Chương 1026

The clouds of ether in the purple zone stop spreading outward at an unstoppable rate, and instead begin swirling and pulling inward toward the masses of gravity in its center. Maria and I both float upward, drawn to drift toward the perfect point in the middle of the domain. Below us, the shattered tree stump glows bright white, and the two arrays anchored to it spin faster and faster.

The two arrays reach a point where they no longer need to draw in ether from the air, as they are fully charged, and only need time to activate and set their commands in place. All of the ether residue from fulfilling commands that comes off them is absorbed by us, while the entire domain around us is drained of its energy as well.

While it all happens in less than a second, our perception and physical control over the entire zone is so strong that no other Lords or even trees in the Primordial Garden are drawn in by the forceful pull of our cores. Every single soul tie that tethers links of loyalty to me is protected from our gravitational pull. Light white arrays form around all of them, and dark metallic red primordial aura is infused into these arrays.

They are all still capable of absorbing the refined ether in the air at their own rates, but all of the excess energy flows into Maria and me. Even if we are to absorb 99. 99% of the refined ether in the atmosphere, the leftover is still thousands of times more potent than what the purple zone was like just moments ago. In fact, I use my Primordial Grade Craftsmanship and Creator's Legacy Glyphs to completely reconfigure all of the ancient glyphs and arrays in this zone of the Upper Realm.

I leave the Dryad's barrier intact, separating the outer settlements, neutral zone, and ritual domains perfectly how they were before. However, I infuse enough of my own aura into them to fuel these artifacts for hundreds of billions of years more, if necessary. I feel as though I'm infusing them with a new fresh breath of life, rejuvenating them to an even greater state than the Dryads left them before they were wiped out.

All of the debris from where the 12 Ritual Domains were, and the large settlements full of ancient buildings, are all pulled under my control. With a simple thought, I configure the structures of the Ritual Domains and recreate the same commands the Dryads once left behind, but I do so using a branched-off dialect of the Originator's Language that the Creator's Legacy holds. All of these enormous structures are lifted up at once around us in a perfect circle.

By the time the waves of high-quality ether wash through them and pour into us, they're all completely rebuilt. The enormous circular temples glow bright white, and allow for any race to leave behind any legacy, small or large, without having to take over the entire domain. The legacy creator may leave simple rules behind to only allow members of their race to accept it, or have many conditions they must meet.

Marks created by an invisible soul tie can be left on those in the Lower Realm using the Rising Emperor's system, and they can collect their legacy once they rise. Or, if they wish for anyone to accept their knowledge or power, they can even leave it without restrictions at all. Each Ritual Domain will only react with the recipient the caster wishes. It is impossible for a single entity to claim one of these domains any longer.

They are connected and incorruptible as long as the attacker's Primordial Aura is weaker than mine. I leave an enormous amount of ether behind to keep the zone healthy, but the clouds of white ether, making it impossible for average Lords here to see, all disappear. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

They fall into my soul, making my ethereal fire burn much brighter, my corruption become charged with a warm white glow around its edges, and all of my Creator's Legacy glyphs shine so bright on the outer edges of my soul I'm forced to expand my Origin Body's size. Both Maria and I grow over a thousand times in size, to the point where if the dome of the Central Domain were still here, we would not be able to fit under it standing up.

The towering figures of a metallic half demon and sparkling angel are the only things anyone can see when they look upward in the Primordial Garden. My Soul Sword gives off a bright crimson aura when it moves, making trails of mist filled with billions of copied soul swords. Yet, the most alluring part of the blade is the silver core that is visible from the outside. The eye that looks out at the zone around us from the base of my blade gleams with silver threads too.

I can feel the weight of the blade in my hand, but cannot use it just yet. The spinning arrays beneath our feet begin to make cracks in the floor of the zone, and dense streams of ether start to burst through. These pathways plunge straight into our feet and fill our pools with even more energy. I can see exactly where they're coming from as my Aura can feel every intricate detail of the zones below.

It is like a perfect magnetic force is being created by these two arrays, latching onto all of the stray ether in the Lower Realm that has not started to configure itself to the ancient arrays in the highways, and also the loose ether in the green, cyan, and blue zones that Abby's Primordial Tree is not assimilating fast enough. Too much excess energy creates strain on the already fragile zone barriers, and even becomes harmful to those that cannot wield high-quality ether of this purity.

In total, it is still less than what was released in the Purple Zone, but I still feel another rush before the spinning arrays begin to slow down and even stop giving off so much ether residue, as their main commands have all been fulfilled. They slow to a very steady spin, but at the same time, many arrays that anchor other zones in place start moving in a chaotic manner too.

They all start syncing up with this speed and create an invisible funnel upward through the zones, starting in the center of the Lower Realm at the source. At first, it feels like nothing more than a soul tie, but intricate layers of white glyphs begin to imprint on its edges. It starts to look like one of the highways in the Lower Realm, but shifted to move through every zone. It forms right through the center of Abby's Primordial Tree.

While watching this take place, I also watch the cracks in the ground all begin to form around this array. It is not because of Maria or my presence, and it is not even the result of this collection of ancient glyphs finishing its purpose. It is the upward pressure from the Blue Zone that is causing the fabric of reality to quiver beneath my feet. I raise a hand that is not holding my Soul Sword, close my eyes, and begin to create one last structure.

It is an extremely strong collection of glyphs, protecting the center of the Purple Zone in a similar fashion to the Central Domain's old dome. This one begins right up against the edges of the Ritual Domains and rises much higher in the air. However, it is not meant to keep anyone out. If any of the domain Lords in the outer settlements wished to walk through, they could without any issue.

It is a temporary measure to protect the entire zone from what is about to break through, and give it a natural barrier in order to assimilate the divine thread pressure properly without destroying the entire Upper Realm. As the dome of bright white Creator's Legacy Glyphs links into place, a rush of red and blue aura flows through it, solidifying it in place. Then, I turn to Maria and nod, "That's it. Let's leave before we break this entire construct to pieces..."

There are already black fractured lines all over the edges of her sparkling angelic form. I can tell that if we wait any longer, the reaction to our presence in this zone will not be as simple to fix as Ember's fall upward into the void. She nods, gripping her blade tighter as deep blue-colored cracks continue to form under the arrays, spreading outward to the edges of the dome's base I just created, tethered to the barrier between zones.

I turn my focus to my blade and sync my thoughts with the dense crimson aura pouring out. It allows the silver threads in its core to flow faster, and the eye at its base blinks. I have to grip the sword with both hands when I lift it up, and it actually feels heavy, putting a real strain on my soul when wielding it. The blade's tip punctures the fabric of the Purple Zone in front of us, and the further down I drag, the harder it is to swing.

A dark black slash opens up in the air, and its edges all begin to fracture around us. It looks jet black like pure darkness, but staring into it now with an extension of myself touching its surface, I can tell this dark aura is the furthest thing from an abyss of nothingness. It is not an empty void.