Even this path to godhood, infinitely close to reaching the will of heaven, this principle of the heart that discarded every barrier and all sense of self, could not resist the stopping of time itself.
Everything fell into place without any resistance. In this absolutely fair clash of wills, Roland had become the cheater.
Within frozen time, he alone could move freely, feeling and digesting everything that sought to swallow him.
It was an ocean of the mind. Freed from the constraints of individuality, the wills and minds of those sacrificed became information like light, pouring straight into Roland's mind.
Every second, Roland now received more information than he had in the entire first part of his life. Lilith's warning had not been groundless. Throughout this prolonged confrontation, even an instant of slackness meant failure.
The existence named Roland would be overwhelmed by this vast flood of information, and after he went numb, a new personality would be born from his remains.
But once he stopped time, Roland was like a ship drifting through a violent storm that had suddenly reached a warm harbor. He could catch his breath and rest to his heart's content, then face the next impact in peak condition.
The waves of mental fragments seeking completion grew fiercer and fiercer, but as he repeatedly stopped time, most of them had already been digested within those frozen moments. The tiny portion left that could cause his mind pain was little more than an itch to Roland now.
Finally, after who knew how many cycles, the pure white space around him abruptly shattered. All that remained before Roland was a clear sky and a calm sea.
Roland also regained his individual existence, standing upon the sea as he looked at the hazy, shadowlike figures around him.
This was