(Kyle's POV) :
"10 months?" I repeated. My voice was deeper than I remembered. Then I asked, "Why do you look like a mass of translucent light?"
Abeloth replied, "You can see it now, can't you? It is Aether. This is not my real body. It is made of pure Aether containing a fragment of my soul."
I was shocked hearing that. "Then where is your real body?"
"It is imprisoned at the deepest floor of this Abyss," Abeloth said.
"This isn't the end of the Abyss?" I asked.
"No, boy. This is just the first floor. There are 100 floors."
I didn't know what to say. I thought this was the bottom. I thought I was already as deep as I could go. But there were ninety-nine more floors below me.
Suddenly remembering something, I tried to find Aether in my own body. I closed my eyes and focused. I could feel the same translucent light in my body. It was circulating through my body and was coming from a space inside my chest.
I was confused so I asked Abeloth. He replied, "That is the Aether Space, just like the mana space the humans have."
Aether Space. I closed my eyes to sense it. It was around the size of a river.
Then I asked Abeloth at what level I was compared to an awakened human.
He replied, "You are at a C-rank if compared to a human. But you possess Aether while humans possess mana. Aether is the primal energy upon which this world is built, while mana is just a part of Aether."
"If Aether is the primal energy," I said, "then a C-rank in Aether is stronger than a C-rank in mana, right?"
"That is right," Abeloth replied. "You can compare a drop of Aether to a bucket of mana."
"Then can I expand my Aether space in the future?" I asked, looking at the river of aether inside me.
"Yes," Abeloth replied. "But first, let me teach you how to use the Aether. Having that much aether is useless if you do not know how to use it."
Hearing how to use it, I remembered Sylvie. When she had just awakened as a Legend rank and did not know how to use it, she still stood in front of me. A sense of longing filled me.
Abeloth spoke, bringing my thoughts together. "Boy, do you know humans have an affinity towards an element with their awakened mana?"
"Yes, I know," I said. I remembered what I had seen in the church, but I never got to know Sylvie's affinity because the crystal ball shattered.
"And do you know that each element has its own God who blesses humans with that element?"
"Yes, I also know that."
I remembered how, when Cyrus had shown his S-rank and fire element, the Archbishop said he was blessed by the God of Fire. On remembering those thoughts, a deep-seated hatred bloomed in my chest. I haven't forgotten the humiliation and their words. I know I can only wash it away with their blood.
"Hey boy, I am explaining things here. Why are you getting lost in thought?"
Hearing him, I suppressed my rage and said, "Sorry."
"It is fine," Abeloth rumbled. "But focus. Just like the Gods, I have also given you an element."
"I don't feel it," I said.
Abeloth replied, "When you know how to use Aether, you will also be able to use it." He continued, "The element I gave you is called Chaos."
"Chaos?" I asked. "What element is that? I have heard about fire, water, earth, wind, thunder, light, dark, ice, wood, life, battle, sun, moon, and many others. But I have never heard of Chaos."
The dragon replied with a proud voice, "It is only natural, because that is my element and only I can use it. This element is formed by combining the seven fundamental elements: fire, water, earth, wind, thunder, light, and dark."
"Is it even possible to combine elements?" I asked.
"For humans, no. And not even for the Gods except some. That is why I was once feared by the Gods," he said in a proud voice.
I thought about asking more but restrained myself. My main priority now was growing stronger.
Then Abeloth said, "Follow my guidance. I will first teach you how to enhance your body with Aether."
As he said that, he sent a ball of glowing light toward me. It entered the space between my eyebrows and many images appeared in my mind. I followed the instructions, and the next moment, Aether entered every part of my body.
I felt a massive surge of power. My muscles tightened and my senses sharpened. But a second later, the power suddenly vanished. My legs gave out and I fell to the ground panting.
"Very good boy, now repeat this hundreds of times until you can hold it for hours," Abeloth said.
I nodded and was about to start when I found myself very hungry. I asked the question I had wanted to ask. "Um, how am I alive for 10 months without any food or water?"
Abeloth replied, "It is because of Aether, boy. Because you now have Aether, you do not need food and water for survival, but you will still feel hungry."
I was hungry, but there was no food here and I couldn't eat those monsters. So I ignored my hunger and started training.