"So, can you tell me more about your intentions?" Yarsha Zahara asked, two days later, "I was a bit too excited about having a child more like me."
'It seems you longed for one of your kind, even though you never expressed it.' Brangara thought as he lay on the bed beside her, understanding that Yarsha Zahara was a Free Human, and one proud of her identity.
It was originally a deal between the two to further the benefits of each side. Through her, Brangara obtained talented offspring. And through him, Yarsha Zahara gained a future for her home.
Though she loved her children, they were Wean Clansmen at the end of the day. She was unable to teach them much in regards to cultivation, since they didn't have a Human Avatar. Yarsha Zahara hardly had free time to think about such things, but she indeed felt unsatisfied a bit.
But despite that, she never expressed anything related to it, aware that her side benefited tremendously, greater than Brangara. Just that fact that she entered Mystic Grade alone was greater than anything she had given him.
After all, the mineral she needed to build a Mystic Grade Human Avatar was Sumatra Gold, produced exclusively by Mystic Grade Pranic Beasts. Brangara was the one who gave her the necessary amount and constantly roamed the Sumatra Continent in search of more.
However, when Brangara himself raised the topic, she couldn't be more overjoyed. It had been two days since then, the duo were immersed in the deed, having been a while since they last joined.
"The Transcendent Eater is able to revive the Mystic Seven." Brangara began to speak, "Renduldu had placed its seed as a hidden encounter. Since it was detailed in Sumatra Chronicles, he was confident that at least one of the Mystic Seven would obtain it. But at the same time, he was apprehensive about using its power too."
"Yeah, I felt it clearly when I fought him two days ago." Yarsha Zahara nodded, "Only Mystic Grade existences can face a Transcendent Eater. Everyone else is mere prey to its power."
"True," Brangara nodded, "And Blola isn't even a full-fledged Transcendent Eater."
"Did you uncover some secret related to it?" Yarsha Zahara asked in excitement.
"It's not a secret or anything. We're simply unaware of it as we don't have any means of contact with the Transcendent Worlds." Brangara shook his head and said, "In terms of power, the Transcendent Eater is equivalent to a Mystic Transcendent. A genuine Transcendent Eater buries its roots in the Sandy-Grey Void, treats it as nutrients, and generates an unimaginable amount of energy."
He pointed at the skies, "All the Transcendents originating from Sumatra Continent barely managed to subdue a Transcendent Eater and are gaining energy from it for their activities. I couldn't find out anything else since my Minor Treasure of Bloody Affection isn't strong enough."
"But that's not the point I'm getting at." He chuckled and made eye contact with Yarsha Zahara, "A proper Transcendent Eater can revive any existence it devours. It not only controls them but also has all their information. It's an uncontrollable existence, which is why Renduldu added multiple layers of defences to its power."
"When Blola reaches the 10-Life Stage, he'd awaken to its true powers. In a night, he'd become capable of consuming the entirety of Sumatra Continent." Brangara said, "It's here that I got my idea. What if we do the same?"
"What do you mean by that? I'm confused," Yarsha Zahara felt a headache, "Are you claiming to have gained possession of the Transcendent Eater's power or something?"
"No, nothing of the sort." Brangara chuckled and brought out the Minor Treasure Tangible Nature of Bloody Affection, "This guy is pretty special, you see. I'm currently storing it in my Astral World, but when I fuse it into anyone else, it'll fuse with their blood."
"Yes, I'm already aware of that." Yarsha Zahara retorted, "It's rare that a Minor Treasure can fuse with the blood instead of a bone or organ, but it's not unheard of. The Seat of Transcendence supposedly fuses with the blood too. There might be other Minor Treasures out there that can fuse with the blood, since we even have a Major Treasure doing the same."
"Major Treasures influence the environment, so they have no use on living beings." Brangara didn't mind her retort and instead became happier, "But Minor Treasures influence the living beings. Moreover, mine isn't a mere Minor Treasure."
He condensed the Minor Treasure Tangible Nature of Bloody Affection beside him. It sported the appearance of a Decaleech, somewhat translucent when compared to the original. It let out a mild purr in response to his touch, "This one is alive."
His figure vanished suddenly as the Decaleech became strong in response. He had fused with its body. Another moment later, it assumed human form, stunning Yarsha Zahara, "Are you getting my point now?"
"You're…" Yarsha Zahara stopped speaking, feeling her brain go into overdrive as a vast reserve of information became active in her mind space. It clashed and combined, generating new ideas as she recalled every point that could hint at what Brangara was talking about.
The first existence that came to her mind was Bunakin Vara, the Leader of the Royal Guards. The material he built his Human Avatar with was Vara sourced from the Celestial Boar's tusks.
Free Humans who build Human Avatars out of Vara sourced from Empyrean Boars gained the Primary Nature of Gracious Inheritance. It allowed them to receive Natures from Empyrean Boars and store them in their Human Avatars.
But generally, they refrained from storing too many strong Natures at the Silver Grade and above, for the generated influence would impact their body and minds terribly. And in terms of usage, they could use the Natures similar to Empyrean Boars.
They couldn't activate more than one Nature at a time.
But the Royal Guards were different. By building Vara sourced from the Celestial Boar, they gained the Primary Nature of Blessed Inheritance, which allowed them to activate more than one Nature at a time.
