Alm and Bruno squinted. A sacred light, like a sun, definitely was the Holy Light Law. A consciousness that commanded the runes... it was the soul of the immortal cultivator, the owner of that insect skeleton’s body.
The power of the Holy Light Law coming from the skeleton was used as the foundation for the second behemoth seal. After they destroyed everything, he gained freedom. But, he was only a divine and immortal soul like they were... quickly they were sure, this figure wanted a body again.
’He saw in our brother a good body and stole it for himself. Son of a... it’s been days, he must have possessed him by now.’ Alm spat dryly.
Bruno was doubtful. ’But... he had an insect body. Shouldn’t he accept living in something half-human, half-demon?’
’Who cares about that crap? Look at us; did we want to have this body that looks like a whale and not a human? Here we are now.’ Alm retorted.
While the two argued mentally, Ruri, who had already heard from them about this immortal insect that should be alive, pondered through the array. ’Maybe he just wants the bloodline to help him be reborn... or to remove the demon emperor’s soul from within. He took and accepted the mother-in-law into his world in the past; he knows he’s her son, it doesn’t make sense for him to do harm.’
Alm sighed; Ruri still didn’t see how cruel cultivators could be. She only saw the evil as clear as day, but not everything was clear and could change abruptly. Someone who acted honorably could betray and backstab for benefits; it was common, as long as it was something big enough. This figure had lived isolated for endless centuries, now he was free, and it was very risky to escape with just his soul. A body as good as the one waiting for him so close? Why would he refuse? Only they were idiots and stuck with something low-level...
Bruno’s mind made a leap. ’Wait! He’s an insect... what if it’s a female? On Earth, there were some insects where females were capable of reproducing alone, without the presence of a male, although it was common to have both genders. It was called parthenogenesis.’
Instinctively, Alm and Bruno felt those words seemed right; a certainty that something very close to that had happened hit them premonitively.
Earth’s knowledge, almost always useless, showed its usefulness. Random knowledge had its value. Indeed, there are cases where females of a few insect species can produce fertile eggs without the presence of a male, in a process called parthenogenesis. However, this usually occurs only under specific circumstances and is not the typical form of reproduction for the species. Parthenogenesis can occur in response to particular environmental conditions or stress.
Bruno quickly explained this fact to Ruri through the array. Alm stayed silent. The two hadn’t even considered the innocence of that insect. Perhaps age could also cloud their eyes; having someone to tell them innocent things was useful.
Ruri was surprised by this peculiarity of some insects. ’Wow... on Earth, you don’t cultivate, so you have a lot of free time to study about everything. Must be nice to just study. It would be good to visit master’s old house in the future.’
’Human are the same everywhere. Mortals live short lives, but find a way to create conflicts among themselves to kill time. Unfortunately, on Earth, knowledge is for the few who were lucky. But even that comes with a cost.’ Bruno responded softly through the array, leaving Ruri pensive.
The whale turned to the demons, who were frozen in panic, as if they had gone from heaven to hell in seconds. They waved gently and spoke. "It’s not your fault, relax. Gather all the demons, along with the resources you’ve collected. I’ll visit the skeleton first and then I’ll take you."
Everyone trembled in relief and quickly departed. The whale just turned in the direction of the skeleton, which could be seen from any area of the forest, and they followed. This forest was larger than the realm of the Abyssal Ashes; they certainly wouldn’t have time to search for valuable things and would simply take the things from the Yang world on the skeleton. They would lose a lot with that, but for dozens of years the twelve demons had worked hard to collect everything; the workers Ruri recruited were truly useful.
With Ruri’s high cultivation and spatial power, the two crossed a long distance quickly. In a few minutes, they spotted the center of the second seal. The skeleton is an ancient relic, its origin dating back to immemorial times. Its structure is impressive, with the fossilized exoskeleton revealing the complexity and majesty of an unknown insect.
The main structure is composed of a sturdy exoskeleton, which despite the time, showed no major signs of erosion and wear; this indicated that it came from a creature that broke mortal shackles, reaching immortal cultivation. Just by breathing and feeling the fluctuations, it still retained traces of its ancient aura and immortal power.
The body segments, arranged in an ordered row, reveal the internal structure of the unknown insect. The six limbs, now immobilized by death and the passage of centuries, are stuck in static poses.
Empty eyes, devoid of life, seem to stare into infinity, while curved antennas adorn the skull. Every inch of that exoskeleton seemed transcendental like a sacred treasure.
Alm and Bruno looked at it for the second time with greed, wondering if they could use it to create weapons. However, it was impossible. That wasn’t bones, it was an insect exoskeleton. Using an exoskeleton that was almost a single piece would be extremely complex. It was at a level of hardness and power that, before the peak of divine cultivation, they couldn’t even think of manipulating. Moreover, using such a relic would expose them as the ones responsible for the destruction of the seal.
The whale and Ruri approached the skeleton slowly. Around it, a large area was burned and destroyed; these were the signs of the terrifying power that unleashed to destroy the second seal. The rune of the Duality of Shadows law was destroyed for this purpose; they still had to rebuild it, but they hadn’t had free time to do so yet.
They felt the density of the Holy Light Law emanating from that single point; there was the source of all that law. Ruri tried to study it a bit in the past, but soon gave up when she felt it didn’t suit her. It was like a fire cultivator wanting to study water laws; there was a natural rejection.
