How obvious it was, Kaden thought amidst the light of enlightenment bathing his whole body like water seeping into every pore of his being.

Now that he thought about it, the next step in his comprehension of the way of death had been obvious from the beginning. And his way of blood… even more so.

To reach the level of True Intent of Death inside the dungeon of Ruined Death, Kaden had acknowledged that to understand the weight of death, he first needed to appreciate the weight of life.

For death would hold no meaning without life.

But what was the next step beyond that? Naturally, there were countless paths, infinite kinds of understanding that could sprout from it…but Kaden had his own.

It was something he doubted anyone in either world could ever claim to grasp as he did.

And it was simply this…

Death was not the end.

Death was not the end of existence. It was merely a stepping stone, a prelude to another life… to another state of being more exalted.

This understanding was fortified by his power to revive after death, and by the fact that with each death, when Kaden returned to life, he was no longer the same person.

His power, his mind, his way of seeing life, his attitude…everything changed in ways even Kaden wasn't fully aware of.

As the wise often said, only at the edge of death do you find enlightenment and go beyond your limits in both body and spirit.

Then what of the man who experienced death over and over again?

The effect became exponentially more glorious.

And Kaden might not have realized it yet… but the world, too, was no longer the same world, for he had changed its course by dying and returning to life time and time again.

How far that difference reached… was something worthy of contemplation.

Taking all of this into account, the ladder toward his next stage of death's intent began to form, slowly crystallizing into something phenomenal, something no being had ever understood.

An intense, immaculate black light erupted from his mouth, eyes, and body, tearing open the golden fog and the very fabric of reality surrounding him.

The black light bathed the world in its somber luster, making the fog slightly retreat. At the same time, Kaden's hair grew darker than it had ever been, so dark it became the complete absence of light or existence itself.

Like void.

And upon his forehead, the mark of a swirling vortex of black light was inscribed.

And yet… it was not over.

Kaden was a greedy man, and he was talented in ways even mythic holders could not comprehend. His mind was beyond imagination, his Will beyond the bounds of this world, and his Origin was an existence in and of itself.

His crimson sword intent had been understood by acknowledging that his Origin was never the ability to control blood, his Origin was his sword, Reditha.

He had reached the level of True Intent by deepening the bond he shared with Reditha. But now, Kaden needed to catch up with his understanding of his sword.

And it was easier than he thought.

Reditha was right. He should have never taken so long to evolve this intent. But now he understood, and with that understanding came one crucial realization about Reditha.

Reditha… was a killer, and a devourer of blood.

At that thought flickering through his mind, Reditha's form behind him shifted and took back her sword shape, her lips forming a huge grin. But this time, it was different, the crimson blade seemed so colossal and vast you would think it touched the sky itself, piercing the crimson sun above with arrogant defiance.

The wisps of intent exuding from her blade slithered through the air, and whenever they touched the fog — which Kaden now understood to be the intent of the Mad Sun Emperor — they severed it. Or rather… they killed the intent itself.

It wasn't over yet, for slowly, within Kaden's crimson eyes, his pupils began to shift, taking the shape of a sword…a perfect replica of Reditha.

He let out a steamy sigh from his mouth as the black light of death and the crimson light of Reditha converged together seamlessly, making the realm creak in horror for a brief instant before both lights flowed back into his body.

And at that moment… in the realm where the Mad Sun Emperor had given his last breath…

…Kaden Warborn had reached the next stage of both his intents.

The Exalted Intent.

And with that…

Thud.

Kaden fell to the ground, feeling the rot of the Mad Sun Emperor's intent already too deep within his mind. He had understood his intents a little too late, he realized.

And yet, Kaden knew he could — albeit with difficulty — reverse its course. But…

'Death is not the end,' he thought, his face splitting into a bloody smile. 'Death is only the prelude to another, more distinguished existence.'

This didn't mean to seek death foolishly. No, not at all. It meant to live your life with no regrets, no fear of making decisions, and no fear of death.

To live with a boldness beyond what was permitted to others, and to fear nothing except dying an unworthy death.

Because your next life would be nothing if you didn't work hard enough during the life you were living now.

After all…

Each life is a ladder.

And by combining each of those ladders as you climbed, you would one day obtain a heaven-defying path… a single, towering ladder that would help you reach the ceiling of existence.

With his new understanding of Death…

[You are dead.]

Kaden died.

…

Euphoria.

A sense of euphoria seized the entirety of Kaden's being, even through the deep darkness of death he found himself in.

He had reached the level of Exalted Intent in both of his intents. And he had done it at only fifteen years old, while still at the Master rank.

He didn't yet grasp the full magnitude of the exploit he had just accomplished, but he knew he had done something close to impossible.

If this level of Exalted Intent wasn't the one attained by the likes of Mahina and the Sun, then it was just beneath it.

And now he understood why he had always felt that both of them could kill him with nothing but a serious glance. It was maddening how the power of intent revealed itself the higher one climbed the mountain.

