THE AFTERLIFE PARADOX

Wallace's senses screamed danger as he looked at the two approaching him. "What's Karum, and who are you?" he asked.

"I can sense the residual aura on his body; it's on him," the second man said.

"Hand over the treasure now, and you will feel less pain," the guy said.

"Are you guys fools? What treasure are you talking about?" he asked.

"You're proving stubborn, right? It will only cause you more pain," the guy sneered as he saw dark energy coagulate on their hands, forming into a scepter.

The two rushed towards him. Their movement was only a blur in his eyes, but his clairvoyance ability could sense them. He leaned back as the curved end of the scepter passed through where his neck was before. He pushed his two hands forward against the body of the second scepter, throwing it off target, but it still cut his hand.

"Hiss." He hissed in pain because he felt intense burning pain on the wound.

He rolled back on the floor, but the two followed up with another series of attacks. He tried his best to dodge the series of attacks coming towards him like a continuous wave, but no matter how much he tried, he was still injured by the weapons.

After just a minute, he already had a series of cuts on his body, but the two had not yet taken any hits. His chest to his back already had a series of cuts, and there was a serious burning effect on the wound, making him feel as if he was burning alive.

Blood spurted out of the wound; he soon felt dizzy due to the loss of blood, but he gritted his teeth and continued to dodge because he knew that any loss of concentration would lead to death, and death would lead to hell, and hell would lead to unimaginable torture.

He continued dodging, but no matter how unwilling he was to die, he felt weaker and weaker by the second.

Just when he was on the verge of despair, "Thump, Thump" he felt intense beating from the right side of his chest. His heart was on the left side, so what was beating on the right side?

He did not have any time to think about it because wounds were being inflicted on him. A cool sensation spread around his body as he felt himself getting stronger little by little. It wasn't enough, but it still gave him the chance to think about what he could do.

"What can I do?" he continued to rack his brain while he continued to dodge, but no idea was coming, and he was falling into a precarious situation again under the encirclement of the two.

"Control." He knew that for him to survive, the answer lay in the control ability, but how could he do it? He didn't know.

The battle raged on, and injuries continued piling up on his body. He gradually fell into an empty space as his cold eyes turned empty, slowing down the reaction of his body, enabling more and more cuts to appear on his body. But with more cuts, the rate at which the heart on the right side of his chest beat also increased, and the warm feeling intensified while he continued to get stronger.

Time passed like that as the two soon got frustrated. Wallace's body was already filled with injuries, and blood was dripping out each second; he looked clearly on the verge of death, but he was still not falling. It looked like he was getting the range of their attack, and he was also getting stronger as the battle raged on. This caused them to feel a sense of crisis.

They intensified the attack, causing Wallace to feel more pressure. The latter could not take it anymore as his body reaction started to intensify. Under the empty state, his mind was working non-stop, but the body couldn't keep up again, causing more cuts to be inflicted on his body.

After a while, he could no longer keep up. "Slash." The scepter cut his leg open, making him lose all feeling in his leg; he had no choice but to kneel on the floor.

"Finally," the guy sighed in relief as one of them raised the scepter up, wanting to end it.

They suddenly felt a sense of danger, but it was too late. The air around them compressed and "Boom, Boom" exploded. Their bodies were lacerated from the explosion. They spat mouthfuls of blood out as they were thrown back due to the explosion.

Wallace stood up; the bleeding had already stopped. He was only feeling pain from the cuts and the burning feeling on his injury, making him feel as if he was on fire, but it did not dampen his joy as an excited expression appeared on his face.

"Finally got it," he said as he raised his hand. Air raged around him. He looked at the two that were being thrown back; he controlled the air as he rose into the air and rushed towards them. He felt the connection with the earth underneath them and

"Boom" the ground under them cracked and exploded into a series of sand particles submerging them.

"I can turn earth into this," he thought as a series of spikes was formed, impaling the two and blasting holes into their bodies.

His air floated amidst the raging wind as he looked at the two that had been impaled by multiple holes. Blood gushed out from their bodies.

He landed back on the ground; he frowned as he looked around, everywhere had been ruined due to the fight. Pain hit him in waves as his face paled from the pain and burning feeling he had.

"Uhh," he tilted his head to the side. A scepter passed through where his head was before. He jumped forward as he felt an intense sense of danger, but he was a little too late as the scepter pierced into his back.

His right heart beat fast as warm energy was directed from the right side of his body to his whole body. He felt weak as he turned his head in difficulty to look at the two.

"How...?" He asked weakly.

"We are from hell; we just inhabit dead bodies. We can't die unless our soul orb is destroyed. If it's destroyed, that's when our soul will disintegrate and return to hell, then after some time, we will recover," the guy answered.

Their bodies had already been riddled with holes, but the holes were mending themselves, and through the holes, he saw dark orbs swirling around in their chests.

"It's in your chest," he asked.

"You can see it; how can you see it?" He asked.

"Am I not supposed to see it?" He asked.

"Only spiritual beings, just like the agents of Arishem and those from hell, can see it," he said.

"It must be the Karum on you," he said as he smiled.

"Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?" he said as he smiled.

"Hmm." Wallace grabbed the scepter plunged into him. The guy tried to wrestle it free, but Wallace's hand clamped onto it.

"How the hell did you get this strong this fast?" he asked, surprised.

"It's not for you to know," he answered as he raised his hand. Part of the truck behind him dented, and sharp spikes were formed from the truck.

Within just a second, the body of the guy was riddled with another hole as metals crisscrossed and nailed him to the ground. The earth underneath him rolled, moving him back, making him narrowly dodge the second scepter.

The second guy rushed towards him, but "Boom" air exploded around him, lacerating his body. The guy was thrown back as he tumbled on the ground.

Earth rose from underneath Wallace, turning into the shape of a bullet as he directed it towards the guy, blowing a hole up in his body. But he found out that no matter how much he tried, the bullet just passed the orb on his chest as if it had never been there.

Within just a second, the second guy lost his ability to move. Wallace's eyes turned pitch black while black ink-like tendrils extended from his body and plunged into the body of the two.

"What's this?" they panicked as they tried to wrestle themselves free, but there was nothing they could do as they felt weaker, the power of their soul being absorbed.

"What are you?" one of them asked weakly.

"Why do you want to know?" a cold voice came out of his mouth.

"You will be found, and you will be killed," the second one said fearfully.

He could tell that the essence of his soul was being absorbed, and he would face true extermination.

"Just shut up and go die," he said coldly, and the last essence of their soul was absorbed, and they faced true extermination.

The tendrils behind him floated in the air as he felt pure, warm essence enter his body, strengthening his body.

"Pa, Pa" his bones creaked as they turned more dense and stronger. Faint, dark runic symbols appeared on the bones.

His right chest continued to beat fast as warm essence also flowed out from the orb into every part of his body, complementing the essence from the two, strengthening his body.

His muscles tore apart and regenerated while his skin tore apart and regenerated. The evolution continued for some time before it finally ended.