"It's faint."
Su looked in a certain direction and heaved a sigh. He could barely sense the waves of Shi Tian's struggle.
Bright crimson flames surrounded his body. It was the [Nine Lives Burning Samsara Art] at work.
As early as four years ago, Shi Tian gave it to him before they parted. Shi Tian knew that Su, with his specialness, could exert far greater power with it. It was supposed to be a trump card against the honkai, though it remained unused until now.
He did not stop until he burned all of his lifespan.
In the truest sense, Su died.
Buzz-!
The uniqueness of the [Nine Lives Burning Samsara Art] came into play. The bright crimson flames continued to become stronger. It began to consume the very essence of his soul, followed by a spontaneous burst of power from nowhere.
His closed eyes opened.
'Burning the future…'
The highest level of the forbidden technique entailed burning one's future. This results in complete obliteration without any way of resurrection—even if one tries to go back in time to resurrect others.
For a momentary brilliance, Su burned his everything. The level of his soul, which was already exceptional, was elevated. His act brought him up to the level of a Void Refinement Realm expert!
"It's my turn to contribute."
Just as he resolved himself, the higher spatial dimensions projected a figure. It appeared right in front of Su.
"To see a human willing to step onto eternal damnation. It has been a long while."
The projection itself bore no face. It was a will based on the higher-dimensions.
"But again, you are not the only one."
Su thought of something and asked.
"Was it you?"
"It is I."
The two went into complete silence.
"I will assist you once. A game of chess will do in exchange."
An ethereal force stopped Su's act of courting death. Simultaneously, it also elevated him to the absolute pinnacle of a Void Refinement Realm expert. Unfortunately, he could only do something "once" before it disappears.
Su gazed at the phantom once more. This time, he saw it took the form of an elderly man.
One concept popped up on his mind:
'Erudition…'
*****
Ripple-!
It was a wave at first. Akin to stepping barefoot on the shore, it is negligible.
Crash-!
Its sudden increase to a raging tsunami woke up Kiana all at once. She fought the heaviness of her eyelids and the drowsiness of her head. Standing up felt like carrying a mountain as an ordinary human.
The disruption to her 'Embrace' to the Cocoon of Finality gave rise to problems, but they weren't major enough compared to something else.
"Tian…"
Kiana's senses exploded. She "saw" the full view of all eleven dimensions at once. The sheer amount of information exposed to her caused her mind to overload. It took a while to adapt to it.
She recalled his teachings of the higher dimensions.
"Three dimensional space… no. The Imaginary Space exists within all spatial dimensions. I have to look at them one-by-one…"
Being a Peak Golden Core Realm cultivator helped her a lot. Had she not been a cultivator, it would have taken a long time to get out of her sleep, much less properly control the Cocoon's power. She bypassed years of effort by becoming one.
Then again, it only brought her on the starting line. Kiana still faced the problems she had when she first wielded Finality in the canon.
Without a proper anchor to look at, she found it difficult to exert her influence on the real world. The vast information found within eleven dimensions overwhelmed her mind.
Ripple-!
A figment of a green leaf suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Kiana stared at it and knew who it was.
The leaf turned into Su's figure.
"Grandpa Su!"
"..."
He was speechless when he heard the familiar address.
"I will place the marker on where to strike. My power will not last long."
"Understood."
His figure disappeared after speaking those words. Moments later, Kiana 'saw' a noticeable anchor. She knew what she needed to do next.
Appearing on the Moon with a thought, Kiana gestured her fingers like a gun.
"We will have a talk later."
Along with her words…
"Bang."
…came the orbital bombardment.
*****
Admittedly, I felt cornered.
If this last resort fails, I would have to spend my life to eliminate IX's influence. So long as it grows stronger, it will inevitably attract the Aeon's gaze. The scene would be similar to the Black Sun in Takamagahara, but worse.
I was about to attack when a blazing white comet pierced a gaping hole inside the imaginary space.
It carried a faint set of words—one I am familiar with.
"We will have a talk later."
…
I am screwed.
My lips inadvertently turned into a helpless smile.
My isolation for two years fucked up with my mental state somehow. Knowing I couldn't lift the imaginary barrier I set up around this imaginary space, I chose not to burden others and handled it on my own.
It was a bad choice, yet I did it. I also didn't consider calling the sleeping Kiana at that time.
I am really screwed.
Looking at the half-melted puddle of darkness, the sense of unease in my heart dropped by half.
Between an angry wife and an Aeon, the former is scarier.
I scanned IX's influence one more time. Its power dropped by a quarter. Shockingly, the power Kiana sent out bore semblances of the Dao Integration Realm. It was why her attack was so effective against IX's influence.
I don't know why the Cocoon of Finality had that. Making sense of this world with immortal cultivation knowledge is useless at times.
"Tian."
I looked up and saw Seele crawl into the hole created by Kiana. Her body left behind traces of blue butterflies as she landed on the ground.
I was about to warn her when I saw the power surrounding her. It belonged to the Sea of Quanta. It continued to surge upward, reaching the Void Refinement Realm in terms of level.
I swallowed the words I was about to say.
The shadows retreated with each of her steps. Seele's body turned into a flash before reaching for a hug.
"I borrowed its powers and… it agreed. I can strike it once."
"Leave as soon as you complete it."
She acted as if she didn't hear my words.
"Promise me you won't risk yourself again." She solemnly stated.
"...I won't."
Seele nodded and went for a light kiss.
Before I knew it, she was already sprinting towards IX's influence. Veliona's figure appeared behind her. The two performed a waltz as the blue and red lights intertwined.
IX's figure disappeared amongst the sea of butterflies.
Bam-!
Shatter-!
True to their promises, Seele and Veliona ditched this place right after the attack. The shadow puddle reformed itself, but this time, only half of its original power remained.
These girls…
No.
It's everyone.
I looked at my chest. The Core of Origin granted to me by Elysia grew brighter. I sensed its vague connection to everyone I knew—to all of humanity. The Dao of Miracles resonated with it, making that sensation even stronger.
Momentarily, I recalled her fairy-like smile.
"How dumb am I..?"
It was me who never truly understood Elysia up until now.
Her will to fight for all that's beautiful…
Her dedication to humanity itself…
It all stemmed from a single wish.
As if affirming my thoughts, the Core of Origin emitted a brilliant light that swallowed the entire space whole.
*****
A/N: I'll be handing out a special offer for the next two weeks. There'll be an extra bonus chapter whenever we reach a powerstone threshold. 500 PS for 2, 800 PS for 3. Consider it as a gift ;)