"Dad, you're finally here!" Gannala shouted excitedly as she leaped into Inala's embrace. Since he arrived in his male form, it was an indication that he was currently free and away from all prying eyes.
"It took me some time." Inala smiled and patted her, "Aren't you the cutest?"
"Hehe!" Gannala grinned. Currently, they were at their residence built rear of the clothing shop they ran. In this private residence, they didn't have to fear others noticing Inala.
"Are you adjusting well?" Asaeya spoke, wrapping her hands from his back to peek out from above his shoulder, "Do I need to kill Wittral?"
"He's working his ass off for our benefit." Inala smiled and patted her on the head similarly, "How are you faring? Is everything going well here?"
"The only thing lacking is your absence." Asaeya said and dragged him towards the nearby sofa and made him sit there, asking in hope, "When will you reach the 2-Life Stage?"
"A bit less than three years." Inala said, "If I were to build my body any faster, my Spirit Container would be unable to bear the stress and shatter. Otherwise, I have everything necessary to reach the peak quickly."
"Anyway, forget about it." Inala waved his hand and stared at the duo of Gannala and Asaeya, "Have you had dinner?"
"I'll cook up something. Give me a few minutes." Inala said upon seeing them shake their heads. He entered the kitchen and casually took advantage of Lurt's data to make a competent spread.
The trio had dinner while discussing a lot of things. Soon, it was time to leave; Inala grabbed a bundle of fabric he wanted and stared at Asaeya, "I'll leave it to you to guide Wittral."
"Don't worry and do your thing," Asaeya said.
"How are the Zingers behaving?" Inala asked Gannala next.
"Obedient, for now." Gannala nodded, "But they are starting to get hungry. I still have enough resources for the time being, since my biomes are mostly self-sufficient. But both I and the Zingers are growing. So, we'll be needing external replenishment soon."
"How long can you manage on your own?" Inala asked.
"Three months," Gannala said, "After that, I'll have to actively reveal myself in the Northern Lakes to gather resources for my needs."
"Three months," Inala nodded, "That's more than enough to improve my Subtle Terrain Domination to the necessary level."
"We'll begin laying down the underground network after that." Inala said, hugged the duo, and left, "Orakha is already here. The others will begin appearing soon. No matter what, hide yourselves and be safe."
"We will, Dad." Gannala nodded.
"You be careful too." Asaeya stared at him in worry, speaking as she observed his eyes for a moment to comment, "The influence in you is growing stronger. Are you consuming the Influence Easing Elixir?"
"I have already consumed one for each Nature." Inala smiled, "It can't be helped beyond that."
"Stay sane, Inala," Asaeya said as she watched him leave.
"If only things were simple, Dad wouldn't have to risk himself to such an extent," Gannala muttered in a sombre tone.
"Gannala," Asaeya uttered coldly, "You're the Supreme Tusk's successor, right?"
"Yes, undoubtedly." Gannala nodded.
"All its life, the Supreme Tusk fled from the Boar King. To reach the Mystic Grade, it created the seven Mystic Paths." Asaeya analysed, asking in the end, "Then, what about its other objective?"
"Did it devise any plans to kill the Boar King other than leave everything in the hands of Inala and the other six?"
"Hmm…I don't know." Gannala closed her eyes and frowned, "There's still a significant portion of my inheritance that I have yet to comprehend. As the Supreme Tusk's successor, my mind space is exceedingly developed. I can store a volume of inheritance multiple times the other Empyrean Tusks. But my comprehension rate is on the level of an average Empyrean Tusk."
She smiled wryly, "Had my comprehension rate been on par with the Supreme Tusk, I would have finished comprehending the entirety of my inheritance long ago."
"So, did the Supreme Tusk have a plan?" Asaeya asked.
"I don't know," Gannala shook her head, "I have to look further into my inheritance."
"Then do that." Asaeya grumbled, "At present, Inala bears all the burden. He has to take care of your growth, make preparations to face the Boar King, keep guard against his Mystic Path competitors, rein in Wittral, and scheme to rope the Cooter Clan harder against the Boar King. It's too much for one man to bear."
"Then you do something." Gannala shot back, "It's easy to point fingers at others."
"Am I the Deity or you?" Asaeya asked, annoyed, "You're born with the means to make a difference in the grand scheme of things. So, you need to be more proactive."
"In terms of mental maturity, you're already older than me." She made eye contact with Gannala, "So, why don't you think of plans to help him? You've been reading his mind nonstop all along, right?"
"Fine, I'll do it," Gannala grumbled in anger. She then stared at Asaeya, "What are you planning then?"
"Same old," Asaeya let out a smile as she brutally ripped out her left eyeball and crushed it while the sensory nerves were still connected. Ignoring the dripping blood, she revealed a grin in pain as Prana surged to the wound and regenerated the organ, "I'll charge it up as much as I can until the eventual discharge."
Tertiary Nature—Akashic Rupture!
Asaeya took parts of her Primary and Secondary Natures to begin developing her Tertiary Nature, living in the necessary extreme state to eventually build her Tertiary Nature.
Her Primary Nature steals the target's senses in response to losing her own. Her Secondary Nature transfers the recoil to another individual.
Her Tertiary Nature of Akashic Rupture creates a record of all the pain and suffering that Asaeya had been through and becomes armed with that information, gradually developing itself into a Nature. And when she had accumulated enough, Asaeya would consume her life to activate the Tertiary Nature.
When done so, all the records of pain would latch onto the target's Spirit Container and make them experience her pain in a loop. But the rate of time flow for unleashing this pain was one-to-one. Meaning, if Asaeya were to mutilate her eye at a particular point in the afternoon, then the target would experience the same pain only for that duration in the afternoon.
And if she had been gearing the ability for a decade, then the pain delivery looped once a decade. Therefore, the only way to ensure the target lived as much in pain as possible was to constantly mutilate herself.
Thereby, once transferred, the target's life would truly be in hell.
"Dad wouldn't like you doing that." Gannala cursed in response, "Of everything you could have chosen, why did you develop such a suicidal Nature?"
"Five seconds," Asaeya said, "That's how long I'll be able to steal the Boar King's eyesight using all my Prana. "If I were to target five of his senses, then the duration falls to one second."
"And this is for a single body. He could easily swap to another body without issues. Thereby, to theoretically rob him of all his senses stably for at least a few seconds, I would have to prepare at least ten Gold Grade Pranic Beasts on the level of Millingers to assist my Secondary Nature." She said, "That's not realistic. And Gold Grade strength is vital in stopping him. So, there's only one way."
"I'll sacrifice myself and ensure that no matter how many bodies the Boar King switches to, he'll always be subjected to pain, since my Akashic Rupture will code itself into his Spirit Container and feed into the very essence of his Prana." She said, "That's the only way in which someone ordinary like me can support Inala."
"But of course," She laughed, "I won't kill myself until I can at least live with Inala as a family for a few years."
"You know him best," Gannala cursed at Asaeya, "Dad would rather risk everything than put you in danger."
"I know, but why should he alone have that privilege?" Asaeya retorted, "I love him, and I'll do anything to support him."
She then smiled in peace, "If my death can give him an easier life, I'll gladly sacrifice myself."
