More training and discoveries

After the surprise that the stream had informed me about, I took some time off training to understand what that "Spiritual Core" was.

I knew what it was, to some extent, as I remembered seeing it in the Infinite Train movie, the movie that, in fact, a friend recommended to me. Which, after watching, led me to watch the first season of Kimetsu.

But still, the explanation in the movie, as far as I remembered, was that the "Spiritual Core" was basically the center of a person's mind, and if destroyed, effectively killed that person's mind.

I just didn't know how this applied to me, since even before having a soul, I had a mind and a subconscious.

I didn't waste time and went to my tent, entered, closing the entrance behind me. It wasn't a large tent, as there wasn't really space in this forest for one, but it was enough.

I went to the center of the tent and sat down, assuming a meditative position, closing my eyes and trying to relax. I had never tried meditation before coming to Terraria; it was never something that attracted me in a certain way.

But after coming to Terraria, I tried a few times, as it was the basics of "energy control" in various works that I knew.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, I had varied success.

I hadn't been able to find/create a mental palace or anything like that, the kind of absurd thing that, frankly, I didn't even know if it existed.

But I had managed to find what I thought was my soul, in a way at least.

Before coming to Terraria, as my race said, I didn't have a soul, as "my" Earth denied the supernatural as a basic rule.

So, after coming to Terraria and my soul "being born," it had been, in a way, easy to find it when I meditated.

The best example I could give was growing a third arm, as strange as the new "limb" was, it was still something that was basically impossible to lose.

Even more now that I knew the "way" there, it didn't take me five minutes to "find" what I was looking for: my soul.

I didn't know if it was like that with everyone, as I had read things like "My soul had the shape of a dragon" or "My soul was a lion," things like that, mainly from Chinese stories.

But my soul was humanoid, basically having the shape of my body, almost identically, as if it were molded based on it.

I didn't know if it had a color, or if it was supposed to have a color, since I couldn't see in the proper sense here; everything was basically sensations, as if I instinctively knew where things were.

But if I were to put a color, I would say it was a blue-gray, more towards gray. It had "veins" all over the "body" too, like the veins of a human body, my veins.

But unlike my veins, which carried blood, the "veins" of my soul were pathways that carried mana, and like my blood, the mana that my soul "pumped" returned to the heart, or in its case, the "Mana Core" that was in the same place where my heart would be.

I didn't know if I had a Mana Core because of Terraria, since the Terrarians had a Mana Core themselves, or if it was just my soul mimicking my body, creating a heart for itself.

If I were to guess, I would bet on the latter option, since my soul had other "organs" besides the "heart" and "veins."

A "lung," which I suppose is the organ that absorbs mana and other ambient energies as I breathed.

A "stomach," and "intestines" that must be the "organs" responsible for digesting the mana I "ate," like Mana Stones or "Artificial Sapphires," and absorbing it.

The "livers" and "kidneys," which filtered and refined mana, removing impurities until nothing was left, before sending it back to the "heart," the Mana Core.

They were probably the reason why I didn't have complications when I basically consumed the mana of more than five hundred people.

In fact, the "livers" and "kidneys" of my soul worked better than mine, as they left no impurity, filtering and refining everything before sending it back to the "heart."

Finally, the "organ" that already existed before, responsible for me "feeling" mana and other energies, the "brain," which, curiously, had gained a new "appendix," so to speak, which was what I was looking for, the "Spiritual Core."

Unlike the Mana Core, which was larger in size and seemed fully formed, more "physical," the Spiritual Core was something small, as if it were not fully developed and "illusory."

I stayed there for a while, looking to see what that new "organ" did, and after a few minutes, I came to the conclusion that I had no idea.

It was basically there, emitting spiritual energy that nourished the "brain" and the soul as a whole, but other than that, I had no clue what it did.

I was tempted to "poke it" to see what happened, but that idea was instantly destroyed by the part of my brain that wasn't driven by "imbecility" and "stupidity."

Messing with others' souls was already something dangerous and complicated; with my own? I wasn't crazy enough for that... Not without at least getting help.

I had some people in the (CHAT) who could help me, both with advice and ideas and guides. I'll ask the (CHAT) tomorrow when I open the stream, for now...

