It was hard for Damien to feel uncomfortable in the Abyss.
The first half an hour was no more than a period of adjustment, so he couldn't trust his feelings as he felt them, but as time passed and these emotions and sensations became more tangible, he could no longer deny his familiarity with the Abyss.
However, Damien wasn't the only human in the blackness.
No, he wasn't the only "foreigner" who explored its depths.
He was merely the only one who felt comfort doing so.
In the current instance, which could be considered a combination of an unknown number of instances in the Abyss, there were three other foreign entities scattered throughout its depths.
The first two were deep in the blackness, shackled by forces unknown, while the last…
Nevertheless, their identities or even existences were unknown to Damien.
He was currently following the path set out for him by his mana, a path leading straight to Al'Katra.
Only, he couldn't sense its end. He could only mindlessly follow it through the swirling blackness while admiring the sights around him.
Months passed like that.
The best way to describe the surroundings really was "chaotic."
Damien didn't know anything about the universes that once existed in this space, but he felt like he could sense their vestiges as he moved.
The random dilations in time weren't random at all, but the result of terrifying collisions that took place in a time long past. The dead zones empty of even space itself were the same, remnants of ancient battlefields.
As Damien moved, he tried to perceive these to the best of his ability.
At first, he couldn't do much but see the shadows of their existence, small pieces of reality that were lost in the void.
However, with the passing of time, his ability naturally increased.
He currently stood in yet another piece of the blackness.
Below him, if such a description even fit, was a dark galaxy of rubble. It was nothing more than an optical illusion, but the more he stared at it, the more its form changed.
From a random ruin in the middle of nowhere to a glorious ancient civilization with technologies the current universe simply couldn't fathom.
Faceless shadows populated that civilization. Some went about their daily lives unaware of danger, while others desperately fought to protect their fates and loved ones.
However, the enemy they faced was too terrifying.
Manifested in this vestige as a tsunami of darkness, the enemy overcame them before they could even properly prepare.
It was as if they had no conscious understanding of the threat.
Damien couldn't understand it.
The destruction of this place was surely due to Nox interference, but why were these people so…weak?
'I thought Grand Heavens Boundary's situation was desperate, but it seems I was wrong. There's a reason for its survival after all.'
To be the last remaining piece of the wider universe, Grand Heavens Boundary was definitely special.
But this kind of difference was far too exaggerated.
"Are you curious?"
Damien jumped in shock and rapidly teleported away, however, the Abyss limited his range of motion severely.
When he turned around, he was only a few tens of feet away from the speaker, nowhere near the distance he wanted to retreat.
'I didn't sense a thing.'
Damien's eyes narrowed.
It wasn't present before, he could be certain of that.
But at some point while he was observing the vestiges of the ancient civilization, an abode appeared behind him.
It was an old rickety shack that seemed extremely out of place in the Abyss.
It sat on a small piece of land no bigger than enough to support its structure. It was a humble structure that looked like the abode of a hermit far disconnected from society.
Yet, it carried a strange homey feeling that Damien couldn't comprehend.
Sitting on the porch, at a small wooden coffee table with two chairs, was an old man who fit perfectly into the shack's ambiance.
He was the one who spoke just now.
"Who are you?" Damien asked cautiously.
In this place where he knew nothing, he couldn't act rashly even with his current strength.
"Me? My identity is meaningless now. It has long withered away in the rivers of time. However, you, young man, are quite an interesting character. I never expected to see someone like you again in my life."
Damien frowned. Every time the old man spoke, his heart panged with a sense of familiarity of unknown origin.
The old man gazed at him with a smile, his eyes scrunched.
"Young man, this old man is quite thirsty after eons of wandering. Do you mind offering a drink?"
"Hm? In a place like this, that's your first request? I thought I was supposed to be the strange one, old man."
Against his conscious will, Damien responded with the same familiarity,
The old man's smile widened.
