CHAPTER 352: CAHPTER 352: TRUE DAMIEN-2

Behind her, Damien began to whistle softly as he stepped deeper into the cave.

But suddenly, his body twisted as if gripped by an invisible force. He dropped to his knees with a strangled gasp.

"What... what’s happening to me?" he cried, terror filling his voice.

All the cold indifference vanished, replaced by a panicked young man who didn’t resemble the Damien Angelina had just spoken to. His voice cracked with fear as he looked around wildly.

"What’s going on? This... this isn’t how I was supposed to live..."

Damien lifted his gaze toward the empty air, as though he were speaking to something invisible that lingered just above him.

His voice trembled as he pleaded.

"I apologize... If I offended you earlier, please forgive me. Please... let me have control of my life back."

The next second, his expression shifted into cold indifference.

His eyes emptied of fear, and an unfamiliar calmness coated his voice.

"It would be better if you let me take control. Otherwise, you can forget about ruling the apocalypse."

Another heartbeat passed, and the fear returned.

Damien’s face twisted in panic as he begged again.

"I never thought I would end up like this! When I was reborn, I believed that handing over my body to you would help me rule the apocalypse. You promised you would help me reach the prime of my cultivation. How can you back out now? How can you refuse to return my body?"

The superior being’s expression manifested through Damien’s features once more, cold and merciless.

"I am doing exactly what you requested. The catch is simple. You cannot stay in control. You will sit in the dark corner of your mind and watch everything unfold. That is all you are allowed."

Damien’s expression snapped back. His eyes widened with desperation.

"No! Things weren’t supposed to go like this! This isn’t what I asked for!"

His thoughts spiraled violently.

’I was reborn the day before Ivy got the ring... that was when I opened my eyes and saw the date... that was when I realized everything had restarted.’

He had stared at the calendar in disbelief. Rebirth was something he had fantasized about but never thought possible.

In his past life, he barely survived four or five years after the apocalypse.

He and the superior being had cultivated together until their connection abruptly broke because of his own stubbornness. He died to a zombie horde that caught him during a moment of weakness.

’I hated myself for that... I was too weak... too pathetic... I couldn’t fend off zombies; I couldn’t protect myself.’

So when he was given the chance again, he didn’t hesitate.

He sought the ring immediately. He told Angelina exactly where to look. When she found it, he helped her obtain the success system.

In their previous life, even after four or five years, he hadn’t been able to attract a single woman.

Angelina had risen steadily in the base’s hierarchy, too bright for him to approach. Watching her strength grow, admiration had rooted itself deep inside him.

This time, he planned to stand beside her.

His first step was clear. Get the ring before Ivy does.

He sent Angelina to Brimstone Mountain to find the hidden box.

She succeeded. After she retrieved it, Damien had pretended that Angelina had given the ring to him personally.

’I was paranoid. I didn’t want anyone to know I was reborn. What if someone else had been reborn, too?’

So he fabricated things, making Angelina appear responsible for finding the ring.

Once he possessed it, he formed a contract with the superior being.

He arranged for Angelina to receive a system that would let her identify successful individuals so that, through her, he could meet them and cultivate faster.

But midway through everything, he encountered Ivy... changed, sharpened, frighteningly different.

He began to suspect she was reborn as well. What confused him was the depth of hatred she had carried in their last life.

When he took Ivy’s superpower crystal then, she had looked completely hollow, as if life itself had drained out of her. She must have died shortly after.

’So she was reborn too... she wants revenge... and I... fool that I am... believed that letting the superior being take control would help.’

In his previous life, he only surrendered control after the fourth year.

But in this life, desperate to accelerate everything before rivals could rise, he handed over his body instantly.

He never expected the superior being to deny him his body afterward.

Now he could barely control a finger. He could hardly breathe without permission.

As these thoughts swirled, Damien’s expression suddenly shifted again into utter indifference.

The superior being’s voice emerged through his lips. "I know."

He continued, tone smooth and pitiless.

"I understand your pain. But you must understand something. One day, you will see everything from the pinnacle of your life. Then you will realize your sacrifice was worth it. Do you not wish to avenge your family? Should you not target Ivy? Then let me do what I must."

Damien’s panic returned instantly.

His features twisted as he cried.

"I don’t want anything anymore! I don’t want revenge! I just want my body back! Ivy has become a monster, just like me. I don’t want to continue down this path!"

The indifference snapped back like a mask.

"It is too late. You cannot regret your decision now. The choice was made long ago."

With that final pronouncement, Damien lifted his finger and snapped it.

His expression didn’t change anymore. It was as though the switch inside him had been shut off completely.

Then the superior being, wearing Damien’s body, stood up with graceful arrogance. He dusted off his pants and sneered.

"Humans are truly weak. They dare to believe they can suppress me? They should have a shred of self-awareness. How can they speak boldly and then retreat the moment it matters? Did Damien think I was joking when I asked for permission? He granted it. And therefore, what is his... is now rightfully mine."