Emperal snapped open his eyes, a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Vara’s heart skipped a beat when she saw this.

"I assume you gained something useful."

Vara stepped forward and smiled. Emperal stared at her. In the next second, he...bowed. Vara froze when she saw this.

"I do not know how to repay your grace, if it wasn’t for you. I wouldn’t have...had this treasure so early. This treasure...is life-changing. If there is anything I can do for you, say it." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

He bowed for a second, then raised his head.

Aside from doing this, he really didn’t know of a way to thank her. Nor could he do anything in return for her favour. It was laughable to even think of it.

Seeing this seriousness in his eyes, Vara was taken aback for a moment. But then, a small smile spread on her face.

"Although that bitch’s personality is nasty and arrogant to the core, she did raise a real man."

She took a step forward, and Verth began diffusing from her body as her appearance slowly wore off. Her black hair slowly returned to its silver sheen.

Her dark eyes dissolved, giving way to molten gold. Her height increased, getting up to 185cm. A...bit taller than Emperal.

Emperal was surprised when he saw this, looking up he saw her eyes regain their coldness. It was a bit mind-blowing how she switched her expression.

Standing just a few inches away from him, she spoke.

"Soleine Vael Nirvana"

Emperal widened his eyes when he heard her words, the Phoenix Empress...was giving her name to him. What does this mean?

It means she had regarded him as her closest partner. The world only knew the name Vael Nirvana.

"Soleine"

Emperal spoke, eyes shining intensely as his gaze was captured by her lips. They were perfect, symmetrical, and rosy.

Seeing his gaze, Soleine’s eyes blurred. Emperal was, obviously, not a clueless mutt. Leaning closer, he took her lips gently.

"Mhm~!"

Soleine’s knees buckled as she shifted her weight on his shoulders, and she almost leaned against his frame.

Emperal’s hands found their way to her back, thick veins popping up on his forearms. He held her lean frame tightly against his, which further turned Soleine on.

Both of them felt a current rush through their systems. The kiss continued for a few more minutes. Soleine grew more and more intense by each second, both of their tongues dancing for dominance.

But, unfortunately for her, Emperal had experienced far more aggressive attacks in his past. This...this was just the beginning.

Moving his hand, he grabbed her slender neck and forced her head a bit down.

"Anh~"

Soleine’s body trembled intensely for a few seconds; her lower entire robe had become wet.

Finally, after an entire hour. They both separated. Emperal smirked when he saw this intense blush on her neck.

An intense urge to bite that delicate neck hammered in his head, making him feel like his head was buzzing.

But...he controlled himself.

Soleine looked at Emperal; her irises had turned into a deeper shade of gold.

"I will be waiting, my love~ The moment you are done with your goal, is the moment you are getting destroyed. You better be ready," Soleine chuckled and licked her lips.

"Hmph, arrogant."

Emperal snorted back, but there was a smile at the corner of his lips.

"We will meet soon, till then...do not die."

Saying that, Soleine pecked his cheek and vanished. Leaving behind an empty void in Emperal’s heart.

He sighed when he saw this, dusting his clothes. He wiped his lips.

Drip Drip Drip.

Suddenly, he felt a strange wetness behind him, and an intense smell hit him like a freight train.

Emperal stiffened, turning his head back. He saw the reptilian beast with amber eyes staring at him with an amused look.

"U-Uh, Soleine. It seems you forgot something."

...

After a few hours, Emperal walked out of the cave. Stretching his hands and cracking his bones.

"Ah, man. If only the weather or scenery were good on this island. We could have halted here a bit."

He shook his head and walked towards the ship. Earlier, Soleine had forgotten to take care of the beast. But fortunately, a small spark had ignited just before it could strike Emperal. Incinerating it entirely.

"Infernal Dragon, is it possible to absorb the Soul Energy from here in Verandis?"

Emperal asked curiously, though his gut feeling did say yes. He had to confirm a bit.

"Yes, you can. But I suggest you not to, it is really time-consuming and useless if you ask me. At least for you."

"Hm? Why do you think so?"

"Because you have to absorb the Verth in here, refine it through your Spirit Root, connect the Verth veins to your Soul Space, and let the Verth flow there."

"Oh, so we can use Verth as an alternative?"

"Obviously no, the Verth is further broken down, and the Soul Energy contained in that Verth is extracted, since your Soul Space isn’t advanced to that level by itself. You alone have to do all of this manually. And believe me, this is not what you wish to spend your time on."

The Infernal Dragon spoke, and realization dawned upon Emperal when he heard this. A bead of sweat dripped down his cheeks when he realized how useful his Consciousness Mirror was.

"Alright, we will start our Soul Cultivation on the journey. Do you know anything about it?"

Emperal asked, hope shining in his eyes.

"Although I do not know anything about the domain of souls, I have seen an incredibly accomplished person whose performance I have witnessed. So, I know a bit here and there."

"That’s good, and please don’t tell me this requires a cultivation technique."

"The passive abilities of this cultivation do not, it’s just like Verth. But yes, you do need cultivation techniques if you want to have advanced-level offensive and defensive abilities."

The Infernal Dragon spoke, Emperal’s mood dropped to hell when he heard this. He couldn’t help but curse.

"But, worry not. Since the next item you are going to look for. It happens to be on the same continent as a Soul Cultivation technique."