Chapter 73: Adaptive Resonance: A Cheat or A Curse in Disguise?

Aden’s body trembled violently as those words left his lips. The sudden activation of both his energies proved to be fiercer than he anticipated.

’Are you ready?’ the Entity asked despite his Void energy already flaring to life.

Aden didn’t give an answer.

And that was all the Entity needed. The Void energy vibrated violently, its emptiness filling every fiber of Aden’s being and cloaking his transparent Resonance energy that pooled within.

If not for the little amount of trust Aden was forced to have in the Entity, he would’ve aborted the operation, but the circumstances didn’t allow such.

The dark embodiment formed tendrils and began touching each part of Aden’s skeletal structure with eerie carefulness. Each thump against his bones sent shivers down his spine, the discomfort overwhelming the pain by miles.

The tendrils reached down to his pelvis, then upwards to his arm. Slowly, it grazed each bone in search of a suitable opening and it eventually found it.

’The Humerus in your left arm has the least amount of Resonance barricading it. We go in from there,’ the Entity announced calmly.

Aden’s heart began beating wildly, but he forced it to calm. ’Go.’

Immediately, the darkness that enshrouded every inch of Aden’s internal being shrunk and focused in Aden’s left arm. The tendrils compressed into one thick piece and vibrated violently against the piece of bone.

Aden’s lips opened to let out a loud scream, but the spell cast on the cave didn’t give him the satisfaction of hearing his own pained voice.

Droplets of cold sweat ran down his frame, drenching his clothes and dampening the rock he sat on.

Sadly, the rock was also crushed to bits due to how deep Aden’s finger had been buried into it.

The tendrils drilled into the bone, tearing apart and absorbing the thin layer of Resonance shielding that area. A quarter of the total Void energy that once resided in Aden’s heart had already been entered into his bone before something truly strange happened.

The Resonance energy in his body suddenly flared to life, and began its circulation without Aden’s consent.

’Dammit. I feared this would happen,’ the Entity spoke with strain apparent in his voice.

’Wha?’

Aden couldn’t finish his words due to the intense stimuli that passed through his nerves and was minutes away from knocking him unconscious.

’Your Adaptive Resonance has risen to life. It sees the penetration as a threat to your soul and is going to increase defenses against it,’ the Entity continued regardless.

’So… what… I do?’ Aden asked, his voice coming out in raspy breaths.

The tendrils spun even faster as the concentration of Resonance energy around his bone thickened at an alarmingly fast rate.

’Control it.’

That order was simply… Impossible.

’I can’t possibly do that… It’s a subconscious defense,’ Aden’s voice was oddly low, but the pain had reduced subtly courtesy of the very energy they were planning to subdue.

’Find a way! If this fails, your soul collapses, you die, I die, everyone dies! And there’s no amount of luck in the world that’s going to stop that from happening.’

Another shot of excruciating pain traveled through Aden’s body. His brain nearly gave up control to escape, but Aden forced his consciousness to persist.

’No one is coming to save you, Aden. Not even I can stop it. It’s all up to you,’ the Entity pressed further strainedly.

The Adaptive trait had already begun hardening his nerves against the increasing intensity of pain, but sadly, it couldn’t provide any solutions to its subjugation.

Aden bit his lips hard, his mind raced with all the knowledge he’d gotten from Kaelthorn that was even slightly related to his Adaptive Resonance.

Nothing came, all that he could think of was the battles they fought against each other and the countless hunting expeditions. Each of them testing the limits of his adaptability.

His mind flitted to the ring, maybe something inside it could have taught him how to control it, but alas, he couldn’t reach it, not in this state.

The system–like tool his Master gave him two days before his final battle approached? He couldn’t activate it either.

Regrets of not making proper preparations before venturing into such uncharted territory weighed heavily upon him.

All of these trains of thoughts happened in just a matter of seconds, but even that proved to be too much time to waste. The fact being further reinforced by the Entity’s shaken voice.

’I can’t go in any further, Aden! Are you truly going to let your weakness send twenty two souls to the Abyss Realm?!’

Anger boiled in Aden’s heart. Not at the Entity’s words, but at himself.

’Again? Am I so weak to the extent that I cannot protect those who have entrusted their lives to me?!’

His heart beat once. Then twice. Each beat louder than the last. His transparent energy coated his skeleton and organs, forming an impenetrable fortress, save for the small spot on his Humerus still battling against the darkness.

’Hey.’

Aden’s voice rang out clearly and calmly… Almost too calmly.

The Entity recognized that tone. His control over the Void nearly faltered as he recalled the near death experience that had happened literal hours earlier.

But he also understood that if whatever instruction he would give in this suicidal state should fail, then only death awaited them.

’I’m listening.’

A moment of silence stretched on in Aden’s head space. Before his voice rang out again, determination fuelling every word.

’Use every drop of Void energy left in this body. Concentrate it at that spot, if its not enough, add in the one you have in your realm. Drill into that bone and shatter that coating.’

’Do you understand?’

The Entity kept quiet. Only Aden’s heartbeat and the low thrum of the Resonance fighting against misunderstood danger remained audible.

Aden’s voice sounded again, colder this time. ’This is not the time to have a heart, you fool. Break the barrier and defend your pride. ’

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