In that instant, Aceās aura became paradoxicalācalm, commanding, devouring, and endlessly adaptive all at once.
"So, this is Lust... the root of all yearning," He murmured softly. "It isnāt just desire of fleshāitās the desire to fill emptiness. The hunger that births creation and ironically...destruction."
The illusions flickered as cracks spread through them, but the trial wasnāt done yet.
The four women merged, transforming into a radiant beingāhalf angel, half abyssal goddessāwhose presence caused even the fabric of law to hum.
The entity smiled gently and said in a tone filled with intoxicating charm, "You canāt kill what you desire, for you are desire."
However, this time, Ace didnāt fall for it. He closed his eyes, then opened them, a faint smile tugging on his lip as he replied with a sneer, "Then Iāll steal it too..."
Almost instantly, his aura surged. The Law of Sin roared, and new comprehension dawned.
The Law of Lust revealed its three mystic abilities before him, like blooming lotus petals of carnal light.
The first mystic ability was Desire Resonance, which converts any emotional or spiritual desire directed toward oneself into raw power, feeding on attraction, admiration, or obsession.
The second mystic ability was Heart Seduction, which forces a targetās soul into a state of emotional resonance, reflecting their truest desire back at them, ensnaring mind and intent.
Last but not least, the third mystic ability, Nevermore Yearning, which creates a domain where all desire, including love, hate, greed, or passion, collapses into pure energy that obeys the casterās will, annihilating illusions, bindings, or corruption.
The moment these truths solidified, Aceās body shuddered as his aura intertwined with the Law of Lust. The four previous sins bent instinctively to make room for this fifth sin.
He opened his eyes againāutterly serene.
"Lust creates attachment," He whispered. "But I... am beyond attachment."
He raised his hand, and without wasting any time, he muttered, "Nevermore Yearning!"
A ripple of blinding crimson-pink light expanded outward, pure and paradoxical.
Every illusion, every seductive projection, shattered like glass. The entity of desire screamed, dissolving into shimmering motes that turned into threads of law and merged into Aceās soul.
The next moment, the world shattered!
When his senses cleared, he stood once again before the seven pillars. The fifth, Lustās pillar, was now dimmed, its energy seemingly absorbed completely.
Ace exhaled slowly, the aftertaste of warmth still lingering faintly in his mind. Yet, his expression was composed and slightly detached.
Within his inner world, five colored stars now rotated in perfect rhythmāviolet, gold, crimson, green, and pinkāforming a pentagram.
At that moment, he whispered softly, "Sloth restrains, Pride commands, Wrath destroys, Envy adapts... and Lust fuels all creation."
The moment Aceās words faded into the void, the ashen pillar trembled violently. A surge of distorted energy rippled outward, unlike anything before.
The five dimmed pillars behind him flickered faintly in responseāas if warning him that what awaited within this sixth sin was something far beyond the previous five.
This made Ace slightly astounded because it was the first time he received such a reaction, but it was just the start!
The next moment, the ashen light pulsed once, then twice, before erupting. A sound echoed across the obsidian plain; a cacophony of whispers, screams, and laughter all layered together.
The world quaked as black-silver mist surged forth, spiraling upward like a devouring vortex that swallowed even the reflection of the sky.
Aceās eyes narrowed slightly as he muttered while sensing a very familiar sensation and intent, "So this is the trial of...Greed!"
The ground beneath him fractured as that same abyssal mist coiled around his feet like serpents of shadow, and without warning, dragged him downward.
When the darkness lifted, Ace found himself standing on an inverted world.
Black mountains hung upside down in the void above him, dripping liquid shadow. Rivers of molten silver flowed upward, defying gravity.
Countless treasure-laden palaces, each floating midair, shimmered with radiant spiritual lightāmountains of artifacts, spiritual treasures...anything that he could dream of was there and even more so!
It was a world that screamed of excessāa paradise built from hoarded miracles. Yet Ace felt that everything was hollow.
The treasures emitted light, but no warmth. The air shimmered with power, but no life. The Law of Sin that filled this realm was heavy and suffocating like a black hole of craving.
Then, a voice echoed through the still air, deeper, older, and infinitely greedy. "Everything that exists... belongs to me."
Ace turned, and his gaze fell upon a colossal figure rising from beneath the silver rivers, a monstrous silhouette clad in endless chains made of pure law essence.
Its form shifted constantly. One moment humanoid, the next serpentine, then demonic, then celestial. Its countless eyes burned with golden-black hunger.
Its presence was oppressive, its aura boundlessāit was the Embodiment of Greed itself!
The creatureās voice resonated like grinding stone, "You have tasted desire, wrath, pride, envy, and lust. Yet all of them lead to me. I am the end of craving, the devourer of all purpose!"
However, Ace didnāt panic this time, and instead, his lips curved faintly, "Iām very familiar with greed since I often use it against my victims, and Iām also a victim of it. I considered greed as part of myself, I accept it, and acknowledged its allure!"
The being seemed slightly surprised before all of a sudden, laughter boomed, shaking the realm, "Hahahaha...you say you are familiar with greed? But what if I told you that YOU are Greedāevery breath you take, every law you covet is because of Greed! For that, you shall abandon everything that is not greed and become part of Greed as its loyal thrall!"
The instant those words fell, the treasures floating around him began to disintegrate into glowing motes of essence. Each mote darted toward him like fireflies, as if wanting to embed themselves in his body!
However, Ace didnāt resist as he already knew that all of these trials were about accepting the sins and experiencing the worst of them to comprehend their true essence.
As those treasures embedded in his body, he felt power...endless raw power!
It filled himālimitless spirit force, profound law energy, boundless vitality. His cultivation seemed to be surging past every known boundary, past even the King Realm, into realms that mortal comprehension couldnāt even define.
He even felt omnipotent, but then came the whisper, "More!"
The illusion of power turned into thirst. The light became pain. The energy devoured itself, collapsing inward, dragging his will along with it.
Aceās body trembled violently as he realizedāthe more he consumed, the emptier he became.
This was Greedās true nature: a hunger that fed on fulfillment!