Chapter 7: Chapter 7 – Sprit Cultivation

Theseus opened his eyes. He was indeed dead. A wave of sadness and melancholy washed over him in the darkness. For only a moment, he had hoped that the dream would end, and his party would be waiting for him in Heaven.

“What in the world just happened?” Aries roared from within Theseus’s head.

“I ended the dream by killing Fayette.” Theseus responded coldly.

“Impossible. You’re too smart, or reckless, for your own good, coming up with an Authority Skill on the spot!” Aries couldn’t believe it.

 “Well, I did it, Shade. Now what?” Theseus looked around. Leo had taken the duo to a small cave in the base of the closest of the three mountains. Whining incessantly, Theseus noticed a sniveling Leo jumping up and down that Theseus awoke. Aries started to panic, realizing they were in the mountainside.

“How long do you think we were out?” Aries asked when he calmed down. Judging from the Shade Possession, they were asleep for a long time.

“At least six months. The Shade Possession is damaging our souls.” Theseus deduced. It was incredible that Leo still stayed by Theseus’s side all this time.

“There, there Leo. It’s okay. I’m here.” He pets his friend on the head. Leo started to purr and cry.

“How did you befriend a beast anyways?” Aries asked curiously.

Just now, Theseus realized Leo wasn’t actually a spirit beast but an actual native beast to the forest. He couldn’t tell at the difference at his current aura realm, but Aries mentioned it in passing. Theseus trusted the Shade’s judgement a bit more now. There was no reason for Aries to lie about a small thing like that.

“By chance.” Theseus thought back. It was annoying having this Shade in his head.

“Let’s finish the contract. How do I make a Reverse Shade Ritual?” Theseus asked. Although he quite knowledgeable, Shade magic and the related runes were one of Theseus’s weak points. The fact he knew how to do the Shade Summon skill was the furthest extent of his knowledge with Shade magic, and it was technically a Summoner skill to begin with.

“Oh damn! Our souls are screwed up, huh. You definitely won’t survive the ritual.” Aries could tell at first glance that the weakened Rank C Spirit, Theseus, was too weak to survive having his soul tampered with.

“What should we do?” Theseus asked. At this point, he had to rely on the Shade, since he didn’t know any concrete ways to make the already complicated Reverse Shade Ritual work.

“Unless you can come up with some fancy Authority Skill, I think you need to temper your soul.” Aries suggested.

“I don’t think Authority magic would help here either. What’s your idea?” Theseus inquired.

“Down here, there is a way to temper the soul through a Spirit and Shade Cultivation technique. Look around you, this water isn’t exactly water. In fact, it’s spirit energy.” Aries explained, dumbfounding Theseus. If what Aries said was true, the spiritual energy was so thick, it took on water like properties. No where in the world could a scene like this take place!

“That’s impossible, just where are we?” Theseus gasped.

“When I take you to meet Lord Virgo, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out.” Aries laughed.

“Isn’t Lord Virgo the guy you were going to kill just before we entered the dream?” Theseus asked.

“Yeah, but he probably thinks I died months ago. There will always be another opportunity to kill that bastard…” Aries rattled off.

“Okay, how do I use Spirit Cultivation?” Theseus asked. He didn’t really care about Lord Virgo at the moment. This information was better for after explaining the technique.

“Sprit and Shade Cultivation are a kind of soul tempering. Just like the body tempering, you can take in the spirit energy around us to strengthen your soul.” Aries explained. Body tempering normally required artifacts, herbs, or a natural source of energy such as a volcano or ocean as a catalyst. It made logical sense that the unique spiritual energy here could be used to temper the soul.

“Because you are part Shade at the moment and don’t plan on becoming one, you will have to consensually commune with the surrounding souls and energy. They will instinctively try to reject you because you are part Shade at the moment, but it will slowly increase your aura capacity and soul strength.”

“Show me how it’s done.” Theseus was on board with the plan. As soon as his soul could handle the ritual, they would finally part ways. After teaching Theseus the technique over days, Theseus sat cross legged and started taking in the surrounding energies. Leo watched curiously as Theseus slowly grew in aura.

***

After a month, their conditions stabilized. Unfortunately, Theseus’s aura rank remained the same. He was weaker than when he first used the Self-Soul Hypnosis, but at least his condition was stable.

“What rank is good enough for us to stop?” Theseus wondered.

“The F Rank Greater Spirit Realm should suffice.” The Shade dismissed Theseus casually.