I opened my eyes, stopping "looking" at my soul.

... Let's get back to training.

[…]

POV: Devas Asura [Third day]

I had trained the rest of the night, but with an addition; I had trained using the forms of Kagura, but without a katana, using my halberd instead.

It was strange, especially since the forms of Hinokami Kagura were meant to be used with a katana, not a long weapon like a halberd.

I could improvise some things, but still, it was like trying to play a game made for a console on a computer; could you do it? Yes, but it was weird, the controls would be weird.

The same thing happened when I used the forms with the halberd; I could reproduce them to some extent, but still, it was clunky, slow as if something was missing in some places and excess in others.

Still, I continued, trying to adapt the forms to the halberd, for three reasons. The first: I didn't want to use katanas, frankly, it suited me.

The second: Maybe I found katanas a somewhat crappy weapon, except for one or two that existed out there, like the Yamato.

And the third: The halberd was my best weapon, by a considerable distance. Especially after I had used Analyze: Item on it and had discovered the reason why it weighed so much.

-//-

[Houtengeki (Prototype- HOTD)]

Type: Weapon

Prefix: None

Damage: 30 - 493

Recoil: 30 (High)

Durability: 1573/1593

Rarity: Green

Ability: Absorbs mana to increase its weight and the sharpness of its blade:

Base weight: 44 kilograms (97 pounds) ~ Base damage: 30

Maximum weight: 444 kilograms (978 pounds) ~ Maximum damage: 493

Current weight: 444 kilograms (978 pounds) ~ Current damage: 493

[..]

Description: A halberd made from a meteorite that fell in ancient China in the year 162 AD.

Found near a village, the meteorite was melted and used in the creation of weapons and armor.

The meteorite metal ended up being named "Star Iron ~ 铁星 (Tiě xīng)."

Years later, in 168 AD, the halberd ended up in the hands of the warrior and military general Lu Bu, who named it (Houtengeki) "Painted Halberd Comparable to Heaven ~ (方天画戟, Hōtengageki, Pinyin: Fāngtiān Huàjǐ)."

Lu Bu used the halberd between the years 168 AD ~ 173 AD until the weight of the halberd, due to the property of "Star Iron" to absorb ambient mana, increased every year, becoming too much for the general to carry.

Lu Bu then had an identical weapon forged so that no one would discover that he could no longer carry his own weapon.

In the following years, between 182 AD ~ 578 AD, the halberd was forgotten, stored in the treasure of emperors, until the decrease in atmospheric mana began to cause the "Star Iron" to start losing mana to the environment, the halberd returning to its normal weight.

In the years between 612 AD ~ 873 AD, the halberd was used as a war weapon in various battles in China until it was lost in battle, found years later in 925 AD and transported on a merchant ship to the east of China, near Japan.

In the following years, between 1192 AD ~ 1374 AD, the halberd traveled from China to Japan until it ended up in the treasure of a noble family, where it stayed until the years of 1634 AD.

In 1635 AD, the halberd was donated to a museum of replicas, considered the most perfect replica of Lu Bu's Houtengeki halberd ever made.

In 1941, the museum ended up being stolen due to the chaos of war, and the halberd was sold to a collecting noble family.

In 1992, due to an economic crisis, the family that bought the halberd ended up going bankrupt, with a large part of its properties being sold, including the halberd, which was sold to the museum.

In 2003, due to a security flaw, several items of economic and historical value were stolen from that same museum, including the halberd.

In 2008, the halberd was bought by a fanatic collector of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, as a find in a pawn shop.

In 2013, due to the "zombie" outbreak, the halberd ended up in the hands of Devas Asura, known as "The Streamer."

-//-

I knew that the world of HOTD had mana, but that mana had been more present in the world's past was a surprise.

It wasn't that I was going crazy when I thought it was lighter in HOTD, but yes, it was lighter.

That's why the Halberd, or Houtengeki, weighed so much when I used it in Terraria; it was basically its material absorbing mana like crazy from the atmosphere, returning to its maximum weight in a matter of seconds.

I had "played around" with this thing in Terraria for some time and had learned a few things, but the main one was: I could regulate the weight of the weapon.

If I wanted its weight to decrease, all I had to do was disperse the mana absorbed by the metal, making the weight decrease.

