Varos sat outside the Temporal Rift Zone for three days, tending to his wounds in silence. His body, though still aching from the ordeal, was steadily recovering. Reaching into his pocket dimension, he retrieved a divine herb, its radiant glow pulsing with concentrated life energy.
Without hesitation, he ingested it. The herb’s power flooded his body and soul, accelerating his regeneration beyond natural limits. He could feel his injuries mending at a rapid pace, his very essence absorbing and refining the medicinal energy.
Closing his eyes, he turned his focus inward, to better understand his transformation. Power surged through his being, deeper, more refined, more potent. The transition from Rule to Law had not only elevated his strength but had reshaped his very existence. It wasn’t just an increase in physical ability, it was a transformation at a fundamental level.
To test his new strength, he reached into his pocket dimension once more, retrieving a sword. Gripping it firmly, he extended his arm, feeling the familiar weight of the blade settle in his grasp.
Then, without hesitation, he struck with the strength he wielded before becoming a Law-Bearer.
DANG!!!
The sound of metal rang out like thunder, reverberating through the air. Varos looked down at his hand, where there should have been a wound, only a thin white mark remained. His skin, now reinforced by the power of the Law, had barely been scratched.
His grip tightened around the sword as realization dawned. “My sword is useless now,” he thought, exhaling as he returned it to his pocket dimension. His former weapons, forged for a Rule-bound being, could no longer match his newfound durability.
Lowering himself back to the ground, he resumed a lotus position, closing his eyes once more to introspect.
As he delved deeper into himself, he found that his soul had grown exponentially stronger—one thousand times more powerful than before. The vast difference was undeniable, and yet, something still lurked within.
The remnant will had retreated deeper into his soul, lying in wait, preparing for another attempt at seizing control. His instincts guided him to where it hid, and the moment his awareness brushed against it, a raspy, ominous voice echoed through his mind.
“Soon… your body will be mine.”
Varos chuckled, his voice laced with confidence.
“You really think you still have a chance?” he responded, his tone mocking. “That opportunity died the moment I transcended Rule. You should have taken your shot when I was still bound. Now… you’re nothing more than a lingering shadow.”
Silence followed.
Then—
“HAHAHAHA!”
laughter erupted, deep and guttural, reverberating like a thousand voices layered atop one another. It echoed through the starry-like vastness of his consciousness, carrying an eerie weight that sent a ripple through his very essence.
“You think you’re strong now that you are Law bearer?” the will sneered, its voice dripping with mockery. “ You think you’re safe? No… no. On the contrary, you are standing at the edge of your own undoing.”
Varos’ brows furrowed, but he remained still, listening. His instincts told him this wasn’t just mindless taunting—there was something beneath the will’s words.
The will, sensing Varos’ focus, let out a chuckle.
“Why so quiet? Does fear finally grip you?” it taunted. “Weren’t you boasting just moments ago? Weren’t you laughing at me? And yet, here you are, listening like a child clinging to his mother’s last words.”
A pause. Then the will’s tone shifted—colder, crueler. “Do you really think I would tell you the reason?”
Varos remained silent, his mind churning. The will wanted to provoke him, to shake his confidence, but its restraint was what intrigued him most. It wasn’t desperate, nor was it reckless, it knew something.
A moment passed. Then another.
Finally, Varos spoke, his voice calm, measured.
“How about a deal?”
For the first time, the will hesitated.
Then, its amusement returned, subtler, more intrigued.
“Oh?” it mused, the laughter fading into something more sinister. “And what kind of deal do you think you can offer me?”
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There was no impatience, no dismissal.
It was genuinely interested. And that was exactly what Varos wanted.
“How about I give you a body to possess?” Varos said, his tone calm, almost casual.
A brief silence followed before the will responded, its voice laced with skepticism. “Oh? And what kind of body do you think would be worthy of me? Do you even understand the intricacies of possession?”
Varos smirked. “The body of an Ascendant. The air in his soul sea seemed to still. Then—
“HAHAHAHA!”
