Chapter 10 - Beyond Existence!
Few minutes before the Celestial Chains descended from the Heavens…
Even though NOX was immune to destruction, he could still bleed. He could still feel pain. And when VRITRA's relentless assault struck him, it felt as though his very soul and body were being torn apart beyond their limits—an agony so immense that his consciousness teetered on the edge of oblivion.
After enduring several devastating blows, NOX's mind instinctively sought to protect him. It shut down, forcing him into temporary unconsciousness.
When his eyes opened, he was no longer in the battlefield.
He was inside his consciousness.
No—more precisely, he was within his Mental World, the evolved form of his consciousness.
The Mental World was a realm where the essence of mind, soul, and awareness converged. Every fragment of one's existence was recorded here—knowledge, skills, Laws, Dharmas, Techniques, even Concepts themselves.
In this ethereal space, NOX existed in his spirit form, his physical body still tethered to the material universe.
He stood beneath a vast, star-filled sky, where each star represented a skill he had acquired. The number of stars seemed limitless.
But amidst them, something else dominated the space.
A black hole—a singularity so immense that it distorted the very notion of distance. It occupied most of the Mental World, despite the realm itself being boundless.
This was the Universe Core.
Drawn by an unseen force, NOX drifted toward it. Yet, as he neared, he noticed something strange—the closer he got, the slower time seemed to move. Was it an illusion? There was supposed to be no concept of time in his Mental World.
If time existed here, then shouldn't he—the absolute god of this realm—have dominion over it?
The thought unsettled him. No matter how much he advanced, the center of the singularity remained just as distant.
It was as though he were moving toward an unreachable infinity.
Frustration surged within him. He had enough of this.
NOX unleashed his authority, deploying his Omnipotent Concept to corrupt the very fabric of time surrounding the singularity.
Yes—corrupt, not erase.
His instincts warned him that if he erased time outright, the singularity might become unstable. And an abnormality in one's Mental World? In the words of the Dragon Country's ancient wisdom—he would be courting death.
And it worked.
With every step forward, the very concept of time around him twisted, bending under his will. He wanted to study this anomaly—to understand why and how time existed beyond his control in his own Mental World—but now was not the time to indulge his curiosity.
After what felt like only moments, NOX reached the periphery of the Universe Core's center. Here, he could sense it clearly—the Concept of Space and Time stretched toward infinity.
He moved forward…
For every step he took, space expanded, keeping the distance unchanged. For every moment that passed, time stretched, ensuring he never reached the end.
He was chasing infinity.
It was then that he understood.
No matter how many years he spent navigating this realm, no matter how far he walked—there was no end to infinity.
Though it was frustrating, this was an undeniable truth.
He let out a slow breath. There was no point in continuing further.
Even NOX, a creature of boundless curiosity, knew when to abandon a fruitless pursuit.
Just as he turned to leave, a voice echoed through the void—one he could never forget.
"My precious son, born of darkness! Let me give you a helping hand…"
His entire being tensed.
That voice…..
It was the voice that had once whispered Madness into his ears. The voice that had convinced him that starting [Ruination] would somehow bring back his family.
The only voice that had ever addressed him as—
"My precious son, born of darkness."
As its words echoed, a crimson mist stirred inside the Universe Core. It was eerily similar to NOX's Madness Essence.
Then—reality twisted.
An overwhelming gravitational force erupted from the singularity, dragging NOX forward with terrifying intensity. His instincts screamed.
"What the f**k—?!" NOX bellowed.
But before he could even begin to resist, he was wrenched from his place—pulled mercilessly into the singularity.
His consciousness and perception blurred slowly, as though he were slipping into a dream.
*********
After an unknown amount of time...
NOX finally came to his senses. He opened his eyes, but there was nothing to see. Only darkness. He couldn't feel his body, as though there was no sense of touch in this realm. He couldn't hear a sound.
It was absolute silence.
This place was beyond the realm of existence. Concepts of space, time, and even reality no longer existed here. Only complete blindness and absolute silence remained.
He couldn't even perceive his own existence.
All NOX had were his thoughts. And although time didn't exist here, his thoughts could still mark the passing moments, creating the illusion of time.
In this realm, time could only be measured by the moments that drifted by.
The moments passed slowly...
NOX wanted to escape, but he had no idea where he was, or even how to move. He couldn't even sense if he was moving at all when he tried to.
His thoughts drifted aimlessly, enduring the silence. Oddly, he didn't feel frustrated by the solitude.
What were a few moments of darkness compared to the millions of years of loneliness he had already endured?
He was accustomed to this absolute silence. He had endured it before, and he would do so again.
As for his battle with VRITRA—NOX didn't dwell on it.
He was certain that VRITRA and Garuda wouldn't truly kill him. His constant taunts had been a deliberate test to confirm this.
Who was VRITRA?
An entity so powerful that NOX and Lucas were nothing more than ants before him. And yet, he had tolerated NOX's defiance.
Would a being of his stature normally endure such insolence?
He shouldn't. Yet, VRITRA showed restraint.
When he unleashed his barrage of punches, he deliberately avoided striking NOX's soul. That alone reinforced NOX's belief—VRITRA and Garuda wanted something from him and Lucas.
The battle was a show of strength—a way to remind NOX and Lucas of their place.
So, NOX didn't concern himself much with the goals or motivations of VRITRA and the other entities. Each of them had their own reasons for wanting NOX and Lucas alive.
And NOX, too, had his own goals—three, to be precise:
Revive his family—the most important goal.
If that failed, at least prevent the Universe's Nirvana for a few thousand years.
And if possible, he had to ensure that he would never initiate Ruination—the vision he had seen in his divination.
Though NOX didn't even understand how he was meant to bring about Ruination, he knew one thing—it was his destiny.
In this world, those who awaken are granted the privilege to pursue Transcendence and Immortality, bestowed by The Great Will.
On the eve of their awakening, their destiny is revealed to them.
Destiny is absolute. It will come to pass—whether one accepts it or not. The only way to defy it is to die before it unfolds.
When NOX awakened, he saw his fate:
[Bringer of Ruination]: The ender of all worlds. You are destined to reduce existence itself to its ultimate ruin.
He hated this destiny.
How could he not? How could anyone accept being told that one day, they would destroy everything?
This was why he had lost everything—his family, his humanity, everything he had once held dear.
And now, fate mocked him.
He had lost everything because of his destiny—and now, his divination told him that he must initiate Ruination to get it all back?
It was a paradox.
He refused to let his destiny win. Not unless there was no other choice.
But if Ruination was the only way to bring his family back… then hesitation would mean nothing.
He would end all worlds if he had to.
And if destiny won because of it? Then so be it.
To him, nothing was more important than family. He would lose a thousand times over if it meant seeing them again.
And if he failed?
What was the worst that could happen? Death?
As NOX's thoughts raced, contemplating his future plans, the Moments continued to slip by…
Then, a shadowy figure entered his vision, jolting him from his thoughts. His sight suddenly returned.
Whether it was the presence of this figure that restored his vision was unclear, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that he could now perceive his body—his senses were beginning to return.