If I wanted its weight to increase, all I had to do was channel my own mana into the weapon until it reached the weight I wanted, or the maximum weight.

Honestly, the halberd had been an absurd stroke of luck, to the point where I hesitated to try putting Mystic Symbols and Runes on it.

I didn't know how the material would react because of the mana-absorbing property, so I ended up leaving it as it was.

I was still undecided whether to spend one of the Prefix Tickets I had on the weapon or not, but I'll probably end up spending it.

Funny how this thing in "FATE" would probably be a Noble Phantasm, both because of its age and because of its legend, but in HOTD, it was just a "normal" weapon.

[…]

After a few more hours of training, I ended up opening the stream around five in the morning.

While having my breakfast, I ended up chatting a bit with the (CHAT).

[WiseWizardGleam]: Occlumency probably won't work due to the difference between our worlds, but still, it's worth a try. I can teach you the basics, but I would advise caution. (Emote of an old wizard scratching his chin).

[(MOD)GryffinHouseMatron]: Anything involving the soul or its magical interior is dangerous. I wouldn't recommend messing with it, especially since it seems beneficial. (Emote of a black cat with a witch's hat scratching its chin).

[(MOD)GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: There's always the last option of poking your soul, what could go wrong? (Emote of Iron Man shrugging).... Just kidding, don't do that. Watching you explode will be funny for about 5 seconds only.

[(MOD)WhiteHuntressLive]: Aura is more instinctive. I've never heard of a soul acting like this, adapting and creating new "organs," but still, it shouldn't be dangerous, since in the end, it's your own soul and "mind." (Emote of Snow White jotting something down on paper).

[(MOD)RedHuntressLive]: It's similar to a Semblance maybe? Still, I don't think it's a good idea to "poke" things without knowing. Aura is one thing, you don't have Aura, it can go very wrong. (Emote of Little Red Riding Hood looking concerned).

[JiraiyaIsAnIdiot]: Messing with the mind always has a certain danger. I'll ask Jiraiya-chan to go inquire with those blond ninjas from his village if they have any advice when he returns to Mount Myōboku, so wait, don't do anything rash! (Emote of an old frog yelling "Wait").

[AdvocateOfGenderEquality]: I can ask the idiot goddess, she's a goddess after all, and she dealt with souls in heaven, or whatever that place is. But I wouldn't trust her too much. (Emote of a generic guy shaking his head).

[BestToadSannin]: Too late Fukasaku-sama, I was watching here, I'll ask the head of the Yamanaka Clan if he has some advice! (Emote of a running frog).

Well, I had some good advice and some theories.

Now it was just a matter of waiting for Ero-Sannin to talk to the worst psychologists in the world, well, they were a big clan, but still, there was no shortage of crazies in Konoha from the beginning of time.

With my breakfast finished and the conversation coming to an end, I returned to training, that is until Tanjuro showed up, where I took some time to chat with the man.

"So, what do you think about moving?" I asked while swinging Houtengeki in a circular motion, failing to get the fifth form right.

Seriously, jumping, spinning in the air, and attacking the enemy from behind was frankly dumb; it was wrong in so many ways that I couldn't even explain properly.

"I'm not sure where that question came from," the man commented, sitting on a rock a few meters away, while playing with his youngest son, who was in his lap. "And what are you doing?" he pointed to me and the halberd.

I rotated my body, holding the halberd and making a fake attack from the front, which shifted to attacking the enemy's back... Not yet, somehow, it still felt wrong...

"I'm trying and failing to adapt these forms to be used with a halberd," I continued training while talking. "And about the move, I heard some rumors, not very good ones, if I were to give my opinion."

"And what rumors would those be?"

From there, I had a conversation where I had to explain why the king and creator of onis were looking for the Kamado family, and anyone who had the slightest involvement with Yoriichi.

I had to restrain myself from calling Muzan Michael Jackson, since he himself had not been born yet.

Fortunately, after everything I had shown, Tanjuro didn't doubt me and told me he would think about it, talk to his wife, and have an answer by tomorrow.

That was good, as long as he gave me an answer before my seven days in this world ended, I could help them move more quickly somehow.

As I continued to train, my thoughts wandered to a question.

