Dimensional Descent

If Leonel hadn't managed to separate his soul from his body, he would have never taken this approach. The first part of fusion technique wasn't even the most masochistic part about it. What was truly the most sadistic part of this technique's creator's intentions was what came next.

After the connection was formed with the Innate Node, it was necessary to graft the Innate Node into your body. But in order to succeed, it required a special process which was akin to branding your own body. But this branding would have to be from the inside and rather than using fire, it required blades.

Only by purposely scarring oneself would the fusion be perfect.

Essentially, Leonel had to cut into his own brain stem. The pattern of these cuts had to match with two Force Arts he used to refine his blood with. The more sensitive the region, the more difficult it would be to succeed, but this was the price to pay for success.

This was why, under normal conditions, Leonel would never dare to do this. At worst, he would just choose a less optimal region for this Innate Node or he might even choose not to use it at all. But now, he didn't hesitate.

Leonel not only didn't hesitate, but he also executed it all in one go.

He chose a needling technique to form the Force Art. In order to complete it, Little Tolly formed thousands of small needles at once, each of which was lined up perfectly to complete the Force Art.

Leonel's body shuddered but he maintained his sanity. He used Dream Sense to spread the pain out as much as possible, but even so, he still felt like he was on the verge of dying, his body refusing to listen to him.

The brainstem was far too important to the function of the body. Even when Leonel had initially formed his Node within it, he had to rewire the cell connections first before he could make space.

This time, however, he simply directly damaged it, and lethally so, it was no wonder his body was shutting down.

That said, he had already expected this much to happen and he was ready. Rather than using his nerves to control his body, he let his soul take over.

With a movement, he picked up the glowing Innate Node and pressed it to the flowing back at the back of his head.

His body trembled. In the end, he was forced to use Little Tolly to continue to apply pressure.

The difference between this method and others was that other processes required cutting open wounds and hoping the Innate Node fused with you. However, with this method, although Leonel cut into his body, it wasn't to allow the Innate Node space to enter. Instead, this process would only succeed when the Innate Node sank into his skin, becoming a legitimate part of his body.

Through this method, the Innate Node would become like something your body constructed. And, much like Leonel's other Innate Nodes, if he was ever to be eaten again, it would automatically become a central part of his Innate Recovery.

Leonel collapsed, his body convulsing. The damage to his nerves made it impossible for him to control his body properly and the pain was horrible.

However, Leonel had already experienced being eaten alive. Every excruciating bite and chew was ingrained into his very memory. He would never forget those moments.

Compared to that, what was this or any other pain worth, for that matter?

The hours ticked by and the Innate Node slowly fused into Leonel's skin. After an entire day, it finally vanished beneath his skin and began to jockey for its final position.

Anastasia had been shaking her head the entire time. She wanted to scream and berate, but she was somewhat afraid of interrupting the response. What would she do if this fool really died?

Luckily, about half way through the second day, Leonel's body twitched and he began to slowly recover control of his body. Step by step, his nerves reconnected and the wound to the back of his head also began to slowly close.

Leonel opened his eyes, his breathing heavy and his face pale. It seemed that he was a glutton for punishment. Years ago, he would have never dreamed of doing something like this to himself. He still remembered how he almost gave up when opening just the first tier of his Metal Synergy bloodline, but now he was puncturing holes into his brain as though it was normal.

He shook his head, laughing to himself.

"Well I'm glad that you can laugh, but that was not funny at all. Are you incapable of giving a warning? You and your father are just the same, refusing to explain everything, always doing crazy things, never putting anyone in your eyes.

"Did you know that if this goddess were to reveal her true strength to the outside world that tycoons of even the Ninth Dimension would fight tooth and nail for me? But you can't even bother to give a word of explanation.

"If I had my way, I'd—"

Anastasia released the rant that she had been holding in for hours already, the moment she noticed that Leonel would probably be just fine. She was very clearly much infuriated. She would have directly beat Leonel up if she could.

Leonel laughed. "It's fine now, isn't it? I had to do things like this. If I thought about it too much, I might have chickened out."

"—Don't interrupt me, boy! I'm not finished with you yet! And what were you even thinking of forming your first Node in your brain stem to begin with, did you have a death wish back then too? I don't think I've even ever met anyone outside of you and your father that would do such a thing.

"Foolish, foolish, foolish! Each one is more annoying than the last, simply ridiculous!"

Leonel smiled but allowed Anastasia to continue throwing her temper tantrum. As for himself, he had already focused on these changes.