Chapter 1318 - 1315: Youthful Face

That youthful face still belonged to a memory from long ago. At that time, he wasn't a Shadow Ghost yet; he didn't possess such fierce power, he was merely a nobody.

Every nobody harbors great ambitions, has different dreams, and he was no exception.

Back then, the Kayne Empire had just stabilized, while the Wensi Empire and the Mantai Empire still maintained an imposing stance. Born in the tumultuous Kayne, like many Kayne People, he defended his own patch of land, stood by his own beliefs. Their hearts were filled with passion, unstoppable under King Kayne's guidance, facing death without fear.

Kayne, back then, could not be called an Empire. At that time, everyone was part of the Guardian Army, and everyone had to defend their dreams. Their dreams were simple, for they just wished to survive.

The Kayne Country always existed nervously, although they protected their territory, they couldn't completely stop the harassment from people of the other two empires.

Back then, he was merely an apprentice, an apprentice of the Adventurers with Class. At that time, the system of the Adventurers with Class had just been established, barely gaining some momentum. It was a period of exploration for the Adventurers with Class.

He was a current Pioneer, young, vibrant, and full of enthusiasm.

At that time, power was the standard for measuring an Adventurer with Class, and the emergence of any new form of power would cause a great stir.

He was among the first Awakening ones. As a Pioneer able to communicate with Spirits, he could be called a genius.

A truly Awakened one had yet to appear in the entire group of Adventurers with Class; all were merely skimming the surface, so he was the first to truly 'eat the crab' as they say.

For an explorer, Awakening was surprising, and he was ecstatic about the development, believing he had discovered a new kind of power.

Interaction with the Spirits started in such innocence. That youthful face couldn't hide his joy; he believed he could create a new profession.

The Pioneers of the Adventurers with Class also gave him unconditional support because his discovery was too special, too atypical.

The Pioneers initiated research on him and his discovery, continuously experimenting; yet, no matter what they did, they couldn't communicate with that special thing like he could.

This interaction became his exclusive domain, also the trigger for his transformation.

After all, the Spirit World was different from their world; this difference brought him new understanding.

Originally, his sole desire was to contribute to his country, gain more power to protect this land so everyone could live carefree, as peaceful living was a luxury for Kayne People.

He had witnessed too much: babies newly born, following their parents in constant flight, just to evade the Wind Chasers of the Mantai Empire, and siblings once united would suddenly scatter due to the invasion of the Vero People... death and separation were too close to him, he wanted to change these circumstances.

No matter how the Pioneers studied or explored, they couldn't dampen the fervor within him. He felt the Pioneers were too verbose, too rigid, always complicating simple issues.

He believed he should stand up and find a solution for these Pioneers.

If he could communicate with that mysterious Spirit, then perhaps he could solve the problem. If he could solve this problem, his name would be etched in history.

He started to feel exhilarated, believing he was chosen by destiny.

This feeling was bestowed by the Spirit, whose influence on him was immense. For a young man to encounter such a situation in his growth was indeed fortunate, yet dangerous as well.

Danger often accompanies comparison, and such comparison always arrives unexpectedly, making you unable to guard against it.

The phenomena of the Spirit World shocked him greatly, none more shocking than the fact these Spirits could live eternally.

This was immortality. Such a notion had a great impact on him; at that time, he wondered if eternal life meant he could permanently contribute to his country.

Back then, his youthful face was always naive, even longing for immortality; his only thought was to make a great contribution to this country.

He firmly believed that immortality was the prerequisite for solving problems, thus beginning his exploration into immortality.

He did not conceal it, telling the Pioneers everything about immortality, hoping they could relieve his confusion.

However, that youthful face lacked persuasiveness, and his findings, his narrative of immortality, were all rejected by the Pioneers.

The reason for rejection was his youth, his many imperfect understandings, and numerous mistakes.

He couldn't comprehend this, and it was a big blow to him.

This blow subtly influenced him, leading him down an incomprehensible path. This path resulted in him fully integrating with the Spirit, the Spirit occupying him, and him occupying the Spirit.

This integration was supposed to be a positive phenomenon, where Spirit and human found a perfect way to cooperate. Yet, nobody anticipated that due to his inexperience, his integration with the Spirit led to an unequal exchange.

This unequal exchange disrupted the whole balance; those energies meant to serve him suddenly all served the Spirit, the Spirit occupied everything of his, manipulated him, turning him into a Puppet.

This was because he was too hasty; he desired to demonstrate his contribution too eagerly, for his love for his country ran deep.

He loved his country so deeply that he gave everything of himself away, unaware of being used by the Spirit; faced with the constantly awakened Spirits, he was too naive, his everything thus exploited.

Yet his young self did not understand these matters—back then that youthful face knew only to contribute what he should to his country. His pure heart forever aligned with his dream, living so that everyone could live easily.

The winding road stretched on, leading him into madness, and with continuous attempts, he and the Spirit ultimately succeeded in invading a human.

This was the beginning, and also the end.

The beginning was the disturbance in the Spirit World, the end was his own story.

Everything changed after gaining this power, that youthful face was no more, he was no longer.

That youthful face remained in memory, that feeling never returned, that face never existed again.