Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking-Chapter 535 : Jormund’s Breakthough Starts
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Today was Jormund's moment...
Thinking about it, he never expected it to be a big deal. He came here with little hope and full of desperation. He signed his life away and thought that this might be where he falls. Yet despite the very small chances and uncertainties throughout the way, he made it.
He really didn't want his breakthrough to be a big deal. Jormund doesn't think he's too important for others to pay attention to this little episode in his life. Yet he also understands that he has become a rarity since succeeding in this path and that it's inevitable that people will begin paying attention to him.
To say that he's nervous might be an understatement. Even though according to the director, he's got all he needs and the skills to make it through, Jormund still can't help but doubt himself.
It's not so easy to re-establish his faith in himself. He did, after all, spend thousands of years toiling away or desperately seeking ways to break through this bottleneck only to fail again and again. The consistent failures have long erased all confidence he had in himself.
"Is this a wake or something? Why look so gloomy?"
The director's voice sounded in his ears, shaking him out of his stupor. Jormund smiled wryly at the jest and the attempt to comfort him. If only he could see what expression he's making, he'd probably understand why Cedric said this.
"I'm...I have doubts," Jormund admitted.
In front of the Director, Jormund's defenses crumbled. He thought that if there's anybody here who could understand what he's going through, it may be his fellow participants and this person. And despite the director being a lot younger than him, Jormund didn't hold any hint of superiority in front of him.
"That's understandable." Cedric sat beside him; his golden gaze was kind and friendly. "I'd doubt any from your batch can face this scenario with complete confidence, either. Constant failure has seeped into your soul, and despite your resounding success, it is very hard to completely wash it away."
Jormund stayed silent after hearing this. He's right; the director really understands.
"That said, has failure ever stopped you from trying?" Cedric smiled gently at him. "Sure, it has barred your way numerous times, but it never stopped you from dreaming and trying."
"It may have eroded your beliefs, but it has yet to completely kill your spirit. You're still fighting, even now. That tells me that it isn't much of a threat as it's posing to be. A fraud, if you ask me."
His words ignited something within him.
"You have already concluded your karma with your people. When you came here, you understood what you were getting yourself into. You didn't hesitate to sign away your life for the small chance of making it through. You charged in bravely, knowing that a slight mistake would lead to your death."
"And now you're here, just shy of a step closer to your goal," Cedric reminded, "You've got all the skills you'd need to cross this boundary, to shatter this bottleneck that has tormented you for thousands of years."
"Are you willing to succumb to the effects of failure now, or will you stake one final chance, fight one more battle, one last gamble, that may or may not cost you your life?"
Jormund inhaled sharply. In the end, he couldn't help but smile.
Yeah, what was he so worried about? It's just death. He has already lived long enough, and he had grown tired of the secular matters. The only thing that kept him going was his regrets.
Hasn't he already decided to do this even if he had to die trying? He's already this close to success; how can he retreat? How can he succumb now?
The flames of ambition and determination blazed within his heart. Jormund's three pairs of eyes met Cedric's golden gaze. But unlike before, all doubts were gone in Jormund's eyes.
"Ready to face the music?"
Jormund didn't hesitate this time. He nodded and stood up. Cedric smiled and followed suit, leading him to the venue of his breakthrough.
The six-eyed serpent watched as the Director waved his hand, effortlessly twisting and coiling space around them. When he took a step forward, it was as if they were propelled through time and space, instantly arriving at a completely different place, which made Jormund think that they had gone into a different timeline.
They appeared before an enclosed space. Above them was a massive runic formation made of intersecting dark golden lines. In Jormund's view, he could see a gaping scar in reality sealed behind that formation. The feeling was familiar to him because it contained the same aura as the void.
Looking below, the enclosed space only had a single elevated platform at the center, making it look like a throne. The walls around it were peppered with runes similar to the one sealing the gaping tear above, only smaller.
They weren't alone here. Jormund could sense a few strong auras around this place. Most of them, he could sense. But he's sure that there were many who were hidden from his senses.
'Well, the director did say that some people will be watching.' He thought inwardly, shrugging in indifference.
It was here that the director faced him and said, "You'd sit on that platform and begin your breakthrough. I trust that you already know what to do afterwards, right?"
Jormund nodded. Yes, he already knows. His fusion with the spark gave him knowledge of how exactly he should make his breakthrough.
Thinking about this, Jormund's eyes finally brightened. He glanced at the sealed spatial tear above the enclosed space, and finally he realized why Cedric took him here.
'I see, so that's why he took me here. Alright. Let's do this! Beyond anything, I can't fail the Director's faith in me.'
Jormund slithered in space and hopped onto the platform. His lower body coiled around it, and his upper body remained ramrod straight. He took a few calming breaths as the realization that the moment of truth had finally sunk into him.
It took a while, but eventually, Jormund calmed down. As soon as he felt that he was ready, he unleashed his potential, causing a strange resonance to fill the air.
Seeing this, Cedric's eyes sparkled. With a wave of his hand, the massive runic formation above twisted into motion. At the center of it, a small hole appeared, and from there, dense black and white liquid started leaking out.
The dense void energy, which behaved like mercury, directly drenched Jormund and started filling out the enclosed space.
Jormund felt the familiar gnaw of the void on his flesh. But instead of feeling nervous or afraid, he instead felt comforted somehow.
The feeling took him back to the days when he used to endure this gnawing sensation for hours upon hours along with his fellow desperate people. He recalled just how much all of them struggled and how they gnashed their teeth to endure the pain just to fight for the small chance to change their fates.
Jormund was the first one to take the leap. And he wished that he wouldn't be the last.
His reaction was almost simultaneous too. The moment the void touched him and he felt its familiar gnaw, he immediately began refining it. Of course, this wasn't an exercise anymore, so after refining it, he also began absorbing it through the way he learned from his fusion with the spark.
His fighting spirit was roused. His skills were put to the test, and his willpower was tested. This will be a long and extended fight, so Jormund knew not to rush anything. He kept patient, never biting off more than he could chew.
The feeling of absorbing the first thread of neutralized void felt weird to him. As he followed the thread, it led him to the blank space where he found the spark. He felt the place twisting and crumbling, seemingly collapsing due to the changes around him.
Yet Jormund wasn't afraid. He already knew that this was part of the process and he had nothing to be afraid of.
Many eyes were drawn to Jormund's figure. Most of these felt a sense of déjà vu because they too witnessed Cedric going through the same thing. Back then, they thought that it was over for Cedric. Yet he had proven them wrong.
Now, they're witnessing quite possibly another miracle. And to say that they're not entertaining wonderful ideas would be an utter lie.
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Zheng!
But of course, not everything goes according to plan. Because only an hour or two had passed since the start of Jormund's breakthrough, an unforeseen change occurred.
A fluctuation of energy carrying the sound similar to that of a zither suddenly erupted from within Jormund's body. Everybody felt and heard it, so there's no doubt about it.
But the thing is, Cedric was fairly certain that a fluctuation like this wasn't normal. So that means something was up, and he's afraid that he doesn't have a clue of what it is.
Cedric's brows furrowed. Inwardly, he couldn't help but wonder:
'Are you truly destined to fail now? Or is it because of something else?'
