As the dust grew denser from the constant infusions of energy and Dao , it started to condense toward its center . It almost looked like the two cosmic flowers furled their flowers back into a bulb by the time the sixth set of Outer Cores had erupted . Surrounding the flower bulbs were now thin bands of opposing elements , like the rings of Saturn .
Each half of his budding soul seemed to follow the plan of the third reincarnation , yet Zac frowned . The clouds of Miasma and Divine Energy had grown dim to the point they would barely last through the process of exploding three final sets of Outer Cores . New energy kept pouring in from the radiant vortices around him , but the ambient energy in the cave was dwindling .
This place wasn’t like the mysterious temple of the Keys of Ascension , where the ambient energy was kept steady no matter how much he absorbed . He’d misjudged how much energy could be dragged through the cracks and the stone itself when he broke through . He’d expected the energy vacuum to create a natural pull , but it appeared he was wrong . Either that or the storm chamber above exerted a far greater pull than he .
Either case , the situation had now become a bottleneck that couldn’t be fixed by Nexus Crystals alone . Even worse , integrating the Outer Cores into the dust cloud was just the first step . After , Zac needed far more energy to create a conflict powerful enough to refine and compress his creations . As things were , the Evolutionary and Inexorable Cores were more than one hundred times the size of the previous central core in his Soul Aperture .
This wasn’t a good thing . Part of the increase in size was all the added energy from the Moss Crystal , Outer Cores , and the ambient energy that had been dragged into the soul spirals . But most of it came from the two nascent cores being so porous they could barely be considered solids . The original final step of the method called for detonating the remaining nine Outer Cores , but Zac couldn’t do that . He’d already given them to his second core .
The only fuel remaining were two huge clouds of Creation and Oblivion that Zac had sealed with barriers of Mental Energy—the spillover from the Remnants he didn’t dare infuse into his new cores . But did he dare collide those two forces into each other? Obviously not . Even if he didn’t kill himself , he might end up spawning Chaos in his soul , something he wasn’t prepared to handle .
Zac scrambled for solutions , throwing all kinds of attuned treasures into the two vortices as the seventh set of Outer Cores were infused into soul dust . Eventually , his gaze turned to the ceiling . There was one place where all the energy he needed was readily available .
The problem was , if he broke the ceiling , his arrays would be torn apart . His breakthrough would be on full display , and with these amounts of Dao and Energy fluctuations , it’d seem as though a heavenly treasure had been born in the heart of the mountain . It wouldn’t be long before beasts and possibly cultivators arrived .
By the time the eighth set of Outer Cores was assimilated , the ambient energy in his cave had essentially been reduced to zero , and he barely managed to supply the needed amount of energy to recompense . If things progressed this way , he’d end up with two mottled Soul Cores in such a bad state he might even emerge weaker than before the breakthrough . It’d take centuries to fix this issue after the soul dust hardened and lost its malleability .
He couldn’t wait any longer .
Zac gritted his teeth as he grabbed the activation token . A deep thud echoed through the hidden cave as the wallbreaker array startled to life . For a moment , nothing changed , except for five trickles of sand raining from above . Then , all hell broke loose as the ceiling completely collapsed , raining huge blocks of stones all around Zac .
A barrier had already sprung up to push away the falling boulders to the sides of the cave , but what came in their wake was far more deadly . Zac found himself looking up at a five hundred meter tall chute , chock-full of ferocious winds of Life and Death . Winds that were now cascading toward him thanks to the sudden downdraft .
Zac was immediately beset with trouble , and not just because of the wounds that kept appearing across his body . The two vortices had a seemingly endless capacity to swallow energy , but only of their attunement . Meanwhile , the storm crashing down was a confusing jumble of energies that moved at incredible speeds . The vortices couldn’t extract what they needed from that confusing mess .
He needed to help them out .
Thankfully , he had just the thing , and two alien energies were forced out of his Soul Aperture . Two streams , this time unblemished by Conflict , passed through the pathways on his shoulders and into his arms . Creation in his left , Oblivion in his right . He didn’t keep them condensed this time , instead opting to release the energies as small clouds that swirled around their respective vortices .
The higher Daos acted as beacons , dragging their subordinate paths toward them . Yet it wasn’t enough . The energies were too unruly , to the point it was impossible to make much use of them . Zac barely scratched the surface of the vast energies coursing through the chute .
Releasing the energies did have one more effect , though . The odd sensation of being one with the mountain returned , this time more palpable than ever . A deep groan rippled through the cave , and the fierce winds inside the storm chamber simply froze . Zac looked up with shock , only for his vision to shift .
Suddenly , he saw the vast skyscapes of the Calamity , not a hint of land across the horizon . A sense of boundless freedom filled him as he became one with the sky . Then , Zac pushed through the clouds at the edge of the storm , at which point he found himself sitting inside the cave again as the chaos resumed .
In his mind , a strong desire lingered , one not of his own making .
You want this energy? That’s why you’ve resonated with me? - Zac roared over the raging storm . - Then you need to help me out as well! -
The response was immediate . A deafening crack echoed through the cave as enormous fissures appeared throughout the storm chamber . Then , rivers of energy came cascading down , drowning the storm before crashing toward Zac . His eyes widened in a mix of anticipation and alarm .
It looked like he’d gotten more than what he’d bargained for .
27
REINCARNATIONS AND REBIRTHS
Rivers of energy poured down the walls of the storm chamber , their density far beyond anything Zac had seen since entering the Calamity . Yet , an almost deafening silence had replaced the roar of the storm . Zac could tell some mysterious concepts were influencing the rivers of attuned energies , preventing them from touching .
The hundreds of fissures and their streams joined and separated , following a set of unique truths . Together , the streams formed a simultaneously simple and complex Dao Braid , allowing incredible amounts of energy to pass through the narrow space of the storm chamber .
The braid itself was almost the opposite of Zac’s path and not of much use conceptually , but it made his life a lot easier . The explosions of these energy levels would have been deadly , and would have forced him to split his attention between the war in his mind and the war on the outside .
Zac felt the ground beneath shudder as two small cracks appeared almost right beneath the two vortices that had already begun feasting on the more malleable attuned energies . In contrast to the fissures above , these small slits exerted a weak pull . Zac understood what was going on , and he redirected the Creation and Oblivion Energy into the cracks—payment for the fuel coursing into him .
This was a trade Zac was more than willing to take . The energies trapped in his aperture came straight from the Remnants and were tainted by their undying will . Giving it up could be considered helping him rather than being an actual payment . The only problem was that using the energies came at a cost , even when just releasing it from his Soul Aperture .