Steve was the first of the two to finish.
He opened his eyes, let out a long breath, and stood up as if nothing unusual had happened. I didn’t wait. I pulled him straight into the pocket space.
"What’s wrong with you, man?" he snapped the moment he saw me, irritation written all over his face due to the sudden teleportation.
I chuckled. "Nothing’s wrong with me. That’s just one of the perks of being powerful." I paused, then smiled. "Actually... since you’re already annoyed, let me give you another ride."
I snapped my fingers.
In the next instant, he was gone.
"I will kill you, Billion," Steve’s greeted voice echoed back, clenched with anger as I sent him flying in the sky.
"Oh? Still not learning your place?" I replied calmly. "All right. Here we go again."
Another snap.
I dropped him straight into a private pool inside the capital, fully-submerged in water.
"How do you like the temperature?" I asked, my voice echoing directly inside his head.
He thrashed for a moment, then climbed out of the pool, soaked and furious.
"Damn it," he growled, staring at empty air. "You really want to do this?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Wow. You really never learn, do you?" I snapped my fingers again.
This time, I buried him halfway into the ground.
Finally, he exhaled sharply. A forced smile appeared on his face, tight and strained.
"Okay," he said through clenched teeth. "I get it. I’m an idiot. Now can you stop this? I’m going to vomit if you keep spinning me around."
I nodded. "Fair enough."
With a thought, I pulled him back into the pocket space.
He stood there, dripping wet and half-dusted with soil, wearing the same forced but calm-looking smile.
"So," I asked, "how did it go?"
"Not great," he admitted. "Fire comprehension worked, obviously. But I don’t want it. As for the blood, it did something, I got a small boost to my constitution. That’s about it."
I nodded. Steve’s physique, his Black Volt Skeleton, was built around lightning. It was natural that fire and blood would have limited impact on him. Lightning treasures or lightning-aligned environments would benefit him far more.
"All right," I said. "North gained a new ability. But I guess this ritual just wasn’t meant for you."
He nodded, then looked around. His gaze locked onto the world core and the blood drop floating at its center.
"So this is the world core you were talking about?" he asked.
I nodded and explained the blood drop and its role in the ritual.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "You know... I think we could take more than just a few drops from that thing. We helped Armus a lot, you know."
"Not happening," I said immediately. "I want these demons to grow stronger. Besides, your body is already saturated. More of the same won’t help you."
He shrugged. "If you say so." Then he looked at me again. "So, when are we leaving?"
"As soon as Primus finishes," I replied. "We’ll head to Shenzhou first, then move on to the rift."
His blue eyes shone with sharp intensity. "Are you excited?"
I nodded slowly. "Yes. We’re finally going to face the Eternals." I paused as several thoughts rushed through my mind.
"I...," I started, then stopped.
"I what?" Steve pressed.
I shook my head. "Nothing. Part of me wants to rush in and massacre the first Eternal I see. The other part wants to be careful, to think through every step." I exhaled. "We’ll see when we get there. But we need to stay alert. The System still hasn’t made its move."
Steve placed a hand on the hilt of his sword.
"The System..." he muttered. "I wonder what it’s like to have it as an enemy or a friend. I don’t like how neutral it pretends to be."
"It isn’t neutral," I said quietly. "It’s biased, just not toward us. Its strongest pawns get everything. We’re still too small to make real waves." I narrowed my eyes. "But one day, that will change. Don’t you think so, System?"
A notification flashed in front of me.
[Observation Status: Active]
I chuckled at the notification.
Steve noticed that.
"...You got something, didn’t you?" he asked.
I nodded once. "Yeah."
"What kind of something?"
I showed him the notification and said, "That means we’re no longer background noise."
Steve glanced at it and snorted. "For sure. We just changed an entire world’s structure. We deserve some observation." He paused, eyes sharp. "But this is nothing. We’ll make real waves once we hit the Ferans and the Nagas. Or maybe when we end up on a frontline against the Eternals."
I nodded. I agreed completely.
That was when Primus stirred.
He opened his eyes slowly, and as he exhaled, a long breath of fire escaped his nose, curling into the air before fading away.
"Nice," I said.
I could feel it clearly. His comprehension had risen sharply, and his affinity with fire had deepened even further. The element clung to him instinctively, hovering close, responding as if he were its rightful master among the demons present.
"Primus is done," I said. "Let’s go."
I didn’t wait for a reply. Space folded, and I teleported all three of us back into Primus’s quarters.
"Damn it," Steve muttered as we landed, though this time he didn’t complain.
Primus blinked several times, then let out a short laugh. "Shit... that was cool," he said, still looking around as if half-expecting the space to shift again.
"See Steve. He understands it." I said, raising my hand toward Primus.
He grinned and bumped his fist against mine. "Yeah. I like that. I really wish I had it too."
"Just get lost," Steve said flatly, flopping down onto a stone chair.
"Anything new, other than what we expected?" I asked Primus.
"Nope," he replied. "Mostly affinity growth, my laws evolved, and a few points in strength."
I nodded. "Good. So everything’s ready?"
"Yeah," Primus said. "We’ll go meet Jarul’s son first. I’ve packed everything in my storage ring. I already said goodbye to Lara." His expression hardened slightly. "I told her I’m going to bring her mother back."
Steve looked at him sideways. "You actually want to do that? I thought you’d just kill her."
"No," Primus said calmly. "She’ll fulfill her duty as a mother. I promised Lara."
"And how exactly are you planning to convince her?" Steve asked.
Primus’s lips curved into a slow grin. "Convince?" He shook his head. "Who said anything about convincing her?" He glanced at Steve. "You know that I’m a demon right."
Steve stared at him for a second, then leaned back in his chair. "Yeah... I forgot that part."