Chương 29: Chapter 28: A Battle of Souls

The King was initially perplexed by Alex's complete lack of dreams. His personal philosophy held that to not dream was to not be truly alive. A man's heart could never be fulfilled without dreams, ambitions, and love — the three major pillars of his own philosophy and the very foundation of the Soul Arts he had cultivated over a lifetime. FLASH!

His Soul Arts surged outward with renewed intensity, manifesting as pure white flames that embodied his bravery, his honest heart, and the selflessness that had once driven him to fight for millions of people. He had risked everything for them and had ultimately died in their defense. Those white flames then coalesced into thousands of faint specters that rose behind him — the silhouettes of all those he had fought so desperately to protect, yet had ultimately failed to save.

His selflessness was both his greatest strength and his deepest penitence. It was the source of the unique power he had cultivated as a King alongside his mastery of Arcane Magic. His broadsword flowed with those same white flames as he stepped forward once more to face Alex. Enough philosophizing. It was time to end this battle and finally determine who was truly stronger. The King had already recognized Alex as a formidable warrior in his own right.

Yet he also knew that the young man's heavy overreliance on the system's assistance could ultimately prove to be his downfall. Thus he had deliberately isolated both their souls and consciousnesses inside this special space, placing them beyond the system's reach. He had laid his own bare soul before Alex so that nothing could remain hidden between them. And after the words they had exchanged, he had learned just how fascinating this strange young man truly was.

However, fascinating or not, magnificent or not, none of it would mean anything if Alex lacked the strength required to hold onto these newly formed ideals, these fresh dreams, and these budding ambitions. Thus, mirroring the King, Alex summoned a sword formed from his very soul and stepped forward to clash against him once more. Their first exchange was honest and pure — no tricks, no advanced techniques, only sword against sword, two bare souls facing each other in the present moment.

Faint smiles touched both of their lips as their newborn convictions blazed brightly inside their hearts. CLASH!

"You're strong for such a small soul, but the burden you currently carry is still minimal. A soul's true strength grows with every bond it forges and every ideal it fights to protect."

"I see. So Soul Arts follows a specific kind of science?"

"Not everything in this world is pure science, son. Sometimes you simply have to feel it."

"Is that so?" CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! Alex was overpowered with relative ease. The King's sword now struck both heavier and faster than before. Its white flames seared directly into Alex's soul and steadily began consuming his remaining energy.

"You cannot possibly defeat me," the King declared with absolute confidence.

"Don't speak too soon," Alex replied, still pressing forward with determination.

"A futile attempt, son," the King sighed as he swung his broadsword toward him at lightning speed. But Alex managed to dodge at the last moment. He rolled across the blood-soaked ground, seized a discarded spear from the battlefield, and hurled it at the King after rapidly infusing it with his own power.

"Is that all?" The King sighed again and blocked the spear with his broadsword. That brief delay gave Alex the exact opening he needed to slip behind the larger warrior. His sword turned pitch black as his phantasmal flames shifted into dark nether fire. CLASH! The King stopped the blade with his bare hand, gripping it tightly without flinching. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"Your soul is still young and unrefined. Your abilities remain purely system-based and have yet to become a true part of your being. It's simply too soon for you, I suppose. A pity."

"…"

"I will take you down now and allow you to join me on my journey. You will become like one of them, and I will fight for you all the same."

"I am flattered by the offer. But that is not what I want."

"You would dare reject my mercy? Such a fool…! Maybe I should never have—""You've forgotten that a soul is as malleable as soft clay, and it can be separated… with enough control and the right mindset."

"What…?!" The King gasped as he suddenly noticed that Alex was missing his left arm and one leg. RUMBLE! The ground beneath them trembled violently. The massive hill of bones and discarded weapons exploded outward, sending countless blades and large white bone fragments hurtling through the air. They froze mid-flight for a single second before rushing toward the King from every direction.

"This is…?!" The King swung his broadsword in a wide sweeping arc, shattering the entire incoming barrage with pure force.

"How did he…?!" He glanced back and finally saw the truth. Every single piece was being controlled by thin, nearly invisible soul threads that extended directly from Alex's soul. In fact, upon closer inspection, Alex's soul itself was utterly bizarre.

"It's… his soul is made of threads?!" He had never seen such a strange soul before. Upon even closer examination it proved to be composed of countless soul threads tightly woven together like dense muscle fibers.

"You said I hadn't spent enough time adapting to these powers, but I already died once. I adapted to being an Undead. And when I became an Undead, all of these skills and powers — my very class as a Soul Weaver Necromancer — became a permanent part of my soul."

