Yasenia felt like she had been sleeping for a very long time. Her entire body felt heavy, and even lifting her eyelids was strenuous. However, as time passed, the heaviness enveloping her body shifted.
Surges of energy she had never felt before moved along her entire body as her strength increased to an entirely new realm. Her pores opened, her breathing became deeper, her heart beat stronger, her meridians strengthened and widened, and her mind became clearer and sharper.
Inside her Dantian, all the energy transformed, becoming more concentrated and exceptionally pure, like nothing she had managed to create ever before, excluding the energy from the Celestial Energy Star.
After the energy enveloped her everything, her eyelids opened, revealing her golden and enchanting dragon eyes. The now colossal creature awakened, and with her movements, the earth around her was filled with tremors.
As she lifted her head from the ground, the world was reflected in her vertical pupils, appearing much smaller than before. Not only that, but she could also feel the energy surrounding her much more clearly. The flow of the energy around her was visible when she focused.
Once her mind was completely awake, her spiritual sense expanded from her like a wave.
Whoosh!
Like a powerful wave, her presence enveloped almost 30 kilometers around her. It was almost an entire order of magnitude larger than before breaking through. As information about her surroundings was dissected by her enhanced and powerful mind and then translated into imagery, she realized why the world felt so small around her. 'Wow… I'm… big…"
She couldn't help but twist her dragon neck to look at her own body. The ridiculous size was not as noticeable for her since her proportions were mostly maintained. However, when she looked down at the buildings that she had pushed aside like sand as her body grew, her mouth opened. 'T-That's a building? So… small!'
Even a 50-meter tall building, one with 20 stories, would not even reach above her stomach level. With a total height of 500 meters, her body, when lying down, was nothing but a giant hill.
Tatyana's amused voice reached her ears. "Say, little treasure, are you also aiming to become a moon-sized dragon like your uncle Tian Long?"
Yasenia looked down at the ant-sized Tatyana; her heart skipped a beat. 'So cute, so small.'
Tatyana, probably guessing what the dragon was thinking, snorted with a smile. "Don't you dare classify your mother as cute!"
Yasenia laughed. "Well, you are quite cute from my perspective."
Her voice, not being controlled as it was the first time she spoke, echoed around with visible shockwaves. Regardless of how pleasant and ethereal the dragoness's voice was, at those volumes, it made some people who heard it want to cover their ears.
Yasenia quickly realized, though, and apologized with a more controlled voice. "Ah. Sorry, sorry. I'll be careful."
Tatyana laughed, and Yasenia lowered her gigantic head and titled it sideways so that one of her eyes could look at Tatyana directly.
Tatyana smiled at the giant golden eye hovering above herself. "Even your pupils are much taller than me, hahaha. You've really grown, eh?"
Tatyana extended her hand and poked the eye right above her. Of course, Yasenia didn't feel it, as the cornea's protective layer was extremely thick. It felt a bit uncomfortable, though.
"Say, why are you touching my eye?"
Tatyana shrugged. "You are close enough for me to touch; that means that you are too close! All I can see is your eye!"
Yasenia raised her head slightly with an awkward look, the enormous eyes shifting from side to side. While usually, this gesture would look cute, with Yasenia's humongous eye doing the same, it was just creepy. Still, with the love goggles that Tatyana saw the world through, it felt as adorable for her.
Yasenia asked. "So… How long was I out?"
Tatyana commented. "Two months. Well, not exactly. A bit longer."
Yasenia continued asking. "How is the little one?"
Tatyana smiled and caressed her growing stomach. "Don't worry, love. She or he is doing quite well."
Yasenia asked, surprised. "You still don't know the gender of the child?"
Tatyana shrugged. "I don't even know if it is an egg or a humanoid. I haven't looked at them until now."
Yasenia was confused. "Why?"
Tatyana smiled. "I prefer to be surprised~. Knowing everything makes it boring."
