101 – Decisions for the Future!
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PART 1 – The weight of actions!
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Skarla organized her rewards from the attack. A dimension as large as the continent she had taken over. Skarla had a lot to clean up.
Time inside is different, about twice as fast. It is not fertile, and its magical energy is scarce. But by installing some Hearts of the World, it was possible to bring some life to the place.
She would turn it into a training dimension, but it would take years to do so, and there was still much to clean up. To this end, she bought criminal slaves, throwing nearly 200 of them into this dimension and ordering them to clean up the place.
She brought in some Black Mages specializing in Necromancy to help and lead the place.
The Intelligent Spirits had already been installed in the library, the various languages being studied and cataloged, with Skarla having access to the summaries. The books were being divided into categories of study areas and languages.
Many still needed to be studied, and it would take a long time to be able to reuse the library efficiently. She should have taken the translation artifacts that Sueika used.
The artifacts she took from Greed were cataloged, their quality being incredible and their effects diverse.
Powerful weapons that would make even demigods salivate, resources and materials from monsters never heard of before, a certain elf practically came while studying them.
Many things Skarla could use, more precisely her children, wives, and subordinates.
Skarla doesn't use items, at most a few for convenience, but her power is purely hers, it's not something that can be taken away from her, weakening her if she is without a weapon.
Take her “Dadao Sword - Mountain.” Skarla has already passed it on to her daughter Theya, as it has become obsolete. Whether she uses it or not makes no difference. Her physical abilities level up, Skarla develops new ones, acquires Talents that fortify her flesh.
At this point, her body is more powerful than the strongest attacks Mountain can withstand. If she uses the sword with all her power, it would destroy itself and be the end of a legendary weapon that does not change the results of her fights in any way.
Because of this, Berard Divine'Hammer, her beloved dwarf blacksmith, changed his surname. He is starting his own lineage and arrogantly made “Divine” his surname.
Naturally, there were problems with the dwarves, especially with his immediate family. For a dwarf, changing his surname is the same as betraying his lineage, his ancestors. But for Berard, that doesn't matter.
Berard made his life follow and serve Skarla, the one who gifted him with glory, with a new vision of the world, of the forge, to step on a level that no other blacksmith, not only in this world, but in the entire universe, was unable to reach!
The Gods themselves tempted him, promising various things in exchange for his service and loyalty. They wanted the practically divine weapons he was capable of creating. Many weapons even had a manifested ego, elevating the power of even a commoner to kill Masters!
But he ignored them all, the Divine Blacksmith who serves only Skarla.
He married Senah, the half-breed between a Troll and an Orc, a Trorc. They already have four children and two more are on the way. His lineage is strong, and he was also taken to level up.
With better attributes, higher levels, and approaching Legendary Level, the quality and quantity of what he creates only increases.
So even with the Dwarf King criticizing him for changing his name, Berard didn't blink. He wants to be worthy of following Skarla, and the surname Thunderhammer didn't seem worthy enough for the one who forges weapons for the strongest mortal in the universe, who will surely become a high-ranking Deity in the future.
When did Skarla find out? She just laughed and congratulated him on his courage.
And at that moment, Berard is once again obsessed with creating a weapon that Skarla will use. It will not be a sword, nothing long-reaching, nor daggers. What he plans to create are gauntlets. He studies engineering, the elements that Skarla has an affinity for, and is creating various metal alloys to develop something that even Skarla, using all her power, could not break or distort.
It will take years, but Berard has time, and Skarla will be stuck at Level 40 for many years. Then a skull fell into his hands, the first divine material to fall into his hands.
……
With the rewards organized and put to use, progress continued!
Her relationship with her children improved subtly, as they went through the initial stages of the technique and the danger Sueika posed was gone for now, but there will always be more danger in the future.
But Skarla is planning other methods to strengthen her children, less painful methods.
His wives still want answers. They understand that whatever Skarla is hiding, to the point of damaging their relationship, is something serious that could harm the family.
But it frustrates them to have to leave everything up to Skarla. A danger that forces their children to undergo torture that could kill or drive them mad. Something that Skarla, the woman they love, the one they decided to share their lives with, is enduring alone, destroying herself and not allowing them, her life partners, the ones who will stand by her for millennia to come, to take on some of that burden.
They endure, they know they can endure anything. They know what they've gotten themselves into, but Skarla still turns her back on them, hiding secrets. And that's what irritates and frustrates them.
