Divine Path System

Varian walked toward the gates with a determined expression. He would either protect them or die trying.

He forgot about his own life and death.

After scanning through the barriers and probing them with random attacks, Varian too picked the weakest barrier.

Then, he started bombarding it like there was no tomorrow.

From lowest to highest, he was trying all combinations, every level of power he could muster to destroy the barrier.

Varian first used his psychic powers to order his body to go beyond its limits. Then, he covered his fist in a gauntlet made up of lightning, ice, telekinetic, and space powers.

Then, he kicked the floor, reached the barrier in a blink, and punched out.

Space shook violently as Varian's gauntlet clashed with the barrier.

At the point of contact, lightning exploded, ice froze, telekinetic power struck and space cracked.

But the barrier barely shook before it returned to its normal state.

It was the highest damage he could do. Yet, it did nothing.

Varian suppressed the despair rising in his heart and kept attacking.

New moves. New combos.

He tried one. He tried another. He tried everything he could.

Three hours passed and Varian was spent.

Having fought the Undead for so long, Varian was already tired. And this three-hour intense fight totally wore him off.

If he was alone, he could've fought for three more hours. But since he had to provide defense for Enigma and Sarah, he was exhausted in just half the time.

"Arghhh!" Varian punched the barrier with the remainder of his strength.

The sounds of bones crackling reverberated in the tunnel as Varian's hand twisted due to the force. Blood spilled out and flesh tore apart.

Losing the last bit of his strength, Varian collapsed on the floor as he gasped for breath.

Staring blankly at the ceiling, he said in a weak voice. "I…I can't break it."

Perhaps only a Sovereign could do it. Or maybe not even a Sovereign could really do it. It didn't matter though.

He couldn't do it.

Even if he tried to wake up Sarah and Enigma, which was nigh impossible, due to their terrible mental states and fatigue, and even if the three of them worked together, they still wouldn't be able to break the barrier.

Varian laughed bleakly.

How did things change so quickly?

A week ago, there was no war.

Yesterday, he was pummeling the Abyssals and was confident in bringing the war to a halt.

A few hours ago, he was on the verge of finishing off the Undead.

"That guy…he ruined it all," Varian recalled the Crimson Abyssal.

He appeared right when he was about to deliver the final blow to the Undead.

If he came a few seconds earlier, Varian was confident in killing him without getting touched.

If he came a few seconds later, Varian could still kill him all the same.

But the timing…

The damn timing.

"Fuck!" Varian clenched his bloodied fists. He could barely feel his hands. They were in terrible shape after punching the barrier so many times.

Probing his memory using his psychic energy, Varian recalled the Crimson Abyssal's last moment.

He didn't pay attention at that time. But now, he could see it clearly. That guy wasn't afraid at all. His eyes were shining with pride and relief.

It was a do-or-die moment for the Abyssal and he succeeded in starting the death of his race's worst enemy.

Varian endured the weakness in his body and walked back to where the two women lay down.

He wanted to protect them. But even his strongest attacks were useless. Now, he didn't even have any energy. He couldn't think of any way out either.

They were doomed.

Varian lowered his gaze and happened to notice something.

The energy shields around Sarah and Enigma were cracking. The space currents were relentless

Varian raised his hand to reinforce the shields but no aura flowed out of his fingertips.

"I…"

Like a squeezed-out bottle, he was devoid of any aura. Now, he couldn't even put up a defense for the two women.

Looking at the increasing cracks on the shields covering Enigma and Sarah, Varian panicked.

But after panicking, he felt helpless.

His own shield was broken a few minutes ago and he was already getting a cut or two every few seconds.

Now, his body was full of small and large cuts.

"It's over...?" Varian slumped next to Enigma and Sarah and blankly stared at the gates.

His whole body ached and the old and new injuries continued to take a toll on him. Injuries. Fatigue. Lack of aura.

Varian's eyelids grew heavy. The whispers of sweet sleep sounded in his mind. They called him to close his eyes and embrace the darkness.

Once he closed his eyes, he'd finally cross the door of death. No courting death anymore. He'd finally be dead.

No struggles. No pain. No suffering.

Varian covered his face and gritted his teeth. "Fuck off! Even if I die, I'm not going to die like that."

Just because he stopped trying didn't mean he had no intent to do so. If he had the energy for even one more punch, he'd have punched the barrier.

Unwilling to accept death, but unable to do anything to live, Varian lay down between Enigma and Sarah.

They were both facing him and he could feel their weak breathing. He could hear their weak heartbeats.

Varian tried to clench his fists but his hands were no longer listening to him. The flow of his blood started to slow down. His heart felt weaker as if it had trouble pumping blood. Even taking a breath felt like a burden as his chest hurt.

Slowly but surely, his brain started to slow down, racing toward an inevitable shutdown.

"I…" Varian realized perhaps this was the last conscious moment he'd have.

All his life, all his dreams, all his relationships…everything would end here.

He had many things to do. All of them were distant now.

He couldn't even see Sia before his death. It felt like forever since she last spoke to him.

'At least, she doesn't have to bear the pain of this dying experience…' Sia had already been through a lot of pain. Dying wasn't something he wanted her to experience.

"Why did you throw away your life for me…" Varian sighed as he looked at the dried-up tear stains on both Sarah's and Enigma's faces.

Even though he was unwilling to accept the outcome, so what?

He was too weak to change anything. He couldn't even protect the girls who threw away their lives to save him.

But he didn't give up. Since his strength couldn't solve it, Varian was racking his brain to think of other methods.

"If we can do synergy …?" Varian used the last bit of his strength to move his arm and held Sarah's hand.

Then, he stretched his left hand to hold Enigma's hand. But the repulsion prevented him from holding her.

Varian gritted his teeth and forced his hand forward. His skin started to crack down and his hand began to bleed.

Resisting the repulsion, Varian started the synergy and closed his eyes.

Just a few seconds later, he opened his eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling. "N-Not working…"

The two partners in Synergy were unconscious and drained. If they were advanced in Synergy, he could still work it out. But they were just in the beginner stages.

Varian's heart pounded as he felt death quietly creeping onto the three of them. "Someway. Any way. There should be. There must be…"

His body grew weaker and weaker but Varian continued to struggle. The few movements he could make also felt harder.

In the end, Varian felt his hand getting away from Enigma due to the repulsion.

"Yeah!" Varian gasped.