Soul-Link treasures are interesting because if you gain complete synchronicity with them, the artifact will follow you into the cycle of rebirth.

~Arianrhod, Goddess of Rebirth and Fate

Hooligan was on shore tossing rocks into the lava. Crow kept an eye on her, but he had his hand on the hull of the Vanguard. It had been vigorously vibrating for the last ten minutes, so he felt it safer standing on land than in the boat itself. The vibrations shook off the last of the aged bits and impurities that had built up until the void wood looked freshly milled.

Suddenly, the boat rose into the air, startling Crow. He slipped on the scree and fell back on his ass. Hooligan, true to her nature, burst out laughing. Crow didn’t pay much attention to her because while in the air, the boat spun in a circle and shrank with each rotation. In his consciousness, he also saw dozens of shapes that the Vanguard could transform into, which stunned him greatly. There was no way that his meager ability created that function, so it really was a treasure. Oddly, it could also transform into something much smaller than its current iteration.

Several other abilities appeared within his mind, like using his consciousness to scan a vestige. Once the information was implanted into his mind, he just had to review and comprehend it. Most of the functions were simple, such as changing both its shape and appearance. On a whim, he turned the Vanguard into a dingy canoe so people would assume it was trash not worth taking a second look at.

Instinctively, he gestured a few times, following the same method he used to summon his Star Arrow. The boat shrunk to the size of a toy and dropped into his hand. The next part of the process sucked, and there was no way to avoid it. He had to send part of his Soul out of his body to wrap the object and pull it in. Previously, other people had done this part for him in the past, and after steadying himself and taking three deep breaths, he began.

A tearing pain caused his body to shake uncontrollably, and it felt like his Soul was being torn apart by a beast. Blackness was creeping up on his consciousness and threatened to take him out before he could finish. His knees wanted to buckle, and his vision was already dark. Once he surrounded the boat with his Soul, he steadied himself, but it took twelve deep breaths to regain his sight and push through the pain.

A low growl escaped his lips as he fought past the pain to bind the ship to him. Crow’s teeth dug deep into his lips, and blood covered his chin. Using the blood, he spat on the little vessel and covered it in crimson. The last resistance shattered, and the boat entered his Soul. Vaguely, he could sense it alongside Star Arrow.

He dropped to his knees and grasped at his chest as if to claw out his Shield. He didn’t understand why it felt like his chest was getting roasted with the might of the sun, but it fucking hurt. Crow was so busy with his Soul Refining that he didn’t notice the small craft appearing on his Shield’s sigil. It hid among the roots of his Fireheart Oak.

Hooligan brought the ice wand closer to Crow, hoping the cooling effect would help him. She wasn’t worried as she’d seen Soul Refining before and knew he had succeeded. However, that didn’t mean it wasn’t a traumatic experience.

After a while, Crow finally stood up.

“How is it?” Hooligan asked.

“We both underestimated its value. I’m convinced it’s above Sky grade.”

“Heaven?”

“Possibly. However, I’m positive this item’s Spirit is dead, which drops its grade. I’ll have to find a way to bring it back to its former glory.”

“Why? What did you see?”

“It was too much to process for now, but I know it can fly.”

“Well…” Hooligan fidgeted and tapped the tips of her pointer fingers together nervously. “That’s normal. Most Soul-Linked artifacts of Sky grade or higher have the capability of flying.”

“Those can only carry one or two people, at most a small group. The airship I saw could carry at least a hundred.”

Hooligan gave Crow a weird look that he didn’t know how to interpret. He wasn’t sure if she knew something about the boat or if his logic was flawed somehow.

“Soul-Linked artifacts, like your arrow, can expand in size. They lose density, but carrying a hundred people shouldn’t be a problem. That’s why when you upgrade, you need more and more materials because you are increasing their density, which also boosts their power and makes them less likely to break. Carrying a thousand people on a Soul-Linked treasure is possible in the upper realms. In fact, I’ve heard some sects are on floating islands, which were created from mountains that their elders refined into Soul-Linked artifacts.”

Crow’s eyes sparkled hearing the wondrous capabilities. His information on artifacts mainly was limited to how to create or refine them into Soul-Linked artifacts. There was little to no information about the types of Soul-Linked artifacts others created. Other than the Twelve Artifacts of Chaos, which were way beyond ordinary Soul-Linked items, he didn’t have much information on other powerful treasures.

“Is that all true?”

“It is, but those artifacts have used an ungodly amount of rare and unique resources to make. It’s not like they grow on trees. Take the void wood of the Vanguard; that’s almost impossible to find. I think what you saw might have been the natural size of the artifact. Imagine if you expanded it to be larger or condensed it so that it was more compact and could plow through almost anything—not to mention the defensive capabilities of void wood. Don’t be fooled, though. In its current state, it might be indestructible to things here, but you aren’t. If anyone realizes what you have—”

“I understand. Let’s go explore the volcano.”

“Mmm,” Hooligan nodded.

