Ryu glided through the skies. Though he subconsciously turned his head toward the Life Shrine where his mother should be, he ultimately turned away and continued onward. His mother said to trust her, so he would do exactly that.
They didn't need goodbyes. They knew exactly what their task now was and that was to become as strong as possible to protect their home.
Ryu's white and sky blue robes fluttered, dancing strands of ice followed his wake. His grandfather's bow was strapped to his back and a small crystalline butterfly sat on his shoulder, ripping outward with star-like motes of light.
As his hair danced in the wind, he looked like a deity descended to the world of mortals. His closed eyes only added to the air of mystery, making him seem even more mysterious.
The battle between the Martial Gods and the Ancestral Beasts had long since come to an end. But, from what Ryu could tell, likely due to his mother's actions, the Ancestral Beasts had obediently remained on the Blossom Plane and hadn't touched the Shrine Plane.
Sarriel's seal over the Pedestal Plane was still in place, as was Ryu's seal over the Moon World. However, his mother didn't make a move to deal with either of them. It seemed that she believed that in the future, they would come to be of great help.
Either way, Ryu didn't believe that the Ancestral Beasts remained here, their number was too few. If Ryu was correct, many of them should have long gone to the True Martial World.
According to Sarriel's notes, so long as a lower world had enough talent, traveling to the True Martial World actually wasn't all that rare of a thing. High and Top Level worlds did so all the time, it was the only way they could scrounge up enough strength to repel attacks from Clans and Sects of the True Martial World.
Of course, they only managed to do this because the true powerhouses of the True Martial World couldn't be bothered with lower level worlds. Their focuses were entirely on their battles on the main playing field.
Ryu thought about going to the Ethereal Plane to explain things to Ailsa's father. But, in the end, he snorted and turned his head away.
That man hadn't even appeared during such an important battle. He had not a single care in the world for them. If he ever wanted a relationship with Ryu, he would have to appear himself.
When Ryu stepped into the Chaos Plane, a familiar feeling filled his body to the brim. However, he eventually sighed.
'Without my eyes, I can't sense what <Intuition> wants me to do anymore. There are only two ways I can proceed. I either need to take a shot in the dark, or I need to find the true cultivation method for my meridians.'
Ryu kept his options open. He no longer had the luxury of taking his time now that he knew what kind of looming threat was overhead. If he found a great cultivation technique, even if it didn't mesh well with his meridians, he would take it.
Even if this meant giving up on the perfect path for his Chaotic Silk Meridians, he would do it. He was confident that he could become a powerhouse one way or another. But, the one thing he lacked was time.
He could expect to continuously stumble into lucky chances. He had to make the assumption that he would have to take every step of cultivation from now on all on his own. In that case, he didn't have the time to waste.
Ryu no longer had access to Sarriel's jade since he had absorbed it into his inner world. But, he had already memorized all of it thanks to the Origin Flame.
From what he remembered, there was only one exit from Sacrum, but before it, there were countless doors to choose from. Unfortunately, these 'doors' were wreathed in chaos so they weren't necessarily easy to pick out either.
In addition, because Sacrum was a middle level world, the distance from it to the True Martial World was quite large. If Ryu didn't have Sarriel's maps, it was practically impossible for him to not get lost.
The good news was that unlike others, the streams of Chaos couldn't affect Ryu. But, if he wanted to be smart about things, he would have to at least pretend.
In truth, Ryu abhorred the idea of doing this, it left a disgusting sort of taste in his mouth. He felt like he was already lowering his head before he even stepped foot into the True Martial World.
He had already defied death once, he would do it again if he had to. At least, that was what he wanted to do.
But, Ryu was trying to learn to compromise just a small measure. If the moment he stepped onto the True Martial World he was being chased for his meridians, he would never get anything done. He would have to find a different way to flaunt his arrogance.
Ryu grumbled internally a bit but eventually used the Vein Stage of his Master's Visualization to form fake armor around him. He was also sure to make it crack as though it was on the verge of collapse before he continued moving forward.
When Ryu made it to the Gates of Sacrum, he noticed that there was a large battle going on. But, he just took the simple path, strolling through the battlefield.
The Knights of Heaven didn't stop him, nor did they look in his direction. But, Ryu could have sworn that he felt some of them nod for a brief moment. In fact, they fought even harder as well, not letting any of the invaders get even close to him.
Ryu paused at the gates, a difficult sort of emotion welling up in his heart. The last time he felt like this, he stood at the top of the steps of Heaven's Path, having just survived Headmaster Leopold's chase. But, this time, the weight on his shoulders felt heavier.
He had lost his grandparents already. He refused to lose any more.
Without a sound, he slipped into the gates.