Infinite Mana In The Apocalypse

Chapter 4703: I Am!

What does it mean to be oneself?

Many across the ages have grappled with this question, and none have arrived at an answer that satisfies all. Some say the self is merely the sum of one’s experiences, a collection of memories and traumas and joys that accumulate like sediment at the bottom of a river.

Others argue that the self is something innate, a core that exists before experience, before memory, before even the first breath of consciousness.

There are those who believe the self is an illusion, a story we tell ourselves to make sense of the chaos that surrounds us. And there are those who believe the self is the only thing that truly exists, with everything else being merely a reflection of our inner truth projected outward onto the canvas of reality.

But perhaps the most profound truth about the self is this: everyone will tell you who your self is, and who to be.

Parents will shape you in their image. Teachers will mold you according to their ideals. Friends will influence you with their expectations. Enemies will define you by opposition. Society will demand conformity.

Power will demand submission. And through it all, countless voices will whisper and shout and scream about who you should become, how you should act, what you should believe, and why you should change.

But in the end, one can only be themselves.

Because nobody knows how you can be your true self apart from you. No sage, no ancient entity watching from the shadows of existence can tell you who you are at your core. They can offer counsel. They can share wisdom. They can warn of dangers and promise rewards. But the fundamental question of selfhood can only be answered by the one asking it.

And sometimes, the answer comes not through contemplation, but through assertion, through defiant declaration. Not through becoming what others say you should be, but through embodying what you know yourself to already be.

—

Noah’s defiance was clear as at this time, he felt his Existence and Phonemes buzzing while he looked directly at the calm figure of THE Secretive Eon.

“I am realizing more and more that power comes in different forms.” His voice was steady, contemplative, yet underlaid with something that pulsed with growing conviction. “If I look at my power now, I could strictly designate myself as a THE Surface Depth or THE Intermediate Depth of Absolute Sovereignty entity, and that would be accurate. But it is also inaccurate, because I can do things no Intermediate Depth entity could do. I was able to go to the Earliest Folds. To the Infinite Unfurling. To Ginnungagap itself. I was able to evade the imprisonment in THE Belly of Existence and THE Loom when others could not. I was able to do things that no THE Intermediate entity could do, without ever stepping into THE…”

BOOM!

His eyes shone with an unfathomable light of immensity. A profound and unique air filled with ancientness and immensity began to radiate from him, and the very Stoa of Dogmata seemed to tremble in recognition of something taking shape.

“So when you say I am not at the level of THE Creature or you, perhaps in some aspects that is true. But there are things I can do that THE Creature cannot do. There are places I have been that THE Creature has not reached. I have done with The First Tongue what THE Creature never did. There are truths I have touched that THE Creature has not grasped.” His gaze burned brighter. “And if that is the case, then in those aspects, I am more powerful than THE Creature. In those aspects, I exceed him.”

BOOM!

Blue-gold light surged around him with profundity, his eyes shining like blazing suns as if he was extrapolating and expanding a glorious epiphany that had been building within him since the moment he first touched The First Tongue.

“You say I do not have any comparable power to them. That I am weaker than them. That I should hide until I am stronger, should crawl like a worm until I earn the right to stand.” His voice did not rise, did not fall, but each word landed with the weight of absolute conviction.

“And yet I believe I can move freely just like them. Because what Surface or Intermediate Depth of Absolute Sovereignty entity can sit here and talk to you without worry? THE Creature could talk to you as I am talking to you now. THE Living Paradox could do so. And now, I am doing so.”

He let that truth settle into the air between them.

“Because in some ways, my standing, my glory, my distinction, the very weight of my name, in some ways I am already like you and all others. That is my Way. That is my Immensity.” His eyes blazed with finality.

“I am not strong. I am not weak. I simply am.”

BOOM!

…!

His blood buzzed. His Grimoire of Infinite Lexicons buzzed. His Organ of Civilization buzzed!

His mind buzzed as he felt like he had grasped and asserted an inner truth about himself that nobody could deny, a truth that Existence itself was forced to acknowledge, to the point that he embodied it!

|Your Way has been observed and asserted and embodied with unfathomable clarity.|

|You have done something only those exceeding THE Fundamental Depth of Absolute Sovereignty can do.|

|Background Information from The First Tongue: Way Expression at Fundamental Depth – Declaration|

|At THE Fundamental Depth, an entity’s Way can be expressed through Declaration, the act of speaking truth into Existence and having Existence reshape itself to accommodate that truth.|

|Existential Declaration:|

|- Statements made with full authority become temporarily true|

|- “There is no fire here” could temporarily negate all flame-based Principles in an area|

|- “My enemy cannot move” could generate a Principle of Binding that locks a target in place|

|- “I am invincible” could create temporary immunity to all forms of harm|

|- The more absolute the declaration, the greater the cost to maintain|

|Way Manifestation:|

|- The entity can manifest their Way as a tangible force in reality|

|- A Way of Judgment could manifest as scales that weigh the sins of all present|

|- A Way of Death could manifest as an aura that withers all it touches|

|- These manifestations are extensions of the entity’s very being|

|Background Information from The First Tongue: Way Expression at Absolute Depth – Embodiment|

|At THE Absolute Depth, an entity’s Way transcends expression and becomes Embodiment. The entity does not merely use their Way or declare their Way. They become their Way. Their existence and their truth become indistinguishable.|

|Conceptual Embodiment:|

|- The entity’s Way becomes so intertwined with Observable Existence that they essentially become a living law|

|- THE Living Paradox embodies contradiction itself|

|- THE Creature embodies the primordial nature of existence itself|

|- THE Primordial Chaos embodies entropy and disorder itself|

|- Attacking them means attacking the very concept they represent|

|Existential Veto:|

|- Can simply declare that something does not apply to them, permanently|

|- Unlike temporary immunity, this veto becomes a fact of their existence|

|- “Death does not touch me” could become a permanent truth rather than a maintained declaration|

|- This explains how beings like THE Living Paradox can embody contradictions that would destroy lesser entities|

|Way Legislation:|

|- The entity can legislate truths related to their Way into permanent existence|

|- THE Living Paradox could legislate “Contradictions can coexist” as a permanent law of reality|

|- THE Creature could legislate “All things that exist are my children” as an absolute truth|

|- These legislations reshape Observable Existence itself|

|Sovereign Absolutism:|

|- Within the scope of their Way, the entity’s authority is absolute|

|- No being of lesser Depth can contest their sovereignty within their domain of embodiment|

|- Only other Absolute Depth entities can challenge their legislations|

|Current Assessment:|

|What you have just done was a partial form of Embodiment only possible from THE Absolute Depth of Absolute Sovereignty stage.|

|You have embodied your Way spectacularly to declare that your power cannot be designated into any specific stage.|

|Your existence has deemed your Depth to be THE Formless Depth of Absolute Sovereignty.|

|Your power and capabilities are too unique to fit into any demarcated Depth.|

|You are not Surface. You are not Intermediate. You are not Fundamental. You are not Absolute.|

|You are Formless.|

|You simply are.|

…!

HUUM!

His existence buzzed with glory!

THE Formless Depth!

Oh!

Extra chap due to cliffhanger

No cliffs!