In a few centuries, Kayden mastered dozens of laws. He accelerated his learning by tens of millions of years in just a few hundred years. The Law of Balance was at least 50% complete in his mind at this moment. In truth, Kayden had traversed more than half the path, but those 50% were only what he believed to be perfect. The overall content easily surpassed 70%.
Kayden opened his eyes on a random day. The environment remained the same, and he had learned absolutely everything he could from it. His eyes now had a faint bluish hue. He took a single deep breath and raised his hand toward space.
Dozens of spatial threads extended from Kayden, and the balance of the environment turned into absolute chaos—a beautiful mess of laws clashing in pursuit of equilibrium and reason. But within seconds, they were entirely suppressed by the fundamental Law of Balance. The universe restored balance without any difficulty. This law was practically instantaneous in its effects whenever it detected a space error.
Kayden kept applying pressure, and the threads in space continued to increase more and more. In the blink of an eye, dozens of kilometers were filled with spatial threads. It was strange because the space appeared completely normal and free of cracks. This was not a spatial fracture but rather a rupture in the natural laws of the environment—something only Kayden and a select few mages could perceive. It was a fissure in the natural order of things.
With each passing second, the cracks increased, and space began to tremble under the pressure of the laws in this environment. The ice no longer dominated, and even the flowers could no longer sustain their existence. Everything became blurry, as they ceased to exist while simultaneously existing without being themselves. It was inexplicable, and then...
Everything ended with the pressure of a law even greater than all of Kayden’s control and the entire environment. The fundamental Law of Balance simply restored everything to a point where Kayden was no longer capable of altering the environment. He couldn’t even manipulate space or launch any attacks. His power was reduced to the basic level of a mortal as he watched everything return to normal.
"What was that!?" Jormund’s father appeared in front of Kayden, visibly agitated. The power of the law he had felt far transcended anything he had ever witnessed. Even gods were not capable of such a feat.
The most terrifying thing was the pressure he felt in this garden. He couldn’t do anything here. His control over his laws was practically nullified, and he couldn’t even alter space. He felt like a mortal again—something he hadn’t experienced in billions of years.
"I don’t know," Kayden replied, not paying much attention. He was still lost in thought, trying to understand everything that had just happened. The emperor remained silent and also became lost in his thoughts. A few days later, everything returned to normal, and both emerged from their introspection.
Kayden learned much in that moment. His power practically doubled during this period, and his understanding of the Law of Balance reached a new level. Moreover, he managed to visualize a fragment of a fundamental law. He was able to sense millions of laws intertwining to create something entirely unique.
"What did you learn about the garden to cause that?" Kayden was asked.
"Nothing. I didn’t use anything from this place to cause it," he replied. This was the best answer Kayden could give—partly true and partly false. He truly didn’t use anything from the garden to cause the event; it was simply an extremely unbalanced environment that provided an excellent study setting for him.
"I see. My name is Marco Aurelio, the Emperor of Eternal Ice," said the emperor. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, the emperor saw someone hear his name and feel his aura without showing any reaction.
"It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Kayden Heart," Kayden said with a common gesture, devoid of any title. But it wasn’t necessary, as the emperor and Jormund had no difficulty discovering his story.
"Who are you!?" Atlas felt the same pressure his father exuded, albeit at a much smaller and more controlled level.
"My name doesn’t matter. I’m here to propose a negotiation," Marco said, emanating his icy aura without restraint. His pressure made Atlas feel like a mere child among adults.
As soon as the man appeared before Atlas, he abandoned any thoughts of fighting or resistance. There was simply no way he could win this battle. This man was on the same level as Netero—or perhaps even stronger. Atlas believed he was stronger; the pressure directly targeted his laws.
"State your intentions," Atlas said, having little else to add.
"I want information in exchange for a period of protection when the inter-universal war begins." Atlas raised an eyebrow but continued the conversation.
"What’s your proposal?"
"Kayden Heart. Who is he? Be honest, and your zone will remain free of invaders for 10 million years." The offer was extremely tempting, and Atlas only requested an oath before beginning to share everything he knew about his greatest enemy.
"The greatest monster our universe has ever produced," Atlas began, not mincing words given the gravity of the negotiation. "He has an unknown combat capacity but can easily hold several zones without any difficulty. He is one of the oldest mages on record, predating the Great Division caused by the Father of False Gods. We know he’s one of the few mages capable of manipulating souls in our universe. He was able to kill his soulmate in exchange for power..." Atlas was interrupted by Marco.
"Repeat that," Marco said, struggling to grasp the magnitude of everything Atlas had just described, as he wasn’t familiar with this universe. But killing a soulmate was something he could comprehend the weight of.
"He killed his soulmate in exchange for power," Atlas emphasized each word with visible hatred. "He has no limits. His mind is unbreakable. He challenges gods as if they were mortals. His madness and courage are matched only by his strength and potential."