“What Realm is that? The Sage Realm or Royalty Realm?” Theseus asked. Almost feeling Aries’s non-existent eyes roll, he responded,

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“In this place, we don’t use the same terminology as before. The Mortal Realm is called the Spirit Realm here, and the Sage Realm is called the Greater Spirit Realm.”

“Why did you all change the names?” Theseus wondered in his head.

“Maybe because there are no mortals or sages in the afterlife, only spirits.” Aries said as if it was common sense.

“I’m not going to stop calling them the normal names.” Theseus bickered.

“Have it your way brat.” Aries’s spirit rolled its eyes again.

***

Another month passed, and Theseus finally reached the B Rank Mortal Realm. At this point, the Shade Possession was slightly offset by the Spirit Cultivation, but they were going too slowly.

“At this rate, I won’t reach the Sage Realm before the Shade Possession permanently damages our souls.” Theseus panicked. Eight months had passed, and in about four more, the Shade Possession would permanently damage both of their souls.

“It’s the Greater Spirit Realm boy, and you’re probably right. This is taking too long.” Aries agreed.

“I have an idea, but you’re not going to like it.” Theseus told Aries.

“I see where this is going… An Authority Skill huh?” Aries asked.

“Yes, I think I can use our dream experi-“

“Stop,” Aries cut off Theseus, “Unlike you, I’m not a fan of using reckless skills. We have about four more months until the Shade Possession acts like a flawed Shade Ritual and this is permanent. I think we should refrain from Authority Skills until we have to.”

“Fine.” Theseus understood where Aries was coming from but having this Shade in his head was almost unbearable. The two years in the dream world felt like a lifetime. Even though the two originally hated each other, they had a tentative understanding and friendship now.

As he tried to cultivate, the Shade would talk about nonsense all the time. However, the talkative Shade did give him a plethora of information on the world around them. Theseus grew to comprehend the current geopolitical state of their area clearer.

They were currently located in the Phaunus Forest located at the base of the Moirai Mountains. This forest was generally off limits, and the civilizations around them were tribal in nature. These tribes were ruled with iron fists by warlords, known as the Seven Suzerain Lords. These Suzerain Lords were dictators that relished in sin, and they were all at the Royalty Realm. Theseus had to avoid these power-hungry tyrants at all costs. If he could leave their current area somehow, he and Leo could find their new home.

Because the Moirai Mountains were unpassable because of the monsters that dwelled on and in them, there was only one way to go, but it was blocked by a great chasm, known as the Desolate. This canyon like ravine was wide and could only be crossed by foot. No one in recent memory had entered the Desolate and returned unharmed. The habitable land was known as the Oceanic Realm, and if you weren’t apart of the Suzerain Lords’ territories, you were on your own. The Phaunus Forest was one example of an uninhabitable land in the Oceanic Realm due to the beasts that lurked within.

Aries himself was an elite scout for Lord Virgo, one of the Seven Suzerain Lords, and was in charge of monitoring the outskirts of Virgo’s territory that met the Phaunus Forest. Aries was known as a Captain, an elite force that was directly overseen by Lord Virgo. Theseus wondered why two Captains were put on patrol. It was weird. Virgo probably thought Aries and Justus were long dead though. Eight months had passed since the battle between Aries and Justus, and Aries was lost to the forest.

“Keep cultivating. Perhaps you can reach the Greater Spirit Realm quicker than expected.” Aries told Theseus, ignoring Theseus’s questions about the ‘patrol’ they were on.

***

Three more months passed, and Theseus was able to barely reach the A Rank Mortal Realm. It was within expectations, and since he still needed to go up two more sub-ranks, it was near impossible for him to reach the F Rank Sage Realm in a month.

“I think it’s time we discuss the Authority Skill I’ve been thinking about.” Theseus discussed with Aries.

Aries sighed. “What is it?”

“I call it, Dream Remembrance.” Theseus explained.

“Here we go again.” Aries was scared of the reckless Theseus.

“I’m actually just kidding.” Theseus said flatly. “All we have to do is use the Shade Summon, and I will likely reach the F Rank Sage Realm needed for the ritual.”

“I already told you. I’m not using that in the real world.” The Shade growled. Because of his consumption of Justus, Aries was able to stabilize his Shade Core at the Rank F Royalty Realm now. Being used by an A Rank Spirit was disgusting to Aries.

“It’s either that, or Dream Remembrance.” Theseus mocked the obstinate Shade.

“Fine. Change the Soul Contract. We can begin the Reverse Shade Ritual, but this will be the last time you use the Shade Summon Skill!”

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