Ren evaded another pulse of dark ether from the mechanical limbs barricading the exit and aggressively expanded his network's perception.
Time dilated even further.
He turned his focus inward to better comprehend his shifting architecture, scrutinizing the synergistic fusion that was still scaling through the tiers, analyzing precisely what the nascent dragon lacked to finalize its metamorphosis.
Within that deep introspective scan, he uncovered the missing variable.
The unborn dragon was actively prioritizing Ren's survival to prevent him from being overwhelmed by the encroaching corruption and enemies. Maybe a bit too much…
Instead of channeling its reserves into finalizing its own physical form, nearly the entirety of the transformative ether was being diverted to sustain Ren's synergistic combat state, ensuring he possessed the immediate power required to fight.