"Hahaha, indeed it is. For me, there is no longer any benefit in obtaining too much knowledge. This old man only wishes to taste the beauties of this world before passing."
Damien raised his brow.
"Odd phrasing, but I get it."
He swam through the few feet of blackness that separated them and landed on the rock, walking up to the old man and taking a seat next to him.
Something was pulling him towards this interaction, as if he'd dearly regret missing it.
And following that pull, Damien wordlessly pulled several herbs out of his subspace and began crafting his latest miracle.
"This is No. 105: Heaven's Blessing. It isn't perfect yet, but it's the peak of my current abilities."
Two cups appeared on the table and were soon filled with a glistening golden nectar.
The old man picked it up and took a whiff before sighing contentedly.
"Indeed, you have talent in this field."
He took a sip and smiled as he savored its taste.
"Don't kid me. Even after experimenting for years, I haven't been able to make a single drink that's affected me how I desired," Damien responded wryly, joining him in this drink.
"Haha, you are too hasty, child. In pursuits like this, don't you think patience is just as important as skill?" The old man remarked slowly.
"Yeah, I also realized it recently, and that's what helped me create this one. However, just patience and skill aren't enough. If they were, the peak I desire would've already been reached."
"So you are facing inevitability."
Damien's eyes widened.
The old man's words didn't mean much, but to Damien, they meant everything.
Because the problem that plagued him more than anything else ever since he started trying to fuse Elemental and Samsara was precisely inevitability.
It filled his thoughts and corrupted his ambition, forcing him to marvel at it and lose hope.
He refused, but the most he could do was refuse.
There was no way past this wall.
Not that he'd found, at least.
"Old man, what're you talking about?" Damien replied, correcting his expression.
"There's no such thing in my books."
The old man gave him a sideways glance.
"Whether you choose to accept it or not, inevitability exists in all things. However, it is also true that practitioners exist on the basis of overcoming such concepts."
"So, young man, what is standing in your way? Inevitability is only a word, but it can come from anywhere. Is your inevitability a product or your environment, or have you placed it on yourself?"
Damien stared into his cup. He stared into his reflection in the golden dew, pondering the question.
This old man…
Was he still talking about spirit liquor?
Or…
'No, I don't even need to consider such a stupid thought.'
The question may not have been as deep as he perceived it.
The old man was likely asking him if materials were the problem, or if it was his own lack of knowledge inhibiting him.
However, he had to question it seriously.
Facing this wall of inevitability, he'd always blamed the universe in his heart. He always thought he needed to surpass the universe's limits, using it as the face of inevitability.
But…
Was it really?
Was the universe the one inhibiting him?
He wasn't even inside the universe's boundaries anymore. If it truly was the case, wouldn't he have gained an epiphany the second he entered the Abyss?
Even if that was too far-fetched, the past few months were filled with insight and comprehension, yet he hadn't taken a single step forward in the fusion of laws he so desired.
So, how could he blame the universe?
What if…
What if the shackles that bound him were not a matter of external influence, but an internal demon?
'This…'
Damien looked back up at the–
"–old man…?"
His eyes widened.
There was nobody in the seat beside him.
No, there wasn't even a seat.
Somehow, the entire shack disappeared while he was immersed in thought, leaving him floating alone in the Abyss.
However, the cup of Heaven's Blessing in his hand was proof that this encounter truly happened.
It wasn't just some illusion.
That old man originally attracted his attention by asking him about the ancient civilization he was observing, but throughout their conversation, he didn't bring it up once.
Instead, they had a small talk about spirit liquor before he made himself sparse.
Yet, to Damien, that talk wasn't about spirit liquor at all.
Just slightly, he felt the watershed in his soul unclogging, showing him a chance.
Did that old man know?
But if he did, how?
Damien's mind was filled with questions about his existence, to the point where he had to force himself to stop thinking about it and return focus to the task at hand.
"In the end..." he muttered.
"...old man, just who are you?"
