"————"
Under the bright lights of the busy street, Fang Li, Arcueid, and Tohno Shiki walked silently without saying a word to each other. An oppressive and somewhat suffocating atmosphere lingered between the three of them, making it seem as if the very act of approaching them would weigh down one's body.
Even Arcueid, who was usually talkative during the day, walked in silence. This was in stark contrast to her usual self, giving others the impression that approaching her would create the illusion of being weighed down.
Around them, the sounds of the busy street continued to echo, but it seemed as if the three of them were isolated from the rest of the world.
It was as if on this entire street, apart from these three individuals, everything else was just background and decoration. No matter how loud the clamor, it couldn't break through the space that existed between the trio.
Fang Li, Arcueid, and Tohno Shiki just kept walking, in silence.
Ten minutes passed.
Twenty minutes passed.
Thirty minutes passed.
An hour passed.
For a full three hours, the three maintained their silence, none of them taking the initiative to speak first.
Finally, at a certain moment, Tohno Shiki couldn't help but murmur to himself.
"No, there's nothing..."
Yes, nothing.
No matter how hard Tohno Shiki looked, he couldn't find anything unusual through his Mystic Eyes.
No, it should be said that if the world filled with Death Lines was unusual in itself, then everything was indeed unusual.
However, Tohno Shiki couldn't see the anomaly that Fang Li had mentioned, the anomaly that could be seen at a glance.
"Could it be that I'm not focusing my mind enough?"
With this thought, Tohno Shiki began to focus his mind.
In his eyes, a pair of eyes began to emit a faint icy blue light.
Shortly after that, the world in Tohno Shiki's vision began to subtly change.
The specific change was that not only did he start to see the 'Lines,' but the 'Points' also began to appear.
On the bodies of the passersby around him, one by one, points of death began to appear at the junctions of the death lines, pulsating rhythmically like a heartbeat.
Not only that, but the buildings around him also began to change.
At first, in Tohno Shiki's vision, the Death Lines on buildings were generally weaker and not as clear as those on human bodies.
Now, however, those death lines became clear, and even the points of death began to appear on them.
"Good."
Tohno Shiki calmed down silently.
But in the next moment, a strong pain surged into Tohno Shiki's brain.
"Ugh...!"
Suddenly, Tohno Shiki couldn't help but groan, clutching his head as he came to a halt.
"What happened?" Arcueid finally broke the ominous atmosphere and turned her head in surprise to look at Tohno Shiki.
Seeing Tohno Shiki in such pain, as if his head was about to split open, Fang Li frowned and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't force yourself to see," Fang Li said without hesitation. "These eyes and the brain are interconnected. If you use them a little bit, it might not be a problem for you, but if you force yourself to see more, your brain will be put under an unusual strain. If you're not careful, you might end up as a "vegetable.
In essence, using the Mystic Eyes of Death perception requires opening the brain circuit connected to the root, which allows the brain to understand the concept of death.
However, as mentioned above, the human brain is inherently incapable of understanding death. Forcing it to do so would cause the brain to overexert itself, which would eventually lead to its collapse.
Therefore, the more abstract the concept of death, the more difficult it is for a person to understand it.
"A person can talk to another person, but can a person talk to a stone?"
This was the situation in which Tohno Shiki now found himself.
"You understood death through a near-death experience and gained these eyes. However, at the end of the day, you are still a human being. If you try to understand human death, it might not be too much of a burden. But if you try to comprehend the death of minerals and buildings, the burden will be much heavier."
In a calm tone, Fang Li explained this to Tohno Shiki, speaking from his own experience.
"Therefore, even though you can barely see the death of non-living things, it is much more difficult than seeing the death of living things. Your eyes are specialized for humans, and your brain is that of a normal human. You can't force yourself to see death. Use it with a sense of normalcy.
"Otherwise, your brain will definitely be fried.
In reality, even if Tohno Shiki sees the death of living beings, if he overuses his eyes, he will eventually become incapacitated.
The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, which is indeed a legendary mystery from the Age of Gods, is a mystery of the highest rank.
For this very reason, it is extremely difficult for a human to use it.
Without the Mystic Eyes Killer, Tohno Shiki might not have survived until now; he would have been incapacitated long ago.
Even understanding the death of humans, which is the easiest to comprehend, is a challenge. It is unimaginable what would happen to Tohno Shiki's mind if he tried to understand a more abstract form of death.
"Indeed, the power of these eyes is too great for a human - no, for any living being. Unless you are truly a god." Arcueid looked at Fang Li with a bit of curiosity and said, "But why do you seem unaffected?"
"I am an exception," Fang Li replied nonchalantly. "For personal reasons, I can naturally understand any form of death as easily as I can eat a meal. The only difference is the extent to which I can use it."
To use an analogy, death is like a deadly poison.
Faced with such a deadly poison, Tohno Shiki is the type who cannot resist it for long. If he ingested too much, he would succumb to the poison.
In Ryougi Shiki's position, however, she has developed an immunity to this deadly poison due to her connection with the Root, allowing her to naturally accept it like breathing.
As for Fang Li, he is essentially this deadly poison itself. Even his soul contains the formula for this poison, so he can naturally use it without any problems.
Therefore, both Fang Li and Ryougi Shiki can use the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception without any barriers.
In addition, since they can comprehend even abstract forms of death, the Mystic Eyes of Fang Li and Ryougi Shiki are naturally several levels higher than Tohno Shiki's, approaching the original form.
"Understanding death as easily as eating a meal?"
Arcueid stared at Fang Li intently and finally made a simple observation.
"You really are a monster."
Hearing this, Fang Li replied with a relaxed smile.
"Thank you for the compliment."
As the two locked eyes, Tohno Shiki, who was holding his head, suddenly widened his eyes and pointed ahead.
"There!"
Tohno Shiki's cry caused Fang Li and Arcueid to immediately turn their heads and look ahead.
There, a person stumbled into a nearby alley.
Fang Li's Mystic Eyes had already been activated.
Therefore, Fang Li was able to see it.
The person's body was covered with countless Death Lines all over it.
Fang Li's eyes gleamed.
"I found it..."
...
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