Now, it had been a long time since Damien felt this kind of excitement, so he may have gone a bit overboard, but he didn't lose his head.
He was elated, but he was still aware that this blessing only brought him to where he should've been in the first place. If he wanted to reach his goal, he needed to continue working on himself.
What made him feel so elated was the fact that the blessing wasn't a one-and-done situation. It would continue aiding him, allowing his foundation to remain sturdy and supporting him even as he grew.
Which meant from now on, he didn't have to worry about being bogged down by his surplus of powers!
It was a relief more than anything else. He no longer had a backlog to worry about.
His emotions and mentality, and now his body and power, had all caught up.
It could be considered something like a "perfect martial state."
Nevertheless, Damien let loose his rampant emotions on the beasts they encountered, hardly asking for help from the girls.
The path to the Lunar River wasn't nearly as convoluted as the one to the Blessing Shrine, a simple climb past these challenges to reach where it ran.
'We're 1200 kilometers high now, and the average strength of beasts is approaching the peak of 3rd class. We may not be able to progress so smoothly from this point.' Damien thought to himself as the group reached the riverside.
'We'll also be losing Sia's help, so taking up every challenge might not be the best idea.'
Damien looked at the woman who'd formed a business relationship with them.
This was the last stop of their journey, and also where Damien was to take his promised reward.
The Lunar River was deep black in color, its flow barely noticeable due to this. The only color seen in its waters was the slight lunar white glow emanating from the riverbed.
"Unlike the Blessing Shrine, this river's effects will not always be magisterial. It has the simple ability to provide one absolute comprehensive power for as long as they can remain submerged in its waters."
"However, it's not easy to stay inside, huh," Damien finished.
Sia nodded.
"I cannot speak on its exact effects, but I have heard that it is impossible for most to last more than 30 seconds inside."
"What happens if they overstay their welcome?"
"Those who did not know their limits have all exited this river with their minds crippled, driven to insanity."
Damien frowned and looked at the strange body of water.
'If the mental strain is that bad, this "absolute comprehensive ability" must be way more intense than what she's letting on.'
Damien's brow suddenly raised.
'Perhaps…'
"Within the river, you will be able to sense my mana as if it were your own. You will naturally obtain what you desire."
Sia spoke again, confirming his thoughts.
It was exactly what he wanted. Now that he'd gained the benefit of wholeness, the best course of action was to improve his understanding of Universal Law again.
After all, controlling Universal Law meant bringing everything else he had up with it. There was no such thing as a universal law without the components that formed it.
"There's no need to wait, right? Does anyone have questions?"
Damien looked to the girls, who shook their heads with eagerness in their eyes, and back to Sia one more time before shrugging.
"Alright then. Good luck, and be careful!"
He stepped over the river, slowly submerging himself in its waters.
When his head went under, his senses exploded.
Everything became perceivable with the slightest intention, the laws of the Severed World that remained completely hidden displayed themselves, a sight enough to drive anyone mad.
Damien kept his eyes closed and focused his senses. He didn't feel the suppression as much because of his path, but he could absolutely understand why people left this place insane.
'This isn't absolute comprehension. This is true embodiment.'
Damien could feel his soul being torn in several different directions as the Laws he controlled tried to swallow him. If he allowed it, he had no doubt he could become a true master in controlling his chosen law, but that wasn't the goal!
Damien concentrated and felt for any other physical presences around him.
He found Rose, Ruyue, and Elena soon enough, each with a multitude of expressions flashing across their faces as they saw the full complexity of the partial universal law.
But no matter how he searched, he still couldn't find Sia, just like when they'd first met.
Wisp!
Damien caught something in the corner of his perception, the slightest trace of a strange yet familiar mana.
'Does she have to make it so complicated?'
He complained, but he still faithfully followed the mana and surrounded it with his perception.
He found himself in what felt like a school of fish, yet each fish was a wisp of mana that wriggled and moved like it was alive.
'She won't help me; I just have to do it.'
Blind comprehension was definitely something Damien was looking forward to.
Definitely…
'Not like I have any other choice.'
He sighed inwardly and shut up, focusing on what he had to do.
The combination of the Severed World's Universal Law's clarity, Sia's mana, and the amplificatory effects of the Lunar River provided him a perfect environment to comprehend the elusive concept.
Plus, with his new perspective on Vector Control, he had a foothold to rely on unlike when he first tried.
He already defined Universal Law internally, so all he had left to do was pick it apart and study its pieces.
And these pieces were…
'I see, so I'll have to do something like that in the future.'
A scene flashed through Damien's mind, allowing him to realize his path forward in comprehending this specific law.
'But the future is the future. Is the universe telling me not to get in over my head?'
At the end of the day, he wasn't even a Divinity yet and he was trying to control something even they couldn't grasp the hem of.
Perhaps the reason he'd never been able to turn this law tangible was because he wasn't strong enough yet?
'And perhaps Sia knew about that from the start.'
Damien sighed and shrugged.
'There's an order to all things. You can't expect pizza to come out of the oven if you don't assemble it and put it in first.'
He was confident that as long as he was able to bring the rest of his laws to their respective peaks, Universal Law would naturally reveal itself to him.
At that time, he would be able to use it as a basis to—
'That's too much forward thinking. I can withstand the river, but the Severed World's laws clearly want to force me out. Let's not get caught up on needless thoughts and waste this opportunity.'
He encountered a setback, but he was not planning to leave it until he gained something from Sia.
He refused to work for free!
'If I can't get the main entree, should I monopolize the appetizers and desserts?'
He grinned to himself.
'The sub-universe really isn't going to like this one.'
'Devour.'
