Chapter 113 Titan Heart
It was the first time that his Odyssey seed pulsated for the third time.
As such, he expected something miraculous to happen.
The first pulse released his limits, while the second one allowed him to unleash the dark energy currents.
Meanwhile, the third one didn't seem to have any use.
Nial was, at least, not able to figure out what kind of effect the third pulse caused.
The surrounding mana was pulled towards him just like before, coursing through his body, and invigorating it.
His body was slowly recuperating, but that didn't really help him in enduring the pain of his broken arms.
Landing on top of the Lesser Titan youngling that smashed into the ground with a resounding thud, Nial took a few deep breaths.
Trying to pull out the tip of the Viper spear, he figured that it was impossible.
The pain in his arms was now becoming increasingly unbearable as the adrenaline within his body had been released.
Following that, Nial instinctively released the dark energy currents from his body, causing his arms to go nearly numb.
From feeling nearly nothing about his broken arms and the shoulder that was severely injured, it was almost as if he had been crippled, and forced to endure intolerable pain.
However, it was at this moment that he noticed the mana in his body move of its own accord without Nial doing anything.
It caused a slight itch while passing through his veins, only to end up inside the Odyssey seed.
The Odyssey seed was still absorbing loads of mana, but instead of generating dark energy currents, it radiated a soothing sensation.
Nial was not sure if that was the effect of the third pulse or something else, but the soothing sensation that coursed through his body, allowed him to continue moving despite the pain.
In fact, the unbearable pain was slowly decreasing as he could feel his overly strained muscles relax a bit and enter a state of recuperation.
Only his arms and shoulders continued to ache heavily.
With a firm grasp around the Viper spear's shaft, he retracted the blade, turning it into a staff.
This allowed him to pull the spear out of the Titan's throat without the need to use much force.
After Nial held the spear in his hands, he stored it away without giving it a second thought.
He was distracted by something else and couldn't give even a portion of his attention to anything other than the trembling Odyssey seed that was dragging him towards the Titan's chest.
Unsure of what was going on, Nial simply followed his instincts and the pulling force of the Odyssey seed after realizing that there might be a great opportunity ahead.
'I always gained something when it reacted like this…so it should be fine'
Before he knew it, Nial had reached the left side of the Titan's chest before kneeling down right above the head.
The closer he came to the heart, the intenser the reaction of the Odyssey seed became.
And even his mana core was reacting as the Odyssey seed had a subtle connection to it.
As such, Nial was not even astonished when the dark energy currents around him were slowly detaching from his body, and seeping into the Titan youngling's chest.
These darkness currents were still connected to him and an odd feeling overcame Nial as they enveloped the Titan heart that was around the size of his torso.
It was not pulsating and was unmoving, but to the young blind man, it felt as if he was touching the Titan heart.
This was even more so the case when the Odyssey seed stopped moving all of a sudden the moment the darkness currents came in contact with the Titan heart.
Nial had no idea what was going on, how much time had passed, or what to expect next.
But despite his imaginative mind that could come up with the most bizarre scenarios to occur, what Nial would have never expected to happen was what actually happened after the darkness currents enveloped the Titan heart tightly.
He swallowed his saliva, and goosebumps sprang all over his body as his right hand that touched the chest of the Titan went ice-cold.
The temperature of his arm dropped below zero in an instant and reached a state where Nial began to wonder if it would break into numerous shards of ice the moment someone would touch it.
But his freezing-cold arm was not something he was able to pay even a sliver of his attention as the shroud around the Titan heart shrunk visibly.
Seconds passed, turning into minutes. And minutes turned into hours while Nial was crouched in an uncomfortable position, leaning on the Titan's chest but dared not move for the fear of missing out on the situation that occurred ahead of him.
He was trying to understand what had happened but was unable to do so.
After all, the heart of the Titan had just been devoured by the dark energy currents.
It was incomprehensible because there was no sign to denote that something had changed about the dark energy currents as they emitted the same density of energy.
At the exact same time, the huge heart had just disappeared, leaving behind no trace of its existence causing Nial to knit his brows.
Yet, what only the young, blind man could know was that fragments of the Titan heart had been distributed amongst his own heart, the mana core of his, and the Odyssey seed.
A faint silver hue enveloped the three organs of Nial, nourishing them with the energy of a True Titan's heart.
While his heart's functions received a boost, the nourishment spread over to his veins that were further enhanced.
The exact same occurred to his mana core, with the sole difference that the mana core was increasing in size without the need to undergo an enlarging.
It was a painful procedure, but something that Nial endured willingly.
After all, not only his mana core was enlarged, but he could clearly tell that the limitation put on his mana core was crumbling owing to the massive energy that the Titan's heart provided.