The will’s laughter exploded, reverberating through the vastness of his mind. It wasn’t amusement—it was mockery, a sound so dark and condescending that it almost carried the weight of contempt itself.
“An Ascendant?” the will scoffed, its voice rippling with disdain. “You dare to offer me a mere ant?”
The laughter continued, but it began to fade, dissolving into the depths of his soul like a whisper in the void.
“How utterly ridiculous.”
“Then why me?” Varos asked, his voice laced with confusion. If an Ascendant was nothing more than an ant in the eyes of this entity, then what did that make him?
The will didn’t laugh this time. Instead, it responded with an unsettling calm, its previous arrogance fading into something more measured.
“For one to possess another body, there must be a certain degree of compatibility,” it explained. “It could be through Law, bloodline, or something even deeper.”
Varos narrowed his eyes, listening intently. There was a shift in the will’s tone, its mockery replaced by something almost… reflective.
“But compatibility alone is not enough,” it continued, its voice carrying an air of finality. “One must also bear the cause and effect of the body they inhabit.”
Varos’ expression darkened. Cause and effect. The weight of karma, of fate intertwined with power. He had long known that no power came without a price, but hearing it from the will itself made it seem all the more ominous.
The will let the words sink in before delivering its final statement.
“Furthermore, if I were to take the body of Ascendant, I would come under the influence of my kin, controlled, shackled, turned into nothing more than a slave to their will.”
The contempt in its voice was undeniable. “And that… is the last thing I will ever allow.”
Then, a brief silence.
A shift.
Almost as if it had just realized something, the will let out a low, amused chuckle.
“But why am I even telling you all this?” it mused, its tone carrying a trace of self-awareness. “You are nothing but a temporary vessel… a fleeting existence. What purpose does it serve to explain anything to you?”
There was no mockery this time, no arrogance, just a strange, almost absent-minded curiosity, as though the will itself had wandered too deep into its own thoughts.
“So what do you want?” Varos asked, his voice even, though deep inside, a part of him already knew the answer.
The will didn’t hesitate. Its voice rang out, clear and absolute. “I want the body of a Primordial.”
Silence followed.
A long, suffocating silence.
Varos stared into the vast emptiness of his soul sea, letting the words sink in. A Primordial. Not just any body—not an Ascendant, not a god—a being at the very peak of existence.
He exhaled, shaking his head. “I might as well refuse now.”
The will didn’t respond. It didn’t need to. Varos already understood the absurdity of what had just been said.
Even with all he had achieved, even with the impossible strides he had made beyond his kin, compared to a Primordial, he was nothing.
An ant before a colossus.
A moth flying toward the sun.
The Primordials were the Apex of the Apexes, entities who existed before history was even written, before the divine realm existed. They were not rulers—rulers could be challenged, overthrown. They were not deities—deities required worship, belief.
They were existence itself.
To stand against them was to stand against the will of the cosmos itself.
To offend them was to invite oblivion.
Even their sneeze, a careless ripple of their power, could erase entire super galaxy clusters, and Varos…?
He wouldn’t even register.
His fingers curled into a fist as he let out a slow, humorless chuckle. “You really don’t make things easy, do you?”
The will remained silent, but Varos could feel its amusement. It wasn’t expecting him to agree, it was merely waiting to see how far he was willing to go.
The will, seeing Varos hesitate, decided to bait him with temptation, a carefully crafted illusion of power, something too irresistible to ignore.
A pie.
Not a literal one, but a metaphorical feast, a promise of something greater, something that would make even the most cautious being reach out. After all, it didn’t matter who held such a pie, sooner or later, they would take a bite.
The formless black energy pulsed ominously before a thin strand slithered toward Varos’ consciousness form, moving like a serpent in the void.
A gift? A test? A trap?
Varos didn’t care to find out.
His instincts flared, and without hesitation, he darted backward, retreating at lightning speed. His form shimmered, placing an instant gap between himself and the approaching strand.
