Chapter 181: Spacelessness

"Are you sure you're going to leave?" Howard asked Oclen a few minutes after he informed him of the situation.

Oclen was pretty certain that his father might have gotten worried about him, and because of that he was going to send the three strongest youths he knew to search for him. However, what his father didn't know was that when Oclen was a child, the three youths he expected to come searching for him, also tried to kill him every other day.

They were his half-brothers, and Oclen had met many half-brothers because of his fathers cavorting and wooing of women. However, only three were both stronger than him and seemed to be born almost completely evil.

When they were 18, they had went to a brothel, and all three of them demanded every women in the brothel give them attention at the same time. When they didn't get it, they slaughtered every man in the brothel, so that they'd fully service their needs! 

Because of that, those three brothers of his were in 'jail', but because they were his father's three favorite sons, instead of getting imprisoned they got to go into a sealed room with thousands of powerful Arthraku. This sealed room was known to people in Arthraku Nation as the 10000 Authoritarian Paradise. It was a place that only the luckiest Arthraku usually got to go in order to capture rare Authoritarian beasts! 

However, occasionally, this place, if used properly, was also used for a prison. It just so happened, that his father sent his three bastard sons, Grason, Malla, and Orafik, got to go there to supposedly be in prison, to one of the best areas in 10000 Authoritarian Paradise to train! 

And because it was turned into a prison, Oclen was unable to acquire one of the Authoritarians he wanted before he was going to fight Howard on this expedition. Some nights, he wondered if he was able to use the Great Thousand General Authoritarian against Howard, if he would still have lost. Regardless, it was now time for him to leave.

"So basically, you think your three brothers have been asked to save you, but secretly want to kill you?" Howard nodded his head in understanding. "However, if you stay here, won't it be better? Harkel can just kill them?"

"I thought about that, but they all three of them are in the beginning states of the SS rank,. In 10000 Authoritarian Paradise, time goes both slower and faster, so their biological bodies are 23. However, there minds are 1000 years older and wiser than ours! They-they might even be able to kill Harkel if they work together! It's annoying, but if I can avoid them until we fight Aremcolith, I should be able to join you."

"Heh, well, it would be boring if everything went as planned," Howard nodded his head. 'Yet I still don't understand how you know they are coming? Did you sense them already?"

"Not yet, but I just know. I-I have a connection with those three! Sometimes they even torment me in my sleep!" Oclen's hand turned into a large claw before he slashed into his chest. "I-I couldn't hear them when they were in 10000 Authoritarian Paradise, but I can now! That means only one thing! They are out, and they are coming here right now to destroy me!"

"I see," Howard nodded his head.

Because of the Dream Ki in the Furance, many things that would be impossible on the Surface were possible here. However, it was somewhat annoying that Oclen really had to leave. If he died, all their plans for fighting Armecolith would disappear. He'd have to try and fight Armecolith by himself, and right now, his chances of beating him were less than 1 percent.

"I-I'm confident I'll see you in 40 days." Howard gently got up and walked over to Oclen, shaking his hand. "I consider you a future Ally now. If you die, I'll smack you till you revive? Do you hear me?"

"Heh, and I think you're still dumb for trusting me," Oclen laughed and patted Howard's shoulder. "In most stories, there is always one enemy who turns into an ally. However, I never truly considered you an enemy. You were just an extremely annoying obstacle to my goal. Taking my father down. I-I also one day want to just get married, and live a simple life. I-I usually don't mention that to anyone."

"Heh, well, at least stay to the morning," Howard smiled while Jenny came over and hugged him with all her might. She nervously looked at Oclen, who she still didn't trust, and gently nodded her head. She almost seemed to be saying, "thank you,", but he couldn't quite tell. "I-I don't think now is a good time to leave."

"It's a perfect time to leave. However, just a fair warning, if my three brothers stop by, don't attack them. They won't attack you, unless they've been ordered to. And I doubt my father cares about you anymore. He just wants his precious son back. The son he hopes will one day take over part of his responsibilities so he can have more women!"

"I-I'll see you in 40 days," Howard nodded his head. "Thank you, Oclen. Hehe, I hope you'll show me all those cool abilities you've been hiding in the future."

"See you, two," Oclen turned before his body flashed. The next moment, he seemed to disappear over a hill while Jenyn once again returned to Howards embrace. "Don't make so much noise next time," Oclen muttered. "It's hard to sleep when she's cooing like that!"

###

9 Days later,

Howard and Harkel woke up in the morning and began their daily training.

