MMORPG: Rise of the Primordial Godsmith -
Chapter 1629: Breaking Barriers: Realization
Thud.
Being sent flying into the air by the final opponent of the fourth trial, Ataraxia soon landed on the ground with a solid thud, only for his body to roll for a couple more meters before eventually stopping.
“…”
Whoosh!
Remaining silent throughout all of that, the young man eventually sat upright, removing the dust off his body with a few swipes of energy he summoned around him.
Then, after making sure that all dust and debris on him was removed, he shifted his attention towards the figure that defeated him.
“I… lost,” muttered the young man, his expression calm as he sensed the combat intent still radiating out of the figure.
“I… lost, huh?”
As he repeated the words he just said, his expression subtly changed, now containing a wry and bitter smile hanging on the edge of his lips.
After experiencing the entirety of what the fourth trial had to offer, Ataraxia felt as if a new world to combat had been opened in front of him, showing him an immense number of possibilities that he felt were unachievable with his previous set of knowledge.
Wanting to take hold of these possibilities in preparation for the ultimate goal he had given himself, the young man showed no fear delving deep into the world of integration, maximizing the gains he obtained from each attempt to further combine his movement skill and combat style into a single entity.
Because of that, he made monstrous leaps with every attempt he took.
From an understanding that hovered around the levels of early integration, the first attempt brought his understanding of integrating the two to a level that was many times stronger than what he unleashed before.
Then, by the time he finished his second attempt, this understanding became more profound, eventually giving him the confidence that he had reached the end of what integration could possibly achieve.
…But what did reality tell him in response to that?
It was the fact that there still existed a distance between his abilities and the opponent’s in terms of integration.
Though this distance seemed achievable and small thanks to his current level of understanding, the difference between his integration and the opponent’s integration was akin to the difference between the light of a candle to the light of the sun.
That small difference in understanding… resulted in a great difference in ability.
“Are you alright?”
Dispelling the energy he had infused into the figure, Aeramis made his way to where Ataraxia sat, his expression that of concern once more.
“You took a pretty bad hit there.”
“It’s fine,” said the young man, utilizing the same combination of potions and skills to return himself back to peak condition.
“If anything, the fact that I got hit that badly is pretty minor.” Ataraxia gave him a wry smile. “At this point, I’m just thinking about how I wouldn’t be able to upgrade the title you gave me to its limit anymore.”
Hearing those words, Aeramis paused for a bit, briefly staring at the young man as a number of thoughts lingered in his mind.
Seeing as he had noticed the difference between the young man and the final opponent at the same time the former did, the man had a strong feeling that Ataraxia would feel something similar to his second attempt.
Self-loathing. A feeling of inferiority. An understanding that he was still lacking in some way.
Yet, contrary to his expectations, the young man looked at him as if he had already come to terms with the overall situation, shifting the topic of their conversation to the goal he had set for himself.
Because of the stark contrast he felt between his expectations and reality, the man took a while to adjust to the current situation, eventually giving Ataraxia a calm smile the moment he did.
“Who says you won’t be able to?”
Though this response caused him to blank out for a bit, the young man soon looked at Aeramis with widened eyes, his gaze telling the latter all he needed to know.
Letting out a slight chuckle at the young man’s fervent gaze, the man went ahead and brought up a screen in front of him, interacting with it for a bit before sending a nondescript strand of energy towards the young man.
Ding!
Hearing the system go off in his mind the moment he received the strand, Ataraxia’s doubts towards the man’s earlier words had thoroughly disappeared, instead being changed with surprise and confusion as he looked at the man.
“Wait… but I didn’t…”
“Clear the fourth trial to its limit?” Aeramis continued where he left off, giving the young man a knowing smile. “I know.”
“But the fact that you’ve gotten close to achieving Union in just a couple of days and had the ability to fight a being of that caliber for just a brief moment… is enough reason for me to make an exception.”
“…”
Although he remained silent throughout the man’s response, Ataraxia still felt his heart warm up because of it, prompting him to give the man a nod and a faint smile in return.
Nodding back at the young man with a smile on his face, Aeramis went ahead and gave the young man all the time he needed to sort out his thoughts, considering that the latter’s final attempt, as well as the words he spoke to him, would undoubtedly cause some questions to pop up in his mind.
“Say…”
Fortunately, it did not take long for Ataraxia to break the silence between them.
“What is this Union you’re talking about?”
“It’s a realm only achievable by those who have fully combined their movement skills into their combat style,” explained Aeramis, his expression sage-like. “Then again, that description only applies to Combat-Movement Union.”
“If you’re aiming for a more generalized definition of Union, then it’s a realm of combat only achievable once one thoroughly and completely fuses two aspects of combat into a single entity.”
“For example, if you fuse movement skills into the way you handle weapons, you achieve Weapon-Movement Union,” continued the man. “Or, if you fuse spells into every aspect of your combat style, then you achieve Spell-Combat Union.”
“Combat-Movement Union…” murmured Ataraxia in response, the gears in his head turning as he processed the information the man was sharing with him. “So, the final opponent I had to face during the trial was…?”
“Someone who had achieved Combat-Movement Union, yes.” Aeramis nodded, only to then give the young man a slightly bitter smile. “To be honest, I feel like I’ve gotten overboard with the final opponent for this trial.”
“After all, achieving Combat-Movement Union is akin to comprehending a middle-grade Intent.” The man faintly shook his head at the thought. “Even the most monstrous of prodigies would have great difficulty reaching that kind of level.”
“…Which is why it astounds me even more that you were able to step onto a level close to it in just a couple of days,” he continued. “Who are you, really? Are you a disciple from a Divine-level organization?”
“Or are you someone who has the full support of an Immemorial Deity?”
Listening to the possibilities that left the man’s mouth, Ataraxia merely smiled in response, letting the silence fill in the gaps that plagued Aeramis’ mind.
Thankfully, the latter did not discuss his identity any further than that, allowing him to ask the man another question that popped up in his mind.
“Union could be considered the next realm of combat, right?”
“You could say that, yeah.” The man nodded, looking at Ataraxia with a raised eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”
“I was just wondering… is there a realm after that?” asked the young man in return.
“There is.” Aeramis nodded, his aura immediately intensifying tenfold.
“Its name…”
“…is Dominion.”
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