Chapter 176: Consumption of Fragment

Julius awoke to an empty void. It was actually kind of familiar to the void he was sent to when he met Jasper for the first time. However, unlike that void, this void seemed much more comfortable.

It felt like the comfort of his own home. As if everything in this space was his and his alone.

The last thing he remembered was burning alive. He laughed loudly at that. It was ironic that after all the attempts to burn himself, all it took was someone else doing it to finish him off. What were the chances?

He took a look at the afterlife. Or what he was assuming was the afterlife. It’s the only thing that really made sense in his mind. The last moments he had were of him fighting for his life, and now suddenly he was here with no idea how or why.

As he looked around, he spotted several glowing orbs of light. They were light stars painted onto the canvas of the void. If he hadn’t just died, he would have been much more appreciative of the view.

Eh, why shouldn’t I enjoy them? Even if I am dead, it would be a shame not to appreciate this moment, he scolded himself.

So he took it all in while trying to accept his circumstances. It kind of hurt his pride that he died in the way he did. He didn’t like to brag about his skills, but in reality, he was very proud of his strength. He truly believed that if he died it would be to a Tier 4 or Tier 5 at the very least.

Dying to a Tier 3’s last-ditch effort felt kinda… lame.

He wanted to scream out in the void to vent his frustrations. He had so much to finish. So much that he wanted to accomplish. We want to explore the world he wanted to explore. And now… he couldn’t.

That was the real shame. He no longer had the opportunity. He already had a second chance, but he doubted a third one would show up out of the blue.

Life was fickle. Life was like a flame, flickering away, never knowing when the last day would be your last. For him, that day had come much sooner than he had been hoping. He had hoped he would have had more time to complete his goals.

Death had come unannounced and taken him away. Now he was off to another life potentially and this time he didn’t think he would be able to keep his memories. He hadn’t really believed in reincarnation before, but now that he knew that magic existed, he wouldn’t be surprised to learn that it was true.

He sighed bitterly. This was just the natural cycle. The cycle of life and death. It was a concept that existed before me and will be here long after I am gone, he thought solemnly to himself.

It was at that moment that something happened. It was like something was reaching out to him. A deep-seated connection rose within him and grasped out into the void. He didn’t know what it was looking for.

But instead of rapping his brain for an answer trying to figure it out, he just sat back and observed.

He eventually noticed that the connection within him reached out to one of the lights in the void. This particular one was crimson red with a swirling vortex of black and white at the center.

The moment his focus turned to this light, it was like someone grabbed him and moved him in front of it. The light wasn’t that big up close, it was probably only the size of his fist. Much smaller than he had been predicting.

He couldn’t help his curiosity and reached out to poke the glowing orb of light with his finger. The moment he touched it he felt his entire mind connect with the contents of the orb. He knew what it was the second it occurred.

It was something he was very familiar with and that had saved his life many times. It was his [Pseudo-Phoenix Renewal] skill.

He didn’t really understand what was going on. Did that mean all of his skills were represented by the orbs? There were many more lights than he had skills. So that didn’t really make any sense.

However, something else happened when he touched the orb. The connection within him that had reached out to the orb found what it was looking for. It was within the skill and he felt the connection within him grab ahold of it. Then he felt it start to try feeding on it, like a starving beast.

What is going on?

Suddenly, he felt something unlock from inside of him. More accurately, he felt something get unlocked all around him. He finally had a guess where he was.

He believed that this was his soul space.

No wonder why this place felt so familiar and comfortable. It was literally everything that was him. It was the living representation of his soul.

And the unlocking was him getting something he had been trying to get for a long time.

Notice: Detecting resonance…

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Evaluating options…

Previous acquisition of a Concept of Fire detected.

Requirement of Life Concept or Death Concept not met…

Unable to evolve Fire Concept.

Evaluating alternative options…

Notice: Fragment detected.

Notice: Would you like to forcibly consume the Fragment of Phoenix?

Consumption of Fragment in process…

Julius felt his entire soul burn up. It was like setting himself on fire again, but this time instead of pain he felt a flood of euphoria when it happened. It was like he was being washed over in a fire of vitality. And that starving beast had its long awaited meal.

Fragment Consumption successful…

Appraising requirements…

Fire Affinity requirement… satisfied.

Life/Death Affinity… satisfied.