What was the Sun? Or rather, what did Yoriichi, Tanjiro, and Tanjuro think the Sun was?

I remember when Tanjiro was training to use the Water Breathing, his master had said, "Become like water," and even threw Tanjiro into a lake with a waterfall.

If the same thing applied to other breathings, like the Flame Breathing Rengoku used and the Sound Breathing Uzui used, it should somehow apply to the Sun Breathing.

So, here came my question, what was the Sun to them?

I knew what the Sun was, or at least the Sun from "my" Earth.

The Sun was a star, a huge sphere of hot plasma, mainly composed of hydrogen and helium, undergoing nuclear reactions in its core, generating heat and light.

That was the definition of the Sun that I knew, but what about people of this time?

The current year in this world was one thousand nine hundred twenty-two, the concept of what the Sun was, was already advanced and widespread in a way, so maybe Tanjuro and Tanjiro knew what it really was.

But what about Yoriichi? The man lived for almost five hundred years; I highly doubted he really knew what the Sun was back then. And, frankly, what is the Sun?

In "my" Earth, a star, a hot plasma ball "floating" in space, but what about in other universes and realities?

In Greek mythology, the Sun was the chariot of Helios and Apollo, in Japanese mythology, it was Amaterasu, or rather, Amaterasu was the representation of the Sun, and when she hid in a cave, the Sun had disappeared from the sky.

This continued, the Sun changed in each mythology, represented by a different deity in each mythology.

Nordic? Sunna, a goddess who was the personification of the Sun, traveling in a flying chariot.

Egyptian? Rá, literally the god creator of all things in that mythology, who guided the "Sun Boat," illuminating the day and fighting Apophis at night.

Hindu? Surya, another sun god who traveled in a horse-drawn chariot, father of a certain spear-wielding guy who may or may not wear panties...

Celtic? Lugh... I only remembered that he was the father of a certain dog, not much more than that actually.

I didn't waste time and asked Tanjuro what he thought when he used Kagura, what he thought the Sun was.

"I know what the Sun is by the definition of science, I have scholarly friends, just because I live in a mountain village doesn't mean I'm stupid or uninformed," the man replied to me while sipping tea. I could basically hear, feel the amusement dripping from his voice.

"But as for what I think when I dance the Hinokami Kagura?" he took a moment to think, sipping the tea slowly. "Gratitude, first and foremost..."

"Gratitude?" I asked, interrupting his speech.

"Yes, gratitude, gratitude to the gods for another year of life, for another year that my family is prosperous, without illnesses, without dangers threatening them." He didn't seem to mind that I interrupted him.

Gratitude to the gods... It had to be...

It wasn't something I agreed with, but still, I saw the appeal... Gratitude for your family being well, gratitude for health, for life.

As my thoughts wandered, Tanjuro continued. "Then, warmth, life, fire." He placed the yunomi on the ground before continuing. "Those are always the words that come to mind when I dance." He looked up, gazing at the clear sky.

"Finally, light, a light that guides me, giving me strength to dance all night until the dawn." He had a smile on his face as he spoke.

...Light, fire, life, and warmth.

Something that could represent the Sun in a certain way.

Tanjiro's definition in the anime was probably something similar since when he used the Sun Breathing, what came out of his sword wasn't plasma rays like the Sun, but fire.

Solar fire, in a way...

"Thank you for the answer," I spoke thoughtfully, without looking at the man, who just gave me a nod without responding verbally.

I returned to training, thoughtful... My breath following what Tanjuro had taught me but changing every minute, my body adapting to it...

At dusk, I asked Tanjuro if I could use a room in his house to meditate since I preferred to do it in a safer place than the forest.

Obviously, the man agreed, and furthermore, he said he would take care of protecting me in case something happened or went wrong. I thanked him and went to the guest room.

This time, unlike the other nights, I didn't turn off the stream.

I was going to try meditating, following Dumbledore's, Snape's, and what Jiraiya had learned from the Yamanaka.

Interestingly, it had gone wrong in the first thirty minutes.

It had started well; I had sat in a comfortable position and "looked" at my soul, relaxing. Then I followed the first step, emptying my mind, clearing it of thoughts.

