Standing at more than a hundred feet tall, the moss-covered wall loomed above Elijah’s comparatively small form. He’d spent the past few hours circling the structure, confirming that it was perfectly round. There was only one entrance, marked by a massive and imposing gate that currently stood closed. When he’d laid a hand on it, he had once again received the system message that he needed to destroy the remaining Ethereal Anchors before he could enter the Labyrinth of the Dead Gods.

Obviously, he’d attempted to enter from above, but that was blocked by an indestructible dome of invisible ethera. No matter how hard he hit it – and he’d done so with enough force to injure himself – it would not shatter. That should not have been surprising, considering it was created by the system itself. Being unbreakable was its only purpose.

Still, it was frustrating.

The only way into the Primal Realm was to follow the system’s mandates. No one would be stumbling inside by accident. Instead, it would require a concerted effort to sweep across the surrounding lands, slaughtering the asharii and destroying those Ethereal Anchors along the way. Even for Elijah, who could cover ground incredibly quickly, it would take days at least.

Not that he intended to do that just yet. Finding the Primal Realm had become his goal, and now that he’d discovered everything he could, he intended to pass that information on to others who might be able to use it. Perhaps he would be among the party meant to conquer it, but for now, he had other things on his mind – like the Third Army.

Without further ado, he took to the skies and flew back to Benediction. The way was unremarkable, though Elijah did take note of the sheer number of djinn in the area. Most congregated around specific locations – likely the Ethereal Anchors – but there were plenty of patrols as well.

The most interesting thing he witnessed was when a hunting party from Benediction fell upon a group of asharii. They hit hard and fast, using no skills and relying entirely on their attributes to protect them. One hunter was unlucky enough to take an ethereal spear directly in the chest, cratering her torso. Elijah was convinced she’d die, if not from the wound itself, then from the shards of ethera from the exploding spear.

That was not what happened, though.

Instead, the woman’s tattoos flashed, then exploded into a cloud of blood red energy that, even from nearly a mile above, Elijah could see eat the foreign ethera. The woman collapsed afterwards, but she was entirely healed.

Meanwhile, the rest of the hunting party had subdued the asharii, slapping those manacles around their wrists and ankles. That was when one of the priests – wearing deep red robes – stepped into view.

Clearly, he had protected the hunters, though Elijah suspected that the power came as much from them – channeled via the markings on their bodies – as from the priest himself. It was a fascinating development, and Elijah couldn’t help but wonder if it originated with Benedict or if he’d merely enabled them to grow powerful enough that it became effective.

He would need to ask when he got back to Benediction. After watching the hunting party’s efficient handling of the party of djinn, he left the site behind and continued on to his destination. It wasn’t long before he saw the plateau in the distance.

Night had fallen, and the city’s silver lights cast it an otherworldly glow. The architecture came alive, the direct illumination deepening the shadows of its nooks and crannies. As Elijah approached, he couldn’t help but think that it looked almost like an old black and white horror movie.

He landed a few hundred yards away from the steps leading up to the plateau, then covered the remaining ground on foot in his human form. There was no need to alarm the guards with one of his bestial shapes, after all.

The reception was icy. Suspicion flashed in the eyes of the guards, and even when they waved Elijah on, they looked ready for a fight. The pedestrians were no different. The flow was quite a bit more diffuse than it had been during daylight, but even with the late hour, there were still plenty of people walking the streets.

Still, Elijah was impressed that he saw no crime. No evidence of poverty, either. From what he could tell, the entire population had bought into the idea of the collective good. Certainly, there were those with more power than others, but they seemed to view their power as a responsibility. Or an opportunity to serve the community – Elijah wasn’t certain which characterization fit better.

Either way, he was impressed. The result was a strictly egalitarian society devoid of crime. In the back of his mind, though, Elijah knew it was something of a mirage. He’d already witnessed how the city dealt with disagreements. Likely, anyone who refused to follow the rules or didn’t fit into their ideas for what the city was meant to be ended up exiled.

At best.

More likely, they were simply killed, their meat added to the coffers as their sacrifice fueled whatever rituals Benedict needed empowered. Of course, Elijah couldn’t be certain that was the case. There was every chance that there was no great evil – other than the aforementioned cannibalism – lurking beneath the surface. However, Elijah believed he understood human nature well enough to assume otherwise.

But did he have the right to judge how they did things? Benediction was, by anyone’s measure, a successful settlement where thousands of people were given a chance to survive and thrive. They were content. So what if a few had to be sacrificed for to give them that chance?

Still, even if Elijah wasn’t going to decry the cost of peace, that didn’t mean he was ready to give his approval. In fact, the whole place made his skin crawl in ways he couldn’t really pin down. Yet, their existence was acceptable, even if its nature was more than a little unnerving.

