Splash!
Splash!
Splash!
Three people surfaced from the water at the same time, taking deep breaths and stabilizing their minds.
Rose, Ruyue, and Elena completed their time in the Lunar River after five minutes. It was an astounding amount of time when compared to the average.
Still, this time came with consequences.
It took them several moments to reorient themselves.
After all, they also saw the Severed World's Universal Law.
Damien could only handle it because he was familiar with the concept. When the girls were shown the same sight, their spiritual worlds were shaken terrifically.
It made sense why people were crippled. Even they were almost crippled in the first few seconds.
The pressure of the grand truth influenced their minds almost to the point of breaking them, but they'd managed to survive.
Their gains were matched by an equal amount of disorientation that made them unable to distinguish whether reality was truly real or not.
Whoosh!
A light wind blew past their faces, and a calming flow of mana surrounded them, warming their bodies.
Their eyes opened slowly as their minds cleared, and Damien's figure was the first thing they saw.
He smiled warmly and looked between them.
"How was it?" He asked.
The girls smiled back happily and took his help to pull themselves out of the river.
"It was great. That woman really has a habit of downplaying these areas," Ruyue said first.
"I didn't expect to make so much progress on a path I just discovered. This place is really spectacular," Rose added.
Elena nodded as well.
Damien's gains couldn't be used as a basis for what one could do in the Lunar River.
It was his fault for attempting to grasp the most extreme possible concept he could.
For these three women who focused on what they were best at and tried diligently to move themselves towards Divinity, the results were marvelous.
Ruyue and Elena were already at a point where they nearly embodied their elements, but this effect was even more pronounced now.
And Rose…well, Rose's achievement was more subtle, but the connotations were far greater than anyone could imagine.
'Zara is still in my shadow and Isla went back into Elena's companion space, so the only one left is…'
Her body silently arrived at the riverside as Damien had the thought, and she calmly stepped out, already dry.
"This is the end of our cooperation," Sia said, not wasting a single second.
Damien smiled wryly.
"I don't know why you'd hire us if you're so happy to get away from us, but it is what it is," he responded with a shrug.
Sia glanced at him expressionlessly before shaking her head.
"It was a pleasant experience. I would not have made such progress with such efficiency if not for your aid."
"Yeah, yeah. Your flattery skill is just as interesting as your laws. I'm almost curious about who you are outside of this place."
"After taking so much from me, you're still curious?"
"Please watch your phrasing. I'm a married man, you know?"
"Yes, I think it's quite obvious."
Damien grinned slightly.
It was the most interaction they'd had since they met, so he was a bit surprised by her willingness to talk.
"Well, I guess we both got what we wanted, so I'll call this a successful cooperation as well," he said, reaching his hand out.
Sia glanced at it and frowned slightly, turning away without shaking it.
"There are only 3 opponents remaining, but each of them has extreme strength. Do not disappoint me and die in your journey."
With those words, she vanished entirely, as if she never existed in the first place.
She came and went like a passing wind, and her presence held the same fragility, yet, the vagueness of her existence only made her more interesting.
It was a brief interaction that was almost nonexistent in the hearts of those who experienced it, but for some reason, it managed to find a small place for itself.
Just like that strange woman named Sia.
Damien turned to the girls and smiled.
"I guess she actually did care about us."
"Us? Or you?" Elena asked suspiciously.
"Um…us, probably?"
"Pfft…!"
Rose suppressed a giggle and rolled her eyes.
"It's never us and you know it."
Damien shook his head in defeat.
At least in this situation, he could be sure that wasn't the case.
Plus, he was a loyal man!
I'm suddenly remembering Rose's claim from all those years ago that I could have eight wives…'
He shuddered at the thought.
'…being young was nice. Now that I've experienced it, I'd definitely die if I had eight women.'
The group continued bantering, with Damien doing his best to divert the topic, as they started their journey up the mountain.
As Sia said, there were three beasts remaining.
Damien already went and checked each one of them, assessing the best course of action.
And truthfully…there wasn't one.
The Thunder Demon Crow, the Imperious Flame Eagle, and the Pegasus.
Every single one of them had the strength of a 4th class being, and while two of them were defined by their elements, unlike the lesser beasts of the realm, they'd managed to understand the importance of these traits.
'The Severed World's Universal Law edges closer to completeness from this point forth. It's almost as if…'
Damien's eyes narrowed.
'…I'm looking forward to our meeting.'
Refocusing on the current situation, he told the girls what he knew about their coming opponents so they could choose which one to fight first.
Regardless, they'd have to pass through the territory of one of these beasts.
The next 200 kilometers of the mountain's height was divided horizontally rather than vertically.
The three kings lived on three different sides of the peak, occupying equal space.
'The problem is that Sia said we still have 3 to face. It won't be as easy as it looks.'
The Pegasus was not an option from the start.
Its power was too mysterious, and since it came down to start the Ascension Ceremony, its relationship with the Cloud Emperor couldn't be shallow.
From the other two, the choices were flames and lightning, two of the most popular elements in the universe.
"If we have to pick between the two, the answer is obviously flames."
At least Ruyue had an elemental advantage against the eagle. Against the raven, their group would only find pain!
"But can we even do it? That's a 4th class being. Even if we were the best geniuses in the universe, taking down a 4th class at 2nd class would be impossible," Rose said.
It was an undeniable truth that they were in over their heads…
…or was it?
Damien grinned.
"Don't worry about it. We have to pass through its territory to reach the peak, but who said we had to fight it?" He said.
The girls made expressions of confusion, making his grin widen.
"Haha, let's just say that we have a lot more options than we used to."
5 minutes was a long time.
While the girls stayed in the Lunar River, a genuinely insane plan came to Damien's mind.
'I really don't try to make enemies, but…'
…once again, he was going to make the Severed World very, very angry.