It took me a while to get close to that state because not thinking about anything was frankly difficult, but I had managed to get close to that... until I "woke up."

I was following the instructions, trying to empty my mind when I heard the sound of waves and what seemed like a storm with lightning, so I opened my eyes, only to find myself not in the Kamado family's house but in a beach house.

To be more specific, in the bedroom of a beach house...

"There it goes... damn it!..." I muttered, my voice rising in tone at the end as I got up, only then realizing that I was smaller...

I looked at my body and saw that it was still me, still me... but my seven-year-old self...

"Damn! one! fucking! day!"

Before I could continue and start uttering words that shouldn't come out of a seven-year-old's mouth, the stream sent me a "ping."

[Current location: Dreamlike landscape of dreams!]

[Spiritual camera not enabled!]

[Current SP count: 4,202,326!]

[Do you want to buy the "Spiritual Camera" for 300,000 SP!?]

Okay... let's calm down, I can swear later.

I seemed to be in my mind, or at least part of it, and the stream couldn't transmit here without me buying this camera...

"Buy." As much as I wanted to save the five million SP needed to upgrade the VoidBag, buying this camera now wasn't a waste, but an investment.

[Spiritual Camera acquired!]

It was instantaneous, as the (CHAT) had exploded with messages.

[(MOD)GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: What the hel- ... A mini DS?... am I hallucinating? It must be whiskey, it can't be real... (Emote of Iron Man rubbing his eyes wide open).

[(MOD)RedHuntressLive]: ... YOU'RE SO CUTE! SO TINY, I REALLY WANT TO GIVE YOU A HUG RIGHT NOW! (Emote of Little Red Riding Hood screaming with joy).

[YellowHuntressLive]: I'm not a big fan of Shota... but for you, I might make an exception... Why did you change so much? you were much cuter now! (Emote of Goldilocks shouting "damn!").

[Purple Samurai]: I never thought I could have thoughts so... like that... (Emote of a zombie samurai drooling).

[AsuraLady]: I also never thought of that... (Emote of a little pink-maned lion cub drooling).

[Alice-Chan]: Devas-aniki is younger than me now! I'm finally an older sister!!! (Emote of a Chibi Alice shouting with joy).

[AdvocateOfGenderEquality]: I go out for five minutes to take a shit, and when I come back, our streamer shrank? HOW?! (Generic guy's generic emote shouting "how?").

[JackSon] Friend: Harry, am I seeing what I'm seeing?... Are we the older ones now? (Emote of a seahorse asking, barely containing a smile).

[GryffinPotter]: I think so, friend Percy, we are the older ones... WOW! (Emote of a lion with a lightning scar on its forehead shouting happily).

[(MOD)JackMom]: My motherly instincts have kicked in hard now... You are the second cutest thing I've ever seen, only losing to Percy when he was a baby! (Emote of a golden fish with stars in its eyes).

[JackSon]: MOM!

There were many messages, most saying that I was cute, others seemed more like thoughts that would make the police knock on these people's doors, and many, especially from Stark, saying that I aged like milk... rotten

"This is what happens when you live stressed since you were seven," I commented vaguely as I got up, looking at the house where I was.

There was a reason why I looked much older than my actual age; years of stress end up doing that to you.

Looking around, I instantly recognized the house where I was.

It was my grandfather's beach house... A place where I had some of my happiest memories.

I walked through the house slowly. It was dark, and when I tried to turn on the switch to light up the lights, nothing happened. Seeing that there was no light, I "pulled" a flashlight from my inventory... or at least tried.

I didn't know if I had succeeded or not, but a flashlight had appeared in my hand. Somehow, I knew it didn't come from the inventory but that I had "created" it...

... This was my mind, so in a way, it made sense.

With this new discovery, I tried to return my body to normal, but without success... Yeah, it seems like I was stuck with my seven-year-old self for now...

Strangely, it was easy to move in this body. I thought I would stumble due to the change in height and weight, but it was something... natural.

Probably because this was inside my mind, but still, strange.

I started by leaving the room I was in, illuminating the way with the flashlight and going downstairs to the first floor, looking at the light blue walls, which looked exactly as I remembered.

