Minutes passed but felt like weeks. Damien continued observing his body as it changed, enduring the pain and holding onto his vitality with everything he had.
He'd lost far too much blood. If it wasn't for the immense amount of vitality he'd gained over the years through Devour, he would've already died.
But as the situation continued to worsen, Damien was able to find a glimpse of hope.
'That is…'
His senses went to his Mana Heart. His gaze was attracted by a fleck of white and black that was hidden in one of the heart's crevices.
'That speck holds so much vitality…'
The amount of vitality in the small speck of light was enough to match an entire vial of Damien's blood. It was immensely stronger than anything he currently had access to.
'If I can reproduce it, I can finally get out of this fucked up situation.'
Damien was, quite frankly, annoyed. It didn't matter if he was close to death already. Since he couldn't feel its ghastly hands creeping across his skin, it meant that panic was unnecessary…
At least, for now.
His awareness concentrated on the white and black fleck of light, digging into its material and carefully observing its structure.
It was only a full minute later that Damien finally came back to his senses.
'This thing…is it related to what happened before?'
The energy coming from the speck of light was incredibly familiar. As Damien became more in tune with it, he was able to realize where this familiarity came from.
This mysterious and contradictory energy signature was the exact same feeling that spread through his body as he fought Sebastian. It was a result of the strange interaction between his mana and Sebastian's, something he still hadn't had the chance to completely explore.
Nevertheless, Damien's comprehensive abilities were unparalleled in the universe. It didn't take him long to feel the origins of the energy.
'Life and Death. This is absolutely a combination of Life and Death Laws…! But how could two completely contradictory energies come together like this? Their duality is being destroyed…'
Damien's eyes widened.
'No, are they perpetually empowering each other?'
Within that tiny speck of light, countless mysteries of Life and Death swirled together in perfect harmony. They interacted, but they didn't merge. Their energies meshed, but didn't completely overlap.
'What a confusing state. On the surface, it contradicts duality, but in reality, it is the most foundational representation of it. When Life and Death come together properly, can they form such a beautiful cycle?'
When he thought about it, the relationship between these two concepts had always been like that. Life and Death swirled together and the fine line where they overlapped was the basis of reincarnation. Together, these processes formed the cycle of Samsara.
'Is that cycle…being represented within my body?'
The situation changed immediately.
It wasn't a physical change. Damien's body was still breaking down by the second. His blood was still forming a river on the ground. However, the connotation was completely different.
'Am I being rebirthed?'
A flash of yin and yang enveloped his mind.
'I see…'
The mysteries of Life and Death flowed into his spiritual world and formed a seed within the vast starfield decorating it.
'I must survive.'
The seed lit up and dyed the world black and white. The glamorous light gathered into a beam and cut through the bounds of reality, connecting with its counterpart in Damien's body.
'If I can get through this process…'
The seed within the mysterious white space lit up when the beam connected with it. Just like its predecessor, it formed a connection that transcended reality…
'…I will transcend humanity.'
…with a barely noticeable fleck of light in Damien's Mana Heart.
The light refracted instantly.
A triangular connection was formed between three separate representations of the same force.
And finally…
"AHHHHHHHH—!"
Damien was dyed white and black. An incarnation of light flew out of his chest and hovered in the air. His physical body, however, exploded like it was shot countless times. Every ounce of blood within his system was forced out, splattering across any surface existing in the room as his withered form fell to the floor.
However, the blood didn't stay in place for long. It dripped down onto the ground while completely ignoring the concept of cohesion. It collected into a ball, a globular mass that floated into the air in the center of the room.
VOOM!
Damien's light incarnation shot rays of its power into the mass of blood. The blood shone with iridescent light as it began to change form.
It became thicker, yet more ethereal. It became subtle, yet the vitality within was preposterous. The blood completely changed forms into a different substance, a higher existence than its former state.
It was blood that represented the wheel of Samsara. Even as it existed, it was in a constant cycle of Life, Death, and Reincarnation. The properties of this blood were ever-changing and the possibilities it opened the gateway to were limitless.
With this blood substituting his natural lifeblood, Damien could truly become something that transcended a human.
The infusion process was finally completed. The new substance shot through the air and pierced Damien's heart.
Thump!
Damien's dry and withered heart let out a weak thump.
A small bead of white and black blood dissolved in its center.
A flicker of light shone brightly from his Mana Heart, empowering the bead of blood.
Ba-dum…!
Ba-dum!
Ba-DUM!
A burst of vitality filled the heart. The white and black blood bead merged with it, giving it a flow of blood to restart its processes.
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP!
The newly revived heart was beating louder than ever before. It beat with such force that space trembled under its immense vitality.
Damien's heart utterly transformed, and the blood that came out of the new organ wasn't red…it was white and black.
VOOM!
The new blood spread through his body in an instant. His withered form was being revitalized at an observable pace, almost to the extent that it was miraculous.
His skin returned to its jade-white color, a rosy complexion alighting his face and even enhancing his beauty. He gave off a strangely contradictory aura, as if he was both existing and not existing at the same time.
The Ananta Matrix whirred to life. A stream of Void Mana snaked out of the ethereal circuit and entered Damien's body, merging with his bloodstream thereafter.
A devouring force spread, eating away at a small portion of the overflowing vitality coming from the white and black blood. The vitality itself was broken down into pure essence which was transferred back to the ethereal circuit.
At the same time, almost as if by fate, Damien's physical Mana Circuit was repaired by the immense circulation of vitality.
"Mana" was introduced back into Damien's body.
"Vitality" was present in droves.
And with that…
'De…vour…'
The purple-eyes genius who'd been hanging onto life by an extremely thin thread was finally able to take action.
A gaping black hole opened above his head.
Every single strand of essence in the surrounding several thousand kilometers disappeared as if it had never existed.
And the fabric of reality trembled ever so slightly.
