Child of Destiny

”Elemental Anomaly?” Shin mumbled after hearing Solus’ voice.

He then looked at the anomalies before him, frowning deeply.

”They looked like old Grimrace to me,” he joked with a smirk, especially when they truly resembled the previous abomination spirit’s transformation before, albeit more dangerous.

Then Solus continued. ”My Liege-… Those creatures may resemble Abomination Elemental Spirits, but they are fundamentally different.”

Shin’s gaze never left the grotesque beings before him. ”How different?”

Solus continued with an extremely solemn tone. ”Abomination Elemental Spirits are predators.”

”They are born without an Origin Plance. And unlike ordinary Elemental Spirits, their lifespans are limited.”

”However, they can roam the world to hunt other Elemental Spirits to prolong their own lives. They can also constantly evolve through devouring others. But at the same time, the stronger they become, the more unstable their existence grows.”

Shin nodded as he recalled the information he knew about the Abomination Elemental Spirits, which Grimrace once was.

Solus continued as she snorted. ”But Grimrace is still an Elemental Spirit. No matter how violent he became, he remained part of the world’s natural order.”

”He consumed elemental mana. He could still evolve. And he could choose another evolutionary path.”

”He already did,” Solus smiled, seemingly looking at Shin, especially with the complementing tone that her voice carried. ”After becoming your retainer, his existence stabilized.”

”The innate limitations of his race disappeared. He no longer needed to devour others merely to continue existing.”

Her expression then suddenly turned solemn. ”But those creatures. They never possessed that possibility.”

”They are Elemental Anomalies.”

”They do not hunt because they must survive. They exist solely to consume. They do not devour the Elemental Spirits. They do not even seek elemental mana.”

”What they hunger for is the world itself.”

Shin’s eyes suddenly squinted narrowly. ”The world?”

”The world’s essence.” Solus continued. ”The energies that sustain mountains. The vitality flowing beneath the river. And the very foundation that allows the world to exist.”

Shin’s expression gradually became solemn. He knew exactly what an ’Essence’ was. He had once wielded one himself. It was during one of the most difficult quests he had ever undertaken alone—The Trial of the Primordial Waters, where he fought not only powerful monsters, but also borrowed a body of one.

(Chapter Reference 1506 – 1541)

Although it was not his true avatar and true power, the sensation remained deeply engraved into his memory.

The power he had commanded then was unlike anything ordinary mana could compare to. It was not denser, but it was also extremely pure as well.

Every strand carried an overwhelming weight that any other elemental powers or any form of mana simply could not imitate.

If mana within this game was the lifeblood flowing throughout the world, then the Essence was its very origin.

It was the crystallization of the world’s fundamental power.

Even now, Shin could still remember the feeling of his techniques becoming incomparably stronger the moment that Essence coursed through his body.

Every movement, every slash, and every drop of mana he released had been elevated to an entirely different level.

It was, without question, that the Essence was the highest of Mana he had ever encountered.

And now-… according to Solus-… those incomprehensible monsters weren’t merely consuming mana. They were devouring the ’Essence’ that sustained the world itself.

As if responding to Solus’ earlier words, the surrounding mana began drifting away from the creatures.

No-…

They were trying to flee! However, before they could even escape, an invisible distortion seized them.

The mana twisted violently before being swallowed into the creatures’ bodies.

”The Natural Mana despises them,” continued Solus. ”It instinctively rejects their existence. But it cannot escape.”

Hanzo finally spoke. ”They are not predators. They are parasites.”

”They do not belong to the world.” His voice was extremely heavy. ”They simply feed upon it-… until nothing remains.”

Shin’s brows furrowed deeply beneath his mask, the [Nephilim’s Gemini Mask].

His eyes remained fixed on the dozens of Elemental Anomalies standing between him and the distant object he needed to destroy.

The caution in his gaze had only grown after hearing Solus’ explanation.

If what she said was true, then these creatures were not merely powerful monsters, but they were beings that existed to consume the very foundation of the world.

A heavy silence lingered for a few moments.

Then, as though connecting several scattered pieces, Shin’s pupils suddenly contracted.

”Wait!” he abruptly turned his head toward the colossal metal gate wrapped in countless giant ancient chains.

The massive silhouette towered over the mountains like an eternal prison.

”How did these things even end up here?” His voice became noticeably heavier. ”Didn’t you say that an extremely Ancient Elemental Being is imprisoned behind that gate?”

