Beyond the Apocalypse
Chapter 610: Soul Worlds

Chapter 610: Soul Worlds

"The Peak of the Sage Tier must, in some way, involve the power of the Laws," Vlad mused, his voice echoing across the silent chamber. A profound light gleamed in his eyes as he reached that conclusion, and a flash of insight followed. "It makes sense," he added quietly. "Words alone can’t capture something as vast as the cosmic forces that shape reality."

He exhaled a small sigh, realizing that his trick with the A.I. Chip was likely useless for these Soul Worlds floating before him. The spheres seemed to go far beyond ordinary tomes of knowledge, venturing into the realm of Law-manipulation. No mere scanning or copying would suffice.

The library’s mechanical voice had not even mentioned the possibility of circumventing the restriction—tacitly implying that, for someone at his current level of power, it simply wasn’t possible to cheat the system. Perhaps more potent beings or advanced cultivators could have found a loophole, but Vlad knew that attempt would only waste precious time.

He cast aside any lingering disappointment and let excitement surge through him. Approaching the first sphere, he placed his hand on its surface without hesitation. Instantly, his consciousness was assaulted by a vision.

Vlad beheld a Dino Warrior standing atop a colossal mountain. With a mighty roar, the warrior seemed to draw power from the very earth beneath him. Each tremor of the ground flowed into his muscles, fortifying his body until his mass and density became so immense that the entire mountain collapsed into dust under his weight. The Dino roared again, the sound reverberating throughout the vision like rolling thunder.

When the image faded, a voice reverberated in Vlad’s mind.

[Eternal Titan – Body Transformation Technique.

The user’s body resonates with the Law of Earth’s unyielding resilience, perpetually reinforcing itself by drawing energy from the planet’s core.]

"Impressive!" That was the only word that Vlad could utter at this moment. A technique based on the Law of Earth would grant him extraordinary physical resilience, making him an unstoppable juggernaut in close combat. Still, he opted not to linger; there were six more Soul Worlds to explore. He withdrew his hand and proceeded to the next sphere, which glimmered with a dark blue radiance.

As soon as his fingertips breached the barrier of swirling shadows, Vlad saw a Dino Magestandingd alone on a desolate battlefield, surrounded by an enemy army.

Raising one hand, the mage caused the foremost soldiers to writhe in agony as their souls were violently extracted, coalescing into a swirling mass of ghostly light above his palm. Then, with an almost casual gesture, the mage devoured those tortured spirits, fusing them into his own essence. When he opened his mouth, a torrent of blue fire flooded the battlefield, consuming the rest of the opposition in a single, horrifying blaze.

[Abyssal Soul Dominion – Cultivation Technique.

The user refines and absorbs souls, merging them into a personal Soul Dimension. Over time, they gain deeper insights into the eternal abyss, bolstering both spiritual power and potential.]

Vlad exhaled in a hiss. It was an undeniably powerful technique, but devouring the soul of others could affect your Soul Dimension’s purity, so one needed to be extremely careful and have traits that could overcome any possible backlash.

Placing his hand on the third sphere, he glimpsed a Dino Warrior staggering beneath an onslaught of brutal attacks—bones snapping, muscles tearing. At the brink of death, the warrior’s eyes gleamed with a mysterious light. In the next moment, time itself seemed to fold back. The wounds vanished, and the warrior’s body was restored to its peak condition as though the injuries had never occurred.

[Everlasting Celestial River – Supplementary Technique.

The user constructs a metaphysical river within their Soul Dimension that can rewind or reset their physical state, effectively negating conventional damage if invoked in time.]

"Fascinating," Vlad whispered. "Something akin to reversing the flow of injuries." The potential of such an ability made his heart pound with anticipation. A cultivator with near-instant regeneration or an ability to ’undo’ significant wounds would be nearly invincible on the battlefield.

He tore himself away from that vision to inspect the next Soul World. While the first three had left him thoroughly impressed, Vlad suspected there might be something even more suitable for his style in the remaining spheres.

A surge of crackling lightning accompanied the moment his hand touched the fourth sphere. Vlad’s vision showed a Dino Warrior streaking across the sky in a flash of brilliance, then dive-bombing into a massive mountain with a power that defied logic. The subsequent impact shattered the peak in an explosion of rock and static discharge.

[Thunder-Clad Divine Flesh – Body Transformation Technique.

This method refines the body with primordial lightning, granting instantaneous movement, god-like reflexes, and explosive power that can devastate foes in a single strike.]

A faint smile tugged at Vlad’s lips. He could see the incredible potential of these abilities, but it was not really meant for him, as someone else on his team could make it much better use. Not losing focus, he stepped away and approached the fifth, noticing how it flickered in shades of molten red and gold.

This vision portrayed a Dino Mage standing on level ground, his body suddenly igniting with a surge of flame so intense that it resembled solar plasma. From his core, a tidal wave of fire pulsed outward, scorching the surrounding terrain and releasing near-endless reserves of energy that flooded the earth and the sky.

[Eternal Furnace – Supplementary Technique.

The user cultivates a miniature proto-sun within their Soul Dimension, generating a self-sustaining energy source that can replenish Magic or other similar energy sources and significantly enhance fire-based abilities.]

The possibilities were immense: a near-infinite wellspring of energy, eliminating dependence on external sources.

However, not only was Vlad a Warrior and user of Force, but he focused on swift, close-range combat—coupled with the Mark of Cain’s corrosive property—which didn’t quite align perfectly with pure fire manipulation. Nodding at the technique’s brilliance, he moved on to the sixth orb, hoping to find something even more aligned with his unique strengths.