“Junius...” Shia’s sobs never seemed to cease. It was supposed to be the best few days of her life. She had just given birth to her first child… her son. The husband that had been so busy over the past few years had been ordered to stay home and guard them. Everyone that Shia loved was by her side, cheering her on as she embarked on a new chapter of her life. Yet… Her husband was now bedridden, with little to no hope of getting up.
The depression… the stress… In the end, it became too much to bear. Shia’s eyes furled backwards as she dropped straight to the floor, her mind completely blanking out. It was fortunate that Vellan was there to catch her fall, but just like Junius before her, the woman needed to be treated immediately.
“Humans… What fragile and idiotic creatures they are...” Ao spat, watching the Spirit King carrying Shia out of Junius’ treatment room. First, it was Junius who almost died, fighting against the Freak of the Dundlewoods. Now, it was Shia who took the baton. Every single human that surrounded the World Serpent was dropping like flies, and Ao didn’t like that one bit.
Little did he know, the World Serpent had become more and more human-like in the eyes of those peering in. Meeting Junius had fundamentally changed the Spirit Beast’s perspective. He had become much more mellow and empathetic to the mortal woes, something he severely lacked before. Even as he sat by the young man’s bed, Ao wore a saddened frown, not that he could see it. If it were a few years back, the World Serpent would have never cared that much for a Black Masks’ life.
Spirit Beasts lived far longer than any normal human being. Though powerful humans could live up to four hundred years old by shedding the mortality twice, their lifespans passed in a blink of an eye from the perspective of Spirit Beasts that could live for thousands of years. Thus, Ao always saw humans as passing curiosities, much like how an entomologist would see an insect. The World Serpent had never felt attached to any humans that he worked with… until Junius, that is.
Junius was resilient, talented and most importantly… he had the attitude of a champion. No matter what hardships were placed in front of him, Junius would most certainly overcome, and if he were too weak to deal with the issue, the young man would train until his fists bled. And… Ao was with him every step of the way.
For the first time, the World Serpent had a protege, one that would absorb all of his teachings like a sponge. Ao’s interest in Junius began with pure curiosity, but soon… It morphed into something far more powerful. It was a first for the World Serpent, an experience of this kind… However, he didn’t particularly dislike it…
“Such a foolish child...” Ao’s voice turned tender and soft as his hand gently stroked the Kshatriya’s hair. “No, I’m the fool… You’re going to die in a few hundred years anyway, why should I even care about you?” The World Serpent continued to chide the unconscious Junius. Sweat was falling from Junius’ forehead and drenching his pillows. Every few minutes, the young man would let out a grimace, showing his discomfort, and each time Junius did that, Ao could feel a thousand needles pricking at his heart.
The World Serpent knew that it was a stupid move… but Ao’s heart wouldn’t forgive him if he sat back and did nothing. His long legs were stretched over the cotton bed as the blue-haired man sat comfortably down. Just like a snake, Ao’s left hand slithered up the mattress and rested itself on the sweaty man’s forehead. He closed his eyes as he searched deep into his Beast Soul.
Like human cultivators, Spirit Beasts all had an internal soul that determined their cultivation base. Although they didn’t have cultivation techniques to absorb spiritual energies into their soul, they had a near limitless supply of mana hidden deep within them. Particularly Spirit Beasts that had lived for thousands of years. The mana that they accumulated just by being alive could match that of any Spirit Saint. Heck, in the case of the World Serpent, he had more spiritual energy within his body than ten Spirit Saints combined.
In Ao’s case, his Beast Soul took the shape of a bottomless ocean, one that was befitting of his colossal World Serpent size. Legend has it that the World Serpent was an entity that could endlessly grow and once it becomes large enough, it would coil around the globe once, giving it a chance to swallow its tail. When that comes to pass, the world would be squeezed into oblivion, just like how a contractor boa kills its prey.
Naturally, Ao didn’t believe in the myths that humans had created about him. He knew what his limits were and how he needed to evolve. Therefore, he continuously expanded the ocean within his Beast Soul, making it as vast as the Celes Ocean itself. Consequently, it took a while for Ao to fully navigate his Beast Soul. He was searching… searching for one thing. The only thing that could save Junius and elevate him into greatness.
“There it is...” It took quite some time, but eventually, Ao finally reached his destination. A central black core, plagued with sinister dark mist that coated its very being, stood entirely still within the currents of the ocean. Each water droplet within Ao’s Spirit Soul was a result of his countless years of cultivation, and the liquids were as dense as osmium itself. However, the black sphere didn’t care. It was as if nothing in the world… in Ao’s world could ever hope to hurt it.
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“Allfather… Forgive me...” The World Serpent looked at the black core, his eyes completely obsidian. Ao turned from his human shape into the gargantuan snake that everyone was accustomed to. The serpent opened his mouth, revealing and endless darkness that seemed capable of swallowing the ocean whole. However, instead of attacking his own inner soul, the World Serpent bared his fangs at the sphere of darkness.
Chhhoommppp…
With one clean movement, Ao split the sphere in two. The structure wasn’t in its solid-state, or was it even in any state at all? Under the dense pressure of the ocean, the blob of mana that was deformed turned into a haphazard bubble, its surface wobbling around with the risk of popping anytime soon. Fortunately, the foreign mana within the World Serpent’s Beast Soul was resilient. In just a few moments, the sphere reforged itself, shining with the same obsidian hue as it did before. However, this time, it was half its original size.
