Chapter 649 Morthex, the Pale Devourer

Ashlock came to understand just how starved of Qi the 9th Layer really was. The 8th Layer was so abundant in Qi that it naturally condensed into spirit stones attuned to specific affinities, rather than being untamed Qi. Known as affinity crystals, they were traded between regions, allowing cultivators to cultivate despite their surroundings.

In other words, the sects of the 8th Layer would have no interest in his affinity-attuned groves. Thanks to affinity crystals, sects could apparently nurture a wider range of affinities, as the sect's chosen location wouldn't cripple some affinities from being able to advance.

"Stella's mentioned affinity crystals to me before, as those in the Tessellate Citadel found her spirit stones valuable," Ashlock said. "But are they as common to find as spirit stones?"

Morrigan nodded. "Yes, they are far more common, though it depends on the affinity. Earth and water affinity crystals are by far the easiest to find, whereas something like spatial is rarer."

"I see. That makes sense."

Honestly, rare or not, he found the idea of affinity crystals enviable, as he'd wasted so much effort converting Qi from the spirit stone ore deposits in the early days before he could gather far more Qi through other means like the Eternal Realm.

"What I tell you next, the heavens won't like me disclosing," Morrigan lowered her voice and shrouded it in void Qi. "But there is also the existence of conceptual daos such as Sword Dao that simply don't exist down here, as they have been stripped out of the heavens' whispers by the upper layers. Bloodlines are also far more common, as are other humanoid races that have ancient monster blood running through them."

"Are they like demons?" Ashlock whispered back. He also remembered that some of the cultivators from the Azure Clan on the 8th Layer possessed vibrant blue eyes and pointed ears, making them look somewhat like elves.

"No, demons are distinct as they are summoned from Hell and feed on tainted Qi and dark emotions. These are humans who possess monster-like traits, such as wings, fangs, and claws. Though typical humans still make up the majority—"

[Notice: Stella has exited the Eternal Realm]

"Sorry, Morrigan, one moment," Ashlock had to cut her off at Stella's abrupt return. Though it had likely been a day or two inside the Tessellate Citadel, so it made sense she had sorted out her affairs and come home.

There was a burst of white flames, and Stella appeared on Red Vine Peak a second later. A look of understanding crossed Morrigan's features as to why she had been interrupted upon noticing Stella.

"I'm back!" Stella yelled to the sky as if she had just been freed from prison.

"Welcome back, Princess," Morrigan said respectfully.

"Oh hey, Morrigan," Stella glanced at her and frowned upon noticing the void Origin sitting on her bench. "Where is everyone—oof."

Diana appeared out of nowhere as a blur of black feathers, barreled into Stella, and hauled her into the sky in a hug so tight it looked like Stella was being strangled.

Yet both of them laughed as they spiraled and crashed. Morrigan simply watched on in patient silence while Ashlock got distracted by a system message.

[Comprehension of Aether Dao has significantly increased]

Ashlock felt an unfathomable amount of aether Qi flood his Inner World, causing his desolate sky to briefly turn into a white void and for space within his Soul Cosmos to fracture like dropped glass.

"What in the world?!" Ashlock yelled as he tried to bring the raging Qi under control.

[Soul Forest activated]

The amount of Qi was too much for his Inner World to absorb alone, so he began channeling the excess Qi he couldn't control down his ethereal roots to his offspring. He had to pay them back for all the times he had drained them, and this seemed like a good opportunity. Slowly, the cracks in his Soul Cosmos healed, and his desolate sky returned as he finished absorbing what he could.

A sudden pulse rippled through his Soul Cosmos.

"Did I just go up a stage?" Ashlock murmured in surprise.

[Demonic Demi-Divine Tree (Age: 10)]

[Monarch Realm: 2nd Stage]

[Soul Type: Nine Moons (Desolation)]

[Domain: Eye of Horus]

Stella, Diana, and Morrigan, who were sitting on the bench and chatting, seemed to sense what had happened as they all froze.

"Did you just ascend a stage already, Ashlock?" Morrigan asked.

"I did," Ashlock confirmed. "Though, it's all thanks to Stella's efforts in the Eternal Realm, as I receive a portion of what she cultivated."

"And that was enough to send you up a whole stage in the Monarch Realm?" Morrigan said, looking perplexed at Stella.

Stella shrugged. "I was in there for five years and reached the peak of the Monarch Realm, so it's hardly surprising."

