Infinite Mana In The Apocalypse

Chapter 4103: The Second Traversal! II

Her eyes turned sharp as she studied Noah with new intensity. ”How does Sir know such a being? Who is Sir, really?” She hesitated, then voiced what had clearly been bothering her.

”You... aren’t some reincarnation of one of THE Living Existences or something, right?”

Noah laughed...genuine mirth that made the tension ease from Moiraine’s shoulders.

”If a day ever comes where some nonsense about me being reincarnated from something else emerges, I’ll end my own existence,” he said with absolute certainty.

”No. I am what I am. Noah Osmont. The True Emperor of Quintessence. The True Emperor of Tyranny. The True Emperor of Infinity. I will never be a knock-off or echo of something else.”

....!

Moiraine breathed out a visible sigh of relief. ”I apologize for my words, Sir.”

Noah patted her head gently, the gesture both dismissive and affectionate. ”It’s okay...”

He reached into his storage and produced the remaining Shards of the Seed of the Lost Forgotten Principle, each one sparkling with contradictory light that suggested they simultaneously existed and didn’t.

”Give these and the rest to the Infiniverse when ready,” he instructed. ”She should already have Administrator Privileges...or rather, something exceeding them given her nature.”

A prompt confirmed his understanding:

|The Infinite Early Osmontian Shore is interconnected|

|Access level: Beyond Administrator|

|The Shore and Infiniverse are one|

Noah nodded, considering a few things.

This Lost Forgotten Principle would be different from his Seed of Perpetual Harvest that came from the First Farmer.

There would be no immediate percentage access, no instant power...only potential that would bloom with time and cultivation.

It was a Seed of a Lost Forgotten Principle as only after it was planted, matured, and bloomed would it give him any access to Existential Duality.

Unlike the Seed of the Principle of Perpetual Harvest which was not lost or forgotten, initated by the First Farmer and triggered to completion by the Infiniverse!

So the second possible Principle, or really Lost Forgotten Principle...would take time.

Though for him, ’time’ had become an increasingly flexible concept. What others might achieve in eons, he seemed to accomplish in days.

Moiraine accepted the Shards carefully, cradling them like fragile possibilities.

Noah moved on to where Ruination and the Infiniverse stood, both watching Khor with expressions that mixed fascination and calculation.

”Don’t worry, Master,” the Infiniverse said, her green-gold form pulsing with barely contained power.

”I’ll keep The First Hunger company and extract as much information as possible. She’s likely the biggest treasure trove of knowledge available right now. We just need to strip her of everything she has...”

Noah shook his head with amusement at her phrasing, then turned to Ruination. ”How are your projects progressing? The Infinite Forge? Affixes?”

Ruination blinked, her honesty refreshing in its directness. ”They’re works in progress. Master is advancing so rapidly that anything I could design now would be minuscule compared to what you currently possess.”

Her eyes blazed with the light of endings, determination crystallizing.

”But don’t worry. I’ll consult with Sis Infiniverse and others. The goal is creating something that scales with Master’s pace of progression, not something you’ll outgrow in hours.”

Noah nodded approvingly. ”Good. Take the time to do it right.”

He moved ahead.

He checked his Early Atlas of the Folds, feeling it burn with multicolored brilliance. The Towers of Osmont blazed with accumulated power, his Heart also shining brighter still. The stronger his heart, the less delay there was until he could traverse again. The grander his Towers, the more time he could stay!

His strength now compared to a day ago was incomparably greater. Almost a hundred Towers had silently climbed toward the Second Stage, with some like the Protagonist and Infinity Towers approaching the Third.

He wouldn’t be limited to an hour in the Earliest Folds this time around. He would...

HUUM!

His Atlas pulsed with sudden urgency as if his thoughts allowed it to express itself, prompts materializing:

|Temporal Traversal to Earliest Folds: Expanded Functionality Detected|

|Your tremendously increased Complexity and Purity have unlocked new options|

|Ozymandias’s Immense Purity adds dimensional stability|

|Both bodies can now traverse as one unified existence|

|New Feature: Multiple Destination Options|

|Three random potential destinations now available|

|Warning: Destination selection remains random|

|You cannot control which location you arrive at|

|View available destinations for next Traversal?|

Noah considered carefully before responding. ”Show me the three possibilities.”

His Atlas lit up like a map of impossibility, revealing...

|Destination 1: The Hunger Memorial|

|Classification: Inevitability Convergence Point|

|Description: Where hungry things go to remember satiation|

|Danger Level: Mysteriously Undefined|

|Note: Even the destination seems uncertain about itself|

|Destination 2: The Breeding Grounds of the First|

|Classification: Early Creature Genesis Site|

|Description: Where Early Creatures first learned they existed|

|Danger Level: Absolutely Terrifying|

|Warning: Mortality rate historically 99.97%|

|Destination 3: THE Living Emotion’s Garden of Feeling|

|Classification: Primordial Emotional Nexus|

|Description: Where joy and sorrow learned they were different|

|Danger Level: Deceptively Beautiful|

|Note: Happiness guaranteed (survival not included)|

Noah studied these options with growing concern. Each one promised either death or transformation, with little middle ground.

He floated back toward Khor, who was surrounded by even grander green-gold light as she continued reshaping the Shore’s fundamental structure towards becoming a Radiant Shore.

”If I have the capability to enter the Earliest Folds again,” he began carefully, ”like when I first met you...could I tell you some names to see which would be ideal?”

Khor blinked, pausing her work to give him her full attention.

”You are one daring existence, Outsider. The perils of the Earliest Folds could unwind you many times over, yet you choose to return?” She tilted her head with something approaching respect.

”Those like you made fine existences back then. Do you want to know what fate existences like you typically faced?”

Without waiting for response, she continued.

”In existence, there are beings who steer clear of danger and risk. They survive longer, certainly, but they get nowhere meaningful. They exist without truly living.” Her expression grew more serious. ”Then there are beings who see danger clearly, understand the risks completely, yet still move forward. Their mortality rate is significantly higher...most die horribly in ways that make cessation seem merciful.”

She paused for effect.

”But among them, from that small percentage who survive their own ambition, arise the leaders of existence. The ones who shape reality rather than being shaped by it.”

Her smile returned, carrying layers of meaning.

”I hope you’re among those who become leaders of existence, Outsider, and not like the many others who become cautionary tales.”