Chapter 10

Alexander's P.O.V

"Could you act human? I mean I've got neighbours." Bella asked.

Edward smiled at her from the truck's roof.

After keeping his identity secret for a hundred years it must've felt good to have someone, someone human, to share it with.

It was easy to forget vampires were originally human. Although their bodies were permanently altered by the venom their emotions remained.

"I'm going to take you to my place tomorrow!" Edward announced and jumped down.

I hadn't expected to run into the vampire and his human bride on my walk home. The Cullen's lived on the furthest outskirts of Forks and rarely left their house or interacted with humankind.

It seemed that Bella was a big enough reason for Edward to mingle with the mortals.

Demonstrating his superhuman strength he offhandedly reached behind the truck's hubcap and pushed the deformed metal back into shape.

Bella's eyes widened as she looked from her effortlessly fixed truck to Edward who was leaning casually against it. Any other human might've been worried for their safety around such a monstrous being but Bella's eyes were filled only with amazement.

In the movies Bella's affection for Edward seemed unfounded, even slightly forced. Seeing them around school I knew this was not the case in reality.

He made her laugh constantly; the two of them were relaxed in each other's presence.

Apparently jokes from the 1900's were still funny in the modern world.

"Thanks." Bella replied. She was still in a daze from Edward's show of strength.

The realisation came a few moments later, "Wait, like with your family?!"

Edward stepped backwards with his hands in his pockets. Bella matched him step for step.

"What if they don't like me?"

I saw the disbelief in Edward's heart flash in his eyes for a brief instant.

To him Bella must've seemed like the heroine to his dark fairytale story. A beautiful human falling in love with a brooding and mysterious vampire.

She didn't care that he could hurt her, she didn't care that her life was in danger every moment she spent with him.

Bella had come into his life just months ago and now the thought of life without her...

He would rather die.

Leaning against the side of Bella's truck Edward grinned as he spoke, "So, you're worried, not because you're in a house full of vampires, but because you think they won't approve of you?"

"I'm glad I amuse you." Bella retorted back. Her cheery tone betrayed her sarcastic comment.

Edward suddenly turned his head to the side. His brows furrowed as he caught the scent of something in the air.

"What is it?" Bella asked with concern.

Edward stared into the distance for a moment, "Complication."

"I'll pick you up tomorrow."

Edward trailed his hand along Bella's forearm and left quickly. Bella's eyes never left his back as he retreated into the distance.

I suppressed a smile when I saw the blush on her face. There was no romantic attraction towards Bella in my mind but I found her red cheeks inexplicably cute.

The Bella portrayed by the movies was only a corner of her true self.

Bit by bit the plot was progressing. Soon events were destined to spiral out of control.

However unlike the stiff, almost robotic film portrayal of their characters, the Bella and Edward of this world were full of life and unpredictability.

Their emotions were complex and changeable.

Instinctively I knew that this would have serious consequences on the plot.

Without the script controlling her actions who could say that Victoria wouldn't lose herself to grief and ignore the risks to attack Bella.

Time and time again she had escaped the pursuit of both vampires and Shapeshifters.

Her strength could not be simple as the screen showed.

'I can't wait to fight her.'

Cultivating the Great Devil Scripture was starting to turn me into a battle maniac. I dreamed of fighting tooth and claw with a nigh-unbeatable foe.

At the same time my willpower was constantly improving. I trained harder each day, pushing my mastery of spells beyond the conceived limits.

To break through to the Golden-Core stage I would need to comprehend a truth to the world.

I could choose to study the truth of: fire, ice, lightning, time, blood. So long as the concept existed I could attempt to comprehend it.

Laws were separated into three categories: fundamental, major and minor.

The difficulty of comprehending certain laws was incomparable. Some laws such as time and life could not be understood by dedication alone. They required a moment of enlightenment that could only be came across by chance and good fortune.

'Don't get ahead of yourself.'

The Great Devil Scripture was a unique cultivation technique. All bottlenecks could be overcome with time and practice.

Talent set the limits of what a cultivator could achieve. Individuals with low potential would never be able to achieve a breakthrough to your the next realm.

The Great Devil Scripture fearlessly went against this.

Due to the nature of the Great Devil Scripture it was my destiny to enter the Golden-Core realm.

But the Scripture was not all-powerful.

If I was unable to comprehend a law on my own, the Great Devil Scripture could only allow me to cultivate a minor law during the last few years of my life.

Waiting more than one a half centuries to barely break through to the Golden-Core realm.

How could I accept that?

The Great Devil Scripture was resting under my bed. The book was soul-bound to me and could not be destroyed or damaged in any way.

To another person its pages were that of an ordinary book. Only I could cultivate the scripture.

Gabriel had clearly stated after my birth that my request was mine and mine alone. I could not share it with another person.

The manual contained an ever-expanding library of spells, formations and artifacts. Its time-stained pages recorded countless pieces of information.

What the manual lacked was miscellaneous information. This meant that I had no idea whether my progress was fast or slow.

From the start of Qi-Refinement to the second stage of Foundation-Establishment in just over a year. What did this say about my spiritual root and comprehension?

If my comprehension was insufficient it would be many centuries until I could cross to the next realm.

For now all I could do was work harder.