Chapter 224: Enlightenment of the Soul
Enlightenment of the Soul
"So while this task would take others decades... you will likely grasp it quickly."
Anos exhaled slowly.
At least that was reassuring.
Still, he noticed something strange.
Budha’s expression had subtly changed.
The calm saint-like smile from earlier slowly disappeared.
Then—
A sharp grin appeared on the monk’s face.
It was not gentle.
Not peaceful.
Not holy.
It was the exact same dangerous smile every incarnation seemed to show whenever battle or growth excited them.
Even his eyes changed slightly.
Azriel immediately burst into laughter beside him.
"There it is!"
The vampire emperor pointed at Budha excitedly.
"I was waiting for the monk’s real face to appear!"
Anos stared at Budha silently.
The monk simply smiled back at him.
A very bad feeling suddenly crept into Anos’ chest.
"...What are you planning to do?" he asked slowly.
Budha folded his hands behind his back calmly.
"Nothing excessive."
"That answer somehow makes me more worried."
Azriel laughed harder after hearing that.
Budha ignored both of them and slowly walked forward. The endless white space beneath their feet rippled faintly with every step he took.
Then he stopped directly in front of Anos.
The monk’s expression became calm once more, though traces of that dangerous excitement still lingered in his eyes.
"You already possess overwhelming talent," Budha said quietly. "Your body is tempered. Your instincts are sharpened. Your battle experience surpasses countless worlds."
"But talent alone cannot awaken Zenith Aura."
Anos listened carefully.
Budha slowly raised one finger.
"Zenith Aura is not learned through words."
Another finger rose.
"It is not learned through formulas."
A third finger.
"It is not something you obtain by copying others."
The monk’s voice became deeper.
"Zenith Aura is understanding."
"Understanding of what?" Anos asked.
Budha looked directly into his eyes.
"Yourself."
Silence spread afterward.
Even Azriel stopped smiling for a moment.
Budha continued calmly.
"Mana allows one to control the world."
"Zenith Aura allows one to impose themselves upon it."
The white world trembled faintly the moment those words left his mouth.
Anos’ golden eyes narrowed.
Budha slowly stretched out his hand.
"In battle, mana obeys thought."
"But Zenith Aura..."
A faint invisible pressure spread around him.
"...obeys existence itself."
Anos felt his body tense instinctively.
There was no killing intent.
No mana.
Yet his instincts screamed at him.
Budha looked toward the endless white sky.
"When a swordsman swings his blade enough times..."
"When a warrior survives enough battlefields..."
"When the soul experiences enough suffering..."
"The spirit eventually awakens."
Golden light suddenly appeared around Budha’s body.
At first it was faint.
Then—
Ancient golden symbols slowly began manifesting around him.
Anos’ eyes widened slightly.
The symbols floated through the empty white space like divine scriptures descending from heaven itself.
Each character radiated ancient pressure.
Some looked like unknown runes.
Others resembled forgotten languages from dead civilizations.
Azriel crossed his arms while grinning faintly.
"Here we go."
Budha’s voice echoed calmly through the endless realm.
"Zenith Aura is the voice of the soul."
"It is rage given shape."
"Conviction given force."
"Will given existence."
The golden symbols started revolving around Anos slowly.
Then—
Pain exploded inside his soul.
Anos’ eyes widened violently.
His entire body trembled.
It felt like countless burning needles were piercing directly into his spirit itself.
Not flesh.
Not nerves.
His soul.
"Ghk—!"
He nearly fell to one knee immediately.
The golden symbols spun faster around him while Budha continued speaking calmly.
"Feel it."
"Separate it."
"Understand it."
Anos clenched his teeth hard enough to nearly crack them.
Pain.
Pure pain.
It felt as if something invisible was forcefully peeling layers away from his existence.
His mana instinctively surged in response.
But the moment it did—
The pain intensified.
"Damn it... what is happening?!" Anos growled.
Budha calmly answered.
"This is soul alignment."
The golden scriptures glowed brighter.
"You spent your entire existence mixing mana with your instincts, emotions, and spiritual senses."
"So now..."
Budha pointed directly at Anos’ chest.
"...you must separate them."
Another wave of agony struck.
Anos felt like his mind was splitting apart.
Every instinct inside him screamed to resist.
To reject it.
To fight back.
Azriel suddenly spoke from the side.
"In the past," the vampire emperor said casually, "many incarnations stopped trying to learn Zenith Aura because of this pain."
Anos glared at him while breathing heavily.
"You could’ve mentioned that earlier."
Azriel shrugged.
"You wouldn’t have cared anyway."
...Unfortunately, he was right.
Budha continued calmly.
"Most beings never realize how deeply mana influences them."
"The moment they attempt true separation..."
The monk’s eyes sharpened slightly.
"...their soul resists."
Anos slowly steadied his breathing.
The pain still remained unbearable, but he forced himself to endure it.
He had survived battlefields filled with death.
He had fought dragons.
He had stood before monsters capable of destroying kingdoms.
Compared to that—
He refused to lose against pain.
The golden symbols continued circling around him.
Budha’s voice echoed again.
"Do not chase mana."
"Do not reject mana."
"Simply observe."
Anos slowly closed his eyes.
His breathing became calmer.
Mana.
He could always feel it naturally.
Like air.
Like instinct.
Like an extension of himself.
But now...
For the first time...