The process was gradual, and the pain was even beyond what he had felt due to his broken arms and shoulder.
However, this kind of pain was something Nial accepted willingly.
Even if it were to be several times higher, he would be eager to endure it for the sake of becoming stronger.
To get closer to his goals, Nial wouldn't hesitate to do anything, and if need be, would even go up against mankind itself.
If Nial were to know that his determination and the readiness to kill for the sake of the ones he held dear was what drove the Odyssey seed, he might act differently.
But as he didn't even know what the Odyssey seed truly was, Nial could only accept the fact that the Titan's heart was also nourishing the seed that his body harbored.
However, the biggest nourishment the Odyssey seed received originated from Nial.
It was his determination to advance, never give up, and reunite with his family by all means that allowed the Odyssey seed to pulsate, provide memories, and show what it had once been.
But that was not all because the major nourishment the seed received originated from depriving Nial of a portion of the emotions that made him human.
Slowly but steadily it was molding him into something he wasn't, something that would transform him into the perfect existence the Odyssey seed seemed to seek; a vessel!
While his heart, mana core, and the Odyssey seed were being enhanced, and all of their functions strengthened, enlarged, or completely metamorphosed, Nial's understanding of the situation ahead changed drastically.
He noticed that his entire constitution was being strengthened to a level that ordinary Originals were not supposed to reach.
To him, it was evident that the Odyssey seed was benefiting him a lot and could have saved his life while facing some dangerous beasts. It had allowed him to regain his sense over mana by devouring the Divine Goddess' divine energy by leading him to the [Hodur's Heir] curse, giving him temporary boosts in strength whenever he required them, and by strengthening him with all means.
At first glance, it looked like the Odyssey seed was a Godly treasure, but Nial was not so naive to believe that there was no hidden agenda behind its doings.
First of all, the Odyssey seed, his lost eyesight and his loss of being able to sense mana were all things that had been forced upon him at the tender age of three, when the dungeon portal had manifested on the playground and made him disappear from the playground.
He had no recollection of the week he had spent inside the dungeon.
However, even then, it was obvious that the things that happened after that fateful incident had caused his blindness, his loss of being able to sense mana, and the implantation of the Odyssey seed.
And now the seed was slowly changing his mindset, depriving him of some of the emotions he felt while strengthening his entire being in a manner that broke the mortal standards…
If anyone were to tell him that this was just for his own sake and that the Odyssey seed simply reacted instinctively, Nial might agree, but only to some extent.
He was willing to accept that the Odyssey seed had reacted instinctively against the threat of the Lesser Titan youngling, upon sensing the [Hodur's Heir] curse and other things.
But the reason for its reaction was mostly to help Nial grow stronger, in a sense where he was likely to crush his peers even without being on par with them.
Right now, he was only at the 3rd Origin rank, but owing to the enhancements he had received over the last few weeks, it had been possible for him to defeat beasts at the 7th Origin rank.
The amount of mana they possessed exceeded his own by, at least ten times, most likely even more than that!
By possessing more mana, their entire body ought to become stronger than Nial's but that was not the case, at all!
And now after ruminating over everything that had happened in the last few weeks, Nial was pretty sure that the enhancements he received were supposed to increase his innate talent, his constitution, and tweak his emotional range to adjust to something…or someone!
In the end, this didn't even include the pieces of information and memories that flashed through his mind every once in a while.
He knew that he had never witnessed anything he had been able to see in the memories, yet in all of the scenarios Nial would always know who was fighting, and what was going on.
Connecting all the dots of the small clues, pieces of information and some insane theories, Nial came to the conclusion that the Odyssey seed was preparing him for something.
Whether these preparations were to turn him into the vessel of some sort of higher existence, or for specific events that were bound to happen, he couldn't tell.
Maybe it was even something completely beyond his imagination, and all the theories that made him believe he was crazy were wrong.
But even then, deep within his heart, Nial knew that something big was going to happen and that the Odyssey seed was not something he could fully rely on!
And this was the worst thought that flashed through his mind.
His independence had been shaken since the day he regained his ability to sense mana because it was also the day on which something that didn't belong to him started to change him…
Never had he been able to defeat the opponents in front of him without any intervention and all by himself
This was the worst while fighting against the Titan youngling as he felt like some of his moves had been completely different from how he used to move earlier.
It caused his mind to enter a state of panic.
He started to believe that his body and mind was slowly being taken over by something else, something that was not him.
For a very long time, he was once again afraid and doubtful of his actions and plans….
But it was just at this moment that two hands reached out for his shoulder, lightly touching it as two familiar voices rang through his ears.
"Nial….hey Nial!! Are you fine, you have to wake up now!!"
"You have to come back to us!! Just where are you wandering?"