Chapter 299: One
Suddenly, the calmness of the realm began to retreat... as chaos erupted.
The temperature began to drop as the flames vanished from the realm. The molten rivers vanished, and so did the flame pillars erupting here and there.
It was the first but fire wasn’t the only thing to retreat. Just a moment later, the metal dug deep as they disappeared as well. The illusion was last but met the same fate as well.
All of a sudden, the whole realm turned pale... almost all signs of life vanished. A tremor appeared as it began to shrink. The realm was getting smaller and smaller at a visible speed.
In just a matter of seconds, the endless realm had reduced to the size of just a kilometer or two.
Within that kilometer lay a castle whose luster still remained the same... but eventually, even it would be reduced to dust like the person within it.
Arghhhh!
With a face filled with horror, Dhruv tried to manipulate his mana in the hope of repairing his core.
Crack! Crack!
In the face of this horrifying display, Dhruv was neither able to manipulate his mana nor was able to stop the cracking from spreading in his core.
Like a web... the cracks only continued to spread.
Arghhhh!
With the increase in cracks, the suction of mana also increased. At the moment, not only mana but Dhruv could feel even his life getting sucked into the panel.
Becoming a monster, he knew how important a core was to their existence. A monster could regenerate from any damage given enough time... but not damage to the core.
Damage to the core was something that couldn’t be healed with time.
But... like everything else in the cosmos... there is a way around it as well. There is a way to heal the core.
But the real question is, can one reach that point with a damaged core? And the answer is no... for most, that is.
There are always a few exceptions.
There always exist those who don’t believe in rules.
Crack!
’Shit!!..’ Dhruv could feel how it wouldn’t be long before his core would be turned into dust. But he could also feel the fusion getting more complete each second.
Even with this much pain, a smile appeared as he realized that the fusion would be the first to complete.
Dhruv would have a few seconds to bring his core back together. But the question was, how would he do that? The idea of using mana manipulation to heal the core came to his mind, but he didn’t have much trust in this option.
Suddenly, a bold idea appeared in his mind.
Crackkkkk!
Before he could even revise that bold idea of his... the unimaginable happened.
Dhruv’s previous calculations instantly turned useless as the speed of mana leaving his core increased. The panel began to glow with a golden color as the fusion neared its end.
Crackkkkk!
Boom!
Arghhhhh!
Dhruv cried with a bittersweet smile. The fusion had been completed, but at the same time, his core had broken again into hundreds of fragment.
Not giving up yet, he tried to manipulate mana... but unfortunately, there weren’t any sources from which he could draw mana. His core had been destroyed.
Unfortunately, it was his end...
’What? How am I still alive... what is happening?..’ Dhruv thought trying to understand why he was still alive.
’...My core is clearly broken,’ Dhruv thought, trying to make sense of how it was possible. He was trying to think, but once again, something else caught his attention.
’W-what I can sense mana,’ Dhruv thought. It wasn’t all either. He could manipulate it as well.
Forgetting about finding an answer, he quickly focused all his senses on his chest and began to move the fragments of the core together. Some of the fragments came together, but it was getting harder and harder for him to move all of them.
Even with the miracle that had happened, he wasn’t able to fix the core.
Understanding that there wasn’t much he could do, Dhruv stopped manipulating mana and tried to let it flow through his body trying to heal some of it.
Arghhh!
The broken core still hurt like hell, but he wasn’t in immediate danger at least.
It took him some time, but Dhruv was eventually able to heal the gaping hole in his chest. Having an endless amount of mana around him sure helped a lot.
Arghhhh!
’Shit... I can’t live for long. This body of mine can’t keep itself alive for more than a few minutes without the help of a core. I have to be quick,’ Dhruv thought, still not understanding why he even had these five minutes.
Putting the matter to the back of his mind, he looked at the panel in front of him. A smile appeared on his face as he saw that all six of his options had been reduced...
...One.
The smile widened further and further as he read its description.
***
Somewhere far away... infinitely far away.
A being floated in the endless space undisturbed. Its body looked like a cluster of stars and cosmic wonders. Its mere presence seemed to bend the rules of reality.
Both of its eyes were closed as it sensed incidents happening all around the cosmos. No movement occurred as it saw galaxies being born or destroyed. The being remained still.
Everything continued the same for eons... but eventually, a change happened.
Sensing something... the being opened its eyes. His pupils, infinitely beautiful and containing all the knowledge of the universe, looked in a certain direction.
A tear appeared in the space as it stepped aside. Time froze as the being gazed at a bloodied man, sitting on a throne like a king.
With just a thought, a panel appeared in front of him. An illusion appeared in front of the panel, trying to obscure the information, but unfortunately, it couldn’t even last a thousandth of a second.
...
[Name: Dhruv
...
...
...
...
<Cosmic Store>]
...
The being read the information without any response. After a while, it blew the status away and healed the space in front of itself.
Resuming time, it called someone.
With a blip, something small popped into existence. Bowing to the being, it whispered, "Coby is here to serve my lord..."
Without turning its head, the being muttered, "It’s here..."
Hearing the words, a smile appeared on Coby’s face. Bowing his head, he disappeared from existence.
