Shattered Sanity

(Day 51, Stoneville Town, The Imperial Anatomist’s Laboratory)

Finally, after fifty long days of operating on Riven’s body, the Imperial Anatomist concluded on the morning of day fifty-one that the boy was finally ready for the second stage of his Section Carving.

”Stage One has reached its limits... I think it’s time we move on,” the Imperial Anatomist muttered while carefully reading through the countless notes he had compiled over the previous fifty days, as Karen looked towards him with an uncertain expression upon her face.

”Doctor, the patient’s muscles are still expanding in size,” Karen said cautiously. ”It’s not as though he’s actually reached his limits yet. Perhaps allowing a few more days of muscle stimulation and growth could still improve the final result?”

She suggested, however, the Imperial Anatomist immediately shook his head.

”No...” he replied while gently stroking his chin. ”The very reason he hasn’t reached his limits yet is because of his bloodline potential.”

He paused briefly before glancing towards Riven’s unconscious body.

”However, his body ratios have already reached perfection.”

”Beyond this point is where Godly Ascendants are separated from the common rutts.”

”If he is to reap the greatest possible benefits from his bloodline, then we must commence Stage Two immediately and purify it as much as we can.”

The Imperial Anatomist explained, as Karen nodded slowly, finally understanding the reasoning behind his decision.

”If his thinned bloodline alone has already taken him this far...” the Imperial Anatomist muttered thoughtfully, ”...then the next stage shall send him straight to Minerva.”

He claimed, as the room fell silent for several moments before the Imperial Anatomist let out a weary sigh.

”The only problem...” he murmured while absentmindedly running his fingers through his hair, ”...is that he needs to remain conscious throughout the entire process.”

Karen’s expression immediately stiffened.

”And we cannot administer more than a certain amount of painkillers either,” he continued. ”Beyond that point, the medicines begin interfering with the purification itself.”

”So while his body will somehow endure...”

”The strain upon his mind will be unimaginable.”

The Imperial Anatomist slowly turned his head towards the opposite side of the room, where the Hypnotist continued sitting peacefully beside Riven’s bed, gently brushing the unconscious boy’s hair while quietly whispering another stream of comforting affirmations into his ear.

”If I were operating alone, I wouldn’t care,” the Imperial Anatomist admitted honestly. ”But I don’t know how the boy being awake will affect the Hypnotist’s work.”

Karen instinctively glanced towards the Hypnotist as well.

Thus far, the man had offered no resistance whatsoever to the Imperial Anatomist’s methods, repeatedly encouraging him to do whatever he believed necessary to craft the perfect body for Riven.

However, although he had never once objected...

The Imperial Anatomist seriously doubted whether the Hypnotist truly understood the severity of what the second stage of Section Carving actually entailed.

Unlike the first stage, where Riven had remained peacefully unconscious while his body was painstakingly reconstructed, the second stage demanded his complete awareness from beginning to end.

This was because Aether blood purification was not a procedure that could simply be performed upon an unconscious patient.

Instead, it relied upon the body instinctively fighting to preserve itself.

Every heartbeat.

Every pulse of Aether.

Every instinct for survival.

The body had to consciously struggle against the purification taking place within it, forcing the bloodline to reveal its strongest inherited characteristics under extreme stress before the unwanted traits could be identified, isolated, and painstakingly removed.

It was a process that pushed the human body to its absolute limits.

Yet despite the immense physical burden...

The body itself was never the greatest concern.

The true danger lay within the mind.

For hours, sometimes even days, the patient would experience an agony unlike anything an ordinary person could comprehend, as every vein felt as though molten fire had replaced the blood flowing through it.

The pain could not be escaped.

It could not be slept through.

Nor could it be dulled beyond a certain point without compromising the purification itself.

The patient simply had to endure it.

Many possessed bodies strong enough to survive the procedure.

However, far fewer possessed minds strong enough to emerge from it unchanged.

And that was precisely what troubled the Imperial Anatomist.

His life’s work revolved around perfecting the human body, while the Hypnotist’s life’s work revolved around reshaping the human mind.

The two disciplines had worked together flawlessly during the first stage of Riven’s reconstruction.

However, during the second...

The Imperial Anatomist could not help but wonder whether the unimaginable suffering that Riven was about to endure would ultimately aid the Hypnotist’s work... or destroy weeks of his efforts in a matter of hours?

------------

”Don’t worry,”

The Hypnotist said with a gentle smile after patiently listening to the Imperial Anatomist’s concerns, as the old veteran decided to consult the Hypnotist one final time before starting the procedure.

”Pain is a tool that not only creates suffering, but can also be used to forge associations.”

”If every attempt the boy makes to remember his past is accompanied by unbearable agony, then eventually his subconscious will begin connecting those two experiences together.....

This is precisely the tool I needed to suppress his past memories, so, it anything you’re doing me a favor.”

He said, as he gave the Imperial Anatomist a reassuring smile.

”In time, recalling his previous life will cease to feel natural. Instead, his mind will instinctively avoid those memories altogether, just as one’s hand instinctively withdraws from an open flame.”

The Imperial Anatomist listened silently.

”The pain is an opportunity for me as well,” the Hypnotist concluded with an unwavering smile. ”And I intend to make the most of it.”

Those words finally put the Imperial Anatomist’s concerns to rest.

Although he still did not fully understand the methods employed by the mysterious Hypnotist, he trusted the man’s confidence enough to proceed without further hesitation.

Thus, after fifty-one long days of preparation...

The second stage of Riven’s Section Carving officially began.