If that were the case, then it could only mean one thing.
He opened his eyes as he regained his physical senses.
Raw energy coursed through his veins. Raw power brimmed in his muscles. An otherworldly amount of awareness and clarity consumed his mind.
He didn't even need the doctors to verify it.
He knew it from the bottom of his heart.
He had ascended to a higher Realm of power.
