While preparations to lay a trap for the culprit responsible for the mysterious disappearances of the Anomaly Hunters quietly progressed within the Realm of Eden.
Far away from all the schemes, conspiracies, and silent battles unfolding there, upon a barren and uninhabited planet drifting through the endless expanse of outer space.
Silence reigned.
The lifeless world possessed neither oceans nor rivers, neither vegetation nor signs of civilization, with nothing but endless stretches of cracked brown earth extending toward the distant horizon beneath a sea of countless stars that illuminated the darkness with an ancient and everlasting radiance.
At the very center of that dead world, Ash remained seated in a lotus position without moving in the slightest.
His breathing had become so slow that several minutes passed between each breath, while even the beating of his heart had become nearly imperceptible, making him resemble a statue that had existed since ancient times.