Without Oclen, Howard had no distractions, and seemed to be getting stronger by the minute. Turning his fist in the air, a powerful black flame shot out of his fist that cut an entire mountain in half.

Though it wasn't as strong as 'Evil Howard's' attack, it was dozens of times better placed. Harkel had no choice but to use the ability ghost shift to disappear into a haze. He sighed, and appeared behind Howard before a thousand scythes shot into his body.

Boom!

Howard's fist turned and parried the attack from Harkel before both of them smiled. A strange swelling of knowledge seemed to be entering Howards mind. It seemed like in just a moment, he'd be crossing into the True S rank!

'I'm surprised. I think his 60 Ki Hearts are having the added affect of increasing his insights.'

'Normally, it takes roughly 20 years to enter into the True S rank. In fact, some people can enter into the SS rank, and at the same time not be in the S rank at all!'

'However, Howard has already understood the 5 out of the 6 principles of Madness! Haha, one more principle and his power will surely haunt the dreams of all those who opose him!'

"Why are you stopping?" Howards' hand trembled underneath the weight of Harkel's blade. "You-you'd normally swat me into the distance, haha! Are you feeling generous today?"

"Howard, I know I told you about the 6 principles of Madness, but do you know why they lead to the True S rank? Do you have any idea?"

Howard and Harkel had been fighting viciously for the last few weeks, but there had also been time for him to help him in the principles of Ki as well. The 6 principles of Madness, specifically, were 6 different types of understandings of Ki.

On the surface, there was something known as Chaos Theory, but the principles of Chaos in the Furance operated much differently. Normally, almost everything had patterns even in a chaotic situation, however in the Furance this was not the case. Sometimes, there were no patterns, and this was called Madness by the scientists in the Furnace.

However, these principles of Madness, though sometimes nonsensical, could be understood intrinsically by someone who could utilize Ki. Howard had mastered 5 out of 6 of them, and was now almost on the cusp of mastering the 6th! The last principle of Madness, he'd yet to learn, however, alos was the easiest! Yet for him, it seemed to be impossible! This principle of Madness was called the principle of Spacelessness! It was about how things could exist in dozens of places at once and all not impact each other! It was completely different than anything that made logical sense! 

"Maybe I'm thinking about it too hard. I'll be honest, I think the other 5 concepts of Madness I got from fighting you! It's almost like you were emitting it from your body, haha. Spacelessness, however, I guess isn't something I can pick up with my Emperor's Ki."

"It's not surprising." Harkel sighed and dropped his arms, "However I'm sure you'll get it. It's just a matter of time. You still have 30 days until you fight Armecolith. Once you break that door, your Ki Hearts will transform into another state! You'll have abilities no one can imagine! Even I don't know what you'll be able to do! An endless amount of Ki will be at your finger tips!"

"Hehe, I think you're overexaggerating," Howard sighed and wiped a trail of blood of his head. "However, lets' keep fighting! I-I feel like I'm a day away from understanding Spacelessness! Now come at me with all you got! For once, attack me with all your strength?"

"All of it?" Harkel shook his head. "You wouldn't even last 1 second. Nah, 10 seconds maybe haha. What's wrong Howard. You seem so worried recently?"

Howard was planning on leaving tomorrow in the middle of the night to attack the Archelon Army before it got close enough to the East Branch to be a problem. Though many might consider this suicidle for anyone else, he really was extremely close to the SS rank in terms of overall strength! It should be no problem for him to kill a couple thousand and then return to train with Harkel. It's the least he could do to make sure that the Horned survived.

"I-I just want to be able to walk up to Demon King Earl one day, and say I measured up to his legacy haha. It's nothing special. I-I realized a few days ago, I'm lacking in one vital thing. Suffering."

"Well, then, let's begin!" Harkel's energy instantly soared, pushing Howard nearly 10 meters back while a large skull appeared floating above him. "Look at this! The final peace of my Ghost Domain will finally be joining the battle, hahaha!"

Harkel stepped down and shot towards Howard while a smile appeared on the side of his face. Thousands of chains surged passed his body while hundreds of ghost hands slashed against Howards fists.

Behind him, a skull shot towards Howard and instantly swatted into him before he got sent flying into the distance. 

Harkel could only giggle to himself at the time.

'Hehe, fool, I was already using 80 percent of my power. At this point, I'd say even alone Armecolith has a 10 percent chance of dying! Your grandfather will be so proud haha! Your strength has already eclipsed his own!"