"!!!"

"I am not a human anymore, after all. I think… you underestimated me."

"It matters not." The King stepped forward once more, his sword gleaming with renewed intensity.

"You will surrender now, or I shall cleave you to pieces!" The massive sword descended with immense force, shattering Alex's soul and shaking the ground so hard that giant boulders flew in every direction.

"You made me do this. A pity. But I shall—Ugh?!" As he reached out to gather the scattered soul fragments, the King suddenly recoiled in shock. They were not ordinary pieces. They were living threads — threads that instantly wrapped around his fingers, arms, legs, and entire body.

"What is this bizarre soul?! I destroyed it completely!"

"I let you do that on purpose. So now my soul is all over you, King."

"?!" The King realized with growing alarm that the golden threads were unnaturally strong. They bound his entire body and also connected to dozens of giant weapons scattered across the battlefield.

"You intend to restrain me? This is no true battle!"

"Hardly." Alex's torso emerged from the dense mass of golden threads. His fingers moved with precise control as dozens of swords blazed with Alchemical Nether energy. They transformed. Blood-soaked, rusty blades, axes, spears, and hammers all became gleaming obsidian nether weapons that radiated the dark power of the underworld.

"I'm sorry, but this is how a weak, inexperienced person like me is forced to fight."

"Impossible!" The King groaned in pain as dozens of the transformed weapons plunged into his soul, piercing through his black armor and forcing him to vomit pure soul essence.

"Gaaaahaaa?!" Clenching his teeth through the intense agony, the King ignited his entire soul into pure white flames. The souls of his long-fallen comrades merged fully with him once more.

"I won't lose. For my people, for my kingdom… for my family!" BOOOM! Alex's soul was blasted backward with tremendous force. Its scattered pieces rapidly wove themselves back together into a glowing golden-threaded figure before reforming into his original shape. His soul had taken significant damage — roughly thirty-four percent of it was gone — yet he maintained his composure as he faced the King's true and final form.

"FOR MY KINGDOM… MY PEOPLE… MY… PEOPLE… MY… KINGDOM…!!!" A colossal specter rose from the battlefield — a titan forged from all those the King had lost. It was an abhorrent legion possessing dozens of arms and weapons, blazing with the white flames of their collective hopes and regrets. Dozens of thick white chains wrapped tightly around its arms and body, restraining the massive form. In that moment Alex finally understood the King's true nature and what this form truly represented.

"You have become a prisoner of your own guilt, old King," Alex said calmly. Several weapons floated around him and began transforming once more.

"This guilt has driven you mad, and you've mistaken it — this madness — for a dream. Even though it stopped being a true dream long ago."

"!!!" The King's maddened eyes flickered with a brief moment of clarity.

"SILENCE!" A gigantic sword of blazing white flames, powerful enough to reduce Alex's entire soul to dust, descended from above. BOOOM! The strike cleaved the ground itself, shattering the entire domain and hurling massive boulders high into the sky. Alex soared upward, spreading wings formed from his own soul threads and the surrounding weapons, climbing higher into the air.

"YOU'RE SO WEAK, SO BENEATH ME! AND YET YOU STILL DARE OPPOSE ME?! YOU DARE OPPOSE YOUR KING WHEN YOU'RE SMALLER THAN A FLY?!"

"That's all I can do." Alex answered in the same calm tone as before, yet now his voice carried a faint but unmistakable depth of emotion. Yes… far more than before. After all, his soul was now blazing with it. Thrilling exhilaration. Giant weapons rushed toward him from every direction: a massive axe with a powerful vertical cleave, a sword unleashing rapid successive slashes, a spear thrusting forward to impale, and a hammer smashing downward with crushing force. Yet he moved with swift and nimble grace.

Winds gathered around his soul-forged wings as he evaded every single strike, reading the attacks well in advance.

"You've become too big now. I can see your moves from a mile away." RUMBLE! Alex kicked off the empty sky itself and reached the King's massive head. There, embedded in the center of his forehead, lay his true and original soul. Everything else was merely a "shell" created by his Soul Arts — a consciousness warped by centuries of madness into something far beyond a normal soul. Alex's weapons descended toward the King's true soul, but giant shields and blades rose instantly to block them and retaliate.

"Whatever you're attempting is utterly futile. Perish this instant!" The King roared as dozens of weapons attacked Alex from every possible side. Unable to escape the overpowering barrage, Alex was completely overwhelmed.