CHAPTER 94: RANKS

The saintess of Night Tower saw the disagreement between them and requested with a smile as she turned towards the other three...

"Everyone, would you please let me have some alone time with Aeliana?"

Neo and Lavina nodded at her and turned back to leave. Hanna, however, stood there looking at Anna with a frown. Neo saw that from the end of his eyes and called out.

"Hanna... Later."

Hanna turned towards Neo and reluctantly nodded as all three of them stepped further and left the shrine room.

Anna now stood alone with the Night Seer, looking at her with a smile. The Night Seer, Yabin, stepped forward and stopped beside Anna. She spoke while looking at the cravings of ’Him’.

"You didn’t tell them about the crack in your star core?" she questioned without looking at her.

Anna also turned towards the carvings and answered while looking at them.

"I did not."

"Why?"

"I want them to stay for themselves, not for me."

Yabin nodded at her answer and asked.

"Why is that?"

A bittersweet smile appeared on Anna’s face as she answered her.

"I don’t want to be a burden."

"I see."

Yabin finally looked at Anna as she spoke.

"There are ways to repair your star core... but it will be equally dangerous."

Anna also turned towards her and questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"What are these ways you speak of?"

"The dream rift... entering a rift will repair your star core," Yabin answered with a solemn expression.

Anna’s expression darkened upon hearing that.

She knew about the dream rifts; they are not something one should enter without any prior training... it was a portal to a whole different realm after all, a realm which was bleeding in their reality... trying to consume them. Anna knew about the sudden increase in those rifts, but she didn’t know the reason behind it.

The rifts were not dangerous just because they led to another realm... no, it was the realm they led to that was the danger itself— The Banished realm.

A realm full of abominations—Not star beasts, star beasts are simple beasts evolved under the star essence. Abominations, however, are beings which has fallen into corruption or madness, turning into the worst horrors possible.—Abominations are much stronger than normal awakeneds; their very existence breaks the universal laws after all.

A realm with broken laws, a realm with no fate and at last a realm which is banished by the very creation itself.

"I see..." Anna mumbled as she fell into her thoughts.

Yabin looked at her for some time and questioned.

"How much do you know about the ranks of Awakeneds?"

"I know about the existence of the Ascendant rank," Anna answered with a thoughtful look.

"Did Damien tell you what each rank changes in you?"

"Brother did not..."

Yabin nodded and lifted her hand, her eyes turned golden as flakes of star essence appeared on her palm.

"After one’s awakening, they reach Seeker rank, their star core begins to absorb the flakes of star essence from the environment."

Anna listened to her attentively.

"After one absorbs enough flakes of star essence, it turns into a near gas-like smoke," Yabin stated as the flakes on her palm turned into smoke.

"That is the Ignited rank... it allows one to spread their star essence out of their body. Like in their weapons."

"After one refines the smoke, it starts to solidify... turning into a near gel-like substance."

A solid gel-like film of dark black star essence covered her palm.

"At the Adept rank, one can turn their star essence into a solid object... a weapon, armour or whatever you can think of."

As soon as the Night Seer said so, the star essence on her palm rippled and began to form into a dark black star.

"After this, they have to find their path, their law to reach Assimilation rank."

Runes began to appear all over her body as the dark black star suddenly pushed back all the light within the room.

"A law?" Anna questioned with a puzzled look.

"A concept... You believe yourself as the master of." Yabin replied as the dark black star turned dim and disappeared.

Anna nodded at her and questioned.

"What about Ascendant rank?"

"There is only one Ascendant human - if we can call him that - within Vyendir."

Anna’s expression turned grave as she whispered,

"The Demon lord..."

The whisper was loud enough for the saintess of Night Tower, at which she nodded and continued.

"The Ascendant rank is said to allow one to transform into a form which suits their law the best."

Anna lifted her head, and she was about to speak, but was cut off by Yabin’s next word.

"And we do not know about Transcendant rank."

Anna frowned at her words and asked in a confused tone.

"Transcendant rank? There is a rank above Ascendant?"

Yabin shook her head at the question and spoke somewhat doubtfully.

"The Annals recorded about the past era of maybe thousands of years ago, do mention the existence of the Transcendance... but there exists no solid proof."

"However... it neither denies nor proves the existence of a state above Ascendance."

The room fell into silence as both of them fell into their own thoughts... After about five minutes, Anna came out of her thoughts and questioned.

"What do the dream rifts do in all of that?"

Yabin was brought out of her thoughts by her question. She looked at her for a few moments before proceeding to answer.

"The dream rifts are strange to say the least... if you can return from a rift, it awards you with a breakthrough. However, considering the dangers that exist within the rifts, it is an expected result."

"Rifts can help me break through?" Anna repeated. Her voice was cracking. She wanted to find a way that would allow her to break through much faster than others, and for the first time, she could see the way.