"Hm?"
Damien was flabbergasted by the form of address. Of course, becoming Aquazyl's successor was indeed his end goal, but he didn't expect to be called by the title quite yet.
After all, he hadn't done anything to earn it.
"Is there a reason you're crowning me so early?" He asked Tilis curiously.
"Hahaha, whether it's early or not merely depends on perception. To me, your existence alone is enough to validity that title." Tilis replied.
"I see…" Damien said. He didn't really know how to respond, nor was he in the mood to entertain these two elders.
Knowing their backstory, it was a sure case that they could give him all the answers he possibly wanted, but knowing their type after meeting characters like Tian Yang and Malcolm, he knew those answers wouldn't come easy.
Now, Damien was through with Aquazyl. He wanted to return to Hidden Death Valley and begin his training regime before focusing on the true great issue at hand.
Aquazyl's matters could wait until the Prominence War ended.
"Don't be so hasty to turn us away," Raka said with a smile, as if predicting Damien's thoughts. "While it's true that we can't tell you everything you wish to know, we at least wish to tell you one thing."
"Do not fall victim to the Void." Tilis finished.
Damien's eyes widened. No matter how many times he used Void Mana, those who could recognize it could still be counted on one hand. Even looking at those in the Human Domain who'd heard legends of the "Seed" weren't completely aware of the Void. They only knew it as a mysterious and powerful power.
"What do you mean by that?" Damien asked. His interest was more than just a little piqued at this point.
Tilis shrugged. "What we mean can only be discovered by you. If you're told the answer at a time like this, it'll only negatively affect your growth. Is that what you wish for?"
"Of course not," Damien said begrudgingly. He understood, but that didn't mean he wasn't put off.
"To not succumb to the Void…I think…I can somewhat relate…"
When he thought about it, Damien realized that he'd always been playing a mental game of tug-of-war with his Void Physique.
The reason his journey as a practitioner didn't start until he was 17 was solely due to the Void Physique's interference. Even after that, he'd been constantly led by the nose by his physique, being tested again and again to prove his ability to use it.
Now, devour had evolved and the Void Physique had somewhat integrated with his body. Through this, he gained access to Void Mana.
But did Void Mana listen to his command?
When he used it as normal mana, it acted like normal mana. At least in this regard, it didn't cause him any problems. But when he attempted to utilize the Void's power, his mana would always disobey him.
It was strange to have mana that behaved semi-intelligently, but after getting used to the Void Flames, Damien was somewhat acclimated to the situation. Still, that didn't change the strangeness of it all.
And on top of that, everything he devoured would be fed to his Void Mana. The mana itself would grow stronger, but Damien wouldn't see any of those benefits himself. It was like he was being enslaved by it slowly.
His eyes hardened when he realized it. To control the mana and not let it control him, while it sounded easy, could it truly be called that?
And even if he understood what he had to do, how would he go about doing it?
'Another troublesome task has loaded itself onto my plate, huh…'
This wasn't a new problem, but rather an old one that he was only just becoming aware of. Rather than saying it was being added to his plate, it was better to say that this was the task making up the plate itself.
'Every time I feed the Void Mana, it feeds me comprehensions in return. Only, I haven't had the time to sift through or even try to grasp these comprehensions. My understanding of the Void is negligible to say the least, but if I want to control it, I first have to understand it in full…'
Damien shook off his thoughts and looked around. Raka and Tilis had left at some point, apparently only finding him to deliver that singular message. When he sent a mental transmission to Zara through their link, he learned that she was still in the process of collecting everything from the underground space as he'd asked.
Within the Tephit Clan main headquarters, the scenes of carnage had come to a complete halt. The allied forces were busy cleaning up the aftermath and making sure there were no survivors.
'Lunaria had a Baptism during that mess, and Qing'er seems to be on the precipice of one too. I should go meet them later…but for now, it seems like I have time.'
Damien teleported away from his position and arrived atop the massive skyscraper where he met Tephit hours prior. Here, with complete peace and silence, he submerged himself into his spiritual world.
The usual scenery revealed itself, countless dead stars and the four true worlds he'd bound, a blazing sun, a starry sky, and the spiritual continent he spent so much effort piecing together in the Primordial Undying Realm.
And on that spiritual continent was a black egg. It was sleek and metallic, its shell covered in beautiful mysterious patterns that made Damien's eyes sting just looking at them.
'This is…a comprehension egg?' Damien wondered. He'd never heard of such a concept, but the random name he gave the egg didn't do it any justice.
The egg had not a single fluctuation of aura or power. The way it sat made it look dead and incredibly useless. If any normal person saw this egg, they'd likely ignore it completely even after seeing its unique appearance.
But…it also gave off a feeling of destruction. A feeling of endlessness and calamity, a feeling of nothingness within existence, a feeling of genesis and nihility.
The myriad of feelings projected by this egg didn't come from physical aura or even some sort of mental pressure, rather, it was quite literally just a feeling Damien got when he looked at it. He had no idea how it was actually transmitted to him.
'It's dangerous…incredibly dangerous…' a mad grin lit up his face. Because he'd been carefully planning his steps for a while, it had been a truly long time since he met a situation where death seemed to stare him right in the eyes.
Why did this feeling always make him so excited?
His body flashed over to the egg without hesitation. His hand reached out and brushed against its surface.
In the next instant, his mind vanished from his body, transported to a different dimension entirely.
And while it was a harrowing experience, a true land of nothingness that could drive any normal man insane, Damien only had a single thought in mind…
'Why is it always darkness when I get transported to different dimensions? Can't it be something more creative? Like damn…'
