Luna’s eyes quickly turned to the ground and peered into its being to see exactly what Storm Rider was talking about. She paled immediately when she felt four bright spheres of pure energy brimming inside its body.

  These notes of energy were three essence cores and a single bright life core that shone in the depths of its bright soul. This…this creature showed no signs of corruption. All of its essence moved like a calm river to indicate it wasn’t a cursed creature.

  Cursed creatures were mad so their energy was often wild with the amethyst color of ether slowly eating them up from the inside.

  “Oh my gods!” Luna mustered out a few words and lifted her head to face Storm Rider.

  “I know, right? This being is somehow immune to the curse of madness and corruption bestowed on all creatures of the divine realm after the conflict. But don’t worry, the Earth Lord may never wake up because of the conditions of this level. Maybe it's the hibernation keeping it from becoming a cursed creature.”

  Storm Rider added. She then approached Luna--bent a little, and placed her hand on the young woman’s shoulder.

  Luna gave the Fire Keeper a confused look right before she felt a familiar warmness find its way into her body. This time, it was the divine flame's healing property. She trembled from the feeling of having every internal wound she had received close thanks healing qualities of the divine flame.

  In less than five seconds, Luna was back to feeling like her normal self.

  Without saying a word, Storm Rider moved on to Darkness who was currently lying on her back. She was the one with the worst wounds amongst them and most of them were internal.

  Affecting the world to a degree like that as a non-sorcerer meant that one had to pay a greater price since she was opposing the world. Darkness had obviously pushed her second gate to its limits and could’ve shattered it if they hadn't gotten here any sooner.

  For ascenders, shattering a gate was probably the worst possible thing that could happen to them. If one shattered a gate, he or she would lose their ability to ascend—that's if they endured the pain and the possible chance of death.

  Shattering a gate meant cutting yourself off from the source, leaving you with your previous gates and the powers that came with them. For example, if Darkness had shattered her second gate, she would lose her connection to the realm of the Void. And with it, her ability to summon and never regain it.

  However, this case was rare because Ascenders who shattered their gates often died from the pain that came after having a piece of their soul destroyed.

  After Storm Rider healed her with her flame, Darkness stayed unconscious. She was showing stable activity so there was no need to fear the worst.

  It's not like she was screaming in agony before Storm healed her.

  ***

  After patching up everyone, Storm Rider and Lena decided to get some rest after a big fight like that one. Plus, Darkness and Lena were not in the best shape after exhausting themselves.

  Luckily, they found a small cave and set up camp near the field of stones. The weather had returned to its harsh state once Lena decided to rest.

  Now that the snowstorm had returned, Storm Rider and Luna decided to use this opportunity to go do some hunting. They were almost out of food rations and what remained was not enough to support Darkness's incredible appetite.

  Luna did the hunting while Storm searched for some plants she could use for spicing their meals. She understood this place the best and knew what alternatives to use to make the monster meat at the very least…tasteful enough. Plus, some meat smelled horrible and made it impossible to eat so herbs were needed in such situations.

  After searching for ten minutes, Luna managed to find a pack of five white-furred wolves. She engaged them and managed to kill two of the large wolves, leaving three alive because she was too tired to go on.

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  She dragged both of the dead wolves back to the cave.

  “Woow! Guess we’re eating like kings today.” Storm Rider was shocked to see two wolves being dragged into the small cave by a young girl.

  Luna released the dead wolves and dropped to the ground, feeling exhausted. Today, she had climbed up a mountain and battled gravity, and a giant stone spider.

  By the way, she almost died during the last one.

  “I looked for the best meat.”

  “Snow Wolves are powerful cursed beasts. I’m impressed you managed to kill them. They usually move in packs with an alpha who’s a Cursed General.” Storm walked up to one of the dead wolves and ran her hand through its fur. A golden knife appeared in her other hand and she immediately started carving through its skin.

  Squelch!

  Black blood oozed out of its body when she made a line through it. Like a true hunter, she first removed the skin fur and then moved to its flesh. She started cutting out chunks of meat and placed them on a black stone plate she had created earlier.

  ‘How will I return to civilization after getting used to eating my enemies.’ Luna watched Storm Rider work her magic. Her mouth was already watering from just seeing all the meat.

  Her face flashed red when her stomach growled right.

  When she heard the unpleasant sound, Storm chuckled. “Lunaris, have you ever seen a polar bear?”

  “No. Though I have seen pictures of them. I heard they’re like white bears that live in the snow.”

  “Yes, they are.”

  “What about Penguins?”

  “What?”

  “They’re a type of bird that can’t fly. It's complicated to explain. But know that penguins were locals in parts like this place back in the mortal realm.” Storm Rider stopped cutting the meat. “I’ve always wanted to see a penguin and a polar bear. And a sea lion, I used to think they had manes since they had 'lion' in their name.”

