Chapter 140
Yo. The Library of Wan Shi Tong.
With great effort, I pried my eyes open and scanned the space around me. The same was happening to the rest of my remaining bodies as they began to wake up.
"My room in the abode of knowledge," I stated the obvious, and without wasting time, I immediately delved "inside" myself. I wanted to understand as quickly as possible what had happened to my Roku body. Was there any way to bring it—or myself—back?
The sight that unfolded before me wasn't very pleasing. The source of earth energy had regressed to its lowest level and showed almost no signs of life. Hmm, my thoughts didn't quicken, though theoretically, Roku's stream of consciousness should have been distributed among all the other bodies. The state of the other sources was also far from ideal. Clearly, they had been severely affected by the violent disappearance of one of the bodies. I definitely wouldn't be able to conquer anything for the next month.
"Or manipulate life energy..." I had to admit. Most likely, each body was too tightly bound to the elemental and life energy sources, which was why the situation looked so bleak now.
Attempting to sit up, I managed only to tense my facial muscles. Everything below my neck simply wouldn't respond to my control. Another try, this time using life energy, made it clear that wasn't the way to go... unless I wanted to experience unforgettable sensations. It felt like thousands of excruciatingly painful needles were being jabbed into me. But apparently, that wasn't enough for me. My futile attempts to survey the space with my spiritual senses gifted me with a long-lasting headache. That's the downside of being almost an energy-based being. Any spiritual issues affect the physical body even more intensely.
"Damn Koh!" I muttered. He was truly determined to become the first on my list of most hated individuals—at this rate, he might even surpass Vaatu. "So many good conquerors were lost..." I hoped their deaths were quick and painless.
Until I personally witness this spirit's death, I won't be able to walk in peace. He could literally be anyone! No, I don't believe his disguise is perfect! There must be some flaws!
Replaying our two encounters in my mind, I grew more and more amazed by his abilities. Paying attention to every tiny detail, I soon realized something. The flame of life! That was something he couldn't possibly fake, as it exists only in living, sentient beings of the human plane. Yes, he managed to create some kind of surrogate, but it didn't come close to the real thing. While the genuine flame of life constantly flickers, resembling a campfire, his looked more "static."
"I'll need to closely monitor my surroundings..." It's reassuring to have found at least one flaw.
"Father!" a joyful voice called from the door. Before I could turn my face, my head was suddenly squeezed between Selin's massive upper hemispheres. She seemed determined to finish me off. After all, due to losing control over my life energy, all human needs had returned. Just as I took a free breath, Driya took Selin's place. Fortunately, Gaia limited herself to a simple kiss on the cheek.