With this new level of comprehension, Kaden could do things he had never thought possible.

For one, with his Death Intent, he could render parts of his body undying for a limited time. Meaning, he could make his blood vessels undying, allowing him to push them far beyond their natural limits.

Or even his muscles, granting him the right to strain them to their absolute edge without being hindered by pain or exhaustion.

That ability didn't only apply to his body, but also to physical objects. Depending on the rarity of the object, he believed he could even make certain things never die. An apple, for example, he could make it never rot.

He smiled faintly, finding it ironic to gain the power to make things undying after understanding the necessity of death.

His Crimson Sword Intent was no less incredible. If his Death Intent granted him the ability to preserve, then his Crimson Sword Intent allowed him to end. To kill those same things with a mere thought, if his Will was strong enough to do so.

The importance of Will became more evident the further he ascended. Now, he could truly see why the world itself had chosen to chain his master.

All of these powers born from intent… Kaden was, for once, genuinely surprised.

He realized now why his parents had always placed such emphasis on Intents. Because no matter how powerful you were, if a lower-ranked being possessed a unique and higher-ranked Intent, then you could still lose, if a well-placed opportunity sang itself into existence.

"Now I've evolved both my Intents. I also have the necessary number of stat points to go beyond all my limits." He smiled faintly. "I'm fully ready."

And then…

[You have been killed by the Intent of the Mad Sun Emperor.]

[At which point in time do you wish to return?]

"Make it the moment I woke up. I want to solidify my Intents further," he said. Then, after a short pause, "As for what I want this time…"

Kaden began to think. He had many options, yet he didn't know which to choose. He was not fond of Origins, mainly because Reditha was an existence of her own, and he didn't want to taint her with things she had no business or will in being connected to.

And he wasn't that motivated to think too deeply, so, for the first time in a long while…

"Choose for me," he said simply, giving Death the right to decide.

[Good choice, Host.]

Immediately after…

[You have received 0.1% Divinity of the Sun Way in the Celeste Pathway.]

Kaden smiled in contentment, but then his face shifted. "What's the use of Divinities?"

[You will need them to step into future ranks.] Death answered vaguely, and Kaden knew better than to ask more.

Still, now he had two Divinities…Sorrow Pathway and Sun Way of the Celeste Pathway.

'Interesting… does that mean there's a Moon Way too? And if I'm right… a Stars Way?' He shook his head.

The Asterion were too powerful for his taste.

He couldn't imagine the kind of power one would hold if they gathered all three Ways.

Shaking his head and thinking no further on the matter, Kaden did what he needed to do most.

He transcended his stat limits once again.

This time, he needed 108 stat points at once to surpass the limit. And for his seven stats, that meant 756 stat points. He had enough for that.

So he acted immediately.

The process was as painful as the last time, perhaps even more, with the feeling of his soul being molded into something entirely new, all too present.

Inside him, the small crimson spot within his soul began to slowly expand, claiming more and more ground.

And then… his soul began to take the shape of something like…

…an ocean?

It was hard to tell, and soon the process ended, leaving Kaden breathless, lying on his back, chest rising and falling in heavy rhythm.

He flicked open his eyes and witnessed another thing he had come to love…

[Third Step of Transcendence: The Carved.]

[The Carved: Choose your mark. Choose where it will be carved. And you will obtain a corresponding power from it.]

Kaden read the lines again and again, not fully understanding what this was. It seemed like an important choice, one he would need to consider carefully.

A mark…

His thoughts began to churn, circling over themselves, and yet his decision came faster than he expected.

"My mark… my mark will be a black ocean," Kaden said, his voice low, as if speaking it gave the image weight. "With my crimson sword lodged in the middle of it, tainting the black with red. The sword must be shaped like Reditha."

He paused, then smiled slowly.

"As for where it will be carved…" His fingers tapped his spine. "My back."

In but a heartbeat, a strange sensation surged behind him. It wasn't pain of the flesh, but something deeper, clawing at what lay beneath the illusion of flesh. Pain began to gnaw at his soul, cold and steady like teeth that never ceased their bite.

Kaden only grunted, face wincing, shoulders tensing slightly, and waited without a word as the carving etched itself into him.

With his sharpened perception, he watched the mark form in perfect clarity…a black ocean, vast and endless, and at its center, a crimson blade buried into the dark, its glow bleeding into the water like a wound that never healed.

The hilt of the blade rested just at the base of his neck.

It was mesmerizing, yet dreadful.

It felt abnormally right.

His silent awe was interrupted by a voice, quiet but undeniable:

[You have obtained the Mark of Burden.]

[You will carry with you the burden and the will of those who give them to you, for they will see in you something worthy, something beyond the ordinary. And you shall obtain a wisp of their strength.]

Kaden stared in silent shock, his mouth opening and closing without sound, until finally…

"Bloody hell…!?"

—End of Chapter 300—

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