Chapter 2019: The Cost of Free Will. "What is this?" Felberta questioned with a curious look on her face as she stared at the 1000-meter-tall crystalline tower. It shined with soft light that changed colors. Inside the tower, there was a glowing hourglass. The sand inside it sparkled like stars, but it never ran out. The hourglass turned on its own, always slow and steady, like the heartbeat of time. Its surface was smooth, but if someone looked closely, they would see thousands of complex tiny Runes and Glowing Geometries that seemed almost impossible to even comprehend, let alone replicate. *Picture* Yes, Felberta, using her Power of Genesis, tried more than once, but every single time, she missed the mark by more than a few strokes. Even when she tried to picture the entire thing in her mind, she couldn’t get the entire thing correct. To make things worse? These complex Runes shifted every heartbeat. Yes, a heartbeat. In Nux’s Universe, Shadow’s heartbeat had replaced the unit of time. This was done to strengthen the concept of linkage between Time and Emotions. While every being in the Universe has their own Personal Time, the Universal Time needed a structure as well. A structure that Shadow, as the Soul of the Universe, decided to become. Yes, for Shadow, the Universal Time was her Personal Time. She could manipulate it just like others could manipulate their Personal Time, just that in her case, once she manipulates the Time, the entire Universe will be affected by it—even Nux and his wives. If Shadow so wanted, thousands of years in Nux’s Universe could pass within seconds, just that no one in the Universe would realize it since they would be living through that time like they normally would. Why was Shadow chosen for this? There were several factors: She was the First Goddess of the Universe, the Soul of the Universe, plus, her powers depended on Nux, so she didn’t have to cultivate. Her ’Time’ was the most stable. Anyways, as mentioned, the Runes and Geometries changed with every heartbeat, and every change was completely different than before, making it impossible for one to copy them. "It is a Time Anchor." Nux answered with a light smile. "What are those Runes?" Felberta asked another question. Nux, however, shook his head. "You will not understand. These Runes are what allow the Time Anchors to function. You need to understand the concept of the Universe’s Time to get the answer to your question." "Is that why I cannot replicate it?" "Mhm." Nux nodded, and Felberta just sighed. "What does it do? This Time Anchor?" Rune questioned, curious. "Emotions are unstable. Linking Time with Emotions may be a novel concept, but it comes with its own share of troubles. The biggest one being losing oneself. A Time Anchor prevents that." Nux answered, and the women just stared at him with deadpan looks on their faces—clearly, they had no clue what this man was talking about. Nux knew that, so he chuckled and then continued, "There are times when people’s emotions are too strong for them to have any control over—a mother grieving her lost child, lovers kissing each other for the first time, a Hero being betrayed by the very people he protected all his life. It is easy to lose one’s sense of Personal Time during these moments. There might even be a case where beings might stretch their Personal Time for eternity and lose themselves entirely. The Time Anchor constantly emits a stream of Universal Time, which gives it the power to forcefully level one’s Personal Time to the Universal Time. When a being is lost in his own Personal Time, he can be brought near the influence of a Time Anchor, and the lost being can be recovered." "Ah..." The women nodded at the explanation. "Of course, it has other important roles too. It will act like the Universal Time Beacon. Negotiations where every being needs to be on the same ’Time’ and no being is allowed to use their Personal Time for whatever reasons can be held under the influence of Time Anchors." "Wait... Anchors? You will make more than one?" "Of course. I have limited its sphere of influence; else there will be no point in having different Times. One Anchor would have about a 10-kilometre-long influence." "That’s quite small." Astaria muttered. "There will be a Time Anchor every 1,000,000 square kilometres." "Still, don’t you think the sphere of influence is too small?" "I made it that way. I do not want the people to be too heavily reliant on the Time Anchors." "And who will have the authority over the Time Anchors?" Aeliana questioned with a curious look on her face. Right now, Nux’s Universe barely had any living beings. There were quite a few ’half beings’ that he got from devouring the worlds, but they were just that—half beings. They do not count. Nux didn’t even have 100 Complete Beings. However, once Nux gathers all the remaining Primordial Energies, his Universe would become capable of giving birth to its own people. Once that happens, eventually, those beings will gather together, civilization will be born. There will even be the rise and fall of dynasties, So Aeliana was curious what role would these Time Anchors play in all this. But... "Who cares?" Nux shrugged. "What...?" "I created what was meant to stabilize my Universe. How the beings of my Universe use my creation, I do not care. I have no intention of involving myself with them. I will give them complete control. Or a Free Will, as they call it." Nux smiled lightly, and Aeliana, who could tell what he was thinking, narrowed her eyes. "You want them to go to wars to have monopoly over the Anchors." "If that is what Free Will leads to, so be it. It will be the Cost of Free Will." Nux shrugged. "As I said, I will not interfere with my people. That would be no different than ruling over them through might. I might as well enslave them and force them to live how I want them to." "..." Aeliana turned silent. She felt that this was wrong, but at the same time... It was not...? She felt... confused. As he glanced at her, Nux chuckled, "Though I do have another interesting feature." He spoke up.