Halfway through the city, Elijah passed a massive parade. He had no idea what they were celebrating, but most of the people were all but naked, and they’d painted their bodies in a rainbow of colors. Streaming kites flew above, and ethereal lights flashed with a strobing effect he found disorienting.

And nearly everyone there was inebriated in some way. Whether via drugs or alcohol, he had no idea. Nor did he want to find out. Instead, he circled around the parade, which was composed of more than a thousand revelers, before going on his way.

The rest of his trip through the city was more of the same. However, Elijah was impressed with the consistency of it all. As he’d noted upon his first visit, there were no palaces. No slums. Instead, every home was generally similar, at least regarding size. Neither rich nor poor. Somewhere in the middle.

Where they showed their differences was in the décor. Colorful flags and streamers were the most common displays, but many of the residences also bore the work of talented sculptors. Each one glistened with ethera, suggesting they were the work of someone with an Entertainer archetype.

But as much as Elijah could appreciate displays of art and architecture, he didn’t want to remain within the city for much longer than necessary. Every step inside Benediction was fraught with tension, like if he put one toe out of line, the entirety of the population would turn on him.

Already, they looked at him as an outsider, which he very plainly was. They tolerated his presence, but that would only last so long as he followed their rules. Even the unspoken ones. If he strayed, that tension would escalate. Elijah wanted to avoid that, largely because he truly didn’t want to kill anyone.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Even if they were cannibals who routinely sacrificed undesirables.

Still, he resisted the urge to adopt Guise of the Unseen. He needed to spend time in his human form, and what’s more, he never really got the sense of a place when he traversed it in stealth.

Soon enough, he reached the pyramid. The Seat of Benediction, as it was called, with the interior adopting the Sanctum moniker. It was an impressive structure by any measure, and Elijah couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe at its construction. Not only was its physical form striking, but Elijah could feel the densely inscribed runes that marked it as what he now recognized as a potent ritual channel. With that, Benedict could empower his people in ways Elijah still didn’t quite understand. He could feel that, in the wake of the sacrifices that took place at the top of the pyramid, the citizens were treated to an injection of vitality, but it went further than that. He was certain of it.

In addition, Benedict had revealed that the pyramid’s system of runes gave him the ability to summon more powerful demonic creatures. Like the oni that roamed the streets as sentries. Without the apparatus, he never could have coaxed them from their native plane.

Though Elijah expected that Benedict had other, more specialized creatures at his disposal. Certainly, he had had gaggles of imps roaming the lower levels of the pyramids. Surely, there were plenty of other types of demonic creatures that made their home within the Seat of Benediction.

The guards at the pyramid’s entrance did not let Elijah inside without an escort, which he claimed to appreciate, saying to the priest, “I would never have found my way through that maze without you.”

The red-robed woman took his amity in stride, though Elijah did see a slight smile turn up the corners of her mouth. That was enough to affirm her humanity – at least to him. At the end of the day, they were just people. Sure, they had odd beliefs, and they’d resorted to some strange practices in order to survive, but people they remained. He needed to remember that going forward.

After too many twists and turns to count, the woman led Elijah to familiar territory. From there, he could have followed his memories, but he followed his escort nonetheless. She led him to the pair of double doors that marked the entrance to Benedict’s quarters, then left him behind.

At first, Elijah wondered why there were no guards, but then he realized that Benedict probably didn’t need them. To his people, he was basically a god. Elijah wasn’t certain of Benedict’s level, but he suspected it was similar to the other elites he’d met. Like the guild leaders or Sadie. Not as high as Oscar, and certainly inferior to Elijah himself. But he had enough strength that Elijah knew better than to underestimate him.

Not that he wanted a fight. For what it was worth, he kind of liked Benedict. Sure, the man dealt with plenty of psychological trauma of his own, and usually in the worst ways. He’d done a lot of bad things. But Elijah saw in him a mirror of his own existence. Or maybe a dog that had been spent its life being kicked by a bad owner. And he felt the overwhelming urge to help him heal.

Rationally, he knew that Benedict was something of villain, and in a lot of ways, he was beyond rehabilitation. But lives were longer now than they ever were. A lot could happen over the course of a few decades. People could grow. They could leave their trauma behind. Elijah had to believe that, else he’d lose hope for himself.

Not for the first time, he thought back to his mind cultivation. He’d long since finalized his image. Now, he just needed to implement it. That required him to return to the cultivation cave, though. And for now, he couldn’t afford that.

Because he still had some war elves to deal with. Likely, he’d do so alone. But that was up to Benedict.

He knocked on the door.

A moment later, it opened to reveal the Warlock himself. He wore a pair of linen pants and a flowing shirt, which he left open in the front. As he welcomed Elijah inside, he offered a drink, which was declined.

“You found them?” Benedict asked, grabbing a soda. He waggled the glass bottle, adding, “Are you certain? We found a cache about a year ago. Coke is pretty rare now.”