The ocean raged as billions of bubbles rushed to the surface. Seaquakes the size that couldn’t be measured on the Richter scale crashed throughout the entire ocean, while vast undersea tornadoes dominated the Tier 9 Spirit Beast’s soul. It was behaving like a spoilt brat that had half of its candy confiscated for no apparent reason.
Alas, Ao didn’t have the luxury to act as the stern parent. He brought the dark mana out of his Beast Soul and exerted it upon his fingertips.
“ARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!” An anguished scream, one that could only be heard during the greatest of pains known to man, escaped out of Junius’ mouth.
For the first time since beating Shizen, the Spirit Lord awoke. However, it wasn’t a pleasant wake-up call that had a young maiden riding his crotch; instead, it was one of extreme pain. Junius felt that he was pressured by a billion weights, each one compressed into fine needles that pierced through his pores. His mana was going out of control as his vision turned completely black.
Ao’s hands were trembling, trying to control the dark smoke that was gushing out from his fingers. The Allfather’s mana that was implanted into his body was just that strong. Lifting up the heaviest mountain on the Terre Continent was far easier than controlling this rampant mana that ran wild like a savage mare. Still, the World Serpent had to hold on… If he wanted Junius to survive, that is…
“ARRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!” Junius continued to scream like a prisoner that was subject to the thousand torture arts. It was all too painful for him to bear, but he had to hold on…
Seconds passed like they were years, and the whole room came to a standstill. Snow didn’t fall from the outside, and neither did the beads of sweat from Junius’ body. They were all held firmly still by the Allfather’s mana. Was it a good idea to allow Junius to undergo the Allfather’s baptism for the third time? Anyone knowledgable about the issue would say no. However, Ao had to give it a shot…
Until finally…
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!
A resonant pulse shot out from Junius’ Spectre Soul. Furniture surrounding his bed were decimated within the matter of milliseconds, and dark billowing smoke emerged out from Junius’ core. Expending all of the mana that he’d call for, Ao dropped his hand lethargically. It looked limp and feeble as if someone had permanently disabled it.
The World Serpent looked battered. He didn’t sweat, or rather, he couldn’t. The blue-haired man was a guise for his snake form after all. However, every single fibre of his body, particularly his beast soul, was feeling the anguish of holding back a certain amount of mana. It was the first time the World Serpent had felt this weak. Even during his early years, the blessed Spirit Beast had never been in such a tattered state before.
So… Were his actions worth it?
Ao looked down at Junius, who was still bleeding out sweat. Particles of darkness flowed out from his pores, looking like the grime of a swamp. The putrid stench of broken human flesh and bone dominated the chambers as well, making it a truly disgusting scene to watch. However, miraculously, Junius looked fine. In fact, his Spectre Soul seemed more robust than before. Like a bottle that had taken in too much water, the Kshatriya’s soul was about to overflow…
‘Looks like when Junius wakes up, he’ll be in for a surprise...’ Ao mused, dismissing the tired limbs that weighed him down. Everything was now fine… If Junius plays his cards right, by the time he wakes up, he’ll leave the Spirit Lord realm behind and be reborn anew.
Just as Ao was about to fall into meditation to quell his rampaging Beast Soul, a voice called out to the World Serpent. “Did you really have to go that far?”
The dark residue mist that flowed around the chambers congregated into a single point, taking the form of a faceless, cloaked reaper. It was the image that had haunted the dreams of all living beings on the Terre Continent and the Lantis Archipelago. It was the enemy that the joint Alliance had sworn to take down, even at the cost of their own lives. It was…
“Allfather...” Ao squinted his eyes. He would bow, but the World Serpent simply lacked the strength to even stand. “Weren’t you supposed to be hibernating?”
“I was… But I noticed that someone had used the mana that I had painstakingly set aside for his ascension into the Primordial Beast realm… Naturally, I would be curious, no?” The Allfather’s chirpy voice sounded out, even though the figure lacked a mouth.
“It had to be done… Otherwise, Junius wouldn’t have made it...”
“I know,” the Allfather retorted. Since there was no face, the World Serpent couldn’t tell if the shadowy figure was amused, disappointed or sad. Ao gulped, ready for whatever reprimand would come his way. He waited and waited… However, nothing of that sort ever came. Instead, all the World Serpent got was a shaking head.
“Hey, Ao… Would you regret it?” The Allfather asked, visibly concerned about the World Serpent. All his life, he had been attempting to become a Primordial Beast. However, no matter how long Ao lived, how many cultivators and Spirit Beasts he ate, the evolution never came. The Allfather’s mana was the World Serpent’s best shot, and even that wasn’t a done deal. Yet… Ao had squandered it all, just to save one Spirit Lord’s life.
“I’m not sure...” Ao didn’t lie. He honestly couldn’t tell if this was the right decision for his future. However, he does know one thing… “But it’s the right decision to make right now… That’s how I honestly feel...”
“Hmmm,” the Allfather’s voice turned lighter, seemingly much more amused. It was the feeling one would get when seeing their child grow up to be a more matured adult. Alas, emotions were fleeting. After a few seconds, the usual coldness in his voice returned, and his next words sent chills down the World Serpent’s spine.
“Well, then you should prepare yourself then… Your actions haven’t gone unnoticed...” The Allfather’s figure turned towards the window, which was facing east. As if he were foreboding the eventual apocalypse, the Allfather said:
“The Prince is coming...”