He released a hissing breath and thrust another spear forward The strike created an opening by forcing back another wave of energy But as he pulled the spear back the goopy spearhead wiggled and snapped off For a split second Shal froze His mind went blank unable to decide how to proceed He did not have a replacement spear If he tried to retreat without a weapon the waves he had braved to reach this point would rip the flesh from his bones After struggling for so long and giving his attention fully to the toil a single stumble was enough to completely floor him
The next wave of powerful radiation gushed forward
ShalÆs instincts took over even while his mind remained in turmoil Without a spearhead he took another step forward and thrust out his spear As he did so his will condensed at the head of his spear shaft his Willpower practically incendiary as he poured it into the fires of his resolve It became an arrowhead shaped snake head The snakeÆs eyes gleamed as it considered its target
Shal thrust again almost relieved to once more settle into this habit
The wave of radiation shattered to pieces His will trembled but held as the spearhead And compared to his previous strikes this was a superior result The vacated space in the radiation was enough for Shal to suck in several breaths and recover a bit of his focus But after a few moments of precious time the radiation came back frothing and dangerous Shal gritted his teeth
I have walked this far I can continue
He thrust out his spear The features of the snakehead sharpened as they experienced the baptism of the dangerous energies His understanding of his own image deepened The details became increasingly exquisite
He thrust again his hands trembling An energy wave shattered but there was another hiding close behind the first He barely had enough time to loosen his grip and flex his hands before he needed to thrust again Although his image sharpened with every attack the balance of the thrusts began to waver A sliver of destructive energy slithered past and cleanly annihilated the pinky of ShalÆs right hand
He could only grit his teeth ignore the blood dribbling on the ground and thrust again CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin( )c0m
ShalÆs resolve burned Yet he could feel his body steadily failing With pressure on every side his disciplined movements began to falter
why did the warm image he had honed due to his student and his brother seem so much more precious
Randidly tilted his head to the side Are you alright How did you make it here Your image
Shal blinked woken from his thoughts Gradually all those confusing impressions faded Shal smiled He raised his spear and brandished it as casually as he could trying to hide the trembling in his arms I thrust and eventually the path opened before me It is the only reliable method I know
Randidly snorted and shook his head much of the tension falling away from his expression But when he next looked at Shal his face seemed solemn and vulnerable He hesitated suddenly unsure of himself About what happened
I have made a horrible mistake Shal said his heart wrenching to watch this powerful individual be so conflicted He lowered his head In a very real way the horrible sense of being not good enough that plagued his whole life also manifested here in being so emotionally weak he decided had to cast aside relationships in order to pursue power I Well itÆs probably difficult for you to understand my mindset When nothing I had tried worked I decided to try anything
The storm roared and crashed above Yet the noise was distance It could not approach this reunion
No Randidly Ghosthound spoke very quietly I understand completely How you felt stuck in place How nothing you did felt like it mattered And how you understood that without power this would be your limit It is a simple thing to follow the Path in front of you ItÆs another entirely to keep trying when every direction you look shows you a wall So many times I would have failed if not for your lessons
You understand Shal couldnÆt help but be puzzled When Randidly referenced the lessons Shal felt a strange flickering in his chest He couldnÆt actually remember their interactions but he could image remembering He imagined that perfect moment when his Wraith Adder image had come into focus When he had broken through with his potential and earned a ticket to the Path to the Pinnacle
Even now Chuckling Randidly shrugged ItÆs kinda hard to believe right If I had to give an explanation itÆs not that IÆve stopped bumping against walls just different things have become walls to me As he spoke he twisted and looked up at Pine in the sky an orb of darkness that swallowed almost the entire horizon
I really am so sorry Shal whispered I hope you can find forgiveness for this old spearman No I do not even deserve that term I am just a man who tries to use the spear
Randidly nodded slowly His eyes twinkled as amusement drifted out across his features You know people always talk about how much easier it is to destroy than to build And that is true But in terms of the passage of time the requirements for destruction are so much harder If you take the first of ten thousand steps toward destroying something youÆve barely done anything at all But just by taking the first step to build and create
Randidly held out his hand you are already on the right Path A man who wields a spear can become anything even someone able to defeat a Spearman with ease Of course I forgive you If not for you I would not have been able to make it this far Shal You shattered our bond The significance between us was scattered But I have not forgotten that day I walked into the Safe Zone and saw you meditating in the pool the Creature sculpted me to become a Vessel but every good thing IÆve used to fill that Vessel came from you
When they shook hands tears formed in the corner of ShalÆs humanoid eyes Even his third eye stirred slightly Shal brought his other hand around and gripped RandidlyÆs warm and strong hand with both of his shaking it partly from the complex storm in his heart partly because his exhausted body had started constantly trembling His heart bled All of a sudden he began to weep
The vast gulf of what had once been stills yawned between them The easy connection they had possessed even while Shal had fought as a member of the Swacc Family no longer existed Yet it was also true that some of the pressure had eased Now that the way forward was possible the anguish of ShalÆs heart seeped away with his tears Action had poked a hole in his grief With the gurgling flame of resolve refusing to be smothered he would steadily begin to heal
Stubbornness Shal sniffed That is the only thing a fool like me could teach you Stubbornness to the point of masochism
Randidly clicked his tongue but didnÆt deny it Turns out in that particular area I had almost infinite potential
Eventually both men took a step back But RandidlyÆs gaze sharpened There is not much time remaining for me before I need to go So Shal I want to ask you for a favor Please lend me the fires of your unwillingness In exchange IÆll show you just how much your stubbornness can accomplish
Chapter 2418
Around Randidly the sense of connectedness with existence provided by the Reverie steadily faded He stood back on the battlefield and stared up at Pine in the sky into which Laplace had slithered
He had no more time to delay The final confrontation had arrived
Through the reverie he had found answers regarding Eternities he had extracted thread to sew together the shredded fabric of time he had gathered a steady impression of time and his early image regarding clock hands and finally he had taken from Shal an unrefined image of pure determination and stubbornness almost on a whim
Randidly held out his palm and looked at the ember he had received from Shal The difference between this raw form and an image with a shapeÆ comes from pressure In a highly pressured environment when an individual is pushed by circumstances beyond their limits the shape will become distorted and collapse But because of that concentration the amount of emotion contained within reaches an incredible potency