Gabriel's control over the Law of Space is impressive and the six of them were traveling at an unbelievable speed through The Ocean of a Thousand Wonders.
There was a crystal sphere containing the group and was protecting them. This was a high-level application of the Law of Space that was constructed by the Second Prince through the compression of space around them.
The sphere was very thin, and yet its defensive might was amazingly high. And that was not all since the momentum of it was constantly increasing, along with its speed, making the kinetic energy it was generating soar.
Zatiel was surprised by the high level of law comprehension that Gabriel was displaying despite being so young and having no help from a bloodline. It was clear he has great talent and was hard working.
The route the Second Prince took was a straight one. Whenever there were storms or some other type of phenomenon in their path, the sphere just pierces through them and break everything with its might.
The crystal sphere remained very high in the sky for a long part of the journey when all of a sudden it descended until it was less than a couple of thousands of meters from the ocean surface.
The group was surprised by Gabriel's action but soon they got an answer when they hear an explosion so loud that seems like if the sky was falling apart. A fight between incredibly powerful life forms was happening above them.
However, before Heinz and the rest could start to feel happy about distancing from that apocalyptic battle, from the ocean an octopus tentacle appears right in front of them.
It was so wide and long that covered the sun and filled the group with shadows.
Unlike what they thought it will happen, Gabriel did not slow down or changed the trajectory of the crystal sphere.
The energy of the Second Prince rises and spatial cracks started to appear around the sphere. This made its offensive might reach a whole new level.
The gargantuan tentacle did not remain still and like a whip, it slashes at the group, making gales form around it.
When the tentacle and the crystal sphere clashed against each other a shock wave that created a vacuum in the ocean was generated.
The sphere stopped for an instant before the spatial cracks managed to destroy the skin of the tentacle, allowing the sphere to pierce it.
A roar of fury was heard from the bottom of the ocean but the sphere did not stop after piercing the tentacle and before this one could attack again, the sphere disappeared into the distance.
Gabriel was not willing to truly fight against that magic creature since he had to protect the group he was traveling with.
The shockwave that their clash produced was enough to disintegrate a Peak Rank 3 life form at a molecular level. And those strikes were not anywhere near the strongest attacks the magic creature or the Magus could display.
After a couple of minutes, the sphere raised once again into the sky and the rest of their journey went pretty uneventful.
It was only when they reached the shore that the energy on the Magus subsided and the crystal sphere disappeared.
"We have reached the land controlled by the Aeternum Empire, I will leave now. You can use the tablet that I gave you to contact me, even if we are in different worlds, but I may take a long time to respond. When I train or during an important mission, I don't pay attention to my tablet." Gabriel's face was calm as he spoke and it seems that this travel and the encounter with that magic creature did not have any effect on him.
"Thank you for your help and please tell your Royal Father that I will visit him and thank him in person when I reach Rank 4." Zatiel has a very good impression of the Second Prince.
Gabriel nods and concentrates the power of space inside his body before disappearing. Now that he did not have to worry about anyone else, his speed was much greater.
Zatiel did not waste time and once they were alone he made two crystals appear, one for Totto and the other for Zitra.
"In the crystals is the information about how to remove the curse in the Hand of Sorrow and the Eye of Despair, and the information about the Path of Gods necessary to handle the problem with the dagger."
The duo took the crystal and was very happy but they remained silent while waiting for further instructions.
The next person Zatiel focus was on Heinz.
"We will go to the Daybreak Magic Tower and I will help you gain control over the Blood Ruby Centipede so you can fuse it into your body. After that, I will focus on my Rank Spell.
We will all gather in the Sinux Magic Tower after I have reached Rank 3 and we will come back to the Beta Heavenly World so we can initiate our second expansion."
Everyone understood their task. Totto and Zitra headed to their magic tower and Heinz covers Zatiel and Sophia with his consciousness before teleporting.
....
In an underground level of the Daybreak Magic Tower where the Elder Brain resided, there were two people facing a red centipede that was caged in a transparent box and who has a rune on his forehead.
The Blood Ruby Centipede was looking with hostility at Heinz and Zatiel. Apprehension could be seen in his eyes when he focuses on the small device that the last one had in his hand.
"I am Zatiel and he is Heinz. What is your name?" Zatiel face was expressionless and it seems as if he did not notice the anger in the magic creature's eyes.
Just like any other life form, as magic creatures grew stronger and advance in the Ranks their intelligence also grows so Zatiel knew that the Blood Ruby Centipede could understand him perfectly and also speak.
There was anger in the eyes of the centipede. He is a Rank 5 life form yet he is now someone's property and due to the rune on his forehead, he cannot escape and neither kill himself. And worst yet, the device in Zatiel hand can induct in him pain so unbearable he can barely withstand it.
"I am Juntu, Rank 5 Blood Ruby Centipede." Juntu manipulated the air around him to create the sound of those words.
Zatiel saw the behavior of the centipede and he nodded. If it was an obstinate one who did not care about anything, it will be very hard to proceed with his plan.
Magic creatures can also be considered a bloodline race with a Rank of maturity that usually depicts the final stage of their development. There are uncountable different kinds of magic creatures but there are characteristics that most of them present.
Regardless of how high their intelligence grows, they tend to act according to their instinct and display living behavior similar to the rest of their kind. They are fiercely territorial and attack everyone who enters their domains as long the difference in power is not immense.
Their soul and consciousness are weaker than the rest of life form in the same Rank and they find it difficult to fully take advantage of their energy pool.
As for their bodies, they usually are very strong in that aspect but the Blood Ruby Centipedes were different. In a direct battle, their power is equal to a Peak Rank 4 Magic Creature even when they are at Rank 5.
"You will fuse with the body of my brother, where he will use your abilities to condense an individual's blood in order to temper his bones, nerves, and flesh as well as provide him with a second source of energy." Zatiel tone made clear that there was no form of rejection allowed.
Heinz was seeing all of this but he did not interfere. What Zatiel hopes to achieve needs a level of manipulation that he did not possess.
The Blood Ruby Centipede remained silent when he hears this, but the anger in his eyes did not disappear. It grew since he feels humiliated by being used as a tool.
Zatiel did not show anything when he saw the creature's anger and continue to speak.
"You are too strong to be left inside someone's body with just the rune on your head to stop you from rebelling. Therefore you have only two options, first, we corrode your soul and consciousness until you essentially become a puppet and your body becomes a prison from which you will never be able to escape. This will affect the system of strengthening I have in mind but we will have complete control over you." Zatiel eyes were emotionless as he spoke.
When the Blood Ruby Centipede hears those world he feels afraid. What Zatiel described was a hell worst than any torture he could imagine.
"What is the second choice?" Juntu rage diminished greatly and now fear could be seen in his eyes.
When he hears him speak, Zatiel aura changed completely and a friendly smile appeared on his face.
"You join us as a companion and become a Soul Guardian Beast. That will create a symbiotic relationship between you and Heinz. If you betray him, you will die before you can harm him and if he intends to betray you, his soul will be severely harmed."
