Chapter 1,405 – Sevona yet not Sevona

“Couldn’t you have given me a pillow too? That’s the least a benevolent master ought to do,” Zac muttered as he took in the surroundings.

The Hall of Abundance had undergone a drastic transformation. The hanging moon was gone, replaced by a tranquil night sky. There was no trace of the dimensional tear or August, for that matter. Idiche was floating where the Divine Core once hung, her eyes closed in meditation. Her energy fluctuations were already approaching Late C-grade, and there was a good deal of Sevona’s divinity in the mix. As shocking as it seemed, Idiche had advanced a whole major grade in half a day, and her aura was still climbing.

“How is she?” Zac asked in a low voice.

“It seems stable. She quickly got things under control after you closed the doorway,” Esmeralda sighed. “It shouldn’t be much longer.”

It took a moment for Zac to deduce the mix of emotions on Esmeralda’s face and a while longer to understand the reason behind them. Esmeralda was looking at the meditating Idiche with longing and jealousy. It wasn’t because the Vice Guild Leader got her hands on the ultimate treasure of the trial, an item holding the aura of a Stellar Wanderer. In some sense, Idiche was returning to her origin, becoming the Goddess Sevona.

Wasn’t Esmeralda’s goal in coming all this way the same? She was essentially watching someone else live her dream.

“We’re almost there. I’d be surprised if I’m not directly promoted to an Inner Disciple after this mission. And we’ve got plenty of Potentiality already,” Zac comforted.

It was no exaggeration. The tally on his Disciple Token had skyrocketed to 29,171 since he checked last time, and Zac had a feeling there’d be a final payout when Idiche finished her transformation. There might even be a bonus waiting for him when the dust settled.

“I know, I know,” Esmeralda nodded before throwing over the [Fuxi Mountain Gate]. “Here, don’t forget your head basher.”

Zac tsked with annoyance upon failing to pour Mental Energy into the opening. The Void Treasure was back to normal, and it felt noticeably sturdier than before. Things had been hectic by the end, but Zac was certain it had absorbed a hefty amount of Void Energy at the end. Most likely, there’d been a gap of nothingness between dimensions that leaked into August’s gate.

The influx should have helped the [Fuxi Mountain Gate] fix some of its damage. However, the Void Treasure had also swallowed a huge amount of energy from the Peaks of Fantasy and Continuum. A storm raged within the treasure’s subspace that destroyed Zac’s Mental Threads before he could check out the situation. Zac wasn’t worried that the platform would be damaged—August wasn’t qualified—but it would be a while before he could access it.

Zac chucked the miniature mountain into [Purity of the Void] to let it settle down, at which point he noticed there was already a report waiting from his human half. They’d left Saṃghāta and were back on the Hollow Chasm’s ledges. There’d been some surprises by the exit, but nothing Tavza couldn’t handle. They were still not ready to continue their climb, so they’d created another hideout on the ledge.

The spiritual brush was subdued, and Ogras was quite taken with it. Zac wasn’t surprised. The magical brush appeared to be a mixed-meaning Spirit Tool of Order and Illusions. It didn’t exactly align with the demon’s Daos, but the way Zac used his weapons was by no means the norm. The brush was extremely powerful, and not everyone needed their weapons to be life-long companions.

Even if Ogras couldn’t fully bring out its power, it would serve as a strong complement until he reached Peak Hegemony. After that, he could swap it out for something else. Not having perfectly aligned spirituality was often considered an upside. Many cultivators would intentionally pick up tools with features that complemented their path.

The best piece of news was that the holy flames had spread to his other half, ensuring his bodies remained balanced. Zac sent an update on how things played out on his end, urging them to stay hidden for a day longer. The hunt wasn’t over, and there was still a risk that August was preparing a last-ditch gambit.

“So what happened with that dour fella? Did he and the Centigrade Elemental take each other out like we hoped? There was nothing left when I checked the lobby earlier?” Esmeralda asked, dragging Zac out of his thoughts.

“Something like that,” Zac smiled before describing the chaotic four-way battle.

“So the burst of Continuum I sensed was the Elemental running with his tail between his legs. Serves him right, trying to steal my—ahem—our Potentiality,” Esmeralda laughed. “It should have been the Pryer’s protective arrays, something similar to the marks Old Man Sendor left on you. He’ll hopefully keep himself in check now that it’s gone.”

“Let’s hope so,” Zac agreed.

“And that sage hurried all the way here just to die? He should’ve just stayed on the gondola like he was supposed to,” Esmeralda huffed.

“I think it was Descartes who fished him ahead of schedule,” Zac said.

He still hadn’t forgotten Descartes’ earlier words. Someone had warned him that there’d be more Flamebearers appearing. Zac first thought it was the corrupted invaders or perhaps even the Sangha. Now, he leaned toward it being Xiphos who sent the message. The Enkindling Sage was essentially using Descartes to sound out the “specters,” as he called the real trialtakers. Zac’s triggering the real Empyrean Chalice had exposed the secrets Xiphos sought and more.

“Don’t feel too bad about his sacrifice. It’s no coincidence the Limitless Empire rose to the very peak. Its people were much too enthusiastic in throwing away their lives. How could normal factions with their corrupt officials and internal strife compete?” Esmeralda looked at Zac askance. “And now you’re one of them.”

“I’d like to think of myself as an outside contractor,” Zac said with a wry smile.

“Well, the job you’ve been contracted for is no laughing matter, and you already have enough old monsters gunning for you,” Esmeralda said before perking up. “As expected of my disciple. If you don’t have a dozen Supremacies cursing your name, are you even alive? Just keep running, keep filling your pockets, and everything else will work itself out.”

“On that note, did you find anything while looking around?” Zac asked.

“There’s not so much as a single coin left behind in this wretched place,” Esmeralda complained, suddenly looking physically ill.

Zac sighed. If Esmeralda said there wasn’t anything of note left in the lodge, then there wasn’t. He’d hoped there would be more rewards waiting for them at the end of the hunt. The Potentiality was earned, and Xiphos’ blessing couldn’t really be considered an opportunity.

“At least there are no more enemies,” Zac said as much to comfort himself as the grumpy toad.

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“If there are, they’re stuck outside,” Esmeralda said. “The lodge shut its gates shortly after you knocked yourself out. There’s no blue light shining through the gaps either.”

“Then let’s pray it’s reinforcements waiting on the other side,” Zac mused.

“Whoever it is, I’m sure they’re hanging on the door. I bet they’re dying to know what’s happening in here,” Esmeralda snickered.

The Hall of Abundance grew silent soon after as they focused on recovery. Apart from the stubborn bump, Zac was recovering faster than expected. Part of it could be explained by the lingering effects of Xiphos’s impartment, but Idiche’s warm halo also had a nourishing effect better than any recovery array that Zac had used.

Two hours later, Idiche began releasing steady pulses made of pure divinity. Her transformation was reaching its final stages. Esmeralda’s eyes gleamed as she looked up with anticipation.

“A goddess reborn… She must have some goodies stashed away, don’t you think?”

“If all else fails, we can ask her to create some nice illusions,” Zac whispered while pointing at his C-grade [Mercurial Sack].