Chapter 195: The Anchor of Nothingness.
Just as the Titan was about to put Levi on some game, Ash’Kral sent a telepathic warning.
’Old Bark... telling him is the same as discouraging him. He is still at the early stages, and I have great hopes for him.’ Ash’Kral stressed, ’He is a very, very curious boy... don’t go around and answer his questions... he will never stop asking for more.’
’Oh... I find such a trait noteworthy. Also, I disagree... You are putting him on a path of no return. The least you can do is trust him with all the details.’
’Who knows... he might figure out a solution because of it.’
The Titan smiled at Levi, who looked pissed off at Ash’Kral c*ckblocking him from knowing more. Then, he shared what he remembered with him, brightening Levi’s expression.
"The Origin seeds are inherently incapable of union into one... Each one commands its own set of Aspects and Laws... these were already decided the moment the seed was born... Hence, the name... Origin Seed."
"You can’t be uniting what considers itself, and under the universe’s laws... as perfect."
"Makes sense..."
Levi nodded in understanding while holding his chin... although such a piece of news was discouraging, Levi didn’t seem too bothered.
He could tell that the seeds’ union was something he needed to worry about in the far future... at the moment, he was still stuck at making the seeds get along together in one body, don’t even mention uniting them as one Seed.
Though these new findings made him think about the differences between the Shadowlife seed and the Origin seed.
He had read in the network that Shadowlife seeds’ goal wasn’t to grow into a Shadowlife tree, no... but a tree commanding a specific law.
That’s why the Shadowlife seeds grew into different-looking mature trees once a Daywalker, a Nightcrawler, or any Shadowlife owner reached a certain unified growth mark... Mature Tree.
"Origin seeds awaken only the host’s aspects related to their laws... Nine Senses Seed helped me awaken the sound Aspect. Sun Seed... Sunflames Aspect, and the Void Seed, Darkness Aspect." Levi shared with an intrigued tone, "It doesn’t matter if I had an amazing affinity to the Aspect or any genetic relation... it still forces the Aspect to awaken."
"The Shadowlife seed is different... it extracts from the genetic traits of its host and awakens only the best aspects that he has the highest affinity for. Then, it pushes its host to grow it into a tree exclusive to that aspect and its connecting law, forsaking everything else..."
Levi suddenly paused, his brow raised in confusion... it suddenly clicked in his mind.
"Why does it feel like Shadowlife seeds are attempting to become Origin seeds through the hosts’ help?"
"You are starting to get it." The Titan smiled, "Because... they are."
Levi was left with his lips slightly parted in a daze... he went silent, but fireworks were going on in his mind.
"Why does the Shadowlife seed want to copy Origin seeds? Who created them both? Are they natural or man-made? If a Shadowlife seed was grown to its fruitation stage and bore a fruit, will the seeds also be Shadowlife seeds as we were taught, or will they have a relation to that specific law?"
Just like a broken record machine, Levi kept pacing back and forth while questioning everything that needed to be questioned.
"Happy now? You broke him." Ash’Kral rolled his eye, knowing that Levi was already far gone in his fantasy world.
The Titan chuckled, unbothered... he could tell that Levi had a bright mind, and for such fellas, withholding knowledge wasn’t always the best option.
If the consequences were his discouragement? Then, he might not have what it takes to embark on this road in the first place.
Unfortunately for Levi, the Titan was still suffering severe memory loss... when he turned to him for answers, he shook his head with a wry smile.
This left him to gaze at Ash’Kral, whose smile slowly morphed into a grin.
"Why..."
"Nope."
"F*ck off..."
Levi cursed, scratching his head in irritation, now having more questions burning a hole in his mind.
Just like Ash’Kral said, learning about subjects that he had no business interacting with now wouldn’t help him learn more... instead, question more.
The more you learn, the less you know.
But, Levi didn’t let them eat too much of his mind, not wanting to prove Ash’Kral correct.
"Elder, I know that prick will be poisoning your mind behind my back to withhold information..." Levi let out a long exhale, "It’s fine, I will find out the truth about everything eventually."
"How long can he last?" He smirked.
"You’re a funny boy... but, you’re right. The truth will come out eventually, just that when you find it, please share it with me."
The Titan requested with a kind smile... though his eyes turned cloudy again, leaving Levi and Ash’Kral speechless for the second time.
The Titan ignored their looks and kept appreciating the three celestial stars in the sky, looking like a grandpa with Alzheimer’s.
"Levi... build a resting place for your grandpa and don’t bother him with any more questions." Ash’Kral sighed, "His Alzheimer’s might take a while to fix."