  Luna laughed nervously. “What’s a sea lion? I have seen a magical lion. But…what’s a sea lion.”

  “I don’t remember what they look like.” Storm shrugged. “I forgot a lot of things, unfortunately.”

  ‘Of course you did. Being immortal doesn’t strengthen your memory.’

  “But I do remember how the mortal realm feels like. The tender earth ground, the green pastures, blue clouded skies, starry nights, and clean air. Even the four seasons.”

  She smiled to herself. It was a small, sad smile.

  Luna was quiet the entire time. It was hard to believe that this powerful 600-year-old woman was human just like her. She was a prisoner from a time that was long erased from history. The creatures she wanted to see had probably gone extinct by now. The green pastures weren’t so many on the current earth, the sky often lacked stars. The world had changed so much since she last saw it.

  Humans have exploited most resources in the name of growth. Cities had fallen, and many animals had been hunted to extinction.

  Oh…and a literal calamity that changed everything happened fifty years ago!

  ‘I could tell her to tame her expectations. But I think she knows that already.’

  “Lunaris.”

  “Yes…?” she snapped back to reality.

  “Do you know your role in all of this?”

  Luna first thought for a minute before she responded. “Not really. I came here to find answers, a purpose maybe?” She turned to her sister. She was now sleeping right next to Darkness after exhausting her energy. “I wanted to prove myself to my family and her. But now it feels like I’m flying too close to the sun and I’m afraid that I might get burned by it.”

  “You can just walk away from all of this, you know. Remember, until you follow me to the next floor, you have the choice.”

  The sincerity in her voice could be felt as she spoke.

  “What happens if I walk away?”

  “Hehe, I’m no seer.” Storm Rider finished cutting down the wolf. Then washed the blood off with hot water she had made using melted snow. “This isn’t some chosen one tale. Fate is something we may not be able to run away from. However, we can bend it to our will. Outside of this tower, your fate is already determined…but here, it's disoriented. Determined by your choice….”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I can’t tell you unless you go to the next level. And even if I did, Lunaris. You will forget, the curse will automatically activate and I will cease to exist in your mind.”

  When she heard that, Luna’s mouth almost dropped. Quickly, she covered it with both her hands to avoid asking any more questions.

  Although, Storm Rider had just hinted at something very important. To bypass the curse, she often dropped hints knowing that Luna was smart enough to get it.

  ‘The tower keeps me hidden from something connected to fate. Inside the tower, I have more control over everything happening to me. I have a choice!’

  All of a sudden, a few things started to make sense. Oblivion said she had a choice to hint at the general nature of this tower. Even though her role wasn’t clear yet.

  “Alright.”

  There was a brief silence after her response. Storm Rider returned to her cooking, giving Luna some time with her thoughts.

  Luna noticed and walked over to her sleeping sister. She crouched down and removed her cloak and covered her. Len didn’t need it, of course. The heat from Storm Rider’s flames was enough to push away all coldness, including hers.

  ‘She looks so vulnerable when she’s sleeping. Is this how I look when I’m sleeping? Luna wondered as she brushed her fingers through her sister’s silver hair. It was soft and smooth like perfect silk.

  ‘Pretty.’ She thought. ‘No wonder the guys these days like silverheads.’ She remembered the comments guys often made on live chat each time she played online.

  Len’s silver hair was an effect created by Mao Feng’s unique characteristics. When she had just opened her first gate, Mao Feng was a brunette like Luna. However, when she attained her second gate, the divine energy changed the color of her hair.

  This was normal among ascenders with unique Auras. Gail and Rita both had their eyes changed because of their Auras. House Ares also shared the uniqueness of sapphire blue eyes, passed down from the first member of the bloodline. And maybe Storm Rider too because her eyes looked like a pair of red flames.

  “Have you decided?” Storm broke the silence. Her calm voice was somehow louder in this forsaken cave.

  Luna didn’t respond. She remained silent and continued feeling Len’s hair carefully because she didn’t want to wake her.

  Before she thought of what to say next. Luna remembered the words back in the shrine. The mysterious writings warned them of their deaths if they continued any further in the tower.

  The next floor was the final floor. If they did, by any chance, make it to the final floor…Luna had to expect the worst.

  ‘But we can wait for backup. This is beyond us. Damn it, I can’t walk away from all this when I've come so far. If I knew less at the time, then it would’ve been an option. But I’m already too involved to consider abandoning the mortal realm.’

  “I guess I have a little bit of you in me, Dad.”

  After whispering to herself, she turned away from her sister and then faced Storm Rider. Her eerie dark eyes were now shining with a spark after an idea crossed her mind.

  The Fire Keeper was seasoning the meat with some spices before she added it to a thin black rock resembling a pan. She could’ve cooked it with her hands, but she needed to keep things civilized.

  Finally, Luna replied with another question.

  “How do we kill a deity?”