Xasha opened his eyes to find two giant women staring at him with interest and expectation. One was the tall and seductive Mylyn, and the other was a little girl in an extravagant golden dress. Xasha was busy enduring the excruciating pain in his head and what felt heat in his bones to be worried too much about their unusual expressions.
The little girl tossed a golden light from her fingertips into his body, then the pain eased almost immediately. He stood to his feet with Ari still cradled in his arm. He was about to thank this strange little girl when he noticed Ari waking up.
"Dad!" She wrapped her hands around Xasha's neck and squeezed him tightly. "It's aunt Tulip. Tulip is in trouble."
Xasha's heart dropped. "Tulip? What do you mean? What did you see?" He moved toward the exit with no prior thought but got blocked by a golden ribbon after only a few steps. The ribbons on the girl's dress could apparently change size and length at will. He stopped and turned to the little girl with a gaze filled with hostility. He didn't care who she was, if she blocked his way again, he wouldn't forgive it.
"What are you doing?" He had no patience.
"What are you doing?" the girl replied in an annoyed tone. "Where do you think you are going with my Master?"
"You're what?" Xasha was confused.
"It's okay dad, I did as you said and Xandria agreed to become my retainer. "
"Your retainer? What do you mean?" The more she explained, the more confused he became.
"Yes, she will train me, protect me, and serve me. She will be loyal and listen to my orders. I can even tap into her powers and use them as my own." She slowly regained her calm. "Don't worry about aunt Tulip, I was just in shock earlier," she got out of her father's embrace and stood to her feet.
"Nothing bad has happened to her, not yet at least. It won't happen for another seven months."
"Seven months?"
"Dad, you're beginning to sound like Bruce."
"Oh, shit. Sorry, it's just that this is a lot to take in. So you can see the future again?"
"Yes, more or less, I'll have to wait and see just how much of my abilities I got back. The visions I saw just now were much clearer and there are fewer flashes of random events, which is good."
"Since we know something will happen to Tulip, why don't we go find her now to back her up when the time comes?" Xasha was still concerned about his beloved disciple. Plus, Eloise was with her Verra would kill him if he put her in danger.
"She will be fine for the time being. A lot of good things will happen to her between now and then. There are also a few hardships that she will have to overcome. Those aren't anything she can't handle. I can see why you didn't tell anyone about her whereabouts." Ari turned to Xandria and Mylyn, who shuddered under her gaze. " For now, we need to talk with these two."
"Dad, this is Xandria, Xandria, this is my father, Xasha." Ari walked over to Xandria as she spoke. She stepped on one ribbon and Xandria brought Ari to stand on her shoulder.
"Greeting to you, Xasha, father of my Lady Ari Ella." Xandria gave Xasha a polite bow.
Xasha looked at Mylyn. "Don't look at me. I will never sign such a contract with you."Mylyn ruthlessly dismissed him before he even asked. " I told you before, you are not the one. But, I will help you in a capacity that I was not willing to help you in before as you have just now proven yourself worthy."
"I have?" Xasha wondered aloud.
"Check your body," Mylyn said casually.
Xasha checked his body. The first thing he saw was a fire blazing in his lower abdomen. He also noticed his energy sea was ten times larger, but the energy crystals were all gone. His bones, organs, flash, and even veins were stronger, and he was overflowing with energy.
A smile broke onto his face. "So I've ascended to the Emerald Realm."
"No," Mylyn said flatly. "You have just entered the Realm cultivation and can now be barely considered a cultivator. You have entered the Sage Plain. Specifically, you are at the lava stage of the Sage Plain. Above this is Aqua, Earth, Sky, Heaven, and finally God Sage. "
"Wow," Xasha exclaimed. "The world truly is large and endless. How does one cultivate to such a high level in only a thousand years?"
"You have no idea. You are what we call flame one. As you cultivate further, you will create additional flames by burning the crystals inside your Valdis. To get from flame one to flame two, you will have to create the crystals again and burn them again. Each time, the crystal turned to pure Imperium and is absorbed into your body." Xandria explained casually.
"Mylyn finished. "Each time, the number of compressions needed to create an Imperium crystal double. So, if you used to compress the Imperium, you absorb ten times to form a crystal, now you need twenty. The next time forty and so on. This requirement goes up until you have ignited the 6th flame. Only then can you ascend to Aqua Sage and beyond."
Xasha attentively soaked up all the new information, Imperium, Vlast, Valdis. He knew these were the correct names of the powers he'd been using all this time. With every word from Mylyn, he felt like a whole new world has opened up to him.
"I have decided to officially accept you as my disciple. From now on, I will properly train you. I will also give you permission to pass on my training to those under you, as I know how you are. I will pass on all my knowledge to you when the time is right. Also, I will speak to Jackle and that old man to see if they are willing to help you as well. But the best part is." Mylyn pointed at the title girl. "She will be helping you too."
"Oh? Is she extraordinary? More so than the old man?" Xasha was intrigued.
"This lady here is not a Chrono God Beast, oh, no. No. sir, she is a Chrono Angel. To help you understand, I'll explain it like this. I and Jackle are Sky Sages, he is a two cloud and I'm a five cloud. If we were to fight, I could kill him with a breath. The old man was a God Sage, just a thought from him could kill us both. He could kill everyone on the west coast with this singular thought. This lady here could kill even him with a thought, do you understand?"
Xasha gulped and looked at the lady with restraining fear. He was happy she was on his side, but to think he tried to pick a fight earlier. "But. How did it end up like this? Didn't you say I would find the Corpse of a Chrono God Beast at that place? Why would it be something so much more powerful?"
"I just assumed, I mean, even I have never seen a Chrono Angel. Those beings are Celestials and far above others. Not someone mere Sages are allowed to meet."
"Mere... Sages? Are sages not the most powerful beings on the continent?" Xasha couldn't contain his shock.
The two ladies burst out laughing like it was the funniest thing they had ever heard. They fell to the ground, rolled on the floor, grabbed their bellies, and slapped their knees. Xasha couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
Xandria was the first to recover. "Xasha, was it? I like you, I like you a lot. Sages are at the bottom of the cultivation world, not even worthy of washing my feet. You have a long way to go before you can think about ruling this continent."
"Then... then, what cultivation is the Demonic Ape Sa-"
"Xasha!" the two ladies blurted out. Mylyn went as far as using wind to shut his mouth, "I told you to never say that word aloud." Mylyn was panting as if she just had the most intense of battle.
"Old Ape is a Saint last I heard. Far above a Celestial like me," the little girl said.
Xasha felt like he was an ant at the moment. Before this, he thought once he entered the Emerald Realm, he could charge into the wilderness and carved out a place for humans to use as a springboard to the rest of the continent.
Ari had a calm smile on her face as she looked at her father's brain-melting and leaking from his ears. "I think we broke him," she joked.
Mylyn and Xandria had another bout of laughter at his expense.
"What now?" Ari asked.
Xandria smiled at Ari. "Now we begin with what it always begins with, Knowledge."