Hanzo and Solus remained silent.

Shin continued before either of them could answer. ”An Elemental Being is one of the ancestors of the modern generation of Elemental Spirits.”

”They are the closest existence to the world’s primordial elements. They don’t simply manipulate elements; they embody them.”

Shin could still vividly remember the visions of Elemental Beings when he was training in the Phantom Islands. Their powers were not just elemental, but they were elements themselves!

”They should naturally emit the purest form of elemental power-… the Elemental Essence.”

”The very presence of an Elemental Being should overwhelm ordinary Elemental Spirits. It should nurture elemental mana. It should also strengthen the world around it.”

His voice gradually lowered. ”So-… why are creatures that devour the world’s Essence standing guard before an Elemental Being?”

The question echoed through the clearing.

Even Shin himself found the situation contradictory. According to everything he knew, the wo should never be capable of coexisting.

One represented the purest origin of elemental life while the other existed solely to consume that origin.

It was like placing fire and water within the same vessel. They should have annihilated one another long ago.

After a brief silence, Solus slowly nodded. ”You are correct, My Liege.”

”No matter how terrifying Elemental Anomalies may become-… they should never be capable of challenging a true Elemental Being yet.”

Her eyes remained fixed at the distant gate. ”Elemental Beings possess authorities that stand at the very pinnacle of elemental existence.”

”Not even the Elemental Kings, nor Elemental Monarchs, nor Supreme Elementals could stand their presence.”

”They are said to be fragments of the Elemental God, who has disappeared an extremely long time ago.”

”Which is why their Elemental Essence naturally suppressed corruption.”

”It should purify abnormalities. And it should reject anything that exists outside the world’s natural order.”

”Elemental Anomalies-…” She then paused. ”Should have been erased the moment they approached such a being.”

Her expression slowly grew solemn.

”But what if-…” After a long silence, she finally spoke. ”These anomalies were born from that Elemental Being itself?”

Hearing those words, Shin’s eyes widened beneath his mask.

For a moment, his mind went completely blank. The possibility was so absurd that he instinctively rejected it.

However, the more he replayed Solus’ words inside his head, the heavier his breathing became.

His gaze slowly shifted back toward the colossal gate standing behind the mountains.

The countless chains, the overwhelming aura, and the independent realm that had swallowed an entire city.

Everything suddenly took on a much darker meaning.

”No-….” His voice was barely above a whisper.

Then, with a sharp intake of breath, he turned at the speck of light that Solus represented over his shoulder. ”Are you saying that there’s a Corrupted Elemental Being sealed behind that gate?”

Even speaking those words aloud felt surreal.

An Elemental Being, one of the primordial ancestors from which countless Elemental Spirits had descended. It was an existence that should have stood at the pinnacle of elemental life.

If such a being had truly fallen, then consequences would be beyond imagination. The very thought sent a chill down Shin’s spine.

”This can cause another huge disaster that can trigger another worldwide event just like the invasion of the demons,” he mumbled.

But before his mind could wander any further, Hanzo’s calm voice interrupted his thoughts. ”Not exactly.”

Shin turned toward the other light hovering over his other shoulder.

Hanzo’s gaze remained fixed on the distant gate. His expression was unusually grave. ”To be more precise-… someone is attempting to corrupt that existence.”

His words hung heavily in the air. ”They have not succeeded. At least, not yet.”

Shin’s expression suddenly stiffened.

Hanzo continued. ”The Elemental Being is still resisting. Its will has not been completely consumed. It continues to struggle against the corruption invading its very essence.”

His eyes slowly shifted toward the dozens of grotesque creatures standing between them.

”And those-… are the byproducts of that struggle.”

”They are not servants born to protect it. Nor are creatures born from its will.”

”They are the fragments it had torn away from itself.”

Shin’s pupils contracted.

Hanzo then nodded solemnly. ”Each time the corruption spread deeper into its body-… it severed the corrupted portions before they could consume the rest.”

”Those severed fragments were unable to return to their original state, which is why they twisted and hungered.”

”They then became what you now see before you-… Elemental Anomalies.”

A heavy silence descended over the clearing.

The dozens of grotesque creatures stood motionless in the distance.

For the first time, Shin no longer saw them as ordinary monsters.

He saw them for what they truly were. They were festering wounds of an existence desperately trying to save itself.

...…