"The peak in just five years?!" Morrigan shook her head. "That's even more insane. Even on the upper layers, it usually takes decades to progress through the Monarch Realm."

"Really?" Stella tilted her head. "It felt rather slow to me."

Diana chuckled. "I agree with Stella. Cultivation used to be a slog no matter the realm, but after being blessed with Ashlock's resources, cultivation has been a breeze. I can't imagine it taking more than a year to get through any realm of power now. But I have to say, five years still feels quite long. What happened?"

Stella sighed. "The amount of Qi I've had to gather as a Monarch to progress compared to the Nascent Soul Realm is incomparable. Though I assume it's easier for those with an Inner World to expand and develop, rather than the aether plane to feed."

Diana and Morrigan looked at her weirdly.

This copy was taken from the author's maintained page without consent, though reading the chapter at its official home supports them.

"What do you mean by that?" Morrigan asked.

"I don't have an Inner World like other Monarchs," Stella said, glancing between them. "It's complicated... but I have a close relationship with the aether, so the entire aether dimension basically serves as my Inner World."

"Oh..." Diana slowly nodded her head. "That would explain why it took you five years."

"It also explains why she shared enough Qi with Ashlock to push him up a stage despite him reaching the Monarch Realm today," Morrigan mused. "It must be a truly ridiculous amount."

That it was, and Ashlock still felt his Soul Cosmos expanding as it absorbed the rest of the Qi.

"Tell me about it. I can only imagine how bad it's going to be to advance once I finally reach the Sovereign of Realities Realm," Stella grumbled. "I'm frankly dreading it."

"On that topic, Morrigan, I assume you've encountered Sovereigns before? What are they capable of?" Ashlock asked.

Morrigan paused before answering carefully. "Where Monarchs overlay reality with their domains to establish temporary control, Sovereigns can bring those changes into reality permanently. So, if Magnus were a Sovereign and used his domain, he could turn any landscape into a volcanic region long after the battle was done, and from what I've heard, there's a massive difference between fighting within a domain of manifested hellfire and a literal domain of hellfire."

Ashlock thought back to the Frozen Star Sect. It was supposed to be a volcanic region, but the presence of the primordial ice dragon corpse had changed the environment into an icy wasteland.

"Perhaps that's why I'm struggling to make the final leap to the next realm, as I can't visualize how the aether would be capable of permanently altering reality like that," Stella tapped her chin. "I should ask one of the Sovereigns in the Citadel to go all out and show me what they are capable of."

"I'm surprised you didn't ask them already," Ashlock said.

"The only Aether cultivator in the Sovereign of Realities Realm worth asking is Thalos, and he avoids me," Stella bit her lip. "I did sense the spiritual pressure from one of the other Sovereigns briefly during an argument and almost spat blood. It was... intense. If I had to fight one right now, I don't think I could win despite peaking at the cusp."

Morrigan nodded. "If someone in the Sovereign of Realities Realm had come down to the 9th Layer, they could have single-handedly wiped out the Celestial Empire. They are practically walking calamities."

That was concerning.

"How many should I expect to encounter on the 8th Layer? I ask because the Celestial Empire had quite a few more Monarchs than I had anticipated."

"Don't worry, there should only be a handful," Morrigan assured him. "The Celestial Empire having so many Monarchs was a unique case, as they had access to the World Tree's sap and no other worthy sects to wage war with. They were basically at peace." She glanced up. "If the Era of Ascension had played out the usual way with the World Tree growing into the next Layer, the sect that managed to monopolize her golden sap first would be able to raise many more Sovereign of Realities cultivators and take over the Layer."

Ashlock knew the World Tree's sap was a potent cultivation resource but hadn't realized it was that good. But when he considered the World Tree's sap, a constantly flowing resource, compared to the subpar and expensive pills that had been on the market, it was clear how superior the Sylva's sap was.

"Would the sects in the Wilderness be a better comparison then?" Ashlock asked, since the Celestial Empire was unique because of Sylva.

"No," Morrigan shook her head. "We were constantly under threat from the beast tide, which shouldn't exist on the other layers. So I'd put the sects somewhere in the middle. They can be more established due to the lack of a beast tide, but they don't have the World Tree's sap to accelerate their cultivation."

"Wait, the 8th Layer doesn't have a beast tide?" Stella said with surprise.

