"This…"
Damien dropped all other thoughts and focused on the mana.
His mind went back to the conversation he had with his other self in the depths of nonexistence.
'You don't always have to plow through the mountain, huh…'
This state of enlightenment was definitely sudden, but it wasn't unexpected.
Damien understood the base concept at that time, but without a body to exercise it, there was no way for the process to actually occur.
Now that his vessel and soul were both in good condition, it came naturally and didn't allow him to hold off.
He understood the meaning of those words well.
For over a decade he tried to push his laws together by force.
He tried to find a way to merge them into a single entity, because he assumed that by doing this step by step, he'd reach the truth of existence.
However, he was wrong.
As he originally thought, it was impossible to combine them.
They were whole on their own. They worked in tandem by accomplishing things their counterparts could not, but by the same reasoning, they could never achieve what their counterparts could.
This was like making spirit liquor.
If he just put two herbs together, they'd just be a mixture of two herbs. They wouldn't become something new just because he forced them into one product.
To make a proper liquor, he needed to understand the precise combination of herbs necessary to create it. They could only be combined when they were all gathered together.
The analogy wasn't completely accurate since it lacked the fundamental impossibility that followed Damien's efforts with laws, but it was close enough.
Instead of plowing through the mountain, why couldn't he just build a winding road around it?
Why couldn't he just "tether" the laws together in a way that mimicked their natural states and wait for the opportunity to fuse them into the full extent of "existence" that he desired?
He was stupid for not thinking about it earlier.
No, it was just a flaw in his mentality.
As a man who always confronted problems directly, he didn't even think about using other methods. His growth had come too easy until now, so he never had to think of alternative ways to strengthen himself.
Tunnel vision wasn't a new concept or even an unexpected one, it was just something he couldn't see precisely because he was suffering from it.
But that other version of himself directly cleared away the obstacle.
And Damien, who was not bogged down by existence at that time, understood it instantly.
The movement was ethereal. It did not exist in the Real Plane, and it was impossible to witness.
But there was a pocket in Damien's soul that contained several forces.
A swirling formless Spacetime, a black and white Samsara, a flashing rainbow Elemental, and a reddish-black seed of unknown origin.
These forces all carved out their own corners of the space, and despite how reckless their movements seemed, their paths never connected or interfered with each other.
It was like they were separated by a natural revulsion.
But at this time…
From the deep blackness that represented Damien's reformed soul, a strand pierced into the space.
It latched onto the Elemental Law and forced it into submission before digging into its core and deeply entrenching its roots.
Then, the other side of the strand rushed forward, ignoring the boundaries of this hidden space and rudely intruding into the territories of the other forces residing there.
They did not refute its presence.
They did not have the ability.
Luckily, most of them were safe.
It made a beeline straight for Samsara, and as if it had intelligence, it cowered and trembled, understanding its fate.
Once again, the strand stabbed into the Law and spread its influence.
Suddenly, there was a connection.
Samsara and Elemental energies flowed back and forth through the string, and while they still couldn't interact, they were bound together and unable to extricate themselves.
"Huu…"
Damien took a deep breath.
It felt like his chest was expanding, allowing him to intake as much air as he wished.
There were many theories about the human body.
It was hard to not see the similarities between humanity and the wider universe.
But today, Damien's body took its first step towards truly becoming a microcosm, a miniature representation of the greater universe.
The tethering of Elemental and Samsara Laws created a chain reaction that spread through his systems.
The best word to describe what these two fundamental laws represented was "life."
Of course, it was in a broader sense of the world.
Creation, Destruction, Space, and Time created a container for everything to exist, while Life, Death, and the Elements gave that container "life."
They could be said to form the material half of the concept of Existence.
Every other law, every other concept that related to the material side of existence stemmed from them.
It was supposed to be an extremely complicated process.
But strangely enough, Damien didn't feel it was difficult at all.
Rather, the closer he came to the Void, the less need he felt to define things.
Because even definition was only created to explain these processes to those who were below them.
Damien was not.
In fact, as he accepted his position as a manifestation of the Void itself, or rather, its owner, he was above all concepts.
He hadn't reached that point yet, but that was his final destination.
All concepts, in a sense, came from him.
So why did he need to define them?
They meant what he wanted them to mean.
It was a complexity that embraced simplicity.
Nevertheless, it came to an end just like that.
Damien stood up in the cave, finally feeling like himself again.
'This is the answer. Not only to my previous problems, but my current ones. As long as I can add the rest of the fundamental laws to this connection, my soul and body will rediscover their harmony.'
"Huu…"
Damien took another breath.
This time, it was to feel their weight.
The weight of the past several days.
It was hard to process, but he had to accept the genocide he committed and the death he faced in return.
He had to internalize these experiences and use them to grow.
'Funnily enough, I thought I'd feel more. I guess there are consequences to everything.'
He understood exactly why his emotions were duller.
He lost sight of existence for a moment. That had a profound impact on his psyche.
'But it's fine. In the scheme of things, it's a minor matter, since this numbness isn't universally affecting his emotions.'
He could even consider it a boon.
He couldn't hold sympathy for his enemies.
'But my own life…I have to stay excruciatingly aware of the importance of my life.'
That was something he wouldn't lose again.
He didn't want to experience that deafening nothingness again.
'Now that everything's sorted out, let's answer the most pressing question.'
Where in the world was he?
He spread his awareness and covered millions of kilometers in an instant.
He found that it was far easier than before.
'Hmm…it all looks the same. I can't get any clues from the environment, but my awareness can't pierce the atmosphere, so this can't be a regular world.'
It had to be a secret realm or something of the sort.
'I guess I'll just–'
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The explosion was more than just massive.
Damien gritted his teeth and put up several layers of defense as the mountain around him was decimated.
His vision was inhibited by the bright light around him, but his heart dropped nonetheless.
'This feeling…'
It was penetrating his body, making it impossible to ignore.
But this time, his systems didn't immediately break down.
The Ananta Matrix whirred to life and revolved furiously, creating a suction force that pulled that energy into its system and expunged it through his palms.
A fluid that looked like golden-white blood dripped onto the ground.
This energy…
Damien knew it very well.
He gritted his teeth and withheld his fury.
"Divine Energy…"
The mana of Demigods.
He didn't know who was fighting, and he didn't know what was happening, but this energy could only exist so prominently in one place.
"Fucking hell…"
Damien almost laughed at the nonsensical situation.
"Why the fuck am I in the Ancient Battlefield?!"