Everything looked as I remembered, the floor, the ceiling, the walls, the furniture... everything... That's how I knew it wasn't real, after all, this house no longer existed... having been burned years ago...

I walked through the living room of the house slowly, running my hand over the furniture, the walls, reaching a bookshelf where there was a photo frame... I pointed the flashlight, illuminating the photo frame.

In the photo frame, there was a picture, a picture of a family.

An older man, looking to be just over fifty. He was strong and had short hair, with a military cut, blond.

He had a long beard and light blue eyes, and he had a happy smile.

He held two people in his arms, on his left arm, another man. This other man was blond, like the old one. He had cheerful green eyes and a well-groomed beard.

He was slimmer, with a more feminine physique, like that of a model actor. And like the older man, he had a happy smile on his face.

Finally, on the older man's right arm, hugging the two, a woman.

She was beautiful, with long blond hair that looked like golden waterfalls. Her eyes were a bright light blue, shining, even in a picture, coming from a memory, pulsating with joy.

It was a beautiful image, a beautiful photo...

I passed by the photo without giving it a second look, after all, I didn't need to; I knew that image, that photo...

... The photo of my family, my grandfather, my mother, and my "father."

As I passed by the photo frame, I lowered it calmly, putting the photo down.

Passing through the living room, I looked at the window, on the balcony... It was raining heavily, a gale, and the sky was dark, covered by black clouds that periodically glowed with lightning, followed shortly by thunder...

"Nice place..." I said ironically. The landscape could very well have come out of an apocalypse.

I glanced at the Minimap briefly; everything was empty, with only the point representing me there...

I opened the door, letting the cold wind blow into the house, and looked outside, holding onto the balcony as I felt my body being soaked by the rain.

The sea in the distance was stormy, turbulent, with huge waves crashing on the beach sand and even larger ones further ahead, out to sea.

The water was dark, the atmosphere was tense, heavy.

I looked at the sea for a moment before looking at the clouds, or rather, the only place in the sky without clouds, where there seemed to be a hole in this black layer of clouds covering the sky.

In that hole, I could see the full moon perfectly...

It shone faintly but seemed not to illuminate anything, leaving the world dark, without light...

"Okay... My mind is an apocalyptic landscape, and now, how do I get out of here-" Before I could ask how I got out of that place, I felt a presence descend over the world, weighing down on my childlike body.

Every hair on my body stood on end; the air had become cold. I felt as if I had been thrown into an ice bath.

All my instincts screamed in fear, my "body" screamed in fear. I was paralyzed, unable to move, causing the flashlight to fall from my hand, extinguished, leaving me in the dark... staring at the sea, where, in the distance, I could see something moving...

Slowly, I could see a giant hand emerging from the sea, even in the darkness, as if something were rising, and then another hand, followed by a body...

Whatever that thing was, it was enormous, rising from the sea, even miles away, it still looked like a giant.

I could only see its silhouette, the darkness hiding its immense body, its features. But still, I could distinguish something... even with all this darkness...

Its eyes... its eye... the eye on its forehead...

It was of a supernatural light green color, pulsating with an evil air, watching me, pointed in my direction. Even at this distance, I knew it could see me...

I was paralyzed as I looked at that thing; I could only move when I heard the pulsing heartbeat sound...

I jumped backward, closing my eyes at the same time as I instinctively commanded my mana throughout my body...

The last thing I heard before "waking up" again at the Kamado family's house was the same sound, the sound of another pulsing heartbeat...

Upon opening my eyes again, I found myself staring at the wooden ceiling of the Kamado's house. I got up, sitting and looking at the door, where I could see Tanjuro, who had opened the door and was looking at me worriedly.

Only then did I realize that I was cold sweating, trembling... My heart racing...

"Are you okay?" Tanjuro asked from the doorway, not entering.

"And... I... I don't know." It was the truth, I didn't know if I was okay...

What was that thing... No, I knew what it was... How could I not know...

But what was it doing there, inside my mind, in another literal world... My title didn't protect me from mental alterations, didn't prot-

"It wasn't real..." I muttered to myself, finally realizing... nothing there was real...

In the Infinite Train movie, each character had a different dream landscape when they slept...

Tanjiro's was a clear blue sky, seemingly infinite, described as warm and gentle...