Yasenia remembered the time when Tatyana abused her Fate powers and felt that it was okay not to insist on knowing. 'Well, I will know later. If I need to prepare gender-specific things, I'll just create one for each gender: male, female, and… my gender? What am I? Hermaphrodite? Mom called me a futanari in the past… Well, I guess I'll go with futanari.'
Tatyana looked at the thoughtful dragon gently. "Little treasure, before you do anything, there is someone who wants to speak with you."
Yasenia snapped out of her thoughts and followed the direction Tatyana was pointing at.
Standing there, an Empyrean spirit wearing a gorgeous silvery and golden dress looked up at her. Her body was enveloped with controlled flames, and her bicolor hair flowed with the wind generated by the shifting temperatures around her body.
Her visible skin, a white color simulated to appear like skin, looked smooth and tender, and her adorable face looked tense. Her Sun and Moon pupils inside the night sky blue eyes were shifting from side to side, obviously nervous about something.
Yasenia looked around first to make sure she wouldn't stomp on anyone or anything. Just her weight was something lethal for even low-level cultivators.
Slowly, the giant dragon began moving. As she had grown while lying down, her body was semi-lodged in the ground. Hence, her movement brought with it a rumbling sound similar to that of a landslide.
Her hind and frontal legs shifted, and the rubble stuck to her scales naturally fell off as her aura moved alongside her body and cleaned her from dust and debris.
Feeling a bit stiff, Yasenia stretched, and her wings opened, creating hurricane-like winds. Her majestic form shrouded an enormous part of the sect in her shadow, making her look menacing.
As Yasenia stretched, an urge to roar overcame her, and after taking a deep breath, she looked skywards and opened her maw.
"ROAR!"
The wave of sounds created by her deep and reverberating roar spread like an unstoppable force, covering not only the sect area but far beyond that. Even people in the Astral Sky City heard it faintly.
Everyone looked over as the dome covering Yasenia dissolved and revealed the gargantuan creature beyond it. Roaring to the sky with incomparable might, she carried with her an overbearing presence and profound aura.
However, what stunned people was the sheer size of the dragon. The grand majority had never seen any creature reach Yasenia's current dimensions.
"That's the sect master?"
"Incredible. I didn't know dragons could grow that large."
"How can you even defeat such a creature?"
After roaring for almost a minute straight, Yasenia calmed down and her spread wings gently folded and rested on her back.
Her tensed body relaxed, and her overall aura changed from an overlord to an empyrean and aloof being.
Thanks to her size, her actions could be seen from everywhere in the sect. They saw Yasenia look at a specific point and lower her head as if she were going to speak with someone.
On the side, Soluna felt as if she would dissolve into pure energy. Her soul trembled, and her core pulsed rapidly as nervousness overcame her.
Seeing the colossal creature that appeared as if a patch of the night sky had taken a dragon form was making her little mind jump in adoration and awe. 'She is so cool! Oh heavens, oh heavens, look at those scales, look at that form, ahhhhh! How can a dragon be so beautiful!?"
When Soluna saw Yasenia looking down at her and lowering her head to speak with her, she almost fled. 'W-What do I do!? H-How do I even ask her? I'm so nervous about this! Ah, ah. What if she rejects me? What if she hates me after I ask her!?'
As her mind became an entangled mess, the ethereal and echoey voice of the empyrean dragon reached her, making her entire being feel as if it was being cradled in an atmosphere similar to her birthplace.
"What is wrong, Soluna? Is there anything you want to speak with me about?"
The gentle and soothing voice that came from such a majestic creature made Soluna's heart melt with unknown feelings of adoration and awe. Solidifying her determination, she clenched her fists and asked with a higher pitch than usual. "Y-Yasenia! C-Can I become your contracted spirit!?"
Soluna, who wanted to go slowly and guide the conversation, couldn't help but blurt out her real intentions from the get-go. Her confused and convoluted feelings made her real thoughts leak out.
Once she realized what she had said, Soluna's entire body froze in place. 'W-w-w-w-w-what did I do!?????' Suddenly, the urge to master the power to turn back time appeared in her heart, and regret and shame overcame her. 'THIS IS SO EMBARRASSING!! AHHH!!'
