Inside the small manor where Alka and his companions lived.
It was almost night.
Everyone watched Pororo master the treasure, then went to rest.
Alka went outside the courtyard alone.
He sat on a nearby stone bench, his left hand resting on the stone table above, and extended his right hand.
A shining blue gem flew out of his hand, the size of a normal adult's head.
It was the Heart of Vastva.
Or perhaps it could be called a small world, or a pocket world.
After all, there were no Vastva people left inside. Everything that remained of Vastva had been brought out by them. And the former Vastva people had settled down here.
They had created the City of Return, representing their return.
Alka naturally changed the name of the treasure.
It fits the treasure's power perfectly, doesn't it?
Small World.
With a gentle squeeze of his palm, the enormous gem shrank, melting into his palm and disappearing.
Only a faint blue light remained on his right index finger.
With a gentle glide of his index finger across the air before him, a fissure in the air opened.
Arka stepped inside.
The once pale, lifeless earth had long since vanished, now covered with lush green grass.
The boundless grassland stretched as far as the eye could see.
The scene here was just like what Arka had seen in his earliest dreams.
This land, brimming with vitality and magic, was naturally the work of the Stonehoof Clan.
For years, the Stonehoof Clan had spent their free time restoring the earth through their mastery of the land, combined with the surging magic infused by Arka.
Finally, they had restored this world to its proper state.
Stepping on the grass.
Arka walked quietly.
In this world that belonged to him, he could have gone straight to his destination.
But he was in no hurry.
This slow walk allowed him to experience the changes and tranquility of this world.
This was also the process of mastering this treasure, gaining a deeper understanding and becoming one with it.
Arka closed his eyes.
As he walked, his clothes gradually faded, leaving only the lightest T-shirt and shorts.
Even his shoes had slipped off, leaving him barefoot on the grass.
A gentle breeze blew.
This was something this world had never possessed.
As he gently passed a small hill not far ahead.
Arka stood on the hill of the grassland, gazing into the distance.
There lay a vast expanse of fertile brown land, fringed by strange trees and towering stone pillars.
Because Alka manipulated the world, with Matlisa's help, he controlled the growth of some plants, and naturally, the element of life filled the world.
What had once been a region of pure earth elements now also saw the influx of life elements.
With earth elements predominating, supplemented by life elements, it became the ideal habitat for the Stonehoof tribe.
And what he saw now was the Stonehoof tribe's home, the Stone Forest.
"Friend, you've arrived," the Great Elder had appeared beside Alka and said, looking at him.
Though it was strange for the Great Elder to call Alka "friend," given the age difference between them, it was the most respectful term the elementals could offer Alka.
It could be considered a friend of the elements. After getting over the initial awkwardness, Alka had long since accepted the somewhat awkward address and nodded.
"Of course I have to attend such an important event for you." Alka smiled and walked towards the stone forest with the Great Elder.
A grand memorial ceremony was currently underway within the stone forest.
The thick earth element caused brown balls of light to flicker and float around.
They also looked unusually heavy.
Observing Alka's arrival, the surrounding semi-elemental creatures nodded respectfully.
They reached the center of the stone forest.
The massive stone pillar, covered in patterns and totems.
Floating on the pillar were hundreds of smooth, pebbled stone eggs.
But a closer look revealed that many of the eggs had become roughened, no longer as smooth and glossy as they once were. The roughness of the surface represents the growth of life within.
The Great Elder, who had been walking with Alka, passed by Alka and headed towards the stone pillar.
As he approached, he emitted a silent vibration.
He was performing a ritual prayer and praising the ceremony.
Alka could understand their meaning through the contract.
The reason he had come to participate in this ceremony was its significance.
Because it had been over 800 years.
The Stonehoof Clan was finally giving birth to a new life.
The vibration quickly faded; for these elemental creatures, formalities were of little use.
The Great Elder began to mobilize the surrounding earth elements.
Soon, the stone egg, with the roughest surface, covered in a variety of raised patterns, floated down.
Alka looked at the rock base supporting the stone egg; he recognized it. Of course, this egg looked completely different from its predecessor, but he recognized the base it held.
It bore a distinct bull-head mark.
This was… the core of the Rockhorn brothers.
Not all of the floating stone eggs here possessed this core; only a very small number did.
The majority were composed of linked elements, combined with extremely pure elemental materials.
There were also some elaborate rituals, which Alka didn't fully understand.
Anyway, the nearly 100 stone eggs floating here were said to take 500 years to hatch one by one.
