Silence filled the hall.
It was not emptiness…
It was waiting.
Korval, seated on his stone throne, slowly turned his gaze toward the giant abomination.
His eyes held no fear, no surprise, only that cold glint that always came before a merciless decision.
Korval:
"Did you like both of them?"
The question was not direct.
He did not specify:
Was he referring to the technique?
The deal?
Or Ashen himself?
The giant abomination slowly moved its neck.
Dozens of faces on the sides of its head twisted—some cried, some laughed, some opened their mouths without sound.
Then…
A smile formed on its wolf-like jaw.
It was not a single smile.
It was dozens layered on top of each other.
The giant abomination:
"Yeeees…"
The voice came out dense and broken, as if thousands of throats tried to agree on one tone and failed.
The giant abomination:
"Now… I understand."
Its massive vertical eye moved, shrinking, then widening, focusing on Korval.
The giant abomination:
"I understand… why you were willing to give me such a technique…
without cultivating it yourself."
A faint laugh escaped from the mouths of the human faces.
The giant abomination:
"No one… could meet its requirements."
It paused, then spoke in a whisper-like tone:
The giant abomination:
"As if it was… made for me."
Korval breathed slowly.
For the first time, something like… loss slipped into his smile.
Korval:
"That is correct."
He said it plainly.
Korval:
"This technique… cannot be cultivated by any human."
He raised his hand slightly, as if explaining an unquestionable equation.
Korval:
"Its requirements are astronomical.
Illogical.
Cruel to the point of mockery."
His tone sharpened.
Korval:
"The one who cultivates it must possess the power of a Primary Blood Warrior…
at least fifteen thousand kilograms of physical strength."
Some of those present moved unconsciously, their restrained bodies trembling.
Korval:
"And he must possess enormous spiritual power…
but—"
He stressed the word.
"—without practicing any cultivation system."
A cold shiver spread through the hall.
Korval:
"That is, the one who cultivates it…
must not have begun cultivation at all."
He laughed briefly, dry and hollow.
Korval:
"Do you see the absurdity?
The conditions contradict everything we know."
Then he looked directly at the giant abomination.
Korval:
"As if it were a technique meant…
for another mighty race.
Not for humans."
He paused, then spoke more softly.
Korval:
"I was shocked when you told me… that you had not begun cultivating any path yet."
He briefly glanced at Ashen, then back again.
Korval:
"Only then… did I think.
This technique… might suit you."
The giant abomination moved its head.
The small arms beneath its skin writhed like restless worms.
The giant abomination:
"Indeed…"
It laughed.
"A strange technique."
Then it asked, as if the question came from another face inside its head:
The giant abomination:
"Where… did you find it?"
A short silence followed.
Korval did not hesitate.
Korval:
"In a shattered spatial treasure."
He said it calmly, like a man speaking of a grave.
Korval:
"The space inside that treasure was in total chaos.
The laws were torn apart.
Space collapsing in on itself."
Then he added:
Korval:
"Everything… was destroyed.
Or turned to dust."
He paused.
Then said:
Korval:
"Except… these pieces of skin."
Something shifted in his eyes.
Korval:
"They remained intact.
As if chaos itself… did not dare touch them."
He breathed slowly.
Korval:
"When I looked at them… I understood nothing.
But when I injected my spiritual power into them…
I understood parts of it."
He smiled bitterly.
Korval:
"But I could not cultivate it.
Those requirements… were not meant for me."
Then he said quietly:
Korval:
"It seems fate… chose its owner."
The giant abomination murmured.
Dozens of mouths spoke the word together:
The giant abomination:
"Fate… huh."
It laughed.
A meaningless laugh.
Then—
It turned.
Its massive vertical eye settled on Ashen.
A different silence fell.
The silence that comes when monsters face each other.
The giant abomination:
"I want… to fight you, Ashen."
Ashen's expression did not change.
Ashen:
"What?"
Pure indifference.
Ashen:
"Did obtaining this technique…
make you want a fight?"
The abomination laughed.
A laugh bursting from all its faces.
The giant abomination:
"No… no."
Its voice suddenly calmed.
The giant abomination:
"I have not even begun cultivating it."
Then it spoke in a clearer, more dangerous tone:
The giant abomination:
"All that happened…
is that I understood it."
It took a step forward.
The giant abomination:
"And since my consciousness cleared…
because of your aura…"
The hall trembled.
The giant abomination:
"I realized something."
Its vertical eye narrowed.
The giant abomination:
"You could have killed me…
in moments…
during our first meeting."
A suffocating silence fell.
The giant abomination:
"So…
I want to fight you again."
It laughed, but this time the laughter was calm… terrifying.
The giant abomination:
"I want to understand the difference between us…
completely."
Ashen replied without hesitation.
Ashen:
"Hah…"
He looked at it with killing coldness.
Ashen:
"It seems your tongue has become smoother.
And your awareness… more complete."
Then he said plainly, without any threat:
Ashen:
"But with your current power…
you cannot defeat me."
He raised his gaze slightly.
Ashen:
"If I use my savage intent…
you will die in moments."
The giant abomination laughed wildly.
The giant abomination:
"I know… I know."
The arms on its back surged, clashed, then settled.
The giant abomination:
"But you know what I want."
It stepped closer.
The giant abomination:
"I want a fight…
without your intent."
It clenched its fists.
The giant abomination:
"A fight…
where flesh crashes into flesh…
and bone into bone."
It exhaled.
The giant abomination:
"I want to measure my strength…
my capability…
my skill…
when consciousness is fully present."
Ashen looked at it.
Then he said, in a voice cold enough to freeze blood:
Ashen:
"Fine."
He paused.
Ashen:
"But do not blame me…
if you die."
The hall froze.
Then the abomination burst into laughter.
The giant abomination:
"Yes… this is exactly what I want!"
It suddenly turned toward Korval.
The giant abomination:
"Do you have…
a good place to fight?"
Korval was silent.
For several long seconds.
His mind worked.
Arranged.
Calculated.
Turned this madness… into opportunity.
Then he finally spoke:
Korval:
"Yes."
He raised his head.
Korval:
"I have a stone forest.
Vast… wide."
He smiled the smile of a king.
Korval:
"But I want to watch this fight."
Then added:
"And invite some people…
to watch it as well."
Ashen replied without interest:
Ashen:
"Doesn't matter."
The giant abomination laughed, a laugh full of nostalgia.
The giant abomination:
"A stone forest…"
It murmured.
The giant abomination:
"That…
brings back memories."
And silence fell.
Heavy.
Promising…
A coming massacre.