Bruno felt a slight connection to it. It was similar to the infernal laws, which were very similar to Yin. The Holy Light Law, clearly a mutation of Yang, could be useful, but Bruno already had the power of faith, which was already terrifying and complex enough.
This new law didn’t seem to have great offensive capabilities; its ability to conceal things was interesting, but they already had inventory. Unless they had a predestined encounter that allowed them to master and learn everything about this law, it wouldn’t be worth the time needed to study it deeply.
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Alm and Bruno waited for some change, but after a few minutes, nothing happened. So, they lit up their divine souls to the limit. However, even then, nothing changed.
’It must be the same issue we faced with the behemoth. Divided in two, we’re below the power of a real divine soul; the insect can’t perceive that we’re equals,’ Bruno commented thoughtfully. ’Without it opening up, we don’t have the power to force entry, without our law. We need to unite... but how?’
’You forgot? We brought our... now she’s much more than just our charm,’ Alm said with a sigh.
"Ruri, use your soul and enter our mental sea," the whale said gently.
She nodded and closed her eyes. With her hands clasped, she quickly entered the meridians of the whale and advanced into their mental sea. The doors were open, she entered and felt like she had been there before, but couldn’t remember when.
Bruno gestured for her to come closer, but they didn’t know how to proceed. Ruri came close and looked at the two floating souls. The two souls emanated a stunning divine presence; they were like standing before a majestic white sun, and at the same time, an unbelievable black hole that sucked in all light.
She stared at them in admiration; her master was two, yet at the same time one, something complicated to comprehend. But at the same time, her heart in her body throbbed uncontrollably.
Ruri became a little shy and spoke calmly. "Chubby and fluffy, and nice to cuddle and stick to... but the heavens were fair to me. If master had the appearance of his souls, be it the dark and mysterious gaze or the other warm and cozy one, it would be impossible for me to be chosen amidst so many suitors that would arise..."
Alm and Bruno were speechless. Where was she looking? Bruno had the appearance of the earth, at best average, neither ugly nor beautiful. Alm had the physique of the second life, a bit more muscular and attractive, but still not remotely striking.
But faced with her gaze and fluctuations, they didn’t respond. Even if their souls had the appearance of the whale, she would still find it beautiful and create better adjectives than just fluffy. They felt a warmth run through their beings; Ruri now didn’t hesitate to speak her mind, and that was pleasant.
"If you were to go to Earth, you’d cause the collapse of a nation with your beauty. But don’t cling to physical appearances; the soul just molds itself to what’s most comfortable with your consciousness; usually something similar to the last body. What you’re seeing are just two halves of us," Bruno said calmly, having an idea.
Ruri smiled at the compliment, then waved excitedly. "Will master show me your true unified form one day?"
"Do you remember the Soul Link technique? If you connect to us and desire that, maybe it’ll work," Bruno replied, motioning for her to come closer.
The Soul Link was initially developed by their desire to heal her when she was injured after they killed that patriarch of the evil cultivators. Their divine souls connected to her and instinctively healed her slowly. Bruno thought, before they hadn’t created the technique, and Ruri wasn’t as united with them back then. If she desired it now, would it work? Well, she always helped them synchronize Yin and Yang in the past; there was a possibility.
Ruri smiled brightly; that smile of hers was something seductive that they witnessed now with some frequency. The souls of the three pulsed; the Soul Link technique was initiated, and a connection between them was established.
Outside the mental sea, in the forest, a pair of non-human eyes watched the two figures standing in front of the skeleton. Both were with their eyes closed and silent for some time, waiting for something.
The figure became confused and observed. The soul of the human woman was extremely powerful... while that of the whale-human was terrifying, it seemed very close to a divine soul, but it was different and empty. It was like seeing a giant pool, but with almost no water inside. Sensing his soul... it wasn’t a wounded divine soul... it was incomprehensible.
Minutes passed, then the whale opened its eyes.
Crack, Crack, Crack...
Space began to spin and crack around them. In the same second, the whale shifted its gaze and locked eyes with the figure, which was completely hidden. If that insect’s soul had a body, a cold sweat would be running down its back now... its soul began to tremble... it had once been an immortal cultivator, its soul divine and would live almost eternally above celestial laws... but...
"Are you going to keep staring or are you going to invite me in?" The whale spoke dryly. "If you prefer, I can tear everything down as well. It will be a hassle, but if I do, I guarantee you’ll have a miserable life afterward."
The whale’s voice sounded like the macabre omen of a demon, and all the fluctuations around the figure froze, as if a dark Yin silently marked it.
’He... is his soul now at a level above mine? That’s impossible!’
The insect’s eyes pulsed like two headlights. The entire skeleton seemed to respond in sync; in the same second, a premonitory aura of battle arose between them. The insect was just a soul, but it could still draw some power from its dead body using its divine soul.
Immediately, all the light in the Skyward Forest went out. The spatial laws in the heavens trembled, a power impossible to exist even in the divine world emerged with a violent will. It wasn’t just one, but two divine souls were pushed to their limits. A dead body, with a trace of power, was activated. At the same time, the whale smiled, and all the primordial power and bloodline of its body were released.