This was also the limit of their tribe's ability to produce offspring.
For these half-elementals, every offspring they conceived was extremely important.
Looking closely, it seemed that the surface of each egg previously formed from a core was the roughest.
In other words, if a core is used to nurture new life, it will grow very easily.
Perhaps even better talent will be offered.
Of all the cores at the time, the core of the Rockhorn brother was the largest and presumably the most powerful in his lifetime.
The Great Elder held the egg aloft on a stone plate and set it down.
As the orange-red light surrounding it faded, the stone egg, as if detached from its mother's embrace, began to transform.
This was completely different from what Alka had imagined.
He involuntarily caused a mirror to float beside him, capturing the scene.
The so-called stone egg was merely an appearance; new life would not emerge from the egg shell like those egg-laying creatures outside.
Instead, the entire egg, along with the underlying tray, merged and transformed. Who would have thought that even the supporting tray was part of the new life?
Like a lump of clay taking shape.
A tiny minotaur emerged. It was only about one meter tall.
Arka looked at the newborn half-elemental creature from the Stonehoof tribe, also in minotaur form.
The one-meter-tall body gave the minotaur proportions a striking resemblance to anime characters.
Very... distinctive.
Somewhat like a three-headed figure.
Looking incredibly adorable.
Invisible vibrations emanated.
Innate ability to communicate in language.
He was calling.
Rockhorn and the other two stepped out, their minotaur-like appearances unique to their tribe.
They walked straight up to the newborn.
The newborn half-elemental creature leaped into their arms.
They were extremely affectionate.
With the birth of the half-elemental creature, the ceremony began to draw to a close.
Arka watched the entire process from the side.
After the birth of that half-elemental creature, its strength was already at the first stage.
And it displayed an innate ability to manipulate elements.
It was truly worthy of such a race's talent.
After bidding farewell to the Great Elder, Alka left the Stone Forest.
After a moment's thought, he didn't rush out, but headed to the other side.
Not far from the Stone Forest.
That was where their neighbors were.
It was called the Ghost Mine.
The new name for the large piece of soil Alka and his companions had previously unearthed.
Before they even got close, they could see a ghost floating across the grassland.
The ghost looked at Alka with a dazed expression. Then, it silently walked away.
Such dazed ghosts were everywhere, and as they got closer to the Ghost Mine, their number grew.
The strength of these ghosts varied widely, ranging from stage one to stage four.
But it was clear that they were no longer the evil spirits they once were, utterly hostile to living creatures.
Even those whose appearances had once been horrifically deformed had become normal souls, most now consisting of only the lower half of their bodies, resembling smoke, or capable of condensing illusory legs.
In the distance, he saw hills of varying hues.
There, he could see a once vibrant area, now lifeless. A gloomy aura swirled.
Yet, despite the darkness, it didn't feel sinister or nauseating.
After all, it was a normal gloomy aura, merely gathered and bound there by Alka, making it dark and more suitable for ghosts to survive.
He could also see a soft, white beam of light illuminating the area. It was the moonlight Alka had borrowed from Sofia.
It had to be said that Sofia's moonlight was quite helpful for these normal souls.
It can stabilize the negative emotions within their souls.
He thought as he walked.
He saw Lumina at the edge.
At that moment, Lumina, her teacher, and Clara seemed to be examining something around a dazed ghost.
Then, Clara sensed something and saw Alka pulling at Lumina's soul skirt.
Lumina and the old man beside them looked at Alka, paused their actions, and Alka also walked over.
The dazed soul looked at the crowd and staggered away.
"How is it?" Alka asked.
Hearing Alka's question, Lumina shook her head regretfully. "Although these evil spirits have returned to their original soul forms, they were once immersed in the aura of the Abyss for so long that their memories have almost completely dissipated along with their madness.
Only a few of the more powerful or determined ghosts still retain their memories, but only fragments remain.
They are now like... vegetative beings with no memory left, wandering on their own instincts."
Although no longer saturated by the aura of the Abyss, these souls have returned to their original state.
The only difference between them and their former evil spirits is perhaps their calmness, their return to their true selves.
Rumina and the others now spend most of their time studying these souls who have returned to their original state.
Trying to help them regain their memories, or at least to help them grow and learn like children, becoming normal souls, rather than the muddled existence they currently are.
Just like the ghostly path described in books. Aimlessly drifting.
"By the way, how are the latest batch of Soul Dolls?" Alka asked.
After all, the Soul Dolls of the past were essentially custom-made for Lucelia.
