Chapter 87: The Weight of Causality |
Moonlight and starlight streamed through the gaps in the clouds parted by the staircase, cascading down like silver gauze and forming a breathtaking waterfall of light across the night sky.
Beneath the curtain of light, the completely renewed ghost fleet adjusted its course and lined up on both sides, surrounding the staircase leading toward the unknown like stars encircling the moon.
On the shore, upon the beach mixed with mud and bloodstains, the survivors stared blankly at this miraculous transformation, their minds completely empty.
“Th… what exactly is happening?”
An adventurer who had just crawled ashore from the freezing seawater muttered tremblingly, drenched from head to toe.
“Is this still… still that ghost ship?”
“I think… I think so?”
Although the true form displayed by the dreaded ghost ship at this moment was so dazzling and sacred—
It still inspired instinctive awe and fear from the depths of one’s soul.
No matter how the ghost ship changed, what it brought was not hope, but the end of life and the beginning of another journey.
Likewise, they did not know what the staircase represented, but the moment that sacred staircase appeared, all their souls trembled simultaneously—
It was the most primal reverence for death engraved into the origin of life itself.
And among everyone present, Kyle, who directly faced the “Road of Rebirth,” felt it most clearly and intensely.
Kyle let out a long breath inwardly and forcibly suppressed the throbbing of his soul. Controlling Alvaro’s body, he slowly pushed the golden rune condensed from the ancient covenant toward the starting point of the “Road of Rebirth.”
The instant the contract rune intersected with the staircase—
Kyle’s vision, hearing, and every one of his senses suddenly became incomparably distant and slow!
It was as though time itself had ceased to exist.
Yet the sensation quickly faded, and by the time he reacted, his soul had already crossed space and time, standing upon the staircase of the “Road of Rebirth.”
All of this had been completed the moment the covenant was established.
At this moment, all his connections to the outside world had been completely severed. Even Isos, who possessed a special spiritual connection talent, could no longer sense his existence.
This was the boundary between life and death!
As far as his eyes could see, there was only the staircase of light endlessly stretching forward, and beyond the staircase, the void-like loneliness that devoured everything.
It was as though the entire world contained only himself and the staircase, while everything else was merely an illusory dream.
Alvaro regained control over his metallic body. He quietly floated outside the staircase, gazing at the translucent figure standing upon the steps.
Not only him—at this moment, every living being within the seas surrounding Coral Thorn City instinctively turned their gaze toward the sacred staircase.
A faint realization arose within their hearts: aside from a very small number of existences, everyone else’s fate had already become bound to the person upon the staircase.
This was a ritual witnessed by the laws of death. Escape was meaningless unless one could break free from the shackles of this world itself.
And clearly, such a possibility was practically nonexistent.
A suffocating silence enveloped heaven and earth. Only the sounds of sea winds whipping against sails and waves crashing upon reefs softly chanted an eternal elegy for this sacred ritual.
Upon the staircase, Kyle lowered his head and looked at his translucent palm.
This was the first time he had ever seen what his soul looked like.
It did not exceed his expectations.
The soul of this life possessed the appearance of his current self. It seemed he truly had perfectly reincarnated into this world with the memories of his previous life intact.
Without dwelling on it further, he focused all his attention back upon the staircase beneath his feet.
The trial did not grant unlimited time.
Every second spent here, he could clearly feel his soul rapidly dissipating!
His soul body took a shallow breath and stepped onto the “Road of Rebirth,” forged from light, shadow, and laws.
***
The instant Kyle stepped onto the staircase—
The entire sacred staircase suddenly boiled like the surface of a lake struck by a massive stone!
Countless attachments to life, fears of death, and the endless joys and sorrows between life and death transformed into an irresistible torrent that violently crashed against his soul consciousness!
“No! No! No! I don’t want to die!” a merchant clutching a luxurious treasure chest screamed in despair.
“Mom… where are you… I’m scared…” a child looked helplessly at the unfamiliar crowd around him, crying in confusion.
“My wealth… my authority…” a noble dressed in disheveled clothing gripped a broken scepter tightly, utterly unwilling to let go.
“How can I fall here?! I still haven’t taken my revenge… haven’t…” an adventurer who had lost an arm continued struggling forward.
***
Countless shattered thoughts pierced toward his soul like billions of sharp needles, attempting to crush and assimilate his sense of self.
Kyle quietly felt the sudden change.
He was very familiar with this!
This was the weight of causality!
This was likely the first trial upon the Road of Rebirth.
As someone possessing the talent to perceive causal threads, he had already experienced such trials countless times.
The experiences of these people could not affect him in the slightest.
Across these two lives, he had already witnessed far too much light and darkness.
Not to mention the pain and lamentations of the living—Kyle had experienced the suffering of countless dead in order to recruit loyal subordinates.
What did this amount to?
Facing the surging flood of thoughts, he resembled an experienced programmer, skillfully separating them into various streams of information data.
Pure fear and meaningless wailing—Directly blocked.
Malicious obsessions, greed, and unwillingness—All thrown into the “trash bin.”
The desire to live, resistance against fate, and convictions of protection—sorted and organized, accepted and borne within reasonable limits.
His footsteps were not affected in the slightest as he steadily climbed upward step by step.
The crowd upon the shore watched the increasingly radiant figure advancing steadily along the staircase. Though they did not understand what that light represented, the oppressive heaviness radiating from it made it difficult for them to breathe.
O’Brien looked at the scene in astonishment. The feeling was extremely similar to when he had sworn his oath before the Holy Light and endured the weight of his vow. The two were almost equal in intensity.
Could it be that Kyle was also making some sort of oath right now?!
The ghost ship was equally shocked by the sight. It had never expected someone from the Night clan to withstand the weight of the living’s causality so easily—and even bear it upon himself instead of kicking it away?!
There were two methods to pass this first trial, and likewise two possible outcomes.
The first was to bear the weight of causality. The soul would become incomparably strong and resilient, but from then onward, it would carry onward together with all living beings connected to it through causality.
The second was to kick causality away. From then on, all worldly causality would have nothing to do with that person. Free and unburdened, they would roam unfettered—but they would also lose the support of the world and walk alone in solitude.
Oh?
Looks like he isn’t completely bearing it all. Quite a bit of causality is still being kicked away by this little fellow.
Tsk tsk, quite the personality!
I like it!