“I’m sure,” Elijah said. He’d never really developed a taste for sugary sodas. His parents didn’t buy them when he was young, calling them unhealthy. “And yeah – I found them. The Primal Realm’s entrance, too.”

Then, he went on to explain the circular structure, adding, “The inside looks like a maze, though I couldn’t get past the barrier.”

After Benedict had him mark the location on a map, the Warlock drained his cola, then said, “I’m going to ask you for something, and I don’t think you’re going to like it.”

“What?”

“Help me to conquer the Primal Realm,” he said. “We can’t keep pace with their levels. Already, I have to send priests with almost every hunting party. It’s the only way we can survive. And if we don’t keep up the hunt, they will continue to spread. Even now, my demons hunt the wilderness, killing other creatures that have crawled out of the Primal Realm. Without them, Benediction would fall.”

He gestured with his empty bottle. “You can help. If we conquer the Labyrinth of the Dead Gods, the ethereal levels will reset. We can then send parties inside to conquer it,” Benedict explained.

Elijah frowned. “No.”

“What? I thought that was what you did. You’ve fought through three Primal Realms already,” he said.

“Do you know the cost?”

“What do you mean?”

“The cost, Benedict. I barely sleep anymore. When I do, I have nightmares. You can’t fathom the toll that takes on you. The constant danger. The isolation. I can deal with physical pain. I got ripped in half, and I barely even think about that anymore. But the psychological trauma that comes with a Primal Realm…that’s different.”

“I will go with you,” Benedict insisted. “We won’t be alone. I can summon an army.”

Elijah stared at the richly designed rug covering the stone floor. It looked Persian, and it felt amazing on his bare feet. He barely noticed, though. Instead, he focused on Benedict’s request.

He’d always known he would be forced to enter another Primal Realm. He was the most powerful man in the world, though his recent period of rest had probably allowed some elites to close that gap. The distance between his levels and everyone else’s tended to ebb and flow, though he felt certain that his cultivation set him far apart from the rest.

Either way, he had a responsibility to the rest of humanity, as well as all the settlers who’d come to Earth. That was just his reality.

“Fine,” he said. “I’ll help. But not yet.”

“Each day, they grow stronger.”

“I need to do a few things first,” Elijah answered. “I want to advance my mind cultivation, and I have some organizational matters to deal with back at the grove.”

The bond. He hadn’t forgotten Nara and her people. If he was going into a Primal Realm, he needed to make a decision sooner rather than later. And though he was still trepidatious about inviting everyone, he was at least certain about Nara. In all the time since she’d arrived on the island, she’d been a perfect guest. She even got along with Nerthus, which counted for more than anything else.

He trusted her. Mostly. And so, he would initiate the bond. He was less certain about the rest of her people, though he knew they came as a package deal. If he inducted Nara, then he needed to bring them in as well.

“But before I do any of that, the war elves are still out there. I won’t let them continue on the way they’ve been going,” Elijah stated. “If I help you with the Primal Realm, then I expect your help with their army.”

“I can’t.”

“What?”

“My demons can only go so far before they start to unravel,” he stated. “They’re summoned creatures. They don’t exist on this plane. Not really. They have counterparts in their native planes, but…well, they can only go about fifty miles from me before they fall apart.”

“Then you can come along.”

“Again, I can’t. If I leave, my people will be defenseless. No oni to keep the peace. No demons to fight the creatures coming out of the Primal Realm. This kingdom would fall within a week. Maybe less. The death toll would be catastrophic.”

“And yet you can go into the Primal Realm.”

“I have a plan for that.”

“But that plan won’t apply to you coming to fight the war elves?”

“It’s a singular event that will require all of my resources. Even then, it will only last so long. I’m sorry, Elijah. I just…I just can’t help you. If I could have, I would’ve killed them all when they tried to attack us before. They came into our territory. We killed so many they were forced to retreat. I tried to follow, but…that’s how I know what would happen if I leave. It would be chaos. Tens of thousands would die. Trust me, Elijah. I would go if I could.”

Elijah raked his fingers through his hair. “Fine.”

In the end, he’d always suspected he would need to deal with the elves on his own. That was why he’d already established a strategy to get around their defenses. He just hoped it would work.

“Be ready to go into the Primal Realm,” he said, rising to leave. “I’ll be back after I deal with everything else.”

“Elijah…”

“What?” he asked, pausing halfway to the door.

“I’m sorry. For what it’s worth. I wish…I want to help. You know that, don’t you?”

“Yeah. Sure. Like I said, it’s fine. I’m used to doing things on my own.”

With that, he left, his frustration quietly simmering. Sometimes, it felt like he was the only person in the world who was thinking about the bigger picture. But if that was how it had to be, then so it was. That thought accompanied him as he left the pyramid, then immediately took to the skies, ready to slaughter some elves.