Ryu sighed. He had thought this might happen, but hearing it outright still dampened his mood. If he could enter the Moon Realm now, his speed of cultivation was increase explosively, especially with Ailsa by his side.
The Moon Realm was a special Realm that gave rise to the Awoken Moon Sect's namesake. According to their history, something Ryu was very familiar with as he researched the Moon Realm for his mother, the Founding Members of the Sect were the beneficiaries of a fragment of a Legacy from that Realm.
As Toria had said, the Moon Realm was no different from this Realm. Though, it only had one Plane, and not multiple. Still, it was a holy land for yin path cultivation.
Ryu knew that he had many other affinities besides ice, namely the flames he had yet to awaken, but the Awoken Moon Sect was the only of his former subordinate Clans that he could easily gain access to now. The others had either already been destroyed, were too weak to be of any help to him, or were currently still holding on too strongly for Ryu to reach them in a short time.
Unfortunately, the Moon Realm that Ryu had banked on was blocked from him. How could it be easy to cross over into another Realm? Luckily, Ryu wasn't completely unprepared.
"According to the information I've received, entering the Moon World during a Lunar Eclipse will drastically cut down the resources needed, correct? I would like to enter then. The next eclipse will be in two years I believe."
"You are correct." Toria's eyes widened with surprise once more. Could the passing the Throne trial truly have given him so much information? "For a single Qi Refinem –"
"It might be best if you do the calculation for a Spiritual Severing Realm expert." Ryu interjected plainly.
Understanding what Ryu's words insinuated, the elders almost protested in shock. But, remembering that Ryu had just defeated several experts of that caliber before their eyes, they could only remain silent in defeat. Just who was this boy? Where did he come from, really?
"In that case…" Toria continued with a gentle smile. "It will take ten Medial Immortal Qi Stones. If you suppress your cultivation instead, it will be a hundred Inferior Immortal Qi Stones. Choose wisely… The Sect might be able to help you gather Inferior Immortal Qi Stones, but Medial ones are impossible for us."
"I understand." Ryu nodded. But, he had no intention of slowing his cultivation. If he couldn't reach the Spiritual Severing Realm in that time, it would be fine. But, he wouldn't hold himself back either.
Currently, Ryu had three Inferior Immortal Qi Stones he took from Leopold. As for Medial Immortal Qi Stones, they were worth a thousand Inferior ones. It was a tall task for someone of Ryu's cultivation to collect such a sum. But… This perfectly highlighted his stubbornness.
**
"This will be your home as long as you remain within our walls." Heiress Melody explained with a calm voice. "There technically isn't a place where you're barred from entering, but I hope that you'll respect the privacy of our disciples … After all, they're not used to having men around."
Ryu silently gazed at the side of Melody's face. It was hard to internalize that she was in fact Granny Miriam's twin sister considering how young she looked, but this was the reality of cultivation. It was also a reality that Ryu had never been faced with. He didn't know what it must feel like to watch everyone you loved age and die around you as you remained forever young…
The place the two of them stood was quite beautiful, albeit extremely cold for normal cultivators. According to Melody, it was a place reserved for Inheritors of the Sect. Usually, there would be multiple Inheritors per generation, and in the end, one would be chosen as Sect Master. But, as the Sect declined, it had become more and more difficult to find qualified candidates. Though, according to some rumors, the young, foul mouthed Amie might one day grow worthy.
The Sect was arranged within a snowy mountain landscape with the gates being located at the base of these numerous mountains. An Inheritor was allowed to choose a mountain of their own, so obviously, Ryu also received this same privilege.
The air was filled with dense yin qi that made such cultivation incredibly fast as well. But, Ryu's actual home-to-be was carved into the mountain itself. Due to what must have been the actions of a previous Inheritor, it was designed with the air of a luxurious mansion, though Ryu didn't care much for appearances.
"Would –" Ryu began, but Melody's words cut him off.
"There's no need to explain. My elder sister's memories are my own now, it's both the blessing and curse of our Bone Structure." Melody stared off blankly into the quiet cave-mansion. "Sometimes I think the Heavens played a game with my sister and I …"
Ryu remained silent, he couldn't begin to comprehend how Melody was feeling.
The Causal Gate Bone Structure, it really did seem like it only existed for Fate to play games with people's lives. Tying the Fate of two people? Making a pair of sisters' talents contingent on the failure of the other? How cruel was that?
"All my life I've wanted to escape, to become a mighty cultivator. I didn't particularly have a reason… Our family was quite well-off on the Middle Mortal Plane, we lived well. With my and my sister's talent, it was even enough for us to be unmatched. We could have lived a life of leisure… But I insisted."
The frustration in Melody's voice was clear. When a being learns about themselves, about what they like and what they don't like, about what their disposition is, it's usually seen as a beautiful thing. Self-care, self-reflection, self-understanding, they're the staples of maturity, of a person who has a grip on their own lives… Isn't that right?
So why was it that Melody hated herself for simply following that path toward maturity? She knew what she wanted, and she sought after it, she chased it. Shouldn't that make her hold her head high?
But what if getting closer to your dreams, becoming powerful, accumulating more talent, was all at the expense of the person you loved most in this world? As Miriam grew weaker, Melody grew incomprehensibly stronger. And when Miriam died… Melody gained not only another major leap in strength, but also all the thoughts and emotions her elder sister had held tight for so long…
Just why? Why did she want to become a strong cultivator? She didn't have a tragic story, or a particular purpose. She just wanted it… Did Fate choose that for her too? Was life just the illusion of choice? Was it Fate that decided her sister would die just so that she could live her dream?