I'm not a monster

"Physique Attribute Control Skill: Regression Of Forest And Affection".

The moment those words left Arthur's lips, the entire cave flowed with a vibrant green and strangely transparent light.

All of the white coloured lines that connected Arthur's body to Andrea's lit up with the colour of emeralds and grass, while faint wisps of clear coloured waves flowed outwards from Andrea's body.

The core Fae, which the Attribute Control Skill needed to activate were the Forest Reverse Fae and the Emotion Reverse Fae.

Normally, this would only cause a plant to "grow" in reverse, while maintaining its shape and functions.

However, when this was applied to the Boundless Forest Yearning, it caused the Fae Master who possessed the physique to have their cultivation flow in reverse, devolving to the point where the Fae Master was now mortal again.

With the connection that Arthur and Andrea possessed, the Boundless Forest Yearning would "grow" in reverse from Andrea and towards Arthur's origin essence sea.

Now that he had gotten rid of the two "images" in his origin essence sea, there was more than enough free room for the innate Wood Laws and innate Emotion Laws to plant themselves in Arthur's origin essence sea.

Feeling both the pull of the Forest Reverse Fae, the Emotion Reverse Fae and Arthur's origin essence, the "qualities" of the Boundless Forest Yearning were forcibly removed from Andrea's Body origin essence sea, in addition to a large amount of her blood.

Her face instantly turned pale, and her expression grew pained, despite being under the influence of the Consciousness Lotus.

For the first time.... ever in History.... someone had taken one of the Thirty Three Sovereign Boundary Physiques from another.

Not even the legendary Falling Star Immortal Sovereign could claim such a feat.... however, Arthur had succeeded!

The Connection Fae and Link Fae expanded rapidly as it slowly moved the Boundless Forest Yearning across from Andrea's body. The large amounts of blood that came along with it, where all blood essence which had contained the power of the Boundless Forest Yearning.

Andrea had experienced an actual physical change by the Sovereign Boundary Physique. Both her hair and eyes had turned green, and her beauty only became more apparent, due to the influence of its creators.

Now that the influence had disappeared, she slowly started to regain her old appearance. Her black hair started to come through, and her skin had lost its milky shine.

Her figure hadn't changed or anything, but her appearance did seem slightly.... forlorn, despite her being unconscious.

Something.... apart of her had just been ripped out of her. Even if she was unconscious, she would still more than likely feel the lose of an arm, a leg or even an organ being removed.

Now that Arthur had done such a thing, he only had a few minutes before Andrea would wake up.

Even the Consciousness Lotus couldn't prevent such a thing.

Taking a deep breath, he activated the Heart Flame Fae and Separation Fae, which instantly severed the connection between them, leaving the Boundless Forest Yearning floating aimlessly within his origin essence sea.

Normally, the Sovereign Boundary Physique would try and return back to its original host, however, Heart Flame Fae, which normally seemed useless in ordinary situations, possessed the greatest ability during this entire process.

It created a flame, which severed emotional links between two individuals. The flame itself couldn't hurt or burn anyone, but instead only "cut" the emotions that tied two people together.

It burned straight through the connection that the Boundless Forest Yearning had to Andrea, and instead sought to connect with the first thing it came into contact with.

Arthur.

Arthur gritted his teeth and clenched his fist as he felt the Sovereign Boundary Physique instantly take root within his Mind origin essence sea. The vast majority of blood essence which came over with Andrea had been burned by the Heart Flame Fae, leaving behind nothing but the essence that laid within.

Even despite his peak zero quartz origin essence, Arthur felt his cultivation take a dramatic dive as his once 201% origin essence sea, suddenly surged filling up every crack and corner of his origin essence sea!

300% origin essence sea! A peak first-tier talent!

The rate at which his origin essence regenerated as well, far exceeded anything Arthur had experienced before.

Vein limit fae, bloodseeker leaf fae, wood essence fae, and on top of all these, the regeneration rate of a Sovereign Boundary Physique!

Under the intense pressure and strength that this Physique granted, Arthur's hair and eyes turned green, a much deeper, and darker shade of Andrea's bright verdant.

His eyes gleamed as he readily absorbed and adjusted to this new influx of power, before glancing sideways as he noticed Andrea's stirring expressions.

He let out a deep breath, letting his body adjust to the newfound power, before moving towards Andrea, picking her up in his arms as she smiled slightly towards Arthur.

Her expression was withered, and her skin showed signs of immense aging and frailty. She was so pale, that it appeared as though all the blood had been drained from her body, but still, her eyes showed an immense amount of love and affection towards Arthur.

The Heart Flame Fae eliminated all emotion between two parties, and Arthur never once felt anything for Andrea, unless you counted the Sovereign Boundary Physique within her.

Arthur frowned slightly, noticing she was holding onto his hand as if it was a lifeboat.

Within the span of less than a minute, Andrea's appearance resembled an elderly woman's.

Her voice became course, as if it had withstood the tests of time.

"Arthur? Wha... What happened?".

Arthur brushed her hair to the side, not showing a single ounce of expression on his face.

"You fell asleep. I carried you here, remember?".

Andrea's hair had turned completely grey at this point, and despite opening her eyes as wide as she could, everything only appeared.... blurry in her eyes.

She could see a figure with green coloured hair and eyes, and a voice that resembled Arthur's. Her eyes widened, as if coming to a realization as tears started to form in her eyes.

She had just had a section of her being ripped out of her. The "Regression Of Forest And Affection", was at its core a combination of both Physique Attributed and Thief Attributed Control Skills.

Arthur had just stolen a part of her. That hole that was created from that entry point.... was now continuously leaking out vital essence and life force....

She was probably hallucinating right now, her rapid aging wasn't just a physical thing. It affected both her Mind and Soul....

"I see.... I must've been dreaming then.... How is Arthur doing dear?".

Arthur's mouth opened, but he paused for a moment before nodding slightly.

"Grandfather has been.... he has gone on ahead of you Grandmother. His cultivation was never as good as yours, so he went on ahead earlier....".

The tears started falling down Andrea's cheeks, as Arthur gently brushed them to the side.

The young, sixteen year old woman lifted her hand to hold Arthur's hand in her own, smiling slightly as her breathing gradually slowed.

The smile on her face, was still as radiant as ever, despite her current appearance.

"I see. Your Grandfather always did like to go off on his own, but I guess this time, he can't stop me from following him....".

Arthur shook his head.

".... No, Grandmother. I guess he can't".

Andrea gently rubbed her finger against Arthur's hand, her rough, slightly dried skin eventually came to a halt as the gentle rise and fall of her chest stopped along with it....

Arthur paused for a moment before letting out a sigh, glancing at Andrea's body on the bed.

His heart was completely unmoved, despite his previous words and actions.

Not even a single ripple was formed in his heart, as he gently laid Andrea to rest.

The thousand year old demon, moved away from the bed and towards the entrance to the cliffside cave, sitting down with his legs hanging over the edge.

The green hair and eyes had completely vanished, and only his black coloured hair and eyes remained.

He had more control over the Boundless Forest Yearning, than Andrea ever did, or ever would possess.

He took a deep breath, never once again glancing back at the young woman, laid to rest in the hideout behind him.

He may be cruel.

He may be evil.

He may be a demon, but....

His eyes were calm, as they gazed out towards the vast, wide world in front of him.

"I'm not a monster".