Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

Time continued to pass inside the three-layered spatial dimension Atlas had created as he trained each aspect of his newly transformed existence.

Of course, the first thing he focused on was his raw strength and the rest of his attributes, starting with extremely small movements such as releasing almost negligible force with a simple flick of his fingers before gradually moving on to slow-motion karate chops.

Even those simple movements were enough to make the layers of space crack completely, forcing him to reconstruct them again by altering the logic of Space. It took approximately five days before Atlas finally brought his raw strength completely under his control, after which he shifted his attention toward his Aether reserves.

The amount of Aether inside Atlas was so massive that even his transformed physical veins had difficulty containing it. There wasn’t much he could do about the sheer quantity for now, so he began compressing the already dense energy within his body to make it easier to contain.

The process was somewhat difficult at first, but Atlas gradually became more efficient at compressing the Aether without affecting its stability. By doing so, he managed to store the enormous reserves inside himself without allowing the energy to constantly strain his body.

After dealing with his Aether, Atlas shifted his attention toward his speed, which was the reason he had been moving his entire body even slower than a snail during the earlier stages of his training. If he moved at what would normally be considered a natural speed for him, his body could cross distances measured in light years before he even realized how far he had traveled.

His current speed had already surpassed any reasonable limit one could expect from a human body, making even the smallest movement something that required conscious control. Someone might naturally wonder how his flesh and bones could survive such movement without being torn apart or vaporized, but the answer was actually quite simple.

First, Atlas’s entire physical data had already been rewritten by the Metadata Axiom Trait, and the physical transformation he had undergone after increasing all of his attributes had further changed the foundation of his body.

Both of those factors had already made his entire existence capable of withstanding speeds far beyond what he had previously considered possible.

After all, Atlas had already fought individuals such as Melina and Trelisa, whose speed had been comparable to, and in some respects even greater than, what his current body could produce. Their strength had never been insignificant either.

Melina herself was extremely powerful and anomalous in her own way, but because she had encountered Atlas, the difference between them had made her strength appear far less impressive than it actually was.

As for Trelisa, she hadn’t even revealed half of her actual strength during their battle. She had openly admitted that she had been playing with him, and the fight had only ended because those three powerful individuals suddenly arrived and changed the situation completely.

Atlas remained unaware of just how much strength both women had actually possessed at the time, but even if he had known, he probably wouldn’t have cared much about it. His attention remained focused entirely on controlling his own abilities, and he continued practicing his speed until he gradually became capable of moving without accidentally crossing enormous distances.

’This feels just like yesterday when I was first learning to control my speed.’ Atlas thought as he continued his attempts for several more days. After another five days, he finally brought his speed under control, although he had also temporarily altered the logic governing his own control over speed to accelerate the learning process.

Without doing that, simply adapting to every aspect of his speed naturally would have taken him nearly five or six years. Atlas wasn’t willing to spend that much time doing something that could be shortened through a controlled use of his abilities.

Of course, someone might ask why Atlas didn’t simply alter the logic of his control permanently and complete the entire process instantly. The answer was that he couldn’t freely alter every piece of logic however he wanted, and Atlas already knew that forcing certain changes could lead to disastrous consequences.

If everything were really that simple, he could simply alter the logic governing Time itself and accomplish almost anything he wanted without effort. Atlas already knew that everything had a price, and some things were so ’expensive’ that even his current self couldn’t afford to pay for them.

Atlas smiled slightly as he thought about it. He wasn’t particularly concerned about the things he couldn’t accomplish yet because he knew that his current limitations wouldn’t necessarily remain forever. ’Someday, I’ll naturally be able to do that, there’s no rush.’

With that thought, Atlas shifted his attention toward the final matter related to his attributes, which was Null. He focused inward and immediately sensed the strange swirl of Null that had appeared inside him during the transformation.

The moment Atlas focused on it, he felt something unusual from the strange swirl.

It felt hungry.

Atlas frowned slightly as he continued sensing the strange phenomenon inside himself. ’What the hell is this?’ He had never encountered anything similar before, and he couldn’t compare the sensation to any existing form of energy or ability that he knew.

If someone were to compare the appearance of that swirl to something they already knew, they might immediately think of a Black Hole somewhere in the cosmos, but it wasn’t actually a Black Hole. Its appearance was similar, yet the way it behaved could be completely different.

Atlas, however, didn’t even know what a Black Hole was, so he couldn’t possibly make that comparison himself. He continued observing the strange swirl for a while before eventually deciding to leave the matter for later.

Whatever it was, he couldn’t understand it at the moment, and attempting to interfere with something he didn’t understand could create disastrous results.

For now, he had another goal that was considerably more important.

He wanted to reach the Emperor Rank.

From what Atlas could remember, Eliomor already seemed to understand the existence of the various ranks, and he was certain Eliomor had detected Melina when she had entered the world.

It was even possible that Eliomor had been observing the entire conversation between them, which meant there was a good chance that it already knew considerably more about the cultivation system beyond Eliomor, ’It is also possible it already knows everything even before Melina’s conversation, that Human King Luberion had ascended meaning he knew everything about these ranks.’

The problem was that Atlas had forgotten to ask Melina about the exact conditions required to advance into the Emperor Rank.

The first thing he knew was that to reach the Astral World Rank required him to form an Energy Core inside his body. Even that Energy Core didn’t exist within him yet, meaning he still had a clear step to complete before he could even think about becoming an Emperor.

Atlas frowned slightly as he considered the matter before deciding that he would simply ask Melina about it later.

’I need to ask Melina about this again.’ Atlas thought before shifting his attention toward another matter. ’But before I go to Frostars again, I should visit Seraphiel once. Staying secluded for this long isn’t good for me.’

Atlas shook his head slightly as he realized how bored and lonely he had felt after spending so much time inside the isolated spatial dimension. Even with all the progress he had made, constantly focusing on training without meeting Seraphiel, eating or even sleeping had started to become tiresome, ’How...much have I changed since starting on my journey to revenge.’

His thoughts shifted as he dismissed the past for now, ’...I can’t wait to meet her.’

Atlas finally looked down at himself and noticed another problem.

His old clothes no longer fit properly.

His physical transformation had made his body noticeably leaner, leaving his previous attire hanging loosely around him. Atlas looked at himself for a moment before raising one hand and snapping his fingers.

The moment he did, his eyes glowed faintly as he altered the logic of reality anchoring his clothes and reshaped them according to the design he had already imagined. He remembered the robes worn by the three powerful figures he had encountered on Frostars and used them as a general reference while creating something more suited to himself.

His clothes glowed faintly as their structure changed.

The new attire consisted of a sleek, high-collared black coat layered over a fitted inner garment, with overlapping panels creating a sharp and structured silhouette. Subtle dark-blue accents traced the edges of the clothing, while metallic silver clasps adorned his chest and waist, adding small details without making the outfit overly ornate.

The fitted sleeves and dark lower layers complemented his leaner physique. Atlas then shifted to his long hairs. Though he could’ve made them short, he didn’t do that as with another snap, he tied them in a small ponytail style.

PICTURE

Atlas looked at himself for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his face. He gave a small nod, apparently satisfied with the result, before raising his hand once again. His fingers snapped together.

SNAP

In the next instant, Atlas vanished from the isolated spatial dimension.