The giant dragon also paused when she heard Soluna's scream. "My contracted spirit?" She was confused by the sudden offer. However, not for long.
Yasenia was somewhat dense toward non-aggressive feelings directed at her, but that didn't mean she was ignorant. Once Soluna's words came out, all her interactions with Soluna repeated in her mind like a movie.
Soon, she understood what position Soluna was in. She couldn't help but sigh in her mind. 'Didn't mom say that spirits couldn't feel love? Soluna is on the verge of hopelessly falling in love with me…'
Yasenia felt a headache incoming, and the image of a certain human girl with honey-colored eyes flashed for a second. This made her face tense as her eyes stared at the frozen and clearly embarrassed spirit. 'I need to be cautious with how I approach this. First, I need to discuss it with the others… Well. I also need to know what to do myself. I can't ask without having a clear idea in mind.'
The dragoness became thoughtful. 'A companion… I've always delayed this option because I know that I will leave behind whatever companion I make unless I dual cultivate with them like I do with my dears.' The dragoness looked at Soluna with analytical eyes, devoid of personal feelings. 'However, Soluna is different in that regard. I think that, unless a spirit of Sun, Moon, and Stars exists, or, even better, a Celestial Spirit, she is probably the most appropriate bond for me.'
Then, Yasenia thought objectively. 'But, what are the chances of discovering such a spirit, and that the spirit is friendly, and then, that such spirit wants to become my companion in good faith like Soluna?' Yasenia shook her head internally. 'That's almost an impossible situation. And if it happened, I would think that someone is manipulating Fate, making it dubious.'
The dragoness looked back at Soluna. 'Her existence is already an extremely rare case, not to mention anything more complex.'
With that in mind, Yasenia rationalized that other than Soluna, there was probably no better option that would ever appear before her as a companion.
'So, in my mind, I wouldn't mind, right? Okay.'
With her mind sorted out, Yasenia smiled at Soluna and said. "Soluna, I'm happy that you want to become my partner. However, wait for a bit, okay? I need to discuss it with the others."
****************************************
Tatyana: Looking at this from the side is very entertaining.
Evelyn: I bet you took out something to eat and are munching on it.
Tatyana: Oh? You know me so well!
Evelyn: … I was joking… You know what? Whatever.
Author: Well, well. Soluna managed to "confess," and Yasenia doesn't seem against it~. We'll see how it develops! Will Soluna become a second Sarah? Hehe, who knows~.
Yasenia: You really love teasing them, don't you.
Author: I adore it. Anyways. I summon you!
Raian irama: Hello~.
Kali: Welcome. You are new around here, right?
Raian irama: Yes! Also, hello, Kali.
Author: Well, ask away~.
Raian irama: Well, this question is for anyone who hopefully knows~.
Author: Tsk, tsk.
Raian Irama: Hehe. Anyways. If Yasenia could combine the sun and moon to create an eclipse with celestial energy in the future, how would she use it?
Yasenia: I guess I should answer this one.
Raian irama: Oh, please!
Yasenia: So excited?
Raian irama: The Big sexy dragon lady is answering? Of course I'm happy!
The rest: Understandable.
Yasenia: *Ehem* So, if I can summon an eclipse at will, I can use it quite often to do something quite important.
Raian irama: Oh?
Yasenia: You see, some of my skills need the Moon or Sun to be in a certain state to gain extra effects. When an eclipse happens, the Moon is always in a "full moon" state, so I would be able to use [Draconic Full Moon] at its full capabilities all the time.
Raian irama: That's actually very clever.
Yasenia: Not only that, if I were able to do that, I can create an eclipse to enhance the surrounding sun and moon energies and cultivate quicker.
Raian irama: I see. Interesting. Thanks for answering, Yasenia.
Yasenia: No problem.
Author: And that's all for today~, bye bye~.
Proofreader Ayan: I'm expected to appear again~? Hmph, whatever~. It's not like I care if these mortals see me~…
Proofreader Eila: so long you~