“So that was your plan,” Varos muttered, irritation creeping into his voice. “Distract me, wait for me to let my guard down, and then strike?”
The will said nothing, but Varos could feel its amusement, that same silent condescension lingering in the air.
“We were just getting to the good part… why did you have to ruin it?” he thought, suppressing a sigh of frustration.
Shaking his head, he turned, preparing to leave his soul sea.
Just as he was about to exit, the will’s voice slithered through the void once more.
“I am neither petty nor foolish.” Its tone was calm, assured, yet carrying an edge of something unreadable. “Why would I attack you now? The time is not ripe.”
Varos paused, glancing back with narrowed eyes.
““I can see that you’re not stupid,” Varos mused to himself, his thoughts laced with dry amusement. “But petty? Oh, you are definitely petty. No sane being would ever want to possess their own descendant.”
But then again, were Primordials even sane?
Did they truly care for anything or anyone beyond their own existence? He didn’t know. Perhaps no one did.
What he did know, however, was the undeniable disgust coiling within him, a visceral reaction to the will’s very presence, its intentions, its sheer audacity.
And yet, he chose to listen—for now.
“This strand of energy contains a taboo secret,” the will murmured, its voice carrying an eerie weight. “Something beyond your reach, beyond even fate itself. No being of your level would ever attain it, not even if the universe itself stood at its end.
Varos froze mid-step, intrigue flickering in his eyes. He had no reason to trust the will, but those words carried weight, a claim so absolute it demanded his attention.
The will, sensing his hesitation, pressed further. “Absorb this strand of energy… and you will know.” Varos narrowed his gaze, his thoughts churning. The black tendril of energy pulsed before him, shifting like a living thing, waiting for him to reach out.
A trap? Possibly.
A gamble? Absolutely.
Still, he was not the type to retreat from knowledge. Slowly, he extended his formless hand, grasping the writhing energy. If this was a trap, he would sever this part of his consciousness immediately. No hesitation. No mercy.
The moment his essence made contact, Reality outside his body shifted. The sky of the Divine Realm darkened in an instant. Thick clouds churned violently, twisting and spiraling as if the heavens themselves had been disturbed. Then—
An eye opened. Colossal. Unfathomable. Absolute. The projection of the Celestial Mandate.
It loomed above, its chilling gaze sweeping over the Divine Realm with an authority that transcended laws, fate, and even time itself. It did not see with sight, nor sense with energy, it was a force of judgment itself, scouring all that lay beneath it.
Searching.
Yet, despite the disturbance, despite the forbidden act that had shaken the very cosmos, It found nothing.
“What? Why is the Celestial Mandate here?”For the first time, uncertainty crept into the will’s voice. It had expected resistance. It had expected danger. But this?
This knowledge shouldn’t have warranted the Mandate’s attention.
The will pulsed in confusion, its essence fluctuating as it tried to grasp the impossible reality before it. Had it miscalculated? Had something changed beyond its understanding? No. Something was wrong.
Varos stood still, heart pounding in his chest. The Mandate had come. But why? And more importantly, how had it not seen him?
…………..
“What are those fools doing?” Vyrinox muttered, his eyes narrowing as he watched the remnants of the Celestial Mandate’s projection fade from the sky. With a casual motion, he retrieved his deception energy, the invisible veil that had shielded Varos dissolving as if it had never existed.
His irritation was evident as he continued, “Why are they deciding to give him this knowledge so early? This wasn’t the plan.”
Seated nearby, Zarrakis remained composed, his posture steady in a cross-legged position. His gaze was indifferent, as though none of this truly surprised him. Without looking up, he spoke in an even tone.
“Callisthene has chosen to tweak the plan,” he explained to him about the new plan. Vyrinox’s frown deepened, for a fleeting moment. Then, unexpectedly, his expression cleared, the irritation vanishing as quickly as it had appeared.
“That’s a good plan,” he said simply, his tone devoid of any previous frustration. Zarrakis, who had known Vyrinox for eons, finally looked up, his eyes studying him with subtle intrigue.