"Well... I suppose monsters do naturally flee areas if a stronger monster shows up, but it would be nothing on the same scale as the beast tide orchestrated by the World Tree," Morrigan patiently explained. "Though it does mean the wilderness between the sects on the upper layers is far more monster-infested than our wilderness the last time I explored them."

That was great news for Ashlock and his plan. Fighting the Celestial Empire had shown him that cultivators at the top of the power hierarchy were reclusive, unwilling to expend their Qi in battle, and slow to react to new threats. If there were only a handful of Sovereigns, they were likely the leaders of sects and wouldn't lift a finger unless every other avenue had been exhausted—lest they waste Qi and put themselves behind their rivals.

Ideally, he could wait a few months before actually needing to use Morthex for anything, so the wilderness being monster-infested was ideal for Morthex to grow in strength and avoid detection while raising an army.

Of course, this was assuming he would even need Morthex. He hadn't personally checked out the 8th Layer yet, but it was always best to set plans in motion before they were needed.

The discussion continued into the evening. Eventually, Stella left to meet with Jasmine while Diana went to attend a meeting. Morrigan had dinner with Elaine and Douglas, while Ashlock was left alone for the evening with his Generals and summons.

"Ashlock, you finally completed your ascension?" Sylva suddenly asked him as the sun was setting. It seemed she had finally awoken, though she still sounded somewhat sleepy.

"I did, Sylva. How was your sleep?"

"Too short," she complained. "I could have slept for another decade or two."

Ashlock chuckled. "As expected from a spirit tree."

"You're a spirit tree too!"

"True, but if I slept so long I'd miss too much. Stella already grew up so much while I was ascending. I can't believe it."

"Stella?" Sylva yawned, and it felt like the entire continent trembled. "Where is that rascal?"

"You just missed her, actually. She went to visit her disciple."

"A shame..." Sylva said. It seemed like she would fall back asleep any moment, so Ashlock kept her busy by catching her up to everything that happened well into the night.

***

Idletree Daily Sign-In System

Day: 3988

Daily Credit: 1

Sacrifice Credit: 714

[Sign in?]

Ashlock was startled awake the next morning by something heavy being dropped onto Red Vine Peak. He expanded his view beyond his Soul Cosmos and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, it's just you," Ashlock said to the majestic deer standing in the sky above a massive corpse.

"Larry would have swallowed me long before I reached you if I were an enemy," Zephyrine scoffed.

"Ah, I suppose that's true." Ashlock glanced at the ominous cloud of silver ash orbiting around his trunk.

"Anyway, as requested, here is Morthex, the Pale Devourer." Her face contorted with disgust. "Do with it as you please."

Ashlock looked over Morthex. It had the appearance of a six-headed hydra, with three of them missing, likely due to its fight with Zephyrine. Its body was like a zombie, with bone plating hiding sickly gray rotten flesh making up the bulk of its mass. Its most notable feature was two massive skeletal wings, with strips of deteriorating flesh stretched taut between the joints. Flies in the area began to swarm around the corpse, and Ashlock was glad he didn't have a sense of smell.

"Thank you, Zephyrine," Ashlock said honestly. He didn't say it aloud, as it would hurt her pride, but the battle must have been closer than Zephyrine expected, as she had a small injury on her side. If anything, it showed how powerful the Primal Overlords really were.

It was time to make Morthex a General, but he had to turn the rotten monster into an Ent first. Casting Necroflora Empire, Ashlock expended extra Qi to ensure Morthex's current appearance wasn't changed at all.

"System, now raise Morthex as a General."

[Upgrading Morthex to General class will cost 500 SC. Are you sure?]

"Yes."

[Upgrading now...]

Clouds gathered overhead.

[Tribulation summoned to raise Morthex's cultivation to Monarch Realm 2nd stage]

"Not again," Ashlock lamented as divine lightning crackled through the clouds above before arching out and striking the corpse.

"At least it's not targeting me this time," he mused as thunder roared all around him. "Got to take the small wins."

While waiting for the process to complete, Ashlock checked his sign-in screen and found himself left with 214 credits. It wasn't enough to upgrade anything worthwhile, but it was enough for a B-grade random draw.

"It's been a while since I did a random draw, but B-grade feels like a waste." Bringing out many more corpses from his stash, he devoured just enough to get above 400 credits, which would guarantee him an A-grade draw. "Now we're talking."

He paused, wondering for a moment if this was the right decision... only to cave under zero pressure.

"System, do a random draw."

[Sign-in successful, 418 credits consumed...]