Return of the Fallen Volume 12 Chapter 7
Kazuki felt as if he had broken through an unidentifiable wall of some sort. Limits that he did not think he was capable of reaching, he surpassed them in every way possible. All of these unique and strange energies stopped damaging his body and only provided extreme growth. His senses expanded hundreds of times over and then thousands.
The rapid growth was almost terrifying. The amount of energy pouring into him was enough to give many small Realms a run. Out of all of these new energies though, one, in particular, stood out like no other.
This energy he felt opened his mind to new possibilities. It seemed as if he could reach out and take hold of everything in the universe and control it all. Obviously, this was a mere illusion but it felt so real Kazuki himself questioned it.
Holding out his hand, he imagined the universe resting peacefully in his palm. As he did this, he realized what this energy was and in this moment not just him but All of the Artifacts were shocked.
(Impossible, Kazuki, that power…How can you use Origin energy!?)
Arc couldn’t believe it at first but there it was. A tiny, seemingly insignificant orb of Origin power rested in the palm of his hand. Arc realized that Codex’s earlier words were true. Kazuki was a new existence. Not fully human nor fully Artifact. He was something more.
Just as they were all shocked and confused, the small orb vanished as if it were never there in the first place.
Kazuki had held the most powerful energy in the palm of his hand for an instant before it was gone just like that. Millions of questions arose one after another and Arc was the first to jump on this.
(How is this possible? All of the current Origin energy in our surroundings is with me, yet that power you just showed, it was clearly Origin energy but it did not come from us. Kazuki…Did you manifest Origin energy?)
This went against everything these Artifacts knew about Origin energy. Kazuki himself did not know. His eyes which had changed to a mixture of deep purple and silverish grey glowed no more and changed into a deep black.
It was like Kazuki only now became aware of his surroundings when Arc spoke to him. He had heard the question but only now could he respond though his response left much to be desired. With a shake of his head, he simply said.
(I…I don’t know.)
Arc couldn’t let something like this go.
(You don’t know. What in the 7 Realms of Hell do you mean you don’t know!? You’re lying! Let me have a look and see for myself!)
Without another word, Arc’s powers sank into Kazuki’s soul world and tapped into his soul tree as he sifted through Kauzki’s soul and checked his memories. To his shock, the moment of this manifestation was nowhere to be found. This didn’t make sense. The memory should be near the surface, after all, it had just happened, yet it wasn’t there. The moment Kazuki brought this power forth, it was as if his soul had not recorded the experience. There was a blank space in his memory as if nothing had taken place at that moment.
(No memory! How can there be absolutely nothing? At the bare minimum, your memories would show your current state at that time. Your breathing, movement, the minute changes in your senses but there is nothing there. It’s like the memory of you manifesting Origin energy… disappeared completely.)
Kazuki was annoyed at this invasion of privacy.
(Anything else or do you want to see the last shit I ever had as a mortal?)
Arc pulled its power back and ignored Kazuki’s attitude. Its thoughts were filled with confusion and wild theories. Codex as well had many questions it wished to have answered and was more than a little curious.
(Kazuki do you not see why Arc and I are curious? Origine energy is not something that can be manifested. You cannot create it out of thin air. It is something birthed from the universe itself. When it came about no one knows but it has most likely always been here and has always existed. There is not an infinite amount. What came about at the beginning of its existence is all there is and it cannot be reproduced. Some say it is the power of the one creator of all things. Others say it is the birth of millions of souls of the deceased fusing together in the void.)
Kazuki felt that the latter was a contradiction.
(How can Origin energy be birthed from millions of souls? Is there a limited amount or not?)
(You’re right it does sound wrong like this but like I said no one is entirely sure. All I can tell you is what I sense in the universe. Artifacts can sense all Origin energy to some extent. The moment we ourselves use up some of the Origin energy within ourselves, that energy isn’t suddenly destroyed and disappears from existence. Instead, the working theory I have is that the Origin energy is displaced after its use. This dispersion is not the end but instead is a part of a cycle of sorts. Have you wondered why Origin energy is called Origin energy?)
Kazuki did not understand what this had to do with that and shook his head.
(Heh, neither do I but if I were to guess the name itself represents the beginning of energy. Following that natural path, all energies split from there. Origin into Divine energy, Divine energy into lesser magical energy, and then into ki energy, and so on and so forth. Basically what I’m saying is all roads lead back to Origin energy. I believe they are all a part of Origin energy and within them all, A small sliver, almost undetectable amount of Origin energy is within them.)
Kazuki was beginning to understand this wild theory.
(So, are you saying that within the souls of every being… there’s Origin energy residing within them?)
(Exactly Kazuki. The amount is so tiny, so unbelievably small that it minus well not be there at all. I believe that the moment Origin energy is used, this dispersion takes place, scattering the Origin energy across the cosmos and breaking it off into insignificant fragments that end up in all living beings. When a creature is destroyed, it is the soul that carries on. I’ve always wondered why that was. There is no such thing as the afterlife as far as I can tell. So what evolutionary purpose does a soul have once the body is no more? Sure a Demigod or God can rebuild their bodies if they still have their souls but what of mortals? What purpose is there for a mortal soul to continue to exist once the flesh is rotting in the ground? It’s to continue this cycle. I think it’s the Origin energy that guides these souls. One soul finds another and they come together. The origin energy within combines and grows as more souls are picked up. What happens from there? Eventually when enough Origin energy comes together a consciousness of some kind forms.)
Kazuki felt a chill run down his spine and he didn’t exactly know why.
(So you think this so-called cycle means that Origin energy isn’t being rebirthed or something but instead it’s what, returning to its original form?)
Codex brightened up.
(Exactly! The energy simply returns to its original state, therefore there is no more of it than before it was used and no less either, a perfect circle. This is where the oddity of you steps in breaks my theory. I have long held onto these unspoken ideas but have always believed there to be some truth in them. Not just me but I believe any Artifact thinks the same. We have all been around just as long as many Gods and even longer in many instances. Arc as well, by its reaction has had similar thoughts. Yet your existence, what you have just done, manifesting Origin energy, you have broken all that we have known up to this point and you don’t even remember doing it. Is it a wonder we are stunned?)
Kazuki’s mind was spinning. He was unaware of what he had done until half a second after the Origin energy disappeared from his palm.
(There must be some kind of mistake. There’s no way I can create Origin energy. Are you sure it was not some different energy that was simply similar? After all, after copying some of Arc’s abilities, I have experienced an overwhelming amount of different energies up to this point I had never known even existed. Surely there are one or two similar, right?)
If Codex had a head, right now it would be shaking it vigorously.
(No, there is nothing like that and there is no mistake. You have three Artifacts here before you. Do you really believe all three of us would not be able to tell apart the energy that literally gives us conscious thought with some false replacement? Don’t take us for fools Kazuki, we all know what we felt. This is why we are at a loss. You have broken what should not be possible to break and you have no knowledge of it nor how.)
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