Inosuke's was him as a leader, other characters with animal characteristics following him, he being the "alpha"...

Finally, Zenitsu's was something affectionate, a beautiful dream where he went on a date with Nezuko... but a part of it contained suffocating darkness... said to be the hatred Zenitsu had for himself...

The stormy state of my world I already knew what it was, the beach house too... but and "him"... what was it?.

The answer came instinctively... My fear, it was the mental representation of my fear...

That's why he didn't attack me, that's why he had stood still, unmoving after rising from the sea... He didn't even appear on the Minimap, he didn't have a point because he wasn't something real...

That's why the only thing I could see was the full moon... That's why I was in my seven-year-old body...

A seven-year-old child... alone... afraid of the dark...

"What a fucking bad joke..." I muttered as I got up. Much calmer now that I understood what had happened...

"I'm fine, Tanjuro, sorry for worrying you, I hope I didn't wake anyone up." I said, walking toward the man.

He seemed relieved, for some reason, and shook his head in denial.

"No, I only came in because I felt something was wrong, didn't even have time to do anything, just looked at you for a moment before you woke up..." He hesitated before asking... "Did something happen during your meditation?... You didn't seem well for a second there..."

I sighed, briefly looking at the (CHAT) that had exploded with messages, most, if not all, asking me what the hell that was, what that thing was...

"Something happened, something I didn't think would happen..." I said as I wiped the sweat from my forehead. I needed a shower...

"But in a way, I've already figured out why, or rather, what it was... Don't worry, I'm fine..." I said, both to Tanjuro and the (CHAT).

"If you say so..." The man didn't seem to believe my words but didn't insist on the matter. Well... "Want to take a bath?." He pointed at me. "You look sweaty, and it's cold, you don't want to get sick, trust me, I know." He said jokingly, pounding his chest a few times.

I nodded slowly... "I'll accept your offer, thank you."

I followed Tanjuro to the bathroom, at the same time, "talking" to the (CHAT).

("I'll leave the camera out of the bathroom while I wash up... Later, I'll explain what that was...)

I didn't pay attention to the (CHAT) after that, ignoring it. I didn't even use the Kamado family's "shower" but a portable one I had in my inventory...

While I washed up, with the hot water running down my body, I ignored the bathroom window and noticed that it faced the moon. I also ignored my hand trembling slightly as I washed...

"A child afraid of the dark..." I murmured, squeezing my hand until my fingers turned white... "A damn... child... afraid of the dark..."

Damn...

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Well, here's the chapter. I'm awake until 5:22, my country's time; I really need to go to sleep...

As for the chapter, we finally discovered what the Halberd was... I hope the explanation turned out well.

Now, regarding the soul of the Devas, honestly, I haven't seen any stories with that kind of concept, and I thought it was pretty cool when I came up with it, so I hope it's easy to understand and enjoyable to read.

Now, about the Sun's Breath and the Spiritual Core.

It's definitely from Kimetsu, the way the Slayers think and use the breaths; I just tweaked a few things to make the explanation easier and fit better into the story.

As for the Core, it exists in Kimetsu, I just gave it more importance and a better explanation.

Devas learned some things from the (CHAT), or he should have, before accidentally falling into his own mental landscape...

I left some important things in Devas' journey through his grandfather's beach house; if you can figure them out, comment!

Finally, our little friend who appeared in the sea... He's not "real," as Devas said; he's the representation of his fears in his mind, which is kind of... not great, as the landscape showed.

As I mentioned before, I'll use this Kimetsu arc as a mental character building, it should be the only one for a while before I return to character building...

This arc should last another 1 or 2 chapters, 1 if I shorten it, 2 if I make everything fit nicely, depending on what happens.

Well... having said that, I'm going to pass out. Good night to those who stay, and happy reading!

PS: Want an interlude with the (CHAT)'s reactions to our "little friend"?

PSS: Interestingly, the Flame Breathing (Hono) and the Sun Breathing (Hi) have very similar kanji, and furthermore, fire (Hi) and Sun (Hi) too...

PSSS: Voting, which Hashira should the Kamado family live near?

PSSSS: What did you think of the system I used for Devas' soul? I gave a hint of what it would be a few chapters ago...

PSSSSS: Sleep...