A void filled with absolute blackness.
There was nothing to see, only empty, suffocating darkness. Yet it was warm, silent, and strangely peaceful. It was impossible to tell whether there was an up, down, left, or right. It was a place stripped of all dimensions. Wherever one looked, there was only an endless night without a single speck of light.
Yug's fatal wound had closed. There was no pain, no bleeding. His eyes remained shut. He was still unconscious, completely unaware of the bloody chaos breaking out between the Cultivators and Breathers in the physical world.
In fact, he wasn't even aware of the true existence of Breathers or Cultivators yet. He had only ever harbored a lingering inkling that something supernatural existed. However, after witnessing Lavanya's unnatural abilities, that inkling had solidified into undeniable proof. He finally believed that he was not alone. Someone else out there was breaking the rules of reality, living far beyond the scope of a normal human life.
Beneath his closed eyelids, Yug's pupils twitched.
He didn't open his eyes immediately. His consciousness had returned, yet he waited, relying on his other senses to gauge his surroundings before finally deciding to look.
After a few tense moments, his eyelids slowly parted.
Sigh.
A wave of pure relief washed over him as he took in his surroundings. Yet, no breath left his mouth. He gazed out at the place—the world, the afterlife, or whatever realm he was currently residing in. He couldn't perceive its true nature. Still, he grasped one undeniable fact immediately.
He wasn't breathing.
Ah... It finally ended.
His lips moved, yet no sound came out. He studied the empty surroundings. The space was filled with absolute nothingness, save for strange, dark, greyish particles floating passively through his vision.
He had seen particles like these many times in the real worlds he had lived in. But there had always been too much atmospheric interference—too much noise, light, and matter—causing him trouble, and he had never gotten the chance to properly examine them.
Yet his curiosity wasn't focused on the particles right now. It was entirely focused on the space itself. He had never experienced anything like this. There was a profound peace, a warmth, and a gentleness that seemed to radiate directly from the dark matter floating around him.
I died, yet I still have all my memories. Why does my memory follow me even after death? Why can't I simply be born anew with a blank slate?
He paused, staring into the dark. Maybe... maybe I'm stuck in between.
He continued speaking to himself, yet not a single sound rose into the atmosphere. It was as though there was no medium for his voice to travel through. Or perhaps the particles were actively consuming the sound.
Is there anything to do here?
Yug stared intensely at the blackened particles. They seemed to be vibrating, shaking violently in place. And for some inexplicable reason, they looked strangely appetizing to him.
Can I eat them?
Yug couldn't resist the thought. His desire to consume the particles grew stronger by the second. Besides, he had absolutely nothing else to do here. His eyebrows rose as he tried to move toward one.
He couldn't.
He didn't know if he was floating, standing, or leaning. Gravity did not exist here, yet he was completely immobilized. The space itself held him tight. It was as if the void had grabbed him and refused to let go.
Yug's eyes possessed a supernatural vision—a trait he had gained after his very first death. But it was a terrible curse.
Everything in existence came with an equivalent exchange. If he kept his eyes open for too long, his vision would begin piercing through the fabric of reality itself. The longer he looked, the deeper his sight penetrated. It would not stop at physical objects or living beings; it would continue pulling back the layers of reality, reaching into the conceptual framework of things that merely existed.
That was why Yug had always taken extreme precautions to limit his sight. If he failed to do so, he would have died far more times than he already had. Even a few minutes of looking too deeply could cause his physical body to crumble under the sheer psychological and physical weight of perceiving the underlying structure of the universe.
Whatever his cursed gaze pierced through would aggressively react to being perceived. And that was when the agonizing pain would flood directly into his consciousness.
Because of this, Yug had always relied on physical barriers—cloth, specialized contact lenses, and eventually his own invention, the "Ticket." Anything that could blur, obstruct, or filter his vision was necessary to prevent him from seeing too deeply.
However, this void had no such barriers. There was only space, and these dark, greyish particles.