"What’s Alzheimer’s? Is it food?"
"Got it."
Levi ignored the Titan, who was still asking questions about Alzheimer’s, and went to build a house for him away from the orbiting seeds.
In his spiritual Leywell, he could create whatever based on his will, using the lake as the material... a simple technique Ash’Kral taught him.
Although he still had so many questions he wanted to ask him... most important ones related to the Crown, and if he could maybe help his little brother get stronger since their powers seemed connected.
But it seemed a bit cruel to ask him when he didn’t remember much in the first place... For now, Levi kept his questions to himself until the Titan’s Alzheimer’s got sorted out a little.
...
After getting the old man settled, leaving him with Ash’Kral to catch up, Levi decided to check on the Void Seed at last.
He reached out to his tailbone tattoo and touched the pulsing black seed, which was still active since he hadn’t crafted his third weapon yet.
The moment his consciousness was pulled inside, Levi was relieved to notice that the chilling fog started to clear up on its own.
He started walking forward, heading in the direction of the Ancestral Void Tree... his eyes awaiting to be blessed by its appearance.
But, once the fog cleared out... Levi felt his breath hitching as the horizon warped ahead.
There it stood... silent, immense, and unwelcoming.
The Ancestral Void Tree loomed like a wound in reality itself... Its trunk was impossibly dark, not black but the absence of color, absorbing what little light dared touch it.
The bark rippled faintly, as if the wood were alive and breathing in reverse... pulling the world inward rather than exhaling life.
Branches twisted into a never-ending circle, making it seem like they wanted to reach a singularity... A point of no return.
As for the leaves? There were none... mere fragments of shattered light clung and flickered weakly before winking out inside each circle, resembling miniature black holes devouring firelights for eternity.
Levi didn’t know why, but he felt drawn to the tree... like he wanted to be part of it, to be consumed by it, to return to the peacefulness of nothingness...
But, he removed such cursed thoughts and took deep breaths in, his voice stolen by the muteness around the tree as though it had swallowed sounds as well.
’What a harrowing presence...’
Levi’s spiritual eyes narrowed. His chest felt tight with the sense that the world here had been emptied of meaning, and if he dared to hang around the tree for long, he would follow.
"The Ancestral Void Tree... The Anchor of Nothingness ." The Titan murmured, his eyes flashed with a new memory... a memory filled with nothing but agony.
"For you to be allowed to see it, you must either carry a bloodline worthy of its presence or... You have gained its attention through something extraordinary." The Titan soon shook those memories away and asked curiously, "What have you done?"
"He slew a Leviathan," Ash’Kral answered casually for Levi, but a tint of pride was hidden in his tone.
"A Leviathan?!" The Titan’s eyes widened briefly and then asked, "What’s that?"
"God damn it."
Ash’Kral cursed in annoyance, feeling like he was being punked by his old buddy... Just when he thought his memory started to come back, he pulled this crap.
Still, he went on and told him what happened in the game, hoping that anything they talked about would refresh his memory.
When he finished, the Titan seemed to look at Levi a bit differently.
"Little one... I didn’t think you had this much in you." The Titan praised, "To slay a Leviathan... although weakened, is an extraordinary achievement at your current level."
"Thank you, Elder... I just did what I needed to." Levi smiled while pointing at the Void Tree, "That asshole forced my hands... and now, it’s time to collect my reward."
As he said this... A Crafting Station began to rise from the still, lurid dark lake.
The station was made out of withered dark roots intertwined in infinite circles around a platform... Above the platform, a spherical dark hole orbited around its axis silently, awaiting Ash’Kral to be put inside.
"So? Are you still committed to the concept you had in mind for a while now?" Ash’Kral asked while floating towards the crafting station.
"Most definitely." Levi nodded.
Levi had a decent amount of time to think of his third weapon and what would serve best for his near future.
He knew those three weapons were going to be his main ones until he evolved to Solarbound rank.
Since no one had ever done that before, it implied that he would be stuck as a Warden for a very long time... He refused to leave room for any regrets about his weapons.
Thus, he had decided to have: a Melee weapon, a Ranged Weapon, and lastly, A Spiritual Weapon.
"What were you thinking?" The Titan asked.
"A spiritual weapon capable of harnessing my spiritual potential to its limit... A weapon capable of amplifying any of my other aspects just as good."
Levi paused as he gazed at Ash’Kral, who was already waiting for him to start the creation process... and then, he narrowed his spiritual eyes, "A weapon with a concept that has its own unique fighting style, which I know nothing about... But, it has to be it."