THE VILLAIN'S POV

Chapter 789: The Path to Absolute Manipulation (2)

"I understand how valuable this ability is, Father... but giving it to me would mean you can never use it again. And if you lose it, wouldn’t your body collapse completely?"

Frey’s voice tightened.

Absolute Manipulator was what kept Abraham’s superhuman body stable after Ignition.

Without it, he would die instantly.

Abraham wasn’t like the Demon King, who could somehow share his powers.

If Abraham gave this ability away, he would lose it forever.

Of course, Abraham already knew that.

"There’s no need to worry. I have no intention of giving up my ability—it’s essential for me to live and fight."

Frey frowned, confused.

Then Abraham explained.

"What I’m about to do with you is based on a theory of mine—about the power you and I share."

"In the distant past, I possessed something similar to a system. It helped me grow rapidly, and through it I created this ability. But that system was never truly mine."

He raised his hand, blazing with transcendent aura.

"I still have my power—but the system itself is gone. And I realized something important."

"That system belonged to you. In other words... it was your power. I only borrowed it."

Frey didn’t disagree.

The system had merely been a form his power took through external interference.

Abraham smiled.

"If I reached this ability using your power, then it’s only logical that you can reach it yourself."

Frey finally understood.

"In other words... you want me to create my own version of Absolute Manipulator... just like you did?"

Abraham nodded.

"That’s right."

Hearing those words, Frey frowned.

Even with Abraham’s monstrous talent and razor-sharp intellect, it had taken him an enormous amount of time to create Absolute Manipulator.

If Frey were to start from zero, there was no way to know how long it would take.

But Abraham wasn’t worried.

"There’s no need to be," he said as he stepped closer.

"You won’t take as long as I did."

"Unlike me, you have me to guide you .. which will cut out countless dead ends. And more importantly, your foundation is far stronger than mine ever was. You’re already SSS, and your control surpasses what I had back then."

Abraham had spent years developing Absolute Manipulator, wasting vast amounts of time overcoming barriers he didn’t understand.

Frey wouldn’t.

Abraham would show him the path.

And unlike Abraham, Frey had already reached SSS when beginning.

"You can do it," Abraham continued.

"But the method will be... a little harsh. Can you endure it?"

Frey laughed as if he had just heard a joke.

"Of course. There’s no training I can’t endure .. no matter how painful."

He smiled.

"I trust you, Father. I know you wouldn’t lead me down a path I couldn’t walk."

Abraham nodded, satisfied.

"Good. Then let’s begin."

His aura surged, while Frey raised his hand and summoned his sword.

Holding Dark Sister, Frey stared at it for a moment before turning to Abraham.

"Come to think of it... this sword was yours before it was mine. What do you think? Should I give it back?"

He tossed Dark Sister to Abraham.

Abraham caught it.

Looking at the black blade in his hand, his smile widened.

"Yes... it really is wonderful to hold this old friend again after all these years."

He channeled his power through it.

Dark Sister didn’t resist him at all—it acknowledged him just as it did Frey.

But then Abraham handed it back.

"You are this sword’s master now, my son. You’re the only one who can draw out its full power."

He had no intention of keeping it.

"And we won’t need swords for this training anyway. We’ll use only our fists."

Frey frowned and dismissed both Balerion and Dark Sister.

"What exactly are we going to do?"

Abraham smiled.

"It’s very simple. You and I will fight—bare-handed. No abilities. No techniques. Just raw aura and primitive combat."

"If you want even the slightest chance of reaching Absolute Manipulator, you must completely destroy this body of yours."

Before Frey could respond, Abraham vanished—and appeared in front of him in an instant.

A storm of crushing punches slammed into Frey’s chest and abdomen, each one loaded with terrifying force.

Frey barely managed to defend.

Without his world-breaking abilities—and without the Void—he struggled to even track his father’s movements.

The first impact made him vomit blood as he was hurled backward, crashing through trees one after another.

His regeneration activated immediately, repairing the damage—

—but Abraham didn’t let it.

"Stop relying on that regeneration, Frey. It’s holding you back."

He attacked again, obliterating Frey’s internal organs faster than they could heal.

Frey tried to counter, but Abraham completely outclassed him .. shattering his arm when he attempted to strike back.

Despite the agony, Frey’s expression didn’t change.

Pain meant nothing to him.

And that displeased Abraham.

"My son... you don’t fear death, do you?"

Abraham’s body ignited with full power as he took a combat stance.

"You don’t try to avoid death. You welcome it. And that makes you far weaker than you realize."

"What do you mean?" Frey asked, dark aura leaking from his body.

Abraham charged and struck him brutally as Frey defended with everything he had.

"My son—fear of death is one of the greatest forces that drives a warrior to grow stronger. Death is the end of everything. If you die, you can’t reach your goals. If you’re killed, you can’t protect anyone ever again."

He crushed Frey’s organs again and again as he spoke.

"Fear of death pushes you to evolve faster, more efficiently, to escape it. Those who claim they have nothing to lose—those who don’t fear death—are the ones least capable of growth."

"Tell me, Frey... what does death mean to you?"

BOOOOOM!

Abraham smashed the ground, launching Frey into the air—and followed him instantly, never giving him time to breathe.

"Is death rest? Is it something you welcome? Would anything good come from you dying?"

Frey’s monstrous regeneration and complete lack of fear had made him forget something fundamental ...

Something every living being was supposed to have.

The instinct to survive.

The will to live.

That was what Abraham was trying to remind his son of .. what it meant to fight for life itself, and to fear death.

"Remember, my son... what it means to be a living being."

Abraham increased the pressure, and little by little Frey began to stop relying on his regeneration.

Even though he had sealed all six stages of Shadow Adaptation, regeneration was still triggering unconsciously whenever he was injured—and it was crippling his training.

If he wanted to reach Absolute Manipulator—or anything like it—he would have to abandon regeneration completely until he obtained it.

But that was terrifying.

With his internal organs destroyed, he could no longer sustain life.

Abraham forced him to replace them with aura .. because aura itself was life.

But understanding that was far easier than doing it.

Frey lost consciousness again and again.

And every time he did, regeneration activated, restoring his organs.

The process repeated endlessly, without progress.

Abraham shattered Frey’s body.

Frey tried to survive by flooding himself with aura .. but failed, losing consciousness from blood loss and catastrophic damage.

Regeneration activated the moment he passed out.

Because Frey’s conscious will was the only thing capable of suppressing it.

His organs returned.

And he was dragged back to zero.

"I don’t understand... how the hell am I supposed to live on aura alone?! This makes no sense!"

"There is nothing logical about this world, my son. World-breaking abilities themselves defy logic."

Abraham struck him mercilessly.

"You don’t understand because your powers were given to you already complete. You never had to create them with your own hands."

"But once you try to break the Law of Chaos itself... you’ll realize just how illogical this world truly is."

Abraham’s fist glowed.

A missile-like punch pierced through Frey’s chest and burst out his back.

"Adapt to it, Frey. Find the path yourself."

His voice was heavy.

"Otherwise... you won’t survive."