After their fight against the cursed Tyrant, Luna found herself back in the comfort of the small bed while staring at the familiar white ceiling with an indifferent look. She had just woken up since the big fight and her foggy memory was slowly clearing up.

  “Ah.” She groaned as she remembered her final moments before she passed out from the worst pain of her life. Most of her bones were shattered after getting hit by a giant limb. Her armor was damaged so the coldness reached her, the fatigue from pushing herself too far and using 90% of her strength. And worst of all, the backsh after running out of essence.

  Luna had never been driven to such a poor state. The feeling of being so vulnerable and helpless was a haunting one—especially when you’re somewhere where anything could kill you.

  If it wasn’t for Storm Rider’s Divine Fme, then Luna would’ve been as good as dead by now.

  ‘I guess the world is still in need of me.’ Luna thought, thinking back to how well she fought during that fight.

  She had learned a few things about her own abilities during that fight though. Things like the extent of her physical strength when she’s not trying to restrain it. She still felt the weak jolt of energy when she drew it out all once and willed it all into a single attack. The feeling was simir to that of having electricity surging through her bones and muscles to give them incredible strength. It was awesome.

  The second punch she delivered with essence also led to a fascinating discovery. It didn’t feel like she was using her physical strength at all. Instead, Luna felt like she was borrowing power from a foreign force.

  …she was borrowing power from the world around her.

  “Did I perform mediocre sorcery? Was it even sorcery?” She wasn’t sure of where that qi came from exactly. But yes, she did manage to manipute qi outside of her body. Even though it was by mistake.

  ‘I need to find a way of forcing by first gate open. Cultivation is one hell of a chore…’

  “But worth it.” Luna remembered Storm Rider’s lightning spell and how it affected the very nature of this world.

  Divine Fme was different from the Fmes the Chau Cn had inherited.

  Storm Rider’s fmes were versatile in a way that they could be turned into lighting for destruction and ter be used to heal dire wounds while the the fmes the Chau cn used couldn’t shift between forms or change purpose.

  Storm Rider had dispyed perfect mastery over fire to a point where her sorcery looked natural.

  “Come to think of it, I’ve never seen sorcerers go all out,” Luna remembered. “Maybe that’s why I’m amazed by Storm Rider.”

  When she felt mentally recovered enough, Luna left her chambers and headed to the main room where she found Storm Rider who was doing her usual staring at the creepy tree. She always wore a distant look in her eyes as if thinking about the past.

  To announce her presence, Luna forced out a cough that echoed across the room.

  Noticing her, Storm Rider moved her distant gaze away from the tree to the silent Luna who was still in her battered armor.

  She didn’t have the material to repce the damaged nanomites so the armor was going to break down soon. What would she wear then? And even though she did find some form of armor, will it be resistant to the cold? Under the armor was the cream tunic she had picked up in the ruined city.

  Speaking of the tunic, it was also not in good condition since she had been wearing it for weeks now.

  “Lunaris. I see that you’re awake. How are feeling?”

  “Like I’ve been hit by a bus.”

  “ I see. But wouldn’t you be dead if you were hit by a bus?” The Fire Keeper tilted her head.

  “It's a metaphor we use back on earth. Actually, never mind that. What are we going to do next now that the Kraken is dead?”

  “We find your teammates of course. I’ve been watching over all of them. They’re all interesting…especially that sister of yours. She killed a Cursed Tyrant all on her own. She almost died, but she won. Somehow.”

  ‘Wait! She what on her own!” Luna’s jaw almost dropped. ‘I almost died just fighting one and you’re telling me she killed one.’

  “The death boy and the handsome one are almost close to the teleportation circle while the gravity girl might die if she continues being reckless. All your friends are heading to the teleportation circle and will be there in a few days.”

  “How do you know that?” Luna asked. She was going to ask about Valentine. But knowing the mysterious young man, Luna was sure he had some relic under his sleeve to hide himself from The Fire Keeper’s power.

  “Simple. This is my domain, Lunaris. I know everything that takes pce on this level since I’m its guardian. I am also a prisoner and only you and your friends can free me by destroying this entire tower…”

  The gears in Luna’s mind started moving when she realized what Storm Rider had been trying to do all along.

  “Is that why you taught me how to use qi and asked me to defeat the Cursed Tyrant? Were you lying about being powerless in water?”

  “Yes and No. I can’t fight in water but there are other ways to kill that thing.” She grinned and winked. “I am an immortal sorceress with unimaginable powers. Give me some credit.”

  ‘Of course it was a training arc. I should have known.’ Although Luna felt bitter, she had to admit that Storm Rider had taught more than any master at the sect. She was now much stronger than she was before entering the Tower.

  After a small silence, the quirkiness on Storm’s face disappeared and was repced by the seriousness she often carried around. She sighed and settled into her serious personality as she proceeded to the next phase of the pn.

  “This Tower was created to hold the enemies of the gods. On the final floor of this prison, one of the strongest deities was imprisoned there and to destroy means to free him. The choice is yours to make because I have given it to you.”

  ‘I am here to give you a choice.’ Luna remembered Oblivion’s words before his space colpsed. Is this what he meant?

  Luna frowned a little. “You mean the final floor doesn’t have a corrupted being? But an actual sane deity?”

  Storm Rider lingered before answering. Then, she answered in her usual calm tone. “The Moon goddess put him here and he’s guarded by one of her servants. The Guardian belongs to a special race of beings known as Pantheons. I can’t tell why that person was imprisoned though. Some things you will have to figure out yourself, Lunaris.”

  ‘Of course she won’t tell me more.’ Luna wanted to roll her eyes so badly after hearing that.

  The curse haunting the forgotten. Who created it? And for what purpose exactly?

  Those were the two questions Luna needed answers to. Currently, she was digging deep into the true lore of the divine realm. But she needed to tread carefully about this since didn’t have any desire to carry the curse, even though she sometimes wished that everyone would forget her.

  But that was the depression speaking. Luna didn’t really mean that.

  ‘Or did I?’

  “By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask. What do they look like, the true celestials.” Luna asked a question that had been on her mind since she saw Everlight’s statue back in the desert.

  Storm Rider hissed. “You’re a curious one I see. Well, some of them look like humans but with wings to show their supremacy. They’re the strongest and the ones you should always be most cautious about.”

  She paused for a second to think of what to say. Then continued. “They were the direct servants of the gods and the closest thing to what you have as gods in this new era. Take Oblivion for example, he was a Servant of Fate. True Celestials also wield complicated domains or concepts to be exact. The complicated domains are what made most mortals follow them and call them true celestials.”

  Luna was about to say something but Storm cut her off immediately.

  “If you ever learn a living deity’s name, never say it out loud, or else they will descend into your realm. You see, there is a single reason why the Servants can’t simply walk into your realm, that reason is Bance. That's the Nature of Servants.”

  Luna creased her brows, obviously confused by her mentor’s warning. What exactly did Storm mean by Bance?

  Expectedly, Storm Rider kept the rest to herself. But the information she had shared was so important. Devils could appear in the mortal realm because they no longer had the privilege of being deities. Many cultures believed that gods were capable of descending to the mortal realm like the Sun god who was believed to be a fan of mortals. But he couldn’t st long in the mortal because of universal rules.

  However, Devils weren’t held back by these rules since they no longer belonged in the divine realm.

  “No wonder it is so easy to think that all divine beings are either corrupted or dead.” Luna’s dark eyes suddenly sparkled. “But if the divine realm is bleeding into the mortal realm, those rules will cease to exist. The manics of the divine realm will be able to rule the mortal realm too.”