There are bound to be certain technical differences between custom-made items and mass-produced ones.
So, Alka has made some modifications over the years, at least to make them suitable for the general public.
Hearing this question, Lumina nodded, a rare smile on her face. "It suits you very well, Your Majesty. It's compatible with almost everyone, maintaining a minimum of 80% compatibility.
And while the new features added are a bit strange, they're very useful to everyone."
Hearing this compatibility, Alka finally nodded. At least it's a minimum level of compatibility, preventing distortion in one's soul.
Or rather, the time it takes for distortion to occur has been infinitely prolonged.
Furthermore, in this world, they only enter the Soul Dolls when necessary to experience the life they once forgot.
For example, eating and drinking.
As for soul sleep, who is Alka? But even if the deceased in the dream realm are spirits, Alka can use special means to make them sleep.
With the Soul Dolls, these former ghosts gradually stabilized and returned to their human form.
As for the following words, Alka chose to ignore them.
"You guys get back to your work. If you need anything, please let me know and I'll consider it," Alka said, preparing to leave.
At this moment, the old man next to them, Lumina's teacher, left and handed him a booklet.
"This is the collected feedback and opinions."
Looking at the booklet, Alka tried his best to keep his expression steady, smiled, put it away, and then immediately left.
Soon, they arrived at a vast grassland, devoid of human habitation.
It was also extremely far from the only two gathering places within the small world.
With a gentle wave of his hand, the slightly bright light in the sky dimmed.
It was too bright, affecting his thinking.
It was the sixth stage.
A mirror emerged from his body, followed by a pink crystal ball and a silver coin. The small world itself. Six cards of different colors.
These were his treasures, surrounding him.
The sixth stage.
At this stage, one can begin to perfectly control scepter-level treasures. It is also from this stage that one becomes qualified to wield crown-level treasures.
At the very beginning of the sixth stage, Alka could mix four elements, an ability he hadn't achieved at the fifth stage.
This was a necessary requirement.
With practice, throughout the six stages, Alka gradually mastered the integration of the six attributes seamlessly.
Add to that the ability to perfectly control two scepter-level artifacts, for a total of five artifacts. They could almost complement each other, achieving different effects.
Thinking of this, Alka closed his eyes, leaving only the six elemental cards beside him.
The elemental cards, emitting their respective elemental auras, floated into the air. Under Alka's control, six portals connecting to the outside world appeared.
And the entire world began to undergo some kind of change.
A large amount of magic power was absorbed and then converted into six different elements, beginning to
Gathering and dispersing throughout the world.
With his control over the world more easily, Alka began to intentionally gather these elements in different locations.
The entire small world was a blanket of green meadows, too monotonous.
It was time for a change.
At the edge of the land, a towering mountain rose into the sky.
Atop the peak, a stream of water emerged. A vast amount of water converged into a majestic waterfall and began to fall. These streams would converge, then meander across the land.
They would form lakes and rivers, adding a touch of vitality to this world.
There was no need to worry about these gathered water elements converging in the area of the stone forest, as it had long been isolated from other elements.
The flowing water would add even more splendor to this world.
More peaks rose, one after another, stretching endlessly. Snow fell, forming lakes in the surrounding depressions, which then froze into ice.
A chill wind howled here, swaying the snow and creating a cold zone.
The wind howled, sweeping across the entire world.
A scorching heat began to permeate the air, the temperature no longer constant.
Thunder and lightning flashed, but there were no dark clouds, nor were there drifting white clouds.
Compared to the normal world, it was still somewhat lacking.
Perhaps Urulius could add more clouds to this world, accelerating the process of recovery.
The road ahead is long and arduous for the complete restoration of this physical world.
However, Alka himself had no intention of restoring this world to its original state.
The six portals dissipated, and the six elemental cards returned to his body.
The mirror surface emerged.
Alka remained seated cross-legged on the ground, eyes closed. Suddenly, his entire body flipped upside down, as if falling into water, entering the opposite world.
His inverted body entered the opposite world.
This mirrored world, stretching across the entire small world, was the same size as the outside world.
It was like doubling the area of the world, but this was, after all, the opposite, and ultimately different from the real world.
Furthermore, this mirrored world was bizarre, with clouds of various colors drifting and distorted.
It was like a scene from a dream.
This place had long been transformed into a dreamland by Alka.
In this world, dreams and reality were firmly fused together, separated only by a layer of solid glass.
Reality and dreams were not as far apart as reality itself.
After all, this was his world.
And within the dream of this small world...
A floating treasure trove.