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'Truth be told,' Dyon's grand teacher started, 'You're quite a fool for putting hope into this technique. But, considering I can see your thought process, it's on the borderline between insanity and genius.'

Dyon had no real idea what his grand teacher's Temporal Lock did, but if the name was any indication, as the old man seemed to imply, he had the ability to change the flow of time in a given space. However, there was a problem that Dyon was very much aware about when it came to time locked areas.

This wasn't Dyon's first interaction with changed time flow. In fact, the celestial deer sect's remnants had many such cultivation rooms although they required an exorbitant amount of energy stones to use. That said, the reason why Dyon hadn't been able to use them because time distortion came with it distortion of laws themselves. Unless you had a high level of time comprehension, it was impossible to simultaneous slow or speed up time and comprehend other wills.

However, this was a very different situation… In theory. In this case, Dyon wasn't trying to grasp a law outside the scope of the time lock. No. This time, he himself was dying! In theory, this should alleviate all potential issues with distortions. Or, more accurately, lessen them enough that it would be a feasible use of time – that being because this distortion was inevitable.

That said, to increase the chances as much as possible, the first step would be dangerous… Dyon had to be as infinitesimally close as possible… To death…

'Before you take this chance, there are a few things I need to tell you.' Dyon's grand teacher started. 'For one, I can't only give you half a year at the most. I'm not all powerful and am much too far away to give you any more time than that.'

Dyon was inwardly shocked. 'You can extend a fraction of a second to 6 months and you somehow think that's too little?...'

The old man snorted, 'If you were next to me, extending a fraction of a second to thousands of years would be child's play.

The second thing you have to promise me is that you'll save this Jafari clan member.'

Dyon inwardly raised an eyebrow. It was well within his power to stop Zabia's soul from dissipating. In fact, whether the old man said anything or not, he would have if Zabia was able to answer one of his question to his satisfaction.

However, if Dyon used his method, Zabia would still be crippled for life. His soul would take so long to recover that properly cultivating would be nearly impossible.

'I'm quite surprised that you planned to save him… Maybe I didn't misjudge you then…' The old man sounded sincere for the first time since Dyon had known him, as though he was reminiscing about something.

Dyon's mind was something that always made odd conclusions much too quickly. In fact, he often leapt over tens of steps to reach an answer without even often times knowing what those steps were. But, something was telling him that maybe the Jafari's time specialty and his grand teacher's Temporal Lock ability weren't so separate after all…

If he was right, then maybe in an odd way, he owed his death and life to the Jafari.

Despite seeing Dyon's thoughts, the old man decided not to answer to them directly. Instead, he said something else entirely too vague and enigmatic…

'I've walked through many lives and have sowed karma with too many people…'

Dyon snorted in laughter, 'I was wondering when you were going to go all vague sentence sensei with me. Seems it was only a matter of time.'

'Snotty nosed kid. Keep it up and I'll let you die.'

'Hey, I had a perfectly good plan going until you so rudely interrupted.'

'Ah, ah, ah. What'd I say? You have no opinions of your own for the next 20 years.'

With a wave of his hand, an endless pain invaded Dyon's senses. Time began to move forward, and the crowd of the arena suddenly noticed the changes in the sky.

The crackles of black lightning and vortex and torrents of winds picked up. And yet, all the celestial experts had their eye on was the key floating in the air just in front of Dyon. They all seemed to think that this phenomenon had everything to do with the key. After all, to them, Dyon was dead.

Madeleine and Ri instantly understood what that key was, but that only pained their hearts further.

"He lost ownership…" Madeleine's shoulders trembled. Her eyes were listless, it was as though her soul had been taken from her body. She wanted nothing more in that instant than to trade her life for Dyon's, and it was in that very instant, that her celestial will evolved…

But, she took no notice…

Dyon's pain increased, but in the very next moment, he felt nothing at all… In fact, it was as though he was disconnected from everything, sent away into a vast sea much larger than himself…

And that was when time stopped once again.

Dyon's once golden soul had become swathed in an eerie black aura that seeped into it deeply. There was no time to waste, Dyon, for maybe the first time, sat and truly began to think and comprehend a will.

He was immersed in the feeling of death, but at the same time, he was contemplating the most efficient way to reach past a state of one with mind to a state of one with heart.

It wasn't long before Dyon realized he would have to do the most counter-intuitive thing he had ever done… He would have to accept death with his very being…