They couldn't stack the effects of Nature like Astral Chart, but just being able to activate multiple Natures made them versatile cultivators.
Inheritance! That was the effect of the mineral named Vara.
The Minor Treasure Tangible Nature of Bloody Affection was capable of absorbing the blood of others. It had the memories, characteristic traits, and disposition as when it was alive. It was capable of sentient thoughts and expressing itself emotionally, since it was once a Silver Grade Pranic Beast.
Through the effect of Voracious Cultivator, Brangara could make it assume human form after he fused with its body. He could also erect the influence of Astral World onto it. And, through its power, he could make it absorb his bone marrow, and gather it into itself for a while…
"You plan to give our child a Human Avatar Minor Treasure with the power of Vara and Bloody Affection!" Yarsha Zahara exclaimed.
"You mentioned that Ruvva was born with 100 units of Prana." Brangara nodded, "The moment the child begins to grow in you, I'll fuse the Minor Treasure in their blood. Through its power, the child will absorb your blood and grow even further. Before birth, they'll enter the Body Stage and be born with a Human Avatar."
"A Human Avatar with power unlike anything else on Sumatra." Brangara exclaimed, "After all, as their body forms in your womb, the Minor Treasure's influence will shape them up through its influence. And they'll inherit all the intelligence possessed by the Minor Treasure."
"The Minor Treasure won't simply fuse into their body…" Yarsha Zahara guessed his thought, "It'll become one with our child. No, our child will be a Free Human with a Minor Treasure Human Avatar."
"Yes," Brangara smiled upon seeing Yarsha Zahara's expression light up at his words, "Our child won't be a Mystic Grade existence, but they'll be more valuable than one."
'It seems he has lots of worries.' Yarsha Zahara observed Brangara's face and gently placed her palm on his cheek, "Are you…afraid of dying?"
Brangara fell silent at her question for a good minute. Slowly, his expression fell as his eyes turned moist, "I fear leaving you all behind. I want to believe that I'm strong enough to face everything, but I wish to be prepared. After all,"
He sighed and stared at the sky, "I don't know what the fuck is happening, but every time I go all out and unleash a pillar of light into the sky, something is happening out there, something beyond my understanding."
"The Mystic Seven will be the least of our worries once whatever is happening out there reaches us. That's what I feel." He smiled weakly, "That's why, no matter how strong I become, I am never able to feel confident enough to protect our family."
"I wish our child could take up that mantle," He said, "Even in a future long past our deaths."
A Mystic Grade Pranic Beast could live up to 10,000 years. Though it was a significant amount of time, in the grand scheme of things, it merely amounted to an era on the Sumatra Continent.
Even if Brangara wins the fight against the Mystic Seven, his era will eventually come to an end. If he manages to become a Transcendent, he'll watch over the Wean Clan from the Transcendent Worlds.
But, that didn't mean much. After all, even though the Mammoth Clan and Cooter Clans have Transcendents, none were able to stop him, whether in Sumatra Chronicles or here. So, he felt that there were restrictions put on Transcendents that prevented them from interacting with Sumatra Continent.
Therefore, he needed someone to guide the Wean Clan. To date, everything that he had Yarsha Zahara was doing amounted to short-term measures. There were just too many risks accompanying them that they couldn't think about long into the future.
But that line of thought needed to be changed, which was why Brangara was laying down a seed for the future, one that would ensure the continued existence of the Wean Clan long into the future when Brangara and Yarsha Zahara were either dead or had become Transcendents.
The duo talked about various things for a long time, pooling all their knowledge in an effort to perfect their plan. "And, there'll be a connection between us and our child."
"I see," Her eyes widened in shock before settling down, realising what Brangara was getting at, "It'll be similar to Gracious Inheritance and Blessed Inheritance, huh?"
"Yes," Brangara nodded, "In the likelihood of our deaths, I want our child to inherit our powers. But to cement this setup means that…"
"I understand," Yarsha Zahara nodded, conflicted for a while before she gradually firmed her mind, "This will be our final child."
"Body, Mind, and Soul…Prana is more complex than I initially thought." He said, chuckling helplessly, "The more I understand it, the more I realise that I understand nothing about it."
"Life's a journey," Yarsha Zahara nodded, "You needn't endure the stress alone. I'll be there, accompanying you every step of the way. We'll unearth all the secrets of Prana together."
The duo remained in a hug for a few minutes before separating. Yarsha Zahara glanced at the Minor Treasure Tangible Nature of Bloody Affection, "You went through a lot of trouble growing it to that level."
"It's alright," Brangara laughed, "I can grow another one of them in the future. It'll take fewer resources this time, since I can equip myself onto them and make them grow like a cultivator progressing through the Life Stage."
The duo hadn't realised the truth, but what they were attempting was similar to a Mystic Path, one significantly more complex and developed than the Mystic Paths in the Mystic Seven. After all, the one they were creating would be growing simultaneously by absorbing the experiences of both Brangara and Yarsha Zahara.
It would be an unrivalled existence, the first one on Sumatra to be born between Mystic Grade parents, and the only one ever likely to appear. After all, once they birth the child, Brangara and Yarsha Zahara will become incapable of spawning progeny. They were using up all their fertility to spawn a future for the Varahan Empire.
In essence, a chosen one.