Atticus's Odyssey: Reincarnated Into A Playground novel Chapter 1147

Atticus took in Whisker's words, dissecting everything. Ozeroth and the soulkin had fallen completely silent, leaving him to his thoughts. The little guy was still on his head, trying hard not to move too much.

'Myself.'

Back then, when Atticus had first tried stepping into the First Fold of spiritual energy, what he eventually found out was Will… awareness.

At the time, based on Ozeroth's memories, he believed it was supposed to be about discovering his true purpose in life. Which was; the Peak.

But now… Whisker's words had unraveled something deeper.

He realized… he'd gotten it wrong. Not entirely, but fundamentally.

His path had been real. His conviction, strong.

But the foundation he'd built it on… it hadn't been the right one.

He hadn't stepped into the First Fold as himself, but as who he thought he needed to be.

But that didn't mean Ozeroth's memories had been lies. Atticus still believed that's how many people in the midplanes advanced.

But… it was flawed.

The First Fold, Awareness, was meant to be about discovering a purpose and aligning it with Spiritual Will. But…

'That's just following the path of another.'

If Spiritual Will was a derivative of true Will, then that meant it was a concept one person resonated with.

What were the odds that the staggering number of people in the same world all resonated with the same thing? It didn't add up.

In Ozeroth's world, they all used Spiritual Will, a will that was meant to be calming and peaceful.

If that was their true nature… then that planet should've been the most peaceful in the universe.

Yet from Ozeroth's memories… they had been embroiled in war for a long time.

It wasn't until the current king rose to power that peace came.

And the proof was right in front of him, Ozeroth.

The man had literally ripped off Jezeneth's head more times than he could count. That wasn't peace. That wasn't serenity.

That wasn't a man who truly resonated with Spiritual Will.

He had simply aligned himself with another's path.

'Bond.'

Ozeroth's voice rumbled suddenly in his head. It was serious. Dead serious. Atticus had never heard him speak like that before.

As Whisker continued walking around him, Atticus suddenly spoke.

"I have a question."

"Go on."

"Your siblings. All of them, including you, resonated with Nature's Will?"

Whisker smiled. "Yes."

"And the same goes for the people under your father?"

Whisker nodded again. "Yes."

Atticus paused.

Whisker tilted his head slightly. "Ask your question."

Atticus paused for a bit, "Nature's Will, is that what you all truly resonate with? Or are you aligning yourselves with another's path?"

Whisker suddenly burst into intense laughter.

"Of course you'd figure it out," he said, grinning wide. "Wouldn't expect less from my star actor."

He calmed down slightly and continued, "Yes, you're completely right. While it's very possible for some people to truly resonate with Nature's Will, it's not everyone's true will. A lot of them are just aligning themselves with someone else's path."

Atticus' expression turned serious. "Why?"

"Honestly? There are a lot of reasons. First, it's simpler. It's faster. People can spend centuries trying to discover who they truly are and still fail. But with this method? You just latch onto someone's identity… and walk their path."

"What about the other reasons?" Atticus asked after some seconds.

Whisker shrugged. "There's also a whole political mumbo jumbo going on in the middle planes. Like faction wars. The more people that resonate with a specific Will, the more powerful that collective becomes. So it's encouraged. But that's a matter for another day."

He exhaled. "The reason I didn't tell you this before… is because I don't want you to follow that same path. There's nothing stronger than true Will. So focus on that."

Atticus nodded. His suspicions had been confirmed.

And from the heavy silence in his mind… he could tell Ozeroth wasn't liking it.

Not the purpose you chase… but the truth you carry. And that brought him to the most important question. _{freewebnoveℓ.com}