Alistair awoke to a strange, warm sensation on the back of his hand, part of his soul stirring, as magic brushed against it. His eyes shot open, and he immediately noticed Riseth sitting up beside him, inspecting her own hand with the same urgency.

  Glancing down at his own hand, Alistair took a moment to process the sight. A third petal had formed on the back of his hand, its faint glow unmistakable—someone had completed a challenge worthy of Nivareth’s recognition.

  Without hesitation, he made an open call through the Akashic Link. “Simon, what happened? Did you complete one of Nivareth’s challenges?” he asked aloud, ensuring Riseth could hear as they both waited for an answer.

  After a moment’s pause, Simon’s voice came through the Akashic Link.

  “It wasn’t me,” he said, his tone tinged with curiosity. “I’m checking with the others."

  Alistair rubbed his eyes while Riseth stretched, but they were both eager to find out who had managed to complete one of the challenges and how. They didn't have to wait long till his mothers' distressed voice came through a leadership call. "This damn Realm took Clio!"

  Alistair’s worry spiked immediately, and he called out through the Akashic Link, "Mom, what’s going on? Who is Clio?"

  His concern was echoed by many others asking similar questions, though thankfully, the staggered communication kept the link manageable and understandable.

  There was a moment of hesitation before his mother began to speak, her words tumbling out in a ramble until she calmed herself enough to explain. "I entered a trial and saved a baby beast from being killed. The trial had extreme time compression, and the challenge was to raise the Juvenile Celitar to the point where it could survive on its own."

  "Wait—how long were you in that trial?" James asked, his voice tinged with concern.

  "Roughly two years," his mother replied. Then, with sudden realization, she asked, "How much time has passed here?"

  A brief pause followed before Nessyra’s calm voice broke through. "You were last seen in Nivareth about a week ago. We couldn’t contact you, but we knew you were fine based on our karmic connections."

  "Only a week?" His mother’s voice carried a mixture of shock and disbelief. "I was gone for so long, and it was only a week?"

  "Mom, why didn’t you store it away or keep it as a summon?" Alistair asked.

  "I couldn’t," his mother replied firmly. "The realm prevented me from taking it as a summon or storing it. And leaving would have meant abandoning Clio to die."

  Alistair grimaced. He knew his mother would never have abandoned a helpless creature if she could help it. He wondered if Nivareth had designed the trial as a test—whether it was to challenge their clan as a whole or to evaluate her commitment to her path of nurturing specifically. Either way, he was certain she must have earned some absurd title after spending two years in the trial and successfully obtaining one of the lotus petals.

  "You said Nivareth took Clio," Nessyra interjected carefully. "Did it convert the Celitar into the lotus petal?"

  No," his mother said anxiously. "Clio was swallowed by the wall of fog just after she managed to hunt her first Noxotan."

  "Not to worry then," Nessyra replied calmly. "Clio is still alive, and you should be able to claim her as a reward from Nivareth’s depths. I already sent Zarrias a message to find you and transfer the scales we had stored—it should be enough to get her back. Though, a Fey Dragon might be expensive."

  "I don’t think I need it. I have two years’ worth of scales," came the quick reply.

  "Also, Fey Dragon?" her mother repeated, sounding confused. "She grew some antlers and was long like a Chinese dragon, but she looks more like a weasel than a dragon. And she doesn’t have a dragon heart."

  "Fey Dragons come in many forms," Dexter interjected, his tone shifting into a lecturing cadence. "While the most well-known subspecies resemble frogs or lizards with butterfly wings, others have vastly different appearances. They’re often classified as demi-dragons and are only recognized as true dragons once they develop dragon hearts through evolution."

  He sounded as if he were quoting directly from a textbook, clearly drawing from his Akashic Bestiary skill.

  Alistair, despite the distance, felt his mother’s relief resonate through their karmic connection. Her voice, trembling with emotion, came through the Akashic Link moments later.

  "Thank you," she said, her tone almost cracking. "I thought I lost her for a moment."

  Alistair smiled, relieved that things had worked out, but his attention shifted when he noticed Riseth’s thoughtful expression.

  “What’s on your mind?” he asked.

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  Riseth perked up, a small smile forming on her lips. “Oh, it’s nothing, really. It’s just…” She paused briefly, as if debating whether to continue. “We do seem to interact with and pick up a lot of dragons.”

  Alistair considered it for a moment before shrugging. “It’s not like that’s a bad thing. My mother lacked a true summon of her own anyhow.”

  "Yes, but that can’t be normal," Riseth countered, curiosity lacing her tone. "Why haven’t we come across any phoenixes? Well… besides the one that kicked your ass in the Ascendant tournaments?"

  Alistair frowned at the memory, making a mental note to check whether Zathen, the phoenix in question, was part of the Coalition or perhaps had their own bounty. He suspected, however, that the phoenix was likely a member of one of the countless natural factions.

  “There are fewer subspecies of phoenixes,” Alistair said thoughtfully. “And wyverns are a lot more common and diverse than Roc species. But…” He paused, his expression contemplative. “I do see your point, though.”

  “Maybe we’re overthinking it?” Riseth suggested. “Draconic races are quite common, and the higher they get in grade, the more of them evolve into dragons. I wouldn’t be surprised if our own evolutions become draconic.”