Not just towards Skarla, but towards themselves. They feel frustrated and powerless, because they are not enough for Skarla to trust them with such an important secret. Something she will take to her grave.
This leads to many complications and doubts. They see Skarla's pain, the look she gives when the subject is mentioned, they know it is eating away at her. That she hates herself for keeping it, but believes that if it is revealed, the family will be destroyed.
(Author: I truly believe that the news of Lohan killing Skarla and potentially other family members because he was corrupted by Sueika would destroy them all. Even if it wasn't told to the children, just among the wives. It would destroy Viper, followed by the others, who could take their children away from Lohan, which would subsequently cause the secret to reach the ears of the children, of Lohan himself, and that would destroy him. So Skarla doesn't care if her relationship with her wives is being destroyed, she loves them deeply, but she would rather be hated by them, frustrate them, than let anything hurt and destroy her children, the relationship they have. The future in which this happens has already been erased, there's no need to torment her children, she alone is enough.
(Author: I hope you understand this and don't think I'm exaggerating the importance I'm placing on something that won't even happen anymore. But the problem is that it was something that happened in the future, and the fear is that it could happen again.)
...
Skarla gradually reconciled with her children. A distance had been created, but children like Lohan, Kamilla, and Theya, the oldest and most mature, were trying to help. They trust their mother and understand that what she did was necessary.
Not everyone understands; they are children who had everything good and the best, suddenly subjected to torture by those they trust most. Skarla is the cool and fun mother, also respected. She is the father figure her children want to mirror.
Skarla destroyed that image with pain. For pain is something that transforms. That's what she did with her children.
...
Progress came. The new continent began to be modified with the help of the elves, Hearts of the World installed at various strategic points, the quality and density of energy in the air was heavy.
Skarla even installed several of them underground, some in mineral veins, which over the years would improve them on several levels.
Miles of food crops, tests taking place, hybrid creations, modifications through magic. They had time and space for that.
Skarla began recruiting researchers from around the world to be part of the project, selecting only the best for it.
The goal was to dramatically increase the quality of the world's food, accelerate its production, and, of course, not negatively affect the world.
Dungeons were found, organized, and explored, new materials were discovered, some rare and difficult to obtain were acquired, and soon means of reproducing them emerged.
And so time began to pass!
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PART 2 – Blossoming!
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Skarla smiles at the beautiful little girl with dark skin and long pointed ears. “Mommy!” she calls out happily.
After more years than imagined, Zindraliel Verona was born. She did not have the milky white skin of the High Elves, but inherited Skarla's dark skin, only lighter.
She was born looking like a child around 12 years old. A striking beauty and an impossibility to ignore, she makes anyone want to protect her.
Chubby cheeks that make you want to squeeze them.
The birth of her children is always a happy occasion for Skarla, the happiest moments of her life, especially when she hears her children calling her mommy.
She takes Zindraliel in her arms. “Do you want to fly with mommy?”
“Yes!” She shouts happily, and soon they fly over the Sacred Land of the Elves.
Her violet-colored eyes observe the world below, the colossal World Tree, the elves living their lives.
“Beautiful~” Zindraliel says as she observes the beauty of the world. Skarla smiles at her lovely purity, kissing her forehead. Zindraliel laughs and kisses Skarla back.
“Mommy~ over there! It smells good.” Zindraliel points, and Skarla sniffs the air. She doesn't smell anything, but she lands in an orchard anyway.
Zindraliel jumped off her lap, laughing happily as she danced around. The wind moved the leaves, some falling, creating a beautiful scene, something that seemed to have come from a movie.
Skarla smiled gently as Zindraliel crouched near a tree. Skarla watched her use her little fingers to dig into the ground, which began to open up, exposing a root.
Skarla's eyes flashed, noticing something familiar, a kind of internal energy... no, it's Nature's Energy, but it reminds her of the natural resources of the Murim world. It was the same feeling, and it was the first time Skarla had seen anything like it in this world.
She narrowed her eyes as Zindraliel grunted while trying to pull it out. Skarla crouched down and pulled the root. Skarla felt that it looked like a type of ginseng; the smell was similar, but she could be wrong. It had been many decades and another life since she had last smelled it.
Looking at Zindraliel with bright eyes and saliva dripping, Skarla smiled and handed it to her. With a cute and cheerful cry, she grabbed the root and bit into it, soon sucking and nodding her head from side to side, where she began to hum.
