The Last Paragon in the Apocalypse

Kaden remained on the ground for gods know how long. The gravity bearing down on him was just too much, so while his bones were healing at a rapid pace, his body still remained rooted in place.

Eventually, however, he was able to lift his head, raise his back, and sit in a lotus posture.

His bones had healed enough to allow him to sit.

However, despite finally being able to lift his back off the ground, he still had to handle the gravity bearing down on him, the source of his pain to begin with. So, as he sat in a lotus posture, he began to focus more on understanding gravity.

He had already used it to lower the pressure on him. However, he knew the only way to make progress was to let his body experience it without restraint.

So he slowly began to reduce his gravity resistance, allowing the pressure bearing down on him to increase. But as it increased, he also started to make steadier progress.

[Your understanding of the Gravity Law has improved greatly]

[Your understanding of the Gravity Law has improved tremendously]

[Your understanding of the Gravity Law has improved significantly]

”_”

”_”

[You have attained Transcendent Comprehension of Gravity Law]

In mere days, he had leveled up once, which, in a nutshell, was a significant boon, especially since, with this level-up, he could now feel a significant amount of the gravity pressure taken off him.

This allowed him to let go of more of his resistance, letting more of the pressure crash down on him. In the end, however, Kaden had to let go of all his resistance, which made him grit his teeth.

Days passed, which, if what Icon said was true, meant only mere hours had passed in the Primus Universe.

If that was the case, then spending days healing and comprehending the Gravity Law surely wasn’t wasted. But Kaden wasn’t one to waste too much time, especially in a place he had no knowledge of.

It was uncharted territory for him, after all.

While Icon had speculated that maybe he had lived in this place before, until he got concrete evidence of that, he wouldn’t lower his guard just yet.

It was true that he was outside the known universe, which, if he was being sincere with himself, was terrifying for someone like him.

The Primus Universe may have hated him, but at least it had laws against many things, especially Primordials. They couldn’t freely use their power in public or in the real world unless they were in the Void, so that was a boon for him. At least no Primordial would attack him.

However, here, those laws didn’t apply, meaning that at any point, a Primordial or, far worse, something stronger than a Primordial might attack, and he was powerless to stop them.

If that were to happen, he was going to need every tool in his arsenal to save his skin. So, with a chance to comprehend the Law of Gravity, even if it was discovered in the most inconvenient way possible, it was good enough.

He was making progress, and that was what mattered.

Thankfully, by the end of the 40th day since he arrived in the Bone Ash Valley, the message and feeling he had expected appeared before him.

[You have attained Harmony Comprehension of Gravity Law]

Kaden felt a huge load taken off his shoulders the moment his comprehension of the Gravity Law had finally entered the Harmony stage.

The terrifying pressure that had kept him rooted in place was almost gone. He stood up and stretched, letting his mended bones loosen up.

He never expected himself to end up this broke beyond repair. But at least he had now become even stronger after healing and comprehending the Law of Gravity.

[Congratulations, Master. With your comprehension of the Gravity Law now at the Harmony stage, you can traverse this place without fear of gravity suppression. But to be on the safer side, allow your body to fully adjust to the pressure here without even using the Gravity Law to resist it.]

Kaden nodded and allowed his body to continue experiencing the gravity.

Meanwhile, his remaining wounds slowly healed. In a couple of hours, he was as good as new. Even better, he was now packing a much stronger punch since his understanding of gravity had advanced.

He could easily increase the density of his punches, allowing him to strike with a much deadlier and more overwhelming fist. If he wanted, he could also lower the gravity around him, allowing his body to move much faster.

Lastly, the moment he was done comprehending the Gravity Law, he summoned the one skill he knew would benefit the most, thanks to his current understanding.

”Heavens Engine.”

BUZZ

The large diagram materialized, now with seven layers. Kaden smiled, sensing that if the full pressure of the seventh layer of the Heavens Engine was applied, there was a chance even he wouldn’t have a bit of bones or flesh left to heal from.

Unlike normal gravity, the Heavens Engine multiplied the gravity already in the area by the corresponding layer’s multiplier. The first layer increased it by 100%.

However, while one would consider the second to have a 200% boost, it actually had a 500% boost. Meaning that if the second layer was applied, instead of a twofold increase in pressure, it increased fivefold. The third increased it by 1,000%, and the fourth by 4,000%.

But the fifth took it all the way to 10,000%, while the sixth raised it to 16,000%. Now, the seventh layer, from what Kaden could tell, would give him a 20,000% boost.

Two hundred times the already overwhelming gravity was more than enough to render even Celestials immobile for as long as he had Gravity Essence to spend.

A smile formed on Kaden’s face as he deactivated the Heavens Engine.

”I suppose I am now ready to leave this place, huh?” Kaden said, and Icon replied by displaying the map she had received for Kaden to examine. The path led west, so he started moving toward it.

”Icon, you mentioned that there are beasts here. Are there any along the path we’re taking?”

[Yes, Master. However, they are God Beasts, so I believe you can handle them. But just to be on the safe side, remain on high alert for anything. There is a chance we will be fighting creatures stronger than God Beasts.]

”Okay then.”

Kaden continued to ask more questions, and Icon, of course, answered them all, making sure Kaden understood the precarious nature of the place he had found himself in.

Icon had the map, but she lacked insight into the terrain and the place’s true nature. This was something Jane would have been able to help with.

However, because of the gravity in this place, he didn’t want to bring her out just yet.

Of course, he could bring her out and, using his understanding of the Law of Gravity, create a vacuum around her, preventing the gravity from affecting her.

But that would require too much energy, something Kaden had no plans to waste, at least until he came to terms with where he was and how much it was going to cost him to get where he wanted to go.

So, for now, he would keep going alone. But he had informed his friends and wives inside the Demon Bead that they had arrived in the Elemental Garden.

About an hour into the journey, he encountered his first Bone Ash Beast.