Chapter 1732: The Red Dust Flows; Fourth Calamity (5)

Chapter 1732: The Red Dust Flows; Fourth Calamity (5)

'Anima-Devourer?!'

This was an obscure name that, normally, a tiny Medicinal Sage from an isolated portion of the Everlore Starfield within the greater yet equally as isolated Ancient Sealed Regions would not and could not have known! And yet the perspective and tone that Sage Xiaotian reflected her seemingly omnipotent presence of bone-deep haughtiness and peak knowledge!

Moreover, she had explained EVERYTHING!!

Wei Wuyin's heart could not stop racing with heavy, powerful thumps—62%. This question that lingered heavily upon his heart since before his path of cultivation had officially begun finally had an answer that he yearned for for the majority of his breathing existence.

"An Anima-Devourer!" Wei Wuyin's mother seemed somewhat enlightened by this name as if it was trudged forth from the depths of her mind. Wei Wuyin knew that this was simply a masquerade of the setting. He didn't let it distract him.

"Ah! So it's an Anima-Devourer! No wonder, no wonder," Minister Long combed his pristinely white beard with his thin, wrinkled fingers with an expression of realization as if all of Wei Wuyin's mother's symptoms and the prior explanations of her condition given to him by his father had come together seamlessly. It painted a perfect picture.

There was an ancient saying within the Myriad Yore Continent: "The dead share no secrets." Considering how the heavens were readily explaining secrets that not even Wei Wuyin, the proclaimed Emperor of the Ancient Sealed Region, and someone who've received blessings of numerous Daos, peered into the very secrets of the Heavenly Daos brazenly, and dared to offend the River of Time, had origins that could be traced back to the very beginning of literal universal creation, and reached a literal heaven-defying level of cultivation, these secrets were things that were obscure and could remain hidden for an immortal lifetime—forever!

Within the Fourth Calamity of Hell, Wei Wuyin could be considered 'dead' by every logical definition, already in the natural process of cleansing and soul rebirth. The heavens kept no secrets from him if it meant completing its objective that suited the hellish dimension's purpose—despair.

To feel genuine despair, one must feel abundant, lively, and invincible hope. It preyed upon that weakness, be it beast or human or demon.

The word 'cruel' could never do this calamity justice for any unfortunate soul that had sinned enough to be placed here. To be cleansed here.

Sage Xiaotian was not finished, her gaze was slightly distant as if she was peering into the grand secrets of an unknown mythological legend thought false, substantiated by the faintest of whispers:

"Anima-Devourers. They are a part of the three essential devourers of the natural universe. They consist of World, Anima, and Star. According to legend, they correspond to the principles of the three primal energies—physical, mental, and essence. These energies comprise the foundation of our universe and form the quintessential energies of all life.

"Beyond our world is a looming Star-Devourer lost and afraid and trapped and homesick. And beyond that exists existences with impure Star-Devourer bloodlines. They are mistaken as Star Devourers of the current generation," her vocal tone was laden with a rare sadness as she eyed Wei Wuyin as if Karmic ties would inexplicably be severed upon his cleansing. This was a reflection of heaven's reality.

"To get to the core of the matter," Sage Xiaotian continued, "your wife, Mister Wu, has suffered an extensive brain injury that likely had the potential of killing her or outright turning her brain dead. As a form of self-preservation, the Anima Chains seized her core psyche, her id, ego, and thoughts which constitute her personality, and secured it within her Mind's Eye.

"Normally, an Anima-Devourer would devour quintessential mental energies of other lifeforms using one of its other numerous functioning minds before shattering these chains anew. But this condition manifests slightly differently within humans as they possess a singular mind, and so a strange sequence of symptoms occurs. For example, your wife here is here and her lost memories haven't vanished, but have only been consumed by her main psyche as her bloodline generates replacements repeatedly, hence the new sense of self appearing like sporadic amnesia.

"She is attempting to recover by doing so, but this method is highly inefficient. There are quite a few solutions to her condition, depending on the cost. One of these solutions is to find a material containing the purest and a high volume of Mental Energy to shatter the chains and free her mind psyche. Demonic energies could also work.

"There is another solution," she paused slightly as the dazed Wei Wuyin stared at her, "to devour the mental or demonic energy of an external entity, relying on the Innate Gluttony of the Mind ability, enough to satisfy the requirement of the ability itself."

And with that, all the questions Wei Wuyin had about why or how he survived such a devastating injury, why his memory was lost, why he was locked by chains, why he developed and kept creating new minds, especially how he had devoured Eden who tried to seize his mind, a mental entity that had lived for millions of years and indescribable amount of mental strength, long before the Ancient Sealed Region ever existed!

He closed his eyes.

99%...

He could feel it.

While there was no grand solution that he hadn't already theorized, all of this verification of his origins in the depths of Hell itself was a step forward on his path of cultivation. Now, all that remained...was to survive this.

To conquer this dimension of Hell!

To conquer the Fourth Calamity!

When Wei Wuyin's eyes opened, the pupils and the mark on his glabella vanished miraculously, fading as if covered by a gentle tap of a make-up brush, buried underneath. And those eyes, those sublime silver eyes, revealed the youthful exuberance and faint mischievous attitude of a five-year-old youngster.

100%.

The entire world began to rapidly shift and spiral!