Skarla smiled; it was a song she used to hum when she was near Zindraliel's cocoon. Skarla visited periodically. Not only did she leave her daughter here to grow up, she made a point of showing she was present, so when she came out of the cocoon, Zindraliel recognized her.
“We'll have to talk later...” Skarla said mentally, sticking her head out into the world and making sure Zindraliel, who had a strong connection to the world, didn't hear.
Soon Zindraliel extends her little hand, dirty with soil, Skarla takes it, and together they fly into the skies.
“Mommy~” she called with her mouth full of brownish coloring.
“Yes?” Skarla smiled.
“I want to meet my brothers!” Zindraliel smiled, and Skarla wiped the dirt from her nose and the corners of her lips.
“Okay, sweetie, the party is already being prepared, we'll go there tomorrow.” Skarla smiles kindly.
...
Zindraliel took her first bath, she played a lot and took Skarla to various places, asked about many things, like the curious child she is, which is normal for a child.
She got very dirty. Her ability to detect hidden treasures in nature is surreal; Skarla would need to focus hard to reach the same level. The curious thing is that she eats a lot and naturally cultivates Internal Energy.
Just by being born, she already has almost 250 years of Internal Energy, waves and energy from nature that she consumed through plants, which must account for around 100-150 more years. The curious thing is that her body can handle it, even without her having a cultivation technique in practice, it's just natural.
Zindraliel has what in Murim would be called a Unique Constitution, what is it? Skarla has no idea, but she knows that she has the potential to be one of the strongest among her children.
...
After her bath, Zindraliel was excited to hear stories. She had fun all day long, but didn't seem tired.
Skarla took her to a balcony and hugged her, Zindraliel burying her head between her breasts, listening to the stories of her older brothers and sisters. She doesn't like fairy tales, which made Skarla laugh.
This is something Zindraliel has in common with her many children: they are not interested in fairy tales, they want epic stories, which fascinate them.
So hours passed with Skarla talking nonstop and Zindraliel being extremely intelligent, asking lots of questions. Skarla patiently and kindly answered everything.
The day passed, Zindraliel was still full of energy, and preparations for the banquet had to be delayed. Problems arose, but Viper was already solving them. Something about a group of demons, just more trouble from the treasures that some Legends took from the Demon Realm, something periodic.
Skarla spent another day with Zindraliel being introduced to various people, playing with her grandfather Cellus and grandmother Vyridia.
Cellus loved Zindraliel from the first moment he saw her. He gave Skarla a break while taking the little girl for a walk around the palace, introducing her to several important people and telling her all kinds of stories.
Zindraliel has already fallen in love with her grandfather's stories, Cellus loves Zindraliel's curiosity and he also loves to tell stories, he has endless stories to share and Zindraliel has the desire to know.
The next day they went to a teleportation portal and were sent to Verona, not Krugar, but the continent of Verona.
In the center of the continent stood a colossal palace, thousands of guests, all present to welcome Zindraliel.
...
Zindraliel found herself in front of rows of beautiful dresses, with dozens of women evaluating and presenting her. Soon Zindraliel was wearing a beautiful sky blue dress, beautiful matching shoes, no jewelry, she didn't need it to accentuate her incredible beauty and cuteness.
Soon Skarla and Grisaliel accompanied Zindraliel to the balcony overlooking the colossal courtyard and garden with thousands of guests.
The moment the doors opened, horns sounded and the light show began, Zindraliel marveled as the applause resounded, thousands of people congratulating her arrival in the world.
Zindraliel smiled happily, waving cutely to all the guests.
...
Before long, Zindraliel was having fun with several children of different races, children of very powerful and influential beings, and of course, some of his brothers and sisters.
Zindraliel had already forgotten that she only wanted to meet her older brothers and sisters. Now she was running everywhere, having fun with different children, making friends, even though she had been born less than 72 hours ago.
Skarla smiles from afar, always attentive.
“Sorry for being late, Mom.” A calm voice sounded behind Skarla, finding Lohan with a gift box with a golden bow.
“Don't worry about it. Did you solve the problem?” Skarla laughs as she hugs him and kisses his forehead.
“Solved. Just another futile attempt at revenge by the demons,” said Lohan, shrugging and looking into the distance, sensing her. “Another beauty to break hearts. I'd rather she was a girl, not a futanari. It's going to be a lot of trouble.”