He tried separating it mentally.
The process felt unbelievably unnatural.
Painful.
As if he was trying to divide his own existence into separate pieces.
Minutes passed.
Or perhaps hours.
Time itself felt meaningless within the white realm.
The golden scriptures continued revolving around him endlessly.
Sometimes the pain became lighter.
Sometimes it intensified until Anos nearly lost consciousness.
Yet Budha never stopped speaking.
"Your soul is too accustomed to mana."
"Listen deeper."
"Beyond energy."
"Beyond thought."
"Beyond instinct."
"There."
Anos’ brows twitched slightly.
For a brief moment...
He felt something.
Tiny.
Faint.
Almost impossible to notice.
But it existed.
Something separate from mana.
Something quieter.
Deeper.
More personal.
The instant he noticed it—
Pain erupted again.
Yet this time...
Anos smiled faintly.
Because now he understood.
"There it is..." he muttered weakly.
Azriel’s red eyes narrowed slightly with interest.
"Oh?"
Budha slowly nodded.
"As expected."
The monk’s golden symbols slowly began fading afterward.
The pressure lessened.
Anos finally exhaled heavily.
His entire body felt exhausted despite technically lacking physical form inside this realm.
Sweat dripped from his forehead.
His breathing remained uneven.
Still...
His eyes burned brighter than before.
Budha looked genuinely satisfied.
"You learn quickly."
Anos let out a tired laugh.
"That almost killed me."
Budha smiled peacefully.
"Good."
"...You monks are insane too."
Azriel immediately laughed loudly.
"Told you!"
The vampire emperor walked closer while grinning.
"But honestly, that was faster than expected."
Anos looked toward him tiredly.
"How long does this usually take?"
Azriel placed a hand on his chin dramatically.
"For ordinary geniuses?"
"A few years."
Anos stared silently.
Azriel grinned wider.
"For monsters?"
"A few months."
Budha calmly added.
"For our incarnations... usually weeks."
Anos frowned slightly.
"Weeks?"
Budha nodded.
"You are already beginning to separate the feeling of mana from the sensation of your soul."
"That alone would take normal martial artists decades."
Anos slowly looked at his own hands.
Even now...
He could vaguely sense the difference.
Mana felt external.
Flowing.
Expansive.
But the other sensation...
Felt internal.
Heavy.
Like something sleeping deep inside him.
Budha suddenly spoke again.
"For the next stage..."
The monk pointed toward the endless white ground.
"You must meditate."
Anos blinked once.
"...Meditate?"
Azriel immediately burst into laughter again.
"Oh this is going to be hilarious."
Budha ignored him.
"You need your current body for this process."
The monk’s expression became serious.
"If you continue training in your Demon Lord form, your instincts will interfere."
Anos understood immediately.
His current self mattered more.
Not the former Demon Lord Anos.
Victor.
The person he currently was.
Slowly, the towering demonic body disappeared.
The massive horns faded.
The overwhelming demonic presence vanished.
Moments later—
Victor stood there once again.
A handsome young man with sharp features, black hair, and golden eyes.
His black shirt and golden jacket fluttered lightly despite the stillness of the realm.
Budha nodded approvingly.
"Good."
Victor slowly sat down cross-legged.
Then he closed his eyes.
The moment he entered deep concentration, the white world became quieter than ever before.
Azriel glanced at Budha afterward.
"How long do you think before he learns the basics of Zenith Aura?"
The vampire emperor looked toward Victor’s meditating figure while asking the question casually.
Budha observed Victor silently for a few moments.
Then he answered.
"Well... as expected of one of our incarnations, he is a true genius."
The monk smiled faintly.
"At this rate, it would likely take him around a week or less to fully comprehend the basics of Zenith Aura."
"Any ordinary person would need at least a year just to sense the distinction."
A nostalgic expression appeared on Budha’s face afterward.
"If I had a disciple like this back when I was alive... perhaps my journey would have been much easier."
Azriel crossed his arms.
"I see..."
Then he frowned slightly.
"That’s pretty slow."
Budha’s eyelid twitched violently.
’How is that slow!?’
The monk nearly lost composure internally.
’Even I needed three entire days just to fully distinguish the soul from mana!’
Budha looked toward Azriel with hidden irritation.
Honestly, comparing anyone to this absurd vampire emperor was unfair.
The more time Budha spent within this endless realm of incarnations, the more ridiculous reality became.
At first he believed himself extraordinary.
Then he met incarnations capable of destroying mountains casually.
Then worlds.
Then planets.
And eventually...
Monsters like Azriel.
Beings standing within the top ten of all 777 incarnations.
Yet despite all their overwhelming strength...
None of them had managed to defeat the Universal Emperor.
While Budha remained lost in thought, Azriel suddenly became quiet.
The vampire emperor’s gaze drifted elsewhere, as if communicating with something unseen.
Then—
A grin slowly spread across his face.
"Hey," Azriel suddenly spoke casually into the emptiness itself, "how about it?"
Budha immediately realized who he was talking to.
Azriel continued.
"Can I take over while this guy trains?"
His crimson eyes glanced toward Victor’s meditating form.
"I’m sure you can allow this."
The vampire emperor smirked faintly.
"It’s not like we haven’t done this before."
"Last time we did it for Kevin... and it was you who took over his body."
Azriel’s grin widened slightly afterward.
"How about letting me take the wheel this time."
