To White, the chaos was different.

All he could feel himself doing initially was spreading outwards, slowly taking over every single fiber of the creature.

But all of a sudden, he felt a violent pull inward.

It was akin to teleportation, except without any warning whatsoever.

The world darkened instantly, and the sensation of falling overtook him.

Eventually, it stopped, and his eyes snapped open, taking in his surroundings.

The world was one he was beginning to get used to:

A simple dark void.

"I expected a God Candidate..."

The words echoed behind him, and he snapped back in caution.

Standing there was a figure half-hidden by the darkness.

He was a man, about the height of White himself, but he was different.

His skin was dark, and on his forehead were two horns sticking out from the sides.

He was dressed in a monk-like robe, a pitch-black kasaya draped over his shoulder.

He radiated no aura at all, as if he were non-existent.

At first, White was confused.

Apart from the horns, the man didn’t seem to have anything in common with the beast whose body he was to overtake.

"Who are you?"

He asked, his body firming up in a battle-ready state.

"Did you fuse with the Aether Pearl?"

He asked as White’s brow furrowed.

’The Aether Pearl... so that’s the name.’

"I have..."

He responded.

"Then maybe you’ll stand a chance."

He replied, and in the next moment,

White felt an inexplicable chill as shadows bled from beneath the being’s feet.

They stretched forward for seven meters, then climbed upward into the void.

He could only watch as the darkness coalesced into another being.

A being towering over five meters in height.

"It’s the one."

The new being was the exact creature in the lab, the one he was to take over.

"Destroy it..."

The words reached White from the man, who was still standing where he was, as the beast began to step forward.

"Destroy it... or it will destroy you."

ROOOOOOOOOOOOAR!

A powerful roar burst from the creature’s maw, sending a shockwave blasting towards White, who crossed his hands.

’So that’s it, huh... a combat test?’

He thought, but when the shockwave reached his crossed hands—

His face changed massively as he was lifted off his feet.

BOOOOOOOM!

An explosion rocked through the void as the hulking beast burst forward with power.

Appearing before the soaring White,

RIIIIIIIIP!

The void itself was torn asunder as its claw cleaved outward.

In response, White folded midair, placing his hands to the side of his head.

Finally... it collided with him, and the force of the attack was unlike anything White had ever seen in tens of years of battle.

It was an overwhelming power, like a burning meteor descending upon an ant.

The world blurred with a speed so fast he couldn’t come to terms with it.

The last thing he saw was the void around him turning to dust, and from it emerged a massive black hole into which he disappeared, crushed into oblivion.

SNAP!

__________

"No!"

The shout echoed through the void, followed by knees collapsing to the ground.

White exhaled and inhaled, eyes widened in horror as he looked around him.

This was still the same dark void, and he turned to look at himself.

There was no mark at all, though the memory of him being devoured whole by a black hole was still fresh in his mind.

He turned forward, and there he saw the monk, who had his fingers in a pinched position, slowly parting.

"What happened?"

"You lost."

He replied, his tone as emotionless as ever.

"Even though you’ve already fused with the Aether Pulse, you’re completely unaware and incapable of using its power."

He spoke, and White’s expression darkened as shadows bled from beneath the being’s feet and the beast rose once more.

"This isn’t a battle of might; it’s a battle of wills. And nothing comes close to the Aether Pulse as a Will Source."

ROOOOOOOOOOOOAR!

Another roar burst forth from the creature as a powerful shockwave tore out, blasting towards White.

He had learned his lesson the first time and knew crossing his arms would do nothing, so he ran to the side instead, hoping he would be able to outrun it, but he was wrong.

The shockwave still caught up to him, blowing him back, and the last thing he saw was the massive claws cleaving through the upper part of his body, ripping his entire torso in two.

SNAP!

_________

BANG!

BANG!

The void shook as White’s knees collapsed once more, breathing out in suppressed horror.

He turned forward, and there he found the monk, whose fingers slowly parted.

"You’re reversing time!?"

White asked in disbelief, and he replied,

"I can’t do so forever..."

Once more, the shadow began spreading forth as the beast began to rise.

’There’s no hope if I try to compete in brute force. It’s far beyond me, and I can’t outrun it.’

White deduced, watching as the beast roared, sending shockwaves blasting forth once more.

This time, he didn’t bother to run or dodge.

No.

That was a hopeless move.

"If only I had the same speed as I had back in the Orb."

White mused, as the shockwaves slammed into him, sending him flying once more, but then a flash of realization hit him.

"Wait... the Orb... Aether Pulse... wills."

BOOOOOOOM!

Another devastating claw strike to his waist, cleaving his entire body in two.

SNAP!

The sound of fingers snapping, and once more White reappeared.

This time, he didn’t collapse on his knees. Instead, his brows tightened hard as he began to think.

ROOOOOOOOOOOOAR

SNAP!

Everything the system had mentioned about the Aether Pulse came back rushing through his mind.

BOOOM

SNAP!

The words of the monk...of this being a battle of will rather than brute power, also echoed as he was torn apart into pieces.

SNAP!

SNAP!

SNAP!

...

This continued for more times than he could count, until the snap.

"I’m afraid this is the last time I can reverse time..."

"You’ve only got this final chance to succeed."