Skarla laughed. “As long as she's not like Belisandre, everything will be fine.”
“What if she's worse? Not to diminish Sister Belisandre, but Zindraliel will be much more beautiful.” Lohan laughs.
Skarla remains silent, which is a concern. Zindraliel is an elf after all, a unique half-breed between Human and High-Elf, a futanari of indescribable beauty and cuteness. When she gets older, she is sure to steal hearts.
“I think... I want to enjoy the thought that she will be cute and innocent for another century.” Skarla laughs.
“Dreaming isn't bad.” Lohan laughs, then frowns, and before he can speak, Skarla at his side has already disappeared, followed shortly thereafter by him, and he wasn't the only one.
……
“Kyahahahaha! Skarla, you filthy bitch, you think you can keep partying after what you did to us?! You and all this trash will pay!” A hideous laugh rang out from a small creature with long horns, in front of a ritual being performed with several sacrifices.
A forbidden spell was being prepared, targeting the Verona Continent, its center, where the world's greatest powers were located, Skarla and her entire family present.
It would not kill Skarla, but it would cause massive damage to everyone around her, weakening this world. This would be the Demon Realm's revenge.
“What do you think you're doing?” A calm voice sounds, the little demon is startled to look up at the tall, handsome elf man with a smile on his face, but his eyes exude anger.
The ceiling above their heads, dozens of meters of earth, opens up, revealing dozens of flying beings, men and women who, just by being together, made the air itself stagnate, even time seemed to hesitate in the face of the tension that arose.
“It's the banquet to welcome my dear granddaughter to this incredible world, and you, little demon, want to ruin it?” Cellus says with a smile, but anger emanates from his voice.
The demon shudders as he looks up at dozens of demigods, all enraged.
“I... was just joking?” The little demon's shoulders shrank, he trembled with fear and forced a smile. Skarla waves her hand and everything is destroyed. The little demon is captured.
“Go back to the party, I'll take care of gathering the information,” says Cellus.
“I'll help, I want to try out some new torture methods,” says a smiling Halfling woman.
Skarla nods.
“These demons seem to be getting dumber and dumber. Last year they tried something at Nami's birthday banquet, now this?” mocks a demigod.
“What will they try next year?” laughs another.
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PART 3 – Meeting!
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“Another plan foiled...” - A male voice echoes.
“The Murim World is becoming more arrogant. Soon it will develop its second layer, and when that happens... this abomination will become even stronger!” - A growl comes from a female voice.
“I said we should be patient. Instead of seizing the first opportunity that comes along, let's accumulate power again. Wait for the right moment and attack dozens of times. There's no way she can detect them all.” - A lazy voice sounded.
“It is well known that all of Skarla's children receive a birthday banquet every five years, which only lasts until they turn 30, after which it will only be every ten years. Some of the leading figures in the Murim world participate, so we will have several other opportunities in the future. We must accumulate more power in Murim.”
“You talk as if it were easy!” – The male voice sounded loud and angry. – “We sent several artifacts, we managed to infiltrate some low-level demons to use them, but they are all discovered and annihilated!”
“Do we have a traitor among us?” – A doubtful voice sounded.
“No. We used that angelic trash to detect lies. None of those present are traitors.” – A carefree voice sounded.
“Silence!” – As the situation was escalating, a firm voice sounded and everyone fell silent.
"Skarla is the number one enemy of demons, and Murim has become our target. The problem is that millennia of planning has been destroyed, and it will take many decades for us to infiltrate Legendary Demons into that world again.“ A long sigh sounded. ”For now, return to the usual method, calm and patience, let's go back to corrupting them, sacrifice some, hide others, as we have always done."
“But master, we are talking about centuries in Murim, which will be thousands of years for us. Even with the low chances, we should still try something. We don't know when Skarla will transcend, if she does and she comes back here...” - A female voice sounded fearful.
Her words made the atmosphere heavier.
Skarla is not only the number one enemy of the Demon Realm, she is the one demons tell horror stories about to their children at bedtime. She is feared, demons dread her name.
Years have passed since the attack, yet the damage persists. Countless corrupted demons roam causing chaos and destruction, more than usual. Demigods and even Demon Gods have been corrupted.
