Sarina watched over Jin's left palm where a symbol had been etched in bright gold. The symbol itself depicted a blade within a rose and was made from many glyphs. It was an array. A soul array to be precise. It could only be activated through a certain passageway and upon activation, it would summon her soul remnant. Regardless of where Jin was, he would be able to summon her soul once with this. She felt anxious as she saw him admiring the golden tattoo. She hoped that he wouldn't betray his trust if he was lucky enough to survive. It wasn't like she would die if he did but she would have to wait a long time before finding another opportunity like this one.

Jin admired his palm and then decided to ask something. He noticed a certain problem only after she began working on the seal. Since he didn't want to distract her as it might make her fail, and he didn't know if it could backlash, he decided to wait. At the time, she had asked for his hand so she could engrave the soul glyph array. That's when he noticed that there was only one ring left there. Then, he checked the other places and found none. Only this one ring remained. He had been curious about it since she began working on the array.

Now that she was done, he asked: "Sarina, do you know where my spatial rings are?"

She looked blankly for a moment before pointing at his right arm. He turned his gaze there and saw no rings, only the dark red flowing goo forming his arm. Then, he realized what she meant and both his fists clenched. He gritted his teeth as he asked: "Are you saying that it absorbed it all?"

She nodded without a word and he screamed: "Fuck!"

It was truly a big loss. The only ring left was the one he had stolen from a prince of the sun empire long ago... There was only some food and medicine in there, nothing else. All of the elements he prepared were gone now. How the fuck was he supposed to move forward? His technique relied heavily on them! Without the purification and light elements, would he have had a way to weaken corruption? No! Without the calmness and focus elements, would he have managed to resist and endure for so long? No! Then, what would happen if a similar situation happened once more? He would be fucked.

However, Sarina didn't share the sentiment. She pointed a finger to his right and said: "Look on the bright side, your treasured spear wasn't absorbed. And you still have one ring as well"

Jin was going to rebuke her but decided against it. It was pointless and greedy. He survived. That's what mattered. The rings might have been the price to pay and if so, then fine. They had been prepared to help him survive in the first place. He looked at his right hand. It would have to prove its usefulness and he would have to master its uses. Because this was the only usable element he had at hand.

He got up and went to pick up his spear. This was a grade 6 treasure, why was it spared? Seeing his expression, Sarina didn't wait for the question before giving the answer: "Do you think an elemental of the 9th stage could consume a treasure of this kind of grade? Even if he wanted to, and he likely did, he didn't have the ability to"

Jin nodded as he turned around, then he asked about something else: "So, now, tell me how to survive"

She sighed. She anxiously wondered more and more if he was someone worthy of her trust. Anyways, she would learn that fact later and now, she could only proceed. She said: "I taught you the ritual required to activate the soul channel and crafted it on your palm so, yes, it's time to tell you how to survive the trial"

Jin sat down with his spear over his knees and waited for her to continue. She sighed and asked him: "How much do you know about the remaining battles?"

Jin answered: "One on one until only one remains"

She tilted her head as she said: "Yes. But that's not the main point. Where do you think the battles will take place is what matters"

Jin pointed a finger up as he said: "At The Peak"

She shook her head sideways and grinned. Then, she stated: "No. It will happen higher. Anyways, the next battle will be in a similar room but higher and without us. The one after that will be the same. Only for the final will you exit the mountain. Two exits on two sides of The Peak with two bridges circularly leading to a single floating arena"

Jin added: "I don't recall seeing that when I arrived"

She smiled as she told him: "Of course you didn't. The array activates only when the time comes. Do you think the energy to run this whole thing comes naturally? Anyways, that's the place you need to reach if you want to survive"

"Are you telling me to win?"

She snickered and continued: "No way. You have to lose there. But not by fighting. You need to jump down"

Jin couldn't believe his ears. Did she tell him to jump down? But what was there to find down there? During the time he spent in this space, he only ever saw chaotic space elements surrounding the area. Did she ask him to jump in that? Or was there something different there in her time?

Noticing his questioning gaze, she confirmed his guess: "Yeah, I'm telling you to jump in the chaotic space"

He quickly retorted: "But I would die in seconds in there! I would be torn to shreds!"

She smiled as she teasingly shook one of her fingers sideways. Then, she said: "If you jumped as you are, yes. But who said to do such a foolish thing?"