When Damien's body collapsed to the ground, he seemed to have gone through a myriad of changes. His hair became grey, his skin became wrinkled. He had aged hundreds of years in the span of a few seconds.
It wasn't just that his vitality was overdrawn or depleted. If that was enough to cause such a scene, then every person would rapidly age right before their death.
Damien's situation was different.
He had just experienced the insurmountable gap between a mortal and someone who had stepped into the realm of godhood.
The gap between 3rd and 4th class was big, sure, but it was nothing in the face of this gap. At the end of the day, both 3rd and 4th class existences existed within the realm of mortals. Even with the Universe Baptism, this fact didn't change.
This was why, as long as he could use external help, Damien still had the potential to kill entry-level 4th class existences.
However, even if one was at the very peak of 4th class only seconds away from ascending to Godhood, there wasn't even the slightest hint of hope for them to defeat a Demigod, regardless of their methods.
That was the kind of concept Godhood was. The fact that Damien was even alive after being directly targeted by a Demigod's True Voice while he was just a 3rd class was a miracle. Or rather, it was a testament to the achievements and legend he had built up until now.
Within Damien's mind, multiple disasters seemed to have struck at the same time. A raging tsunami topped with a massive hurricane, an earthquake and an erupting volcano. As all of these disasters occurred, a tide of beasts rampaged wantonly and caused destruction while burning their life force for power.
Even with all of that, it wasn't enough to describe the chaos in Damien's mind.
His Mind Prison stood in the middle of the cracked and crumbling mindspace like a sole bastion of hope. Damien's ego took shelter within the construct as it attempted to withstand the winds and rain.
Even if he wanted to try and think of a solution to the problem, he wasn't able to. Any attempt to form conscious thought would only cause the damage in his mindspace to worsen.
As for Damien's body, it could be said to be in a better position than his mind, but that wasn't saying much. Besides the fact that he had rapidly aged into a decrepit old man, his mana was raging out of control within his body, attacking his internal organs and structures with no regard for its own safety.
Voom!
Damien's mana circuit suddenly roared into action. The artificial nervous system he had created was emitting a powerful suction force as if it was using a devour ability.
The Void Flames spread through Damien's extremities and used its powerful influence to try and suppress the rampaging mana, Damien's dragon bloodline roared with vitality as it attempted to put his body back together.
All of these parts that Damien had made with the intention of allowing them to act as a self-repairing and functioning machine were doing their best to counter the damage he had sustained, but at best they could only slow the process so his body didn't die immediately.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Although his real heartbeat was incredibly weak, his Mana Heart was beating at full force, regulating all the repair processes that were currently ongoing.
With the power of the suction force increasing due to the interference of the Mana Heart, large portions of ambient mana suddenly entered Damien's body after being stolen from the outside world.
But the circulation of this mana would only lead to more damage. Instead, the ambient mana all went straight into Damien's Mana Circuit and fused with it. The artificial nervous system slowly became thicker and stronger, while also attaining a level of flexibility it previously didn't have.
The Ananta Matrix was evolving under pressure to cope with the current situation, but Damien couldn't enjoy it at all.
Even if the situation within his body was holding onto a delicate balance, the situation in his mind was very close to ending in defeat.
***
In the outside world, Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan worriedly watched Damien's body for any changes.
After escaping Acier on the back of Qing Tan's Commander-level bird shadow, they had rushed to Darknorth to rest and recuperate.
The reason they chose it was simple. It was the farthest city from Acier, which meant that if the Apostles decided to pursue them later, they'd have more time to prepare.
But a week had already passed and no new problems seemed to arise.
During this week, the two of them were able to fully heal from the injuries they sustained after the True Voice descended, and they spent most of their time looking after Damien.
He had taken the brunt of that attack. Even seeing the changes that had happened in his physical appearance, they couldn't imagine the kind of pain he was going through.
"Is there anything we can do?" Feng Qing'er asked anxiously.
"Sigh, you've already asked this question tens of times over the past week, but nothing had changed. In the end, we are too powerless to do anything." Qing Tan responded wearily.
With the state of affairs as it was now, she had dropped her previously playful attitude.
She was a thrillseeker and she was someone who would act on a whim without care for others, but she wasn't heartless.
In fact, once she made a friend she was far more loyal than ordinary people would be. And over the course of the past few months, she had truly come to regard both Damien and Feng Qing'er as her friends.
Seeing Damien's condition, Qing Tan had tried many things to help him, but she wasn't able to find a single probable solution.
"The main problem is that I can't even get a full understanding of what's going on. If I try to send my mana or awareness into his body, it either gets devoured or repulsed. All we can do is make sure we guard him and provide what we can."
Feng Qing'er nodded powerlessly. She was even more distraught than Qing Tan. She was a straightforward and blunt person. She didn't know much about decorum even though she held such high status. Brazen and bold, heroic and valiant, this was how other people tended to describe her.
But inside, she was still an innocent girl who was sheltered from birth. She grew up surrounded by only women and her closest friend was a block of ice. Even when Lunaria Snow showed emotion, it was the kind of thing where one would only realize it if they were close enough to her to understand her nature.
Spending time with Damien was a breath of fresh air. She loved Luna as her closest sister, but both Damien and Qing Tan were outgoing and fun people whose personalities were similar to hers.
She didn't want Damien to die. Feeling the emptiness that she was feeling now when death was only a possibility, she didn't want to know what it felt like to truly lose someone she cared about.
But even the Reincarnation Flames were unable to help Damien's situation. Instead, they had been devoured just like Qing Tan's mana and awareness when they entered his body.
Although Feng Qing'er was curious about the little golden flame that had shown itself to devour her Reincarnation Flames, she suppressed her curiosity and put her utmost focus on observing the situation.
And like this, another week passed.
Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan had fallen asleep while caring for Damien, unable to withstand the fatigue they had accumulated from hearing the True Voice.
They had been so concerned with Damien that they had only treated their bodies without paying attention to their minds.
While the three remained unconscious within the small room they stayed in, a miniature space crack abruptly opened in the void above Damien's head.
And from that space crack, a mysterious greenish white essence flowed into Damien's mouth like water from the most refreshing spring in existence.