Several wars are raging everywhere, with the Corrupted Demons constantly corrupting others and trying to bring their twisted “truth” to others, wanting to open the doors for cosmic entities to step into the Demon Realm.
Demonic Gods who spent most of their lives sleeping were in constant activity, working harder in recent years than in their entire lives. This only increases their hatred for Skarla, as they are lazy beings at the height of their power, forced to clean up the mess that a mortal caused.
As for the remnants of the Deadly Sins, they were all killed. It was discovered that one of them was the reason Skarla visited them, but naturally, demons don't care about the real culprit, so they killed them all and took out their anger on those close to their territory or with any significant connection.
They just wanted a target to vent all their hatred on, and that's what they did.
Now the Demon Realm is a veritable hell. Tormenting not only the foolish mortals who sold their souls for all eternity for fleeting benefits, it now torments even the most powerful Demons.
And the culprit behind it all is celebrating as if she hadn't contaminated and condemned an entire dimension for millions of years.
The most irritating thing is Heaven. They take advantage of the fragile state of the demons, but they haven't attacked the Demon Realm. That would be foolish; they are already self-destructing, so there's no reason to keep stabbing a severed limb.
Instead, they are actively attacking worlds that various factions of demigods or legions of demon gods were conquering. Mainly places at war with Paradise.
The demons were forced to retreat and in most cases lost their reinforcements. They could not continue the war, they lost their main leaders, they were being corrupted, pure chaos.
The angels advanced and wiped out their legions, erasing them from various worlds.
…
“I heard that some Gods of Light are waiting for the 2nd Layer of Murim to manifest itself, to try to recruit Skarla.” Said a calm voice, which had been silent the whole time, and silence returned.
“How accurate is your information?”
“Our dear white-winged sellers. It seems that the pantheons can't stop talking about Skarla, some are already fighting over who will get her.” The calm voice gave a scornful laugh.
Discussion ensued, then a female voice sounded. “But that could be good for us.”
All eyes focused on her.
“From everything we know about Skarla, she has a terrible relationship with the Neutral Gods and their Pantheons. We know how arrogant they are and how they treat mortals. We know that the Gods of Light are... well, worse, much more arrogant than us demons.” She laughed. “Do you think Skarla, who is a living god among mortals, will simply... agree to bow her head? She literally confronted us, and all we know is that she had news about a demigod who would harm her children in the future. That was enough to make all the demons her enemies.”
“What Lith says makes sense.” – Said a lazy voice. – "The pigeons are extremely arrogant and think that everything and everyone will do their bidding. Skarla has shown that she is someone who does what she wants, when and how she wants. If the future possibility of one of ours harming her children caused her to wreak all this havoc, imagine what she will do when those arrogant bastards act?"
“Remember the last time they took an interest in a mortal? They almost destroyed their world to have him, and in the end, we gained an incredible ally.” A laugh came.
Many nodded, the image of a demon appearing in their minds.
“There was also the Saint, she was so pure and innocent, but that god who loves children—” A demon stopped talking and laughed. “That's it! Where are the recent images? Where are Skarla's children?” He shouted, and soon the image of each of Skarla's children was brought to him.
And the last, the most recent, Zindraliel!
Laughter rang out.
“What's going on?” one of the dumbest asked.
"Simple. We have the perfect God of Light to make Skarla his enemy. Doesn't he love children? Didn't he start a war with another god because he wanted a Saint? Do you think he will respect a mortal? Look at that face, those eyes, that skin... I already desire that child, I've never felt such a desire to destroy and corrupt something. Do you think that imbecile will resist?" Laughter echoed.
Understanding dawned on the dumbest ones, but most of them don't know which god they're talking about.
“But then what? Are we just going to stop attacking Skarla?” someone asked.
"I think it's unlikely that we'll kill her before Transcending, so let's use the winged bastards. We can't let them become allies, so make Skarla make them your enemies too. Maybe she'll repeat what she did to us with them. Imagine Paradise, that disgusting place, burning in flames, with their desperate and crazed screams covering all of Paradise?"
“Aah~ I'm going to cum~”
Laughter echoed.
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PART 4 – The World!
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“So, about the roots my daughter ate.” Skarla asked with her arms crossed as the world unfolded before her, a world she discovered was called Murim. “And why specifically Murim?” she added.
“Most worlds don't name themselves; they are given names by their inhabitants. I've had two names before, given to me by the strongest of those eras. I didn't have a name until then, simply because there was no legitimate agreement.” A slight laugh came from Murim.
