Chapter 389: Owners

Appearing within the separate space, Atlas looked around at the seemingly endless emptiness surrounding him. There was nothing here apart from the darkness that stretched in every direction, and he couldn’t help wondering whether he could eventually transform this place into a proper dimension.

’Maybe I could make it a dimension like the one Seraphiel was training in, after learning how to integrate Life Force into a separate space?’ He questioned himself, although he couldn’t be certain whether such a thing was possible yet.

Dismissing that thought for the time being, Atlas sat down in a lotus position and immediately closed his eyes. His focus gradually descended toward the black swirl within his abdomen, and he began concentrating on the connection he had established with his second self.

For a long moment, nothing seemed to happen, but then he suddenly felt a powerful pull drawing his consciousness inward.

In the next instant, his soul form appeared within the familiar darkness he had entered countless times before. The moment his surroundings became clear, his eyes snapped open as he noticed the massive translucent tree standing before him.

Its size had increased considerably since his last visit, having continuously absorbed the Aether energy Atlas had been gathering from the ambient atmosphere.

His gaze moved toward the enormous fruits hanging from its branches before eventually settling on a familiar figure lying comfortably atop one of them. The second self appeared to be enjoying a peaceful vacation, with one leg resting over the other and his eyes closed as though he had absolutely nothing to worry about.

"Hey, it’s time you explained what secret you found inside here. It would be a lot easier if you told me rather than making me try to discover it myself."

The second self, who had been closing his eyes and seemingly sleeping, paused his leg-swaying movement. He slowly opened his eyes before jumping down from the massive fruit, his expression carrying clear dissatisfaction.

"Damn, your timing is not good at all. I was just going to sleep a little, and here you are, coming to bother me." Atlas frowned at his relaxed and nonchalant behaviour. He had come here for an explanation, yet this guy seemed more interested in enjoying his leisure time than answering him. Without saying another word, Atlas extended his hand and clenched his fist.

The moment he did, the second self immediately felt an intense pressure pressing against his translucent mind. "Ughhh! Damn it, fine! I’ll spill the beans! Now stop please!" Atlas released his clenched fist at once, causing the pressure to disappear.

The second self dropped onto the empty darkness as though there were an actual floor beneath him, despite the fact that the surroundings consisted of nothing but darkness.

The second self slowly stood up, rubbing his head as an irritated thought crossed his mind. ’He must be taking revenge for all those insults. Tch, he’s petty.’ After releasing a small sigh, he finally looked toward Atlas and spoke. "You remember the rules of that test in that white space?"

Atlas nodded immediately.

That was precisely the reason he had come here to question his second self in the first place. He had been thinking about the strange circumstances surrounding that test, particularly the restrictions imposed upon him while he was inside that white space.

"That voice said all your abilities would enter a dormant state in that white space... Does that ring any bells?" Atlas frowned and fell into deep thought. He tried recalling the exact circumstances of the test and the restrictions that had been imposed upon him.

The second self watched his reaction before continuing, "At that time, I was the one who helped you solve that riddle, right?" He paused and raised his index finger, drawing Atlas’s attention toward the point he was trying to make.

"How could I do that? Isn’t it simply because I... was inside this inner world rather than that white space?" Atlas suddenly snapped his head upward, his eyes widening as the realization struck him. "You mean... you could use all your abilities in here while I couldn’t use mine there?"

The second self nodded. "Yes, you finally got the grasp of it."

Atlas could only stare at his second self for a long moment. He had never considered that possibility in such a manner, despite having experienced the difference firsthand. The second self noticed his expression and continued explaining, seemingly satisfied that Atlas had finally begun connecting the pieces.

"This inner world is completely separate from any dimension, realm, or ordinary space. As you already know, it exists within the swirl of Null, or should I say... a Black Hole made up of Null?"

The moment those words reached Atlas, his eyes widened. He immediately understood the significance of what the second self was telling him, and it felt as though a possibility he had subconsciously considered before had finally been confirmed.

The nature of this place was far more extraordinary than he had initially imagined.

The second self observed Atlas’s shocked expression and smiled faintly. "This Black Hole is something so unique that it’s literally a wonder how it even came into existence. Even I, the one who resides here most of the time, am shocked beyond words."

Atlas stared at his second self as the latter shook his head. For a moment, he couldn’t find anything to say, as the revelation had opened up an entirely new perspective regarding the nature of his inner world. It wasn’t merely an isolated space hidden within his existence; its very foundation seemed to operate differently from everything outside.

"Although I would have liked to go into the details of everything, I think it would be better to simply show you the functions of this place." With those words, the second self extended his right hand and opened his palm. He then slowly rotated it, performing a seemingly insignificant movement that didn’t produce any visible change in their surroundings.

Atlas frowned slightly as he observed him, unable to understand what he had just done, "Do you know what I did?"

The second self looked toward him with a faint smile before continuing. "I just made the time inside here slower than the outside. A year inside here is now equivalent to just one minute outside."

Atlas’s eyes widened once again as he immediately understood the implications of those words. He looked directly at his second self, a hint of disbelief appearing in his expression, "You... Did you alter the logic of time here?"

The second self nodded, his smile growing slightly. "Yes, I did."

Atlas completely froze.

He had obviously attempted to alter the logic of time himself on several occasions, but every single attempt had ended in miserable failure. The backlash had been so severe that his mind would suffer considerable damage, causing him to bleed continuously.

Yet his second self had just casually altered the flow of time within this place as though it were one of the simplest things imaginable. "You know why it’s possible in here and not outside?"

Atlas arched an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes. His mind immediately began connecting several pieces of information, and it didn’t take long for the realization to dawn upon him. The restrictions he had encountered whenever he tried manipulating the laws outside suddenly seemed to make sense.

"The laws..."

The second self nodded, "You got it again. The laws in the Galaxy restrict you from altering reality too much, especially something like time itself, unless you have the ability to control the Law of Time to some extent."

He paused before lifting his index finger once again. A tiny, completely white, translucent sphere gradually formed just above its tip, drawing Atlas’s attention toward it. The second self looked at the sphere for a moment before speaking.

"But in here, there are no laws to begin with. We can alter everything, every single thing you can imagine, simply by forcing our will upon it... because we are its owners."

- - -

[A/N: As the month came to an end today, I want to thank you everyone, every single one, who has been sticking to the story until now and supporting it continuously. Really Thank you.

Because of everyone’s support Bloodbound codex had been translated into the German Language by NovelPhoenix. And I hope the same support keeps coming next month as well, we are going to go on the ride of this next arc this very next month!!

Another thing I wanted to address was that I am hoping to start a new project which will obviously be Single FL as I have realized that Harem is not my forte. Although I haven’t come to finalization of the outline, I am confident it will be the best work I write after learning and improving from several mistakes from both novels.

Lastly, a Huge thanks to BoqorNasir for the unimaginable support!]