The Deceitful One

Bryan's soul was pristine white in color. And in the center of this white space, the 54 mind runes were hovering. As Bryan looked at the mind runes, he realized that they had formed the shape of a hexagonal prism.

All the mind runes that he had carved in this past year, were intricately drawn with symmetry and each of the strokes connected to the other and formed this prism.

The prism also had a slight shade of purple to it. Bryan believed that this was a result of him eating that flower that Benny had gotten for him.

The transition from Apprentice to a Transcendent included three steps. Bryan had already completed the first step which was comprehending the innate abilities, whose information was given by the potion.

The next two steps were closely linked together and were also the most crucial to his advancement. If Bryan failed in his next step, he would be doomed.

Hence, he closed his eyes and levitated right beneath his mind runes as he waited for the next attack.

Bryan didn't know how much time had passed. It felt like forever and at the same time it felt like an instant. His eyebrows slightly furrowed as he felt something invading his soul and quickly approaching the depths where he was currently situated.

He opened his eyes and in the distance, he was able to see a black miasma approaching him at a fast speed!

Bryan's eyes narrowed as he muttered, "The mental imprints from the two Transcendent creatures!"

Detective Watson had already warned him beforehand that he would be attacked by the mental imprints of the Transcendent creatures whose parts he had used to concoct the potion. And he already knew how to deal with it.

All he had to do was cultivate the Medici Apprentice meditation technique in order to fight the mental imprints. The 54 mind runes hovering above him would take care of the rest.

Bryan wasn't nervous at all. He was fully confident in his now-purified mind runes. He patiently waited for the black miasma to come closer.

Just when the black miasma was within suitable range and had completely surrounded Bryan. He closed his eyes and began to cultivate the meditation technique.

The 54 mind runes started to glow brightly as they illuminated the small portion at the center of Bryan's soul with a bright purple light.

The purple hexagonal prism was like a lighthouse shining its light and guiding the way for the lost sailor to navigate through the stormy sea.

Gradually, the area covered by the purple light continued to increase and the black miasma continued to recede.

As soon as the mental imprints came in contact with the purple light, they began to sizzle and dissipate into nothingness!

Although Bryan was now meditating, he could still sense the receding black miasma. It was as if it had met its nemesis. Meditation techniques were truly the bane of the negative effects brought about by the potions.

'Potion strengthens the body and meditation technique strengthens the soul, both forming a delicate balance.' Bryan had heard this statement innumerable times during the time he spent under the tutelage of Detective Watson.

However, it was only today that he learned just how true this statement was!

Without the 54 mind runes that he had carved during his time as an Apprentice, the invading mental imprints would have turned him into a monster, just like Kenny Adams.

Bryan continued to cultivate the meditation technique for what felt like forever to him. In this space inside his soul, time had lost its meaning.

Just as the last of the black miasma had completely dissipated under the purple light, Bryan immediately realized that he had succeeded in the second step!

He opened his eyes and heaved a heavy sigh of relief. He looked around and saw that the darkness from before was no longer present and the space was just as white as it was when he had first arrived.

He then turned to look at the hexagonal prism and saw that it was still glowing brightly!

'Now, the final step!' Bryan flew inside the prism and sat cross-legged at the center. He then spread his hands and then immediately brought them together as a loud clap resounded throughout the white space.

CLAP!!

Following that, the 54 mind runes that had formed the prism, began to tremble violently. Upon closer inspection, it would appear that the prism was slowly being compressed.

This was the third and final step of becoming a Transcendent! Combining the 54 mind runes into 1 and fussing it with the soul. Hence, forming the sea of consciousness!

Bryan gritted his teeth as he slowly but surely compressed the hexagonal prism inch by inch. In the real world, beads of sweat began to form on Bryan's forehead as his face turned red.

Benny, who was lying down on the bed in front of him, abruptly stood up on all fours and deeply stared at Bryan for almost an hour, making sure that nothing happened to him. Following that, he laid back down in a comfortable position once again.

Inside the white space, the hexagonal prism had condensed to the size of a pin as it hovered between Bryan's palms.

"Now…fuse it with the soul!" Bryan muttered under his breath as his eyes narrowed. The next moment, he stretched out his hands and legs as if he were hugging the entire world!

The small hexagonal prism which was now the size of a dot started to glow brighter than ever before as the purple light completely engulfed Bryan's figure as well as the entirety of the white space.

Following that, silence ensued for a brief moment.

And then…

There was the sound of waves thrashing! The bright purple light receded and Bryan opened his eyes. He looked down and couldn't help but smile brightly.

Beneath him, waves rose from the bottom of the white space and crashed down upon each other as they completely filled the entirety of his soul.

The waves rose higher and higher until they almost touched Bryan's feet as the latter levitated in the air. He could see that the waves were light purple in color, unlike the usual blue.

The entirety of Bryan's soul was now submerged in this purple sea and had turned into a shade of purple. Looking at this grand sight, he felt incredibly small and insignificant.

However, his eyes shone brighter than ever. For the sea of consciousness had now formed and he had finally advanced to Rank 1 Transcendent!