“So your name is decided by the majority? I don't think I've spread the word Murim around.” Skarla raised an eyebrow; there probably aren't even 1,000 people who know about it.
“I don't need the majority or the strongest to decide or accept a name. At the end of the day, I am the one who decides what I will be called. And when I decide on a name, my children naturally discover it and accept it.”
Skarla nodded. “But you still haven't said why.”
"Because I liked it. I never had a definitive name, then you came along, with your martial arts, creation of the Dantian, and much more. You are shaping the system and this universe. As Murim is known as the World of Martial Arts in your past life, where Martial Artists meet. I liked the structure and division of civilians and warriors, so I decided to accept that name, a kind of tribute."
Skarla still doesn't quite understand his reasons, but she just accepts it. It's not as if it has any great significance for her.
“Regarding the roots? I recently began to notice with the birth of my daughter that many natural resources are emitting familiarity with my cultivation,” Skarla said calmly.
“Well, I don't think I even need to answer, but it's obvious that it's your fault and your daughter's. The World Tree is a heart, my heart. Of course, if it is destroyed or something like that, I will become very weak, but I will not die, it's just metaphorical.” Murim laughed.
"But it is the source of life, which allows for change, creation, and more. The Elves were born from the World Tree, but they weren't the only ones, other races were also born from it, just not from its center. Humans, Dwarves, and more were born, but because I already had an idea of what they were, I sent them to other continents before they took root and mixed too much."
"In other words, the origin of all living beings is from the World Tree. Its existence allows more beings to be created, new species... take mestizos, for example, their existence is allowed because the World Tree allows it, but there are several worlds that do not allow the mixing of races."
"It's hard to explain, because what the World Tree really is cannot be put into words, but it can take other forms, yet its function is always the same. A kind of nursery for all existing races, be they humanoids, beasts, birds, fish, and more. Its destruction harms everything. Not only would it be impossible for new races to be born into the world, even if it continues to grow stronger, the birth rate would decrease dramatically and new types of mixed-race beings would become impossible."
Take Shunam, for example. She is a mess, and I feel her pain. I wanted to help her, but I was unable to do so, and there was no way to manipulate things to stop him from continuing his atrocities. But she has genes from various Beastkins. Her dominant appearance is that of a Chinchilla with a Mouse, but she has lineage from wolves, tigers, rabbits, and more. The Metamorphosis she went through helped her benefit from all of this while separating them, so every child she has... would be like a gacha machine? Anything could appear."
Skarla nodded, she already knew that.
"Know that your children with Shunam still carry a lot of their mother's mixed genes, so they are more than they appear. If the world tree is gone, you would no longer be able to have children with her, unless you were lucky enough for her genes to match those of your last three children, but that's almost impossible. I myself don't understand Shunam's body, but I can still make her pregnancy work."
Skarla frowned, she didn't know that.
“But the World Tree is not just about giving birth to new types of life, supporting genetic mixing, etc., it is also related to minerals, plants, earth, air, and much more. I have been analyzing, whether you like it or not, your Internal Energy, the Dantian, and more. How do you think I managed to implant them in your children?” A laugh came.
Of course, there is much I still do not know; I am seeing the universe with new eyes because of you. But just as my children have no control over how their bodies will react to illness and certain stimuli, I am no different. Zindraliel is a perfect blend of the concepts of my universe, the rules I have access to, along with the Cultivation of Internal Energy, but not only that. it was conceived when you were in your 1st Metamorphosis, but it continued to be incubated for years. You reached your 2nd Metamorphosis, the quality of your energy changed, and naturally affected the incubation, which is why it took much longer than expected."
"It is natural that your actions, my instinctive analysis of your Internal Energy, and how the World Tree works would result in this. I am manifesting more and more of these new things, changing many things, many of which are good and others bad. But I am not the only one; other worlds are beginning to be affected, as the system is converting its power so that you are not the only one using it. In fact, there are already some worlds that have just been born, which are using the concept of Dantian in their mortals."
Skarla frowned slightly, but having Dantian and using Cultivation Techniques are very different things. “Is it the Dantian that I or my children have?” Skarla narrows her eyes.
“It's much inferior, something rudimentary. The first prototypes, but over time they can develop something similar. Life adapts and improves, that's its beauty.”
