While floating in the air, meditating, time quickly passed for me, and before I knew it, the immense amount of Qi released by the Flame of Rebirth abruptly vanished, causing me to slightly open my eyes, only to see the unnamed phoenix lying unconscious in his true form right beside the flickering multi-colored flame. With Patriarch Renata waving his hand, floating the phoenix toward him with a gust of his Qi, the Ancestor again began tossing resources into the flame while I promptly closed my eyes.
After some time, when the Ancestor finished, I heard Comet and Spica quietly conversing before she transformed into her true form while stepping into the Flame of Rebirth, which had returned to its massive size. Three or so hours passed, and just like the previous two before her, she was lying unconscious on the ground. Her cultivation base had also improved by two minor realms, nothing amazing given the amount of resources used, but then again, these were just the immediately noticeable effects.
After floating Spica towards himself, Patriarch Renata gently set her down beside the other two, who didn't seem like they would awaken any time soon, before glancing at the Ancestor, speaking to her through their divine sense. While the conversation didn't last for long, I had a clue what they were discussing, and when they stopped to turn and look at Comet and I, I couldn't help but be annoyed at their little antics; however, I wasn't angry, mainly because I didn't wish to go after Comet.
"Prince Elif, do you wish to go next or…" Asked Renata lightly as he looked at Elif while trailing toward the end, though his words caused Comet to frown.
"Eh, can I not go next, Patriarch Renata?" Asked Comet in slight confusion as he looked at Renata with a frown, causing him to furrow his brows before nodding.
"Of course, Comet; I just wished to ask Prince Elif first before immediately deciding, that's all." Replied Renata with a faint smile as he looked at Comet, who nodded in understanding, though before he took a step forward, Elif suddenly walked past him.
"Heh, I'm truly amazed you survived this long while being so foolish; I commend you for that, Comet." Said Elif lightly as he side-glanced at Comet before ignoring him and approaching the Phoenix Clan Ancestor while he gritted his teeth in anger.
"Tch, at least I don't look like a woman! You androgominus, angolmoinus, andocominis." Stated Comet angrily as he glared at Elif, attempting to mock him further, though he only ended up making a fool of himself.
"I believe the word you're trying to pronounce is androgynous, but does it matter whether I look like a woman or not? Would I still not be the most beautiful in all of existence?" Remarked Elif calmly as he turned and looked at Comet, who angrily blushed in shame, only to turn and look at him while sporting a narcissistic smile, flaunting his charming looks, which even the Ancestor inwardly nodded to his words.
Comet didn't have any rebuttal to my truthful words, so with a smirk, I simply ignored him before glancing at the Ancestor while summoning a dimension ring from my own and tossed it to her, prompting her to scan the insides before nodding as she approached the Flame of Rebirth, only to start summoning fruits rich in Qi and tossing them into the flickering flame. Eventually, the Ancestor finally finished as she tossed in the last Immortal tier ingredient, which even pained my heart a little to see it go, but it would be worth it, hopefully, at least.
"Now, as a warning beforehand, you'll be the first-ever non-Phoenix to undergo the Rebirth Ritual, so we do not know what could happen. Unlike Phoenxies, Elves aren't closely tied to the dao of Rebirth like we are, so unknown variables are possible." Stated the Ancestor lightly as she looked at Elif, handing him the dimension ring back while he nodded, though internally, he was scoffing in annoyance.
'Hmph, warning me after I already used my resources; how kind of you.' Mused Elif lightly as he gave the Ancestor an annoyed look before approaching the raging, multi-colored flame.
'Your Highness, please, if anything work happens, leave; an increase in strength isn't worth your life.' Said Illumia softly via divine sense as she stood off to the side and looked at Elif in worry, causing him to smile lightly and nod.
'I understand Illumia; now, just relax and watch as your lovely Prince undergoes the Rebirth Ritual.' Replied Elif via divine sense, as he winked at Illumia while boldly blowing her a kiss, causing her to softly sigh with a faint, lovely smile.
Looking away from Illumia, I focused back onto the large, raging flame that was mere inches away; I gently touched it with my finger, only to nearly recoil my hand in pain, though I managed to stop myself. However, that wasn't because the fire didn't hurt, no, it simply because my pride; Elaine was the only person I'd ever behave truthful around, no one else got that luxury, not even Illumia or Sarah did. Still, with my finger enveloped by the fire, I couldn't help but deeply frown as I exhaled before taking a deep breath, clearing my mind of any possible distractions, leaving only calm tranquility and the unbearable pain my finger was experiencing.
