Second Target! Two Paths!
Oliver nodded and placed her hand between his palms as he started to channel his espera into her. A faint glow surrounded their hands, the energy flowing smoothly between them. The warmth of his espera pulsed gently, intertwining with hers.
This was all, of course, for the sake of binding with her. It was not that he wanted to do this for synergy between them or anything like that, but since he had said so, he had to at least channel his espera into her.
The thing he was doing right now was considered quite bold and frowned upon in the exorcist world because it was akin to prying into the secrets of the other party using their espera.
He could feel the weight of the taboo action, a slight thrill accompanying the risk.
However, since Evelyn had also agreed to this idea, it was not an issue, and she too was going to pry into him, so this was all a fair deal.
Once inside, he could instantly kill her or cripple her if he intends to, that was how vulnerable this act was. Of course, he had no such intentions. He merely wanted to have some form of physical contact with her to fill in the system's condition.
Feeling the dense and potent espera invading her nerves, she could not help but feel surprised. His espera was so powerful and pure. She could feel the sheer difference in quality.
It surged through her veins like liquid fire, making her heart race.
Did he drink an elixir to refine his espera?
She could not help but feel a tingling sensation crawling under her skin, but she endured and closed her eyes to guide his espera.
Her breath hitched slightly, focusing intently on the task at hand.
Oliver smiled as he stared in front of him, at the blank air before him.
He was not crazy but instead was looking at a familiar floating black screen with golden words.
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[Ding! Evelyn Starborn. Does the host wish to bind with the individual?]
[Ding! Evelyn Starborn. Does the host wish to bind with the individual?]
'Yes!' Oliver was overjoyed as he finally received the notification.
[Binding… 1%… 69%… 100%… Successful!]
[Evelyn Starborn is now the target.]
[Binding… 1%… 69%… 100%… Successful!]
[Evelyn Starborn is now the target.]
[Notice: ERROR]
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'This is…?' he stopped midway. Before he could get a chance to celebrate binding with the main protagonist, the system suddenly showed an unexpected error.
'What is this supposed to mean?' he frowned, looking at the system screen with a hint of caution and apprehension written all over his face.
His fingers tightened around Evelyn's hand reflexively. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
[Ding! Detected the interference of Abyss…]
'Abyss!?' Oliver's eyes suddenly shot wide, disbelief clouding his expression. His heart pounded in his chest, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
He never expected that Abyss would be able to intervene and affect him.
Was Abyss this omnipotent!?
He had a shuddering feeling inside his chest when he read the screen.
But for some reason, his heart was calm as if it knew what was happening.
An eerie sense of acceptance settled over him.
[Ding! Analyzing the cause…]
[Detected! Evelyn Starborn associated with the Divinity! Incompatible target for circuit of Abyss!]
[Ding! Creating Alternatives…]
[Alternative found!]
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Bzzt-!
A buzzing sound resonated in his head as a strange change seemed to take place within him. It was an unidentifiable feeling he could not clearly express it, but he was aware that something was happening and changing inside his mind.
His vision blurred momentarily, the world spinning around him.
[Host must select a path:
[Path of Divinity]
[Path of Abyss]
[Note: An affiliation is mandatory Abyss and Heavens cannot coexist. A choice must be made.]
A flood of knowledge poured into his brain directly as he took a deep breath.
It was information about what was going to happen in case he chose a specific path.
If he decided to choose the Path of Heavens and Divinity, his body would undergo another transformation.
The circuit of Abyss would be forcefully removed from inside his body by the divinity. His soul itself, which had been filled with Abyss energy and become one with Abyss, would be reshaped.
His soul harboring the corrupt energy inside would be baptized by the divine energy from Heavens, cleansing it of anything related to Abyss in the first place.
Not only that, but this whole process had very low chances of even succeeding, as per the information he received.
Abyss was not something that could be understood the divine energy could only try to remove the influence. It was all too dangerous a process that he would have to undergo if he decided to become one with Heavens.
However, on the other hand, if he decided to choose the Path of Abyss, nothing would happen, and he would continue progressing as he had been.
But then what about binding with Evelyn, the main protagonist?
Oliver could never let go of the fruitful golden opportunities she would stumble upon in the future. He was a hundred percent sure that many of them were significant milestones, and if he received tenfold of such power, it was just unimaginable.
So the system derived another alternative for this situation.
If he binds with Evelyn right now and still chooses the Path of Abyss to continue, then anything Evelyn achieves to further her progress related to anything divine would be converted and transformed in a way suitable for him, who was on the Path of Abyss.
At the time when he became a circuit of Abyss, he received some incomprehensible knowledge, most of which was still not deciphered by him.
If he selected the Path of Abyss, the unknown knowledge in his mind imparted by Abyss would start becoming available to be comprehended by him.
Every time Evelyn achieved a significant milestone, as per the system's standards, a portion of the unknown knowledge would be revealed to him or entirely new knowledge would be given depending on the situation.
All to make him progress on the Path of Abyss!
Oliver was now calmer than before as he took a deep breath and exhaled. The decision weighed heavily on him, but his resolve was firm.
He was still holding Evelyn's wrist in his hand.
He smiled as he let go of her hand finally.
He had made his choice already it was not something he needed to think about.
The moment he became a circuit of Abyss, a conduit of Abyss, he knew the path he was going to walk on.
He had already started to progress on that path his Abyss energy was ever-growing.
Corrupt? Well, that was a term used to describe that energy.
But to him, it did not feel that way. He felt a familiar and comfortable feeling with Abyss energy, nothing corrupt.
He smiled as he declared his choice.
'[Path of Abyss]'
He was not going to switch to Heavens now that he has already become one with Abyss.
He doubted if divine energy could provide him the same power he desired in the future. Would divine energy allow him to kill without remorse?
Would divine energy help him devour his enemies without restraint?
Were Heavens just and fair to all? No, or else everyone would have been born equal.
But everyone die in the end. Does that make Abyss fair to all? He did not know, it was a mystery of its own. He might find an answer to it in the future perhaps.
Heavens were just one side of a coin there was nothing good or evil. It was all a sense of perception established in the world.
What humans considered good might not always be good for other races, and such was the case for others too. This was also the root cause of any conflict.
Nonetheless, he had made his choice there was no stopping it anymore.
[Ding! Path of Abyss! Heavens discarded!]
[Binding… 1%… 69%… 100%… Successful!]
[Evelyn Starborn is now the target.]
He had successfully shifted the target from Nadia to Evelyn now without any issues.
"So, how was it?" Evelyn's voice brought him out of his thoughts.
He looked at her with calm eyes, "It was eye-opening. I feel that we can coordinate better now," he said. His smile was genuine, hiding the turmoil within.
"Is that so?" She raised a brow at that.
"That's right, your espera was blindingly radiant and pure. It had a sense of warmth to it. The light-attributed espera is amazing," he praised her.
"T-Thanks!"
Evelyn smiled awkwardly at that. She did not know how to reply to that. A faint blush colored her cheeks, and she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"W-Well, should I try it too…? Of course, if you are fine with it…" She fidgeted a little when she said this in a low tone.
It was evident that she was weak to flattery.
Oliver was amused. In the future, she was going to be immune to any level of flattery. She would have gotten so used to the tons of flattering words she would hear from the mouths of the people she was going to save.
But right now, she was still inexperienced and shy when praised.
"Sure, why not?" he said as he extended his right hand to her, and she placed his hand between her palms as he did.