“I see... tell me more about the layer.” Skarla changes the subject. “I know that with everything I've done, you must already have more than enough for the next level.”
“Indeed. I've climbed many levels because of you, and I have massive energy reserves. Right now, I'm structuring the second layer, which will be like another dimension.”
“Will you structure it like the one we know, or will it have something special? Maybe a second World Tree?” Skarla smiles.
“Yes, why, any suggestions?” Murim looked curious.
“Yes. I don't think it's worth doing that. From what I understand, the layers are a means for worlds to have more inhabitants, where through quantity, they can generate more protectors and even Gods.”
Murim nodded.
“Instead of just creating a copy and subsequently leaving the two layers open to future conflicts, where we already know who will win due to the age difference, even if you give them great support. Most likely, as soon as it opens, several Demigods and Legends will rush there to take its resources, even if there aren't many.”
“What do you suggest?”
“Instead of quantity, let's focus on quality. With the concepts of the universe from my past life, it's already obvious that the greater the quantity and density of energy in the air, the faster we will progress, and this is not only beneficial for Martial Artists, but also for magicians and others. Greater sensitivity to ambient energy allows them to better understand their own energy, discover more, and strengthen themselves.”
“Then create limits. Make the layer I live in the center, the heart, so to speak. Here will be the mortals. Impose rules that Level 20 is the limit of allowed power. Those above that level of power will have all kinds of penalties, which will prevent beings with my level of power, or any Legend and above, from doing whatever they want, even intimidating or annihilating civilians.”
“Let's focus on the first layer as a preparation, a place to cultivate the number of civilians, develop technology, and bring greater balance to its people. Then comes the second layer. Create methods that allow people from the first layer to move to the second without major problems, as long as they pass some kind of test or have a certain minimum strength to enter it.”
"But when I talk about limiting the level, I'm not saying that those at Level 21 and above will have heavy penalties for using their power, but rather that they will have limitations. I know you can do that. Limit it to the maximum allowed, but still give advantages or allow certain loopholes, not for abuse of power, but so that individuals at that level are not easily overwhelmed by those who are weaker. I believe this would ensure a division between civilians and the extraordinary."
But back to the second layer. Raise the quality of energy there, allowing for the generation of greater numbers of monsters, and higher quality ones. A paradise for savagery, where you manipulate the quality and quantity of energy in the regions, using my Cultivation Techniques as a basis, monsters will naturally target places with better energy, the weaker ones will tend to move away, naturally creating level and difficulty limits, there may be errors, but leave that to chance."
Reduce the limitations related to Demigods, let them be freer, but of course, allow enemies of this level to emerge more easily.
Murim listened attentively. “So... the first layer will be home to mortals, and the second layer will be a battlefield for growth?”
Yes. Safety and danger, side by side. Ignore quantity and focus on quality. We can even use the demons. Aren't they desperately trying to get inside you? Then let them into the second layer, make them public enemies, reduce conflicts between nations, if there are any, let it be between mortals, let no Legend or Demigod appear to simply annihilate their enemies and that's it, thousands of deaths."
"Separate everyone, let the kingdoms that want to fight, fight. But if they want real resources? Let them aim for the second layer. For surely fortified cities will arise, the place of reception for the people of the first layer. A refuge for sentient races, where powerful families will settle, aiming for growth, not the conquest of kingdoms or their titles, but a hierarchy developed amid true power, defending their cities from savagery and putting nations in their proper place."
The numbers of armies? Insignificant in the second tier. There, only the quality of the warriors will matter, not their quantity.
And by creating common enemies, internal conflicts will diminish. Fewer of my children will slaughter each other for scarce resources; they will fight in the second tier, achieve levels of power, and become truly powerful warriors and mages. In this, families or even sects, as in Murim, will emerge, the home of knowledge and opportunities, not what we have now, where nations and magical organizations retain all knowledge for themselves, making Mages extremely scarce."
Skarla smiles while Murim contemplates.
“I like the idea, I'll see what it costs. But if I don't have enough, can you help?”
“Of course, but you know it will cost, right?” Skarla smiles and Murim nods. “How are the Angels?” she adds.
“...they're trying to make contact. I'm stopping them for now, but when the Second Layer appears, they'll get through!”
“...how long until the second layer?”
“At the earliest, 28 years, at the latest... 60 years.”
Skarla nods. “More than enough time, the sooner the better.”
Murim nods.