Chapter 41: Absolute Purge! Finn nodded, but didn’t step forward immediately. Rather, he waited and observed the shifting and twisting mass up ahead. From all he’d learned from Isis within the short month he spent with her, he knew purging a raw, uncontained chaotic soul mass was totally different from the near-inert soul masses he’d practiced with back at the school. Those had been tethered to special artifacts that could contain the chaotic soul mass without the possibility of it running loose. But here, out in the real world, chaotic soul masses weren’t going to remain still for Ossuarists to purge them. Even without having a true consciousness, soul masses would always instinctively try to survive. Therefore, they were extremely slippery to get a hold of, and that was without even talking about their insane corrosive nature, which was a whole other trouble on its own. Finn let out a low breath, watching the chaotic mass with dead-focused eyes like a predator about to pounce on a prey. He slowly embodied the Crimson Fist Baboon, enhancing his body strength by multiple folds. His quads tightened tautly, primed to launch Finn forward at the slightest notice. A flicker of surprise crossed the faces of his teammates as they watched Finn take his time rather than charge head-first like they expected someone of his... experience, should have. Even the head guard had a solemn look on his face watching Finn’s presence rise dangerously as he enhanced his body. But just as they were still appreciating his level-headedness, Finn abruptly launched forward within a split second, clearing the twenty meter distance between him and the twisting chaotic soul mass in record time. Immediately the soul mass sensed the rapidly closing threat that was Finn’s superior soul, it moved like a phantom in the wind, sharply shuttling away as quickly as it could. But it was too late, Finn had made sure to explode with as much force as he possibly could to cover the first stretch. He was already close enough and immediately reacted to account for the change in the chaotic soul mass’s direction. He switched direction sharply with his fist pounding into the floor to pivot, just like a Baboon, bounding right after the soul mass within a few steps. And with his other hand outstretched in a grabbing motion, he chanted the first words of his ’Soul Purge Edict:’ "Will." Immediately the first word of his edict dropped, the chaotic soul mass trembled, and Finn’s outstretched hand ’grabbed’ onto it as if it were a real, physical entity, holding it in place as its mass shifted and twisted erratically, trying to escape. "Soul Anchor." Finn closed his eyes, grounding himself with those words to prevent his soul from wantonly dispersing its might as it began to radiate its superior density. The words also brought a surge of stability that secured his body, ensuring that the soul mass’s chaotic influence could not corrode him, even as its struggle became more frantic. "Focused Mind." The next words brought clarity to Finn’s mind, filling him with nothing but the thought of purging the chaotic mass right in front of him. Every other thought receded to the background until they were barely even there. His soul essence had begun to spread in a focused manner, heading straight at the chaotic soul mass which was struggling intensely against his hold. "Sense Phasma." Finn’s eyes snapped open and his soul essence latched onto the chaotic soul mass, causing it to fight with everything it had, trying to defend against the invasive force of his superior soul. But it was futile. Finn’s previous chants had laid the groundwork for his attack. His soul was rock solid, spearing forward without stop. "Order." The single word stilled the erratically twisting soul mass instantly like a law. Finn’s soul essence had invaded so deeply into the chaotic soul mass that it had no choice but to comply, allowing Finn to encroach more deeply and with ease. "Bind." At this point, there was nothing left but the inevitable purging. Finn’s soul had forced it into submission in totality. The word only served to allow Finn to freely drop his hand that held the chaotic mass in place, as it now remained still like it was bound by invisible chains. Once Finn felt his superior soul essence fully permeate the chaotic mass, he took in a deep breath then said the next two words softly. "Rend Asunder—" Immediately, the soul that was intertwined with mana as though they were immutable, abruptly separated on the microscopic level. Finn didn’t waste any time. This was the moment that decided whether he failed or not, and he was not about to let his efforts go to waste. With a voice reeking thick with dominance and superiority, he growled the final words of his Soul Edict out: "Absolute Purge!" And like a petrol trail lit on fire, the soul that was briefly rendered asunder — split from the mana it had intertwined with — was burned ruthlessly by Finn’s superior soul. His soul destroyed every last bit of soul essence in the chaotic mass, freeing the mana it had intertwined with back to its natural state. Finn continued unabated, pressing on ruthlessly until he stopped sensing anything — the tell-tale sign that the purge was successful and the corroded mana had fully reverted back to its natural state, which he could no longer sense. It was only then Finn relented. He converged his soul essence back into himself and took a deep, calming breath to stabilize his heightened, excited mental state, closing his eyes in concentration. Finn observed a few seconds of silence, which was also observed by the onlookers — Althea, his teammates, and the head guard, who stood rigid with a visibly conflicted expression. But by the time Finn finally opened his eyes and turned to them, the look was gone from the head guards face, replaced by his usual stoic. The silence was immediately broken by Sian — the sultry, latex-clothed girl. She launched into a full-on round of applause, whooping and cheering with excessive enthusiasm as Finn walked back to them. Even the oiled pervert guy had a brow tilted up slightly as he acknowledged Finn with a different look in his eyes. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚 "Thirteen words in total... Not bad at all," he whistled. The other two teammates also had varying levels of surprise on their faces. They were all genuinely impressed by Finn’s talent as an Ossuarist. All except Althea, who in her usual placid fashion, didn’t show any reaction besides looking at Finn for just a beat longer, before she then faced the head guard. "So, where’s the next outbreak?" The Grade 1 Initiates may have been impressed by Finn’s Soul Purge to the point where they had briefly forgotten the weirdness of the town she had pointed out to them earlier. But not her. She was still every bit as suspicious as she had been since arriving here. And from the ’let’s-get-this-over-with’ tilt to her voice, it seemed she was intent on pushing to the very end to find out what was truly going on...