CHAPTER 551: EXISTENTIAL ABSOLUTE (1)

Alexander’s new state of existence meant he could be anything he desired.

And so he became.

His will bore witness to everything that Alexander was; everything that he gave up to become one with nothingness.

Undergoing such a transformation from a peak life form to an existential existence meant he transcended everything that was, and everything that is.

Even so, Alexander chose to become the very thing he let go to transcend. He chose to be Alexander Gray still.

He chose to be the son of William and Sarah Gray. Alex chose to be brother to Olivia and Aaron Gray.

He chose to be the uncle of Axel Trevor. He chose to be best friends with Ross. He chose to be the lover and fiancé of Julia Knight.

Alexander chose to experience emotions as he had before; he chose to be everything that he once was.

With that choice came the manifestation of the form that represented him.

From the void of nothingness, a spark of essence ignited and began to take form, permeating the void of nothingness.

Alexander had no idea how long the process took, or how much essence his will generated, but he knew one thing.

The essence he had generated surpassed anything he had ever wielded before, exceedingly so.

Through this essence, all forms of energy were born. From the chaotic energies of creation to the energies of destruction on every spectrum imaginable, he was all of it.

’I could keep going, but there is no point,’ Alex mused with absolute certainty. ’What a strange thing.’

Because he had chosen to allow himself to feel like he used to, Alexander came to a few realisations about his new state of existence, or more precisely, he just knew.

’I’ve never felt so free and in control before. There isn’t anything about myself that I cannot do.’

Azarion was right. What he allowed himself to feel was freedom in the absolute sense of the word.

He was tied to nothing; he was his own person, independent of laws, time, space, godhood, the universe, reality, and essence. He was his own everything.

Alexander was a walking paradox.

As he brought an end to the essence he generated, the gathered essence began to condense and take shape, rapidly forming his identity.

Alexander Gray.

Unbound by space, time and essence, Alexander’s body formed anew; a perfectly crafted vessel to represent his existence.

Next, he reformed the armour his beloved designed for him, going as far as adding the cloak.

But now more than ever, the cloak served a purpose to enshroud his existence from others.

When the process came to a close, Alexander realised just how insignificant a lifeform was.

Reawakening after his transformation, Alexander’s will had encompassed a significant portion of reality.

However, that changed when he condensed his essence to a mere two meters in height.

He could not even begin to create a reasonable comparison between the size of reality and his body.

The difference was... existential.

Putting that aside, Alexander focused on his body, appreciating the difference that came with the transformation.

His chosen identity as a human made it easier for him to tell just how superior his new existence was.

Power did not flow through his being; he became power itself.

Alexander didn’t have to be a generator; he simply existed by the mere fact of being a part of nothing.

Concepts, laws, restrictions and conditions no longer applied to him. He was above everything.

And he knew why... Because he knew; because he willed it so.

’This is confusing and at the same time clear.’ Alex chuckled softly. ’To exist without medium; to know without knowing; to exist without existing... an Existential Absolute.’

That was what he was.

Alexander raised a hand, clenching and unclenching his fist, only feeling the sensation because he wanted to; because he chose to.

Looking back to how he transcended his reality, Alexander made it look extremely easy.

But that was far from the truth.

Yes, he was on the verge of dying when he made the decision to let go. But had he stubbornly clung to nothingness, he would have been erased.

Alexander’s willingness to let go of everything that he was, everything that defined him as Alexander, was the key.

A delicate balance of willingness to let go and a willingness to be... that was what set him apart.

Alexander loved his loved ones more than anything. He was willing to sacrifice himself for them.

So how then could such a being abandon such strong emotions? How could he let go of the love he claimed to have for Julia?

How could he let go of his overwhelmingly strong protective instincts?

Because he understood that only by letting go of everything he held dear could he become everything he wanted.

It was this duality of existence, this contradiction of the will, that made his transcendence possible.

’A living entity born from a reality is the reality’s definition; an extension of it. That was why those guys said becoming what I am now was impossible.’

Putting the wealth of knowledge that naturally came to him aside, Alexander focused on reality, specifically the tear in it.

From the moment reality glitched to the manifestation of his existence, no time had elapsed... because he deemed it so.

He was not bound by anything defined by said reality.

Alexander did not need to make contact with reality to understand what was happening.

’Reality is resetting.’ He deduced calmly. ’We can’t have that, now can we?’

Everything he had done was for the sake of his loved ones. He could not afford for reality to wipe everything clean.

Alexander appeared at the boundary between reality and nothingness, taking his first step into reality as another reality.

However, he could not immediately cross the threshold. Reality was putting up a fierce resistance to his existence!

’Cute,’ Alexander chuckled at the attempt. ’Had you been whole, it would have been an impossibility.’

Once again, he simply knew.

Reality’s resistance was understandable. After all, Alexander was now a foreign entity; another reality itself.

Ignoring the resistance reality put up, Alexander forcefully crossed the boundary.

Simultaneously, all of reality trembled and distorted, almost as if it recoiled from the forceful entry, while doing everything to reject Alexander from entering.

Krrzt...!

The glitching intensified, seemingly on the verge of a total breakdown! Fortunately for reality, Alexander had no intention of harming it.

’Hmm... this will be troublesome.’ Alexander noted.

Reality was trying to impose every form of restriction on his existence, further intensifying the distortions it was experiencing.

Alexander felt as though he was trying to walk through extremely viscous tar, every move requiring a universe’s worth of effort.

"Enough already!"

With a sweep of his hand, Alexander plunged a hand into the chaosveil, his hand disappearing into the fold of the void.

He tapped into the systems of reality itself, brute forcing his way into its permissions and laws.

His intent was a simple one: to snatch the rights for this region of reality!

The moment he crossed the threshold, everything that had occurred within the region was laid bare to his existence.

From the reforming corrupted Enforcers to his broken and dead companions, he saw it all.

But everything was frozen before his existence, or more specifically, his existence transcended all concepts.

The chaotic flow of all essence became motionless. What he had once failed to see were no longer hidden.

Alexander could see all the threads of existence within reality; threads that connected universes to the Omnisoul.

Threads that connected living entities, and threads that connected them to their universes... Alexander saw it all.

It was like viewing the inner workings of a complex but well-crafted circuit system. Every part was crucial for the proper functioning of reality.

"I failed you guys, huh?"

The scene was heartbreaking, one that threatened to overwhelm him with emotions he had chosen to feel.

Anger surged through him like a tidal wave, and pain wreaked havoc as though someone was viciously tearing his innards.

Krrzt...!

While reality put up a fierce resistance, Alexander accessed reality’s system and reintroduced himself into the matrix.

What reality had set out to erase, Alex put back, weaving his existence into its restructuring attempt.

Once everything was in place, he seized total control of the region. And by absolute, he meant the major events that led to the destruction of his universe!

From the decision Drakmor and the other chiefs made to engage the corrupted Enforcers, to the decision to push them into the abyss of nothingness... Alex took it all.

Most importantly, Alexander took control of the most essential aspect of reality that the Omnisoul refused to grant absolute authority over.

The ever-elusive power of time!

This was not the non-existent aspect that Veilwalkers had access to, but the actual power to revert things on an existential level.

A level that affected the workings of all reality. Whatever changed here, no matter how small, would affect everything!

Even the most insignificant changes would backtrack to accommodate that change!

For instance, anything that came out at a washroom event would have to go back!

"Let’s set things back..."

The hand plunged into the folds of reality made an anticlockwise rotation.

Rumble...