  Alistair hummed in agreement. He had considered that possibility before. However, aside from the early stages of creating a dragon heart and his summon being a dragon, he didn’t have many draconic influences that would directly shape his upcoming evolution. Still, the thought lingered in the back of his mind.

  "I don’t think you’ll evolve into a dragon. Demons have plenty of higher-tier species, and you’ve got very little in the way of draconic influences." Alistair smirked, a teasing glint in his eyes. "Though I do have some influences. Do you think you could still love me if I grew a tail and got all scaly?"

  Riseth arched an eyebrow, her tail unfurling from her waist. With a flick, she waved it in front of his face, mimicking the gesture of wagging a finger as if to say seriously? Then, leaning in and wrapping her arms over his shoulders, she murmured, "I’d love you even if you grew another head," before planting a kiss.

  Alistair returned the kiss passionately but pulled back with a playful smile. "Are you sure? A second head?"

  The look Riseth gave him left no room for doubt—if he ever actually chose an option involving multiple heads, she would kick his ass. Her tail traced a slow, deliberate line across her neck, mimicking a slit throat.

  They both laughed as they got up from the bed, the ongoing chatter of their family still filtering through the Akashic Link, though they had relegated it to the background. Discussions about what his mother had been up to and the rewards and titles she had earned continued to buzz faintly, keeping the link lively. Alistair and Riseth only half-listened, with just a fraction of their focus processing the ongoing conversation.

  That changed when his mother casually revealed her new level. “I am currently at level 189. At some point, I killed so many beasts within that subspace that they stopped giving me experience. But I still gained a lot from raising Clio and working on my skills. It wasn’t an ideal environment, though—the time compression seemed to stifle my record gains exponentially as time progressed. Even so, considering it’s only been a week of real-time, I still got a lot out of it.”

  Alistair’s heart skipped a beat at her initial words, but the mention of the exponential decrease in record gains gave him pause. A subspace functioning like a literal hyperbolic time chamber still sounded incredible for skill development. Still, it seemed there were limitations on how much one could truly gain from such an experience.

  Alistair blinked as he received another group call from Nessyra, this time including only him and Riseth.

  “I know you might have had plans for today,” Nessyra began, her tone carrying a note of hesitation, “since it’s the last day before the big-ticket items are being auctioned off. But an old acquaintance of ours has requested a meeting. My schedule is far too packed to fit him in, so I was hoping you two could handle it instead.”

  Riseth groaned audibly. "After yesterday’s discussions, I don’t think I have the patience for any formal meetings," she said, though her curiosity got the better of her. "When you say an acquaintance, who are you talking about?"

  "Sol reached out," Nessyra replied. "He’s here, participating in the auction."

  "What the hell?" Alistair blurted. "Can natural gods like him just up and leave their realms?"

  "Of course, they can," Nessyra said with a hint of amusement. "Did you think he was trapped in his own realm?"

  Alistair shrugged, even though Nessyra couldn’t see him. "I just haven’t seen any natural gods wandering around—or sensed them, for that matter."

  "They can hide their presence remarkably well, considering how powerful they are," Nessyra explained. "Though I imagine quite a few natural gods who don’t care about hiding their presence will show up for the auctions soon enough."

  "Unless he told you what he wishes to talk about, I’m not that keen on meeting with him," Alistair said, his tone skeptical. "He’s doubtlessly going to try and involve us in Earth's conflicts somehow."

  There was a brief pause before Nessyra responded, "You are correct, but it might be worth the trouble."

  Alistair exchanged a hesitant glance with Riseth, who wore an equally dubious expression. "Alright, let’s hear it," he said finally.

  "He’s gotten wind of our attempts at obtaining a bone garden," Nessyra began. "He claims to know the location of one, but it’s held by a hostile faction of cultivators he’s currently at war with."

  Alistair let out a groan, gripping the bridge of his nose. Part of him wanted to reject the suggestion outright.

  "He mentioned that the faction in question is irredeemable," Nessyra continued, her tone darkening. "They utilize slaves in a bastardized form of dual cultivation, turning them into cultivation furnaces. The process burns up the slaves’ life force over time, eventually killing them in an excruciatingly drawn-out manner, utilizing the tortured souls in their necromantic practices."

  Alistair and Riseth’s expressions grew grim. They knew exactly what she was describing. During the trial, both had encountered manuals detailing that particular form of dual cultivation. It was unmistakably part of the demonic path within the cultivation system, a vile practice that tainted the practitioner’s soul thoroughly and permanently in exchange for power. They had dismissed the technique outright, appalled by its cruelty and irreversible consequences.

  "Can you verify his claims?" Riseth asked, steel in her voice.

  "I can, and I did," Nessyra replied. "Though he said he would prefer to discuss the details of the request in person. From what I’ve managed to confirm—and with the help of the Beshin clan’s spies—his claims hold up. The Beshin have also expressed interest in assisting with the eradication of the Everrest Sect."

  "Why do all these factions have to be so comically evil?" Alistair growled, frustration evident in his tone.

  Riseth shook her head. "I don’t know why you’re always surprised by that. People on Earth constantly did seriously fucked-up things to each other for money and power."

  Alistair frowned but gave a reluctant nod. "Fair." He let out a long breath. "Guess it’s time to have another meeting with Sol."