They climbed the slope, which could quickly destroy their footwear with how sharp and jagged the mountain was. The porous lava rock also shattered underfoot, making it even more treacherous.

“You sure there is a Shrine up here?” Hooligan queried, her breathing labored, and even with the ice wand, her pores were leaking water like a sieve.

“Positive,” Crow replied, and even he wasn’t immune to the heat at this point. However, he really wanted to stay here a few days if possible because he could feel the Fire Mana feeding into the scarification tattoo merged into his Shield and bones. Crow long realized that his Shield was special because of this. He didn’t have stars that lit up when he completed floors. Instead, the grommets acquired a richer vibrancy. The deeper the coloring, the greater his resistance was toward that element. Reaching the fourth floor, the little node for Wood had become a richer greenish brown color. Its vitality gave him a refreshed feeling, but he wasn’t sure if others received the same feeling.

It was nothing compared to the grommet for Fire, which made him wonder if he’d be able to skip through most of the fire floors. He wasn’t sure if the coloring directly aligned with the growth of his Source or not. He felt the two were separate, but Crow didn’t understand the full function of the Shield. He probably wouldn’t understand it until he reached the upper realm.

“You zone out a lot,” Hooligan muttered.

“Sorry, my brain is constantly multitasking and processes a lot of information all the time. I haven’t figured out how to split my consciousness, so those thoughts don’t distract me.”

“The life of a Mind-based cultivator,” Hooligan sighed. “Your problems are beyond my comprehension. It’s better to be a Body cultivator—less stress. All I have to know is how to punch things.”

“I’m not sure if I should tell you this, but I think your affinity to Spirit is higher than Body. You give off this warrior priest vibe.”

“Shut your mouth!” Hooligan growled and punched him.

“What the hell?”

“Sorry. My dad tried to convince me to acknowledge this crazy priest as my master when I was younger. That weird bastard said the same thing, so they forced me to listen to him lecture me constantly about virtue and purity—ha! What would he think now that you’ve destroyed my purity?”

“Hey, don’t blame that on me! If I remember right, you forced your way into my room and tricked me into taking a shower with you.” Crow gave her a twisted smile.

*Bullshit.* Lily exploded.

“Bullshit!” Hooligan shouted.

They practically admonished him simultaneously, and despite the heat, he felt a cold sweat beading his forehead. What the hell is happening right now?

*I like her more and more. You better be nice to her, or I’ll make sure you suffer for it.*

*What the fuck? Whose side are you on, traitor?*

*Hmph.*

“Fine. Fine. I’m wrong, and you didn’t sexually assault me.”

“Do you believe I’ll shove you into the volcano?” Hooligan said without emotion. Crow gave her a double take to see if she was joking, and he was pretty sure she wasn’t.

“Hey, look,” Crow chuckled nervously and pointed. They crested the ridge and could now see inside the volcano. There was a rocky shelf that circled the inside of the hollow mountain. Looking further down, Crow was fascinated by the bubbling magma, and not for the first time, he marveled at the power of nature.

The shelf wrapped around twice before ending in a cave on the far side. It was about a third of the way down, and inside the cave, they both easily spotted the Shrine. A shimmering barrier protected it, and they could only hope they could enter safely.

Hopping down to the ledge about three meters below him, he held his hands out to help Hooligan. However, she just hopped down lightly and fell at such a slow rate that he felt awkward and put his hands down. I try to be chivalrous, but this girl… sigh.

Two hours later, they reached the cave. Crow went first and touched the barrier with his pinky finger in case it attacked him. However, his hand went right through the barrier, so he stepped through with no issue. Inside it was nice and cool, and the ice wand dropped the temperature even further, so Hooligan put it inside her Shield.

“It is going to be hell leaving this place,” Hooligan stated, and Crow could only agree. Going down the winding ledge wasn’t too hard, but there was a lot of scree, making going up even more treacherous.

Looking at the door of the Shrine, Crow blanked for a moment. It was a Body type, so he wasn’t sure why he had such an awful premonition about attempting this Shrine.

“What’s wrong?”

“I thought it’d be combat or even another Spirit one. We’ve only had two Body shrines, so this should be easy.”

“Why does that bother you? We should be ecstatic, right?”

“No. My hunches are never wrong. My instincts are still screaming that this Shrine is dangerous, and when something doesn’t make sense, it makes me extremely nervous.”

“Never wrong?”

“Never.”

“My mom says when facing the unknown, there are two options before us. Prepare yourself for the unknown to quickly adapt to the situation and then charge forward with confidence.”

“And the second option?”

“Charge forward anyway. If death scares you, you aren’t a fucking cultivator.”

Crow didn’t know whether to laugh or cry because it sounded like something his dad would say.

“Typical mindset of a hooligan,” Crow chuckled. “Your mom sounds like a bigger hooligan than you!”

Hooligan chuckled. “Wait until I tell her what my husband said about her.”

Crow couldn’t help but shiver at her ominous words.