Chapter 497: Only Solution
"You are correct, but there is always a way," the Witch of the North said with a sly smile, leaning back into her floating chair as her sharp green eyes glinted under the brim of her black hat.
Her voice was calm, but behind that calm was a confidence earned from centuries of forbidden knowledge and experimentation. "Since the day I found that boy—dying and broken—and temporarily granted him life by binding his remaining soul to Freya through my Witch Seal, I’ve been thinking of a permanent solution. I’ve studied him. Watched him. And after countless experiments over the years... I came to a very neat solution."
Lucien’s eyes narrowed, a tension settling in the air as he asked, "What solution?"
The Witch of the North’s smile remained, but her voice turned solemn. "I will erase his Yang Soul too."
"What?!" Lucien jumped up, shock contorting his face as his voice echoed through the floating pink world. "You can’t be serious! He’s already on the verge of death—his body is only being sustained because of the Yang Soul’s fragile connection to the Witch Seal. If you erase that too, the seal will fail. And if that happens... both of them will die. Max and Freya!"
His breath caught in his chest as he tried to grasp what she had just said, unable to believe she would risk both of their lives so carelessly.
The Witch of the North, however, was unbothered. She raised a single finger and tapped it against her temple with a knowing look. "That would be true... if I were simply removing the soul and leaving the body empty. But I’m not. I intend to replace both Yin and Yang with something else entirely. Something beyond the normal constructs of soul. A binding that doesn’t strain with power but flows with it. Something... artificial—a perfect anchor not affected by mortal rules."
Lucien froze, the implications slowly dawning on him. "You’re talking about making him a new foundation... something not born, but created?"
She nodded, eyes glowing faintly. "A synthetic soul formed from an ancient alchemy I’ve nearly perfected. One that can adapt infinitely to strength without crumbling. One that can grow, morph, and evolve with him. No limits, no soul collapse. If it works..." she smiled darkly, "he will be the first of a new existence."
"That’s the only solution," the Witch of the North said with unwavering calm, her voice echoing faintly in the strange pink domain as she leaned forward, resting her elbows on the floating table before her. "Once a Yin or Yang Soul of a person is forcefully removed, they will die... That is the rule. The law of the world. It has existed since the beginning of life, and no matter how powerful, no being—mortal or divine—can change that. You can slow it, delay it, even mask it, but the end is inevitable. Death will come for them."
Her fingers traced lazy circles in the air as if sketching invisible runes. "And there is no real solution either. You can’t just recreate a missing soul, Lucien. No matter how strong a person becomes, no matter what realm they ascend to, creating a part of someone else’s soul—Yin or Yang—is simply impossible. It’s not about power. It’s about essence. Identity. It’s something too intimate, too precise, too divine to ever be replicated."