Adrian in their minds had been cemented as the definition of the exception. He was the incarnation of one of two Demi-level existences in all of the infinite possibilities, his adviser had been possessed by a stray soul, and he even had the ability to survive in the void with only his pure unadulterated soul.
Each of these factors combined to create an image of a truly terrifying exception and if their hypothesis was true this incarnation could become as strong as Demi and fulfill the wish of every resident of the Nexus universe… To give Demi an equal, a friend…
The only being that had been even close to Demi's level was @##@π a being that sadly Demi couldn't stay near for long. A being that had inspired his resident, a being that was composed of a single multiversal massive ocean-like soul. (*)
With the assumption that their theories were correct, there was almost no decision to make. With Adrian's fate temporarily decided, Seal fed Adrian a drop of [Yggdrasil Sap] before she dispersed everyone watching with a single word, "Return."
As Seal and the others existed before the world reset she couldn't help but warn, "If you fail again no matter how much you have backing you… I will get rid of you."
With that said time rewound on the island to right after the message, [Two entities have abdicated their divinity returning to their original state.] had appeared with a slight change.
The Yggdrasil race was a unique species of plant-like humanoids that could deny most laws of Dao under causality, this unique characteristic allowed it to propagate through Adrian's body even with time reversal.
The sap restored Adrian's body to peak condition albeit still Sealed & Stagnated at an abysmal 1% power & efficiency.
By the time Adrian had opened his eyes he only had 20 seconds remaining before the cycle repeated itself.
Fluttering his eyes open, Adrian disconnected from Sakura, his systems, senses, and even Nexus' message board; he didn't notice the two spirits hiding in his shadow.
Immediately Adrian felt that his time was limited even without every tool that would normally inform him of his impending doom. Almost unconsciously Adrian dragged his nearly paralyzed body into the new passage in front of him.
As he dragged himself fully within the passage the trunk behind him closed engulfing his vision in complete darkness before golden orbs appeared on each side of the passage lighting his vision once again.
Dragging his body, in a way even an infinite would make fun of, Adrian slowly reached a crossroad with two paths each adorned with a different rune. Unable to read them, Adrian tried asking Sakura if she knew anything only to be reminded of his missing connection.
With his safe spaces, all stripped from him in his current state Adrian's mind ran at a hundred thoughts a second causing his mind to be vulnerable. Without realizing it, his mind and emotions were almost entirely distracted by Sakura's lovely voice.
Without her guiding voice, a momentary bout of depression almost overtook his thoughts, as thoughts of self-loathing and hatred filled his mind over his broken state. But, just as fast as those thoughts appeared they disappeared as Adrian remembered his promise to Sakura.
'He would protect her while taking better care of himself.' gritting his teeth Adrian hurled his body over to one of the runes trying to understand any meaning they may have held.
The rune he studied first was a circle encased within a multilayered hexagonal pattern with a half-closed eye sitting in its direct center.
Dragging his body over to the second rune it had the same outer casing but inside was a book-like symbol.
Quickly Adrian remembered the runes at each monument finding 148 mentions of each symbol, specifically 84 half-closed-eye symbols and 64 book-like symbols.
With their placements and previous knowledge, Adrian extrapolated their meanings within an acceptable margin of error or so he assumed.
Adrian believed that the half-eye would be more beneficial at the moment as he found it to mean completion of the senses.
Now that he had chosen a path to head forward, Adrian dragged his body down the passage leaving the symbols far behind.
Little did he know that the symbols he had just passed had no fixed form and his brain had created the symbols to convey their meaning… having said that Adrian had all the information without even having to think.
Meanwhile, as Adrian dragged his body halfway down the hall a golden orb seeped through the roof of the passage falling on his body and returning his senses. Without realizing not only had his 9th sense returned but also his balance and ability to move his limbs without having to look at them.
Suddenly he realized that his body being weak was not the reason he couldn't stand but the fact that he lost his internal senses, proprioception & vestibular, specifically.
When Adrian found this out he embarrassingly struggled to stand like a toddler learning to walk. Quickly Adrian noticed that his senses even with 100% performance couldn't give him even a fraction of their previous output because his mind couldn't process the information.
Adrian turned around to go back and claim the other path's rewards as well but when he did he noticed a wall blocking his path inching forward as if to rush his progress.
With no other option, Adrian had to march forward to keep his balance as his body readjusted. Unbeknownst to him each a new energy had attached to his life force augmenting it in its quality unlike [Endurance Efficiency's] quantitative change thanks to the sap he was forced to consume.
If his bloodline was active it would have copied its genetic code unlocking a new ability and evolution path but for now, none of that mattered as Adrian would have to regain his abilities quickly and use his key to leave this place.
Stumbling along the passage walls Adrian came upon his next choice and this time used the same method to "decipher" the runes meaning quickly making a choice between a panel run, heart rune, and brain rune.
Without hesitation, Adrian chose the panel as he wanted to reconnect with Sakura and hopefully even Dee but he doubted that any current option would reconnect him to the place the message board referred to as his Pantheon.
With a slight lament over his current objective, Adrian was happy to talk to Sakura soon.