Chapter 475: Devour
The man’s expression shifted, his smile fading into something more thoughtful.
"But you should understand something important." He looked at Damian directly. "Not every law is equal."
Damian’s attention sharpened.
"I don’t have much understanding about this myself, but the information we got from the Light Elves states that some laws are special and unique."
He paused, choosing his words carefully.
"Laws like life and death, space and time, fate and karma." His voice became quieter. "Slaughter and belief are also considered special, more powerful than common elemental laws or simple physical principles."
The wind picked up, carrying his words across the peak.
"Mastering these types of laws is not the same as mastering fire or earth or water. Beings who know how to harness these special laws are extremely rare, even among those who’ve lived for thousands of years."
’Law of life.’
Damian’s thoughts immediately jumped to what he’d learned.
’The World Tree of the elves seems to have mastered it... It’s one of the most ancient existences in the universe.’
Then another thought surfaced, unbidden.
’Kuro’s death energy.’
His eyes widened slightly.
’He is on the path of the law of death... Does it mean he’s an existence like the world tree?’
The man’s voice cut through his spiraling thoughts.
"How strange."
His expression had become puzzled, his head tilting slightly.
"I don’t have any memories about anyone mastering the law of devour. The only thing that comes close to it is the law of gluttony, which was mastered by one of the seven Demon rulers."
He paused, his eyes distant.
"Now that I think about it, shouldn’t a concept like devour be a higher law than just gluttony? How come my real self didn’t place any memories related to it in this fragment?"
His crimson eyes narrowed, thoughts clearly racing behind them.
Then his head turned toward Damian, the movement sudden and sharp.
"Where did you get that art from?"
Damian’s mouth opened, then closed.
His mind raced backward through time, through events that felt like they’d happened to a different person.
It was Professor Nathan Greaves who had given him a book containing all his understanding about skills and weapon arts, research accumulated over twenty years of dedicated study.
This had happened after Admond Ashford refused to teach Damian anything.
And later, when Damian was stuck in the first portal with death breathing down his neck, he’d created the Devourer Body art based on what he’d understood from that book.
’But how come a professor with only twenty years of research has such advanced knowledge?’
The question formed in his mind with sudden clarity.
Damian had never had the time to meet Nathan Greaves again and talk about it, to ask questions that should have been obvious from the start.
’Something is wrong.’
The thought came with cold certainty.
Suddenly, an image of the Old Beggar’s smiling face flashed through his mind.
Goosebumps erupted across Damian’s skin, his entire body going rigid.
’It can’t be.’
His breathing became shallower.
’I’m just overthinking... It’s my own experiences that led me to create it, my own hunger for power that shaped the art.’
He shook his head slightly, trying to dislodge the suspicion.
But deep inside his mind, doubts kept emerging like weeds pushing through concrete.
’What if Nathan wasn’t the real source? What if someone else planted that knowledge, knowing exactly who would receive it?’
His face began shifting, expression becoming grimmer as thoughts spiraled faster.
The man watched this internal struggle play out across Damian’s features, waiting for an answer that wasn’t coming.
Then Damian’s voice emerged as barely a whisper, his hair falling forward to shadow his face.
"Say, if there really is a law of devour..." He paused. "Then wouldn’t it mean that if I master it, I can devour... everything?"
The man’s posture straightened, his eyes narrowing.
"I... don’t think it would be that simple."
His voice came out carefully, like he was testing the idea even as he spoke it.
"But if that really is possible, if someone could truly master the law of devour in its complete form..."
He trailed off.
"..."
Silence fell between them, heavy and oppressive.
Both of them stood there, the implications spreading through their minds like poison through water.
Because if such a law existed, if someone could truly master the ability to devour anything and everything without limit, they wouldn’t just become powerful.
They would become a calamity.
An existential threat to the entire universe itself.
Every race would unite against them. Every god, every demon lord, every ancient being that had carved out power through millennia of effort would recognize the threat immediately.
Someone who could devour laws, skills, bloodlines, even other beings in their entirety would need to be destroyed before they reached that peak.
Hunted across every world, every dimension, every corner of reality until they were erased completely.
Because the alternative was watching everything be consumed by an insatiable hunger that could never be satisfied.
Thump thump thump
Damian’s heart hammered against his ribs.
The man’s eyes narrowed slightly, his expression becoming serious.
"What is the rank of that art?"
Damian’s throat worked before he could answer.
"The rank isn’t displayed on my status screen." His voice came out quieter. "But the mastery stands at minor success. When I use it, I can devour other beings to increase my physical stats permanently. Sometimes I absorb their skills as well."
The man’s face became serious.
"Listen to me carefully, child."
His voice carried weight that made the air feel heavier.
"If a law seed of devour truly appears on your status screen when you break through to S rank, if it manifests as devour instead of just gluttony or some lesser variant..."
He paused, making sure Damian was listening.
"You should never tell anyone about it. And more importantly, you should never walk this path."
’Never walk this path?’
Damian’s thoughts rejected the words immediately.
’No.’
His breathing became steadier, something settling in his chest.
’I’ve already embraced what I truly am.’
The memory of the Mind Tower surfaced, of floating above Marshal Lysander with broken bones and a smile: "I’m just a man who’s hungry."
His hands relaxed at his sides, a smile began forming on his lips.
’If this is truly my path, if devouring is what my soul gravitates toward, then running from it would just be another cage built from fear.’
His crimson eyes focused back on the man standing before him.
The man watched Damian’s face carefully, seeing the expressions shift and change, watching him work through something internal.
Then he sighed quietly, his expression becoming resigned.
"I see." His voice was soft. "You’ve already made your choice, haven’t you?"
Then his presence suddenly changed, the air around him becoming heavier.
A broken sword materialized in his hand, the blade cracked and damaged but radiating power that pressed down on everything.
"Look closely." His voice cut through the moment. "And try to understand whatever you can see."