Without a single thought, I stepped into the flame that engulfed my entire body; I tightly shut my eyes, clenched my fists, and bit my lip as my face contorted into agony. Never… Never in my life have I experienced such otherworldly pain; the fire wasn't only burning my body, it was burning my very soul, my very existence itself. It was impossible to put into words how utterly torturous this pain was, it was simply unbearable, I couldn't even think.
I was moving purely through my immortal will, which was the only thing stopping every fiber of my being from leaving the flame this instant; it was simply excruciating beyond belief. I'd rather get struck down by a heavenly tribulation with nothing but my soul than experience this for a second longer.
Every second that passed felt like an eternity, and as eternity passed, I could vividly feel my soul and body getting burnt away as I slowly turned into ash that fell to my feet. However, my immortal will didn't allow me to leave; whatever it was doing, I trusted it as it was me. While the seconds ticked by, eventually, I heard a crack from all around me, yet weirdly enough, it wasn't from me, yet, the more time passed, the more cracks I heard until, I finally spotted a large crack in the very sky far above me.
It was an ethereal crack, one that traversed through an infinite amount of dimensions and realms, yet through that crack, I felt it, the reality beyond our own, the pathway to becoming… A True Immortal. As I looked through that crack, I felt my immortal will surge, though, while this was happening, what I hadn't released was that my body had long since turned into ash, and I was merely a small soul with only tidbits of life remaining.
'To the realm above…' Thought Elif lightly as he gazed at the crack above, only for his soul to be suddenly snuffed out, causing Illumia, who the Ancestor was holding down, to cry out in anger and sadness
"YOUR HIGHNESS!!" Yelled Illumia, tears streaming down her face as she tried jumping into the flames themselves, yet the Phoenix Clan's Ancestor stopped her, lest she completely ruin the ritual.
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"Tch, you failed your duty and you still have the audacity to show yourself before us?" Asked Maria overbearingly with a frown as she looked down at a noble, who was on her knees, prostrating before the Empress and Emperor.
"I-I profusely apologize; such a thing won't ever happen again so long as I'm in charge; I swear upon family name!" Stated the woman earnestly and with fear as she kept her head down, afraid to look at Maria, who grunted at her words.
"Hmm, since you swear upon your family's name, we'll give you a third chance, but know, if you, or any of your family within the next three generations, makes such a big mistake, we'll remove your nobility title." Stated Marcus calmly with a frown as he looked at the woman, who rapidly nodded while profusely expressing her thanks, causing Maria to turn and look at him.
"Hmph, leave, you're lucky my Emperor is here today." Said Maria domineeringly with a snort as she waved her hand at the noble, who swiftly nodded and deeply bowed before leaving the throne room.
"What was that all about Marcus? For what she had done, we should've imprisoned her." Asked Maria with a slightly annoyed expression as she looked at Marcus, who leaned forward and kissed her cheek, calming her.
"I love you, dear, but sometimes you're too fixated on the present; as the Empress, you must also consider the future. I'm not talking about when Elif and Elaine ascend to the throne but whe-" Said Marcus softly as he affectionately held Maria's hand while stroking it, causing her to pout and look away, though just when he was about to kiss her both of their expressions suddenly turned into one of pure agony as they sensed Elif's death.
However, before they could even make a move, an unbelievable pressure erupted from deep within the royal palace, and it quickly enveloped Yggdrasil before sweeping through the entirety of the Elven Empire almost instantly. Following that, it continued to rapidly expand outward in all directions, reaching territories like the Divine Druid Kingdom, the Divine half-sect, and the Divine Fairy Clan, along with numerous other Divine and Ancient Hegemonies, yet not a single soul dared to fight against the presence as it was far too mighty.
Eventually, it even reached other Immortal hegemonies, and while their strongest beings were able to protect their own territory, it wasn't an easy feat, which goes to say the might the presence exuded if even six of the strongest beings in the OverRealm found it challenging to resist the might of one person.
Before anyone knew, the presence enveloped all of the Overrealm, yet its main focus was on the Divine Phoenix Clan, especially the Rebirth Dimension.