What place is this? Why am I the only one here? And why am I even conscious? Yug questioned himself, his mind racing.
He couldn't do what he normally did in the real world. He couldn't see through everything. These particles were an absolute wall against his vision. They weren't even letting him look past them.
And why can't I move my body? Why are these particles holding me so tightly? Is this Hell?
He mouthed every sentence, yet not a single syllable reached beyond his lips. Despite the terrifying paralysis, Yug wasn't struggling. It was the exact opposite. He felt better here than he had ever felt in any of his previous lives.
And yet, he still categorized this place as Hell. Because he wasn't free. To Yug's immense pride, being trapped and immobilized was far worse than struggling for survival in the real world.
Perhaps that was why his bizarre appetite began craving something more than just the particles.
He wanted to consume the space itself. If he could devour everything holding him captive, perhaps he could finally buy his freedom. But what could he do? He couldn't even twitch a finger. All he could do was move his lips and stare.
Maybe I'm finally in the right place, he rationalized, exhaustion creeping into his thoughts.
I've had enough of these fucking, endless lives. Even after willingly ending my own life before, I always ended up wondering if killing myself was ever actually worth it.
At least here, I can exist without pain.
Not like the worlds I've lived in. Every time I tried to carve out a free and peaceful life... somehow, I was always dragged back down. I always died.
So this is it.
I'll just stay here, exactly as I am.
"Huff… Huff…"
Lavanya's left hand slammed against the cold brick wall beside her. She bent forward, leaning heavily on one knee. Her face was deathly pale, drenched in a thick layer of cold sweat.
Every step had become exponentially heavier than the last, turning her escape into a grueling nightmare. Her clothes clung to her, damp and uncomfortable. A gentle midnight wind passed through the alleyway, making the quiet city feel strangely peaceful—a stark contrast to the violence tearing her body apart from the inside.
Yet, Lavanya forced herself to keep walking.
Her vision was rapidly tunneling, blurring so badly she could hardly see the pavement ahead. She still didn't fully understand what was happening to her body. She only knew that it was getting worse by the second.
"Huff… Huff…"
What is happening to me? Did I miscalculate something?! Panic flared in her chest. I'm running out of time. If I don't reach the university, I'll fall right into their hands.
I need protection.
Somehow, her fractured instincts told her that the university was the only place she could survive this.
I can't lose consciousness here.
I have to keep moving forward.
She screamed the commands inside her own head, desperately trying to increase her pace, forcing her trembling legs into longer strides.
But her body violently rejected the command. Her legs gave out beneath her, heavy as lead.
"UGH… UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH…"
A sudden, agonizing cramp seized her abdomen. She collapsed onto her hands and knees, violently vomiting onto the dirty pavement. Her senses dialed back, the world spinning sickeningly around her as she wretched, unable to stop.
No, I have to stay awake…
She chanted the words internally, over and over again.
"Ugh… Ughhhhh…"
Is Yug heavy? I only placed him in my shadow. It was normal before... no, no, it's impossible. Yug's body can't do anything in my space, and he might have even died in there. So what is making me like this?
She tried to think through all the possibilities, and yet she was unable to recognize it.
She forced her eyes wide open, terrified to even blink, knowing that a single second of darkness might pull her into unconsciousness forever.
Then, she felt a touch.
A hand rested gently against her back, stroking soothingly.
Lavanya froze. Her breath hitched, her wide eyes staring blindly at the vomit-stained concrete. A thousand frantic thoughts raced through her head, but her body was entirely spent. She was too weak to even attempt a counterattack.
Then, a voice whispered in her ear. It was as soft and gentle as the touch on her back.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Lavanya didn't turn her head immediately, but a cold spike of adrenaline shot through her veins. She recognized that voice. She had heard that exact tone before.
While a tiny, treacherous part of her felt relieved, her survival instincts flared violently. She didn't let her guard down for a second.
Not because she feared an immediate physical strike.
She kept her guard up because, a gentle, familiar voice was usually the most dangerous bait of all.