A predicament would accurately describe Cesar's situation.

With the dark storm clouds came a drop in temperature and increased wind speeds. The Yin energy became more and more abundant. This was good for Lily since it would decrease the amount of time her breakthrough would last. But at the same time, it was playing with fire. The greater the intensity of the storm, the greater the danger Cesar, Lily and the party would be in. Lily also wasn't in the position to protect herself from the raging powers of the storm. The Yin winds and the Ice rain would tear her to shreds! It was also unsure whether or not Cesar would be able to protect her.

Compared to the might of Nature, normal Desolate Beasts were like insects.

Cesar looked at General Calix, Desmond, Blake and Lisa, “I'm going to send you all deep underground. I know where the Desolate Beasts are so you will not be in danger. I will also camouflage your Aura's so the other Desolate Beasts can't target you!”

He knew that General Calix, Desmond, Blake and Lisa were helpless in the situation. They were more so a liability! The more areas he was forced to divide his attention towards, the lower the chance of survival. That didn't mean he would abandon them. The Earth felt like his own body. This comparison went beyond just words.

General Calix and Desmond were veterans of this world. They looked at the congregating storm. They looked at Lily and knew Desolate Beasts would still try to devour her. They just nodded towards Cesar. The destiny of the weak were either to be devoured by the strong or die peacefully hiding behind the strong. They were weak. They needed to be protected by those stronger than them. They didn't have money that they could give to Cesar as his reward. Even the Xiantian Profound weapons Desmond had given Ceasr and Lily had become obsolete in a single day. Yet in the face of death, they would fight.

That was the piteous duality of the weak yet experienced.

Lisa was not like Calix or Desmond. She had gone through hardships, but she was still an emotional creature. Tears brimmed her eyes as she looked towards Cesar. She felt like words were not enough in this situation. But she couldn't think of anything else to give to Cesar. Her body couldn't be compared to Lily's. Her mind and personality were average. Her body came to her rescue. Years of habits and patterns. “Thank you...” She said while bowing, her hands clasped. That was all that was needed. To show appreciation for Cesar's actions. A simple emotion and thought conveyed through a simply action. That was all that was needed.

Blake was silent throughout the ordeal. He thought about the great bridge of difference between him and Cesar.

“You will all be safe. When the danger passes, we will continue towards the Capital.” Cesar said with soft eyes and an assuring manner. They still needed to travel towards the Capital, even though the trade would not be at the Capital itself.

Cesar controlled the Earth, covering them completely. With Desmond, Lisa, Blake and General Calix inside, he carried them deep underground. There were several caves of decent size that would be comfortable but dark. There would also be no issue with oxygen. Soon, it would start raining, and any oxygen holes he might have created would just became gateways for the rain that would soon pour down.

Cesar used his Will to erase any inkling of their presence from within the Earth. Desolate Beasts would no longer be able to detect them as long they stayed in the same place. The trick was the same as hiding one's Cultivation, but used in a wider area and outside one's body.

Mother Wolf stayed right beside Lily. Worst comes to worse, Mother Wolf would give up her life to protect Lily. But her Aura was becoming stronger. She was feasting on the bodies of some of the Desolate Beasts that Cesar had killed.

Cesar turned his attention back to Lily, then the Desolate Beasts that had once again surrounded them. This time, the Desolate Beasts were all nervous and fewer in number. Some even looked at the storm approaching them and ran off to find cover. Those that stayed were the truly greedy Desolate Beasts. But that greed was a part of their institution. Desolate Beasts needed to be greedy for power or they would die off.

Their greed had made them blind. They could smell the blood in the air from the dead Desolate Beasts but still believed that they could come out with the young Cultivators Nascent Dantian.

The moment Desmond, Lisa, Blake, and General Calix were safe, Cesar's eyes went from soft to cold and his assuring manner become resolute. This time, there was no need to wait.

BZZ BZZ BZZ

Lightning Bolt after Lightning Bolt appeared in his hands. That changed the entire battlefield. It was as if the person you were just fighting barehanded a moment ago now had an AK-47 pointed at your head. The Desolate Beasts felt the shadow of death.

Desolate Beasts died. Those that attacked Cesar died first. Those that ran died second. That that stood still in fear also died. The pecking order of death. Cesar had given them a moment to escape. Now, they could take their greed to the underworld. Their mournful screams didn't even affect Cesar's facial expressions a tiny amount. Cesar had become a killing machine even with his humanity intact.

Cesar turned back his attention to Lily. Turning on his Energy vision, he could see Lily absorbing Yin energy. But it wasn't an efficient method of absorbing Energy. She wasn't Cultivating. Lily was focusing on the insides of her own body. The Houtian and Xiantian Profound Realm were not extraordinary. They only granted strength and Cultivation. But from the Elementary Profound Realm onward, there were special requirements that needed to be met and specific upgrades were possible!

The gathering of Yin energy and a small amount of Yang energy seemed automatic from Lily's standpoint. Cesar thought for a moment. “I don't need to close my eyes nor be in a tranquil state to Cultivate.” Suddenly, Cesar had an idea. He could help Lily in her breakthrough!

“I just need to use my Aura and Spiritual Pressure to collect Yin energy. Then I can carry that Yin energy towards Lily. All I have to do is release my grasp and hold on that Yin energy, and Lily will automatically collect it!”

Cesar's idea was brilliant. He could see the pathways of Yin energy circulating around Lily. He could carry the Yin energy from further away and let Lily absorb that Yin energy!

“I'll be here for you Lily!” Cesar thought with a smile.

Immediately, Cesar started collecting Yin energy. What Cesar did was that he created a giant net around himself made of Aura and Spiritual Pressure. He also controlled the Wind that carried the Yin energy and set the direction of the Winds towards his net. He was capturing Energy! This also didn't include the Yin energy his own Heavenly Mirror was collecting!

Vast amounts of Yin filled Winds went through one end of the net and come out the other. All of that Yin energy that was collected was dragged to an area that was under Cesar's control. He carried the Yin energy towards Lily, encasing her in the abundant Yin energy and released his control. Cesar smiled as he watched Lily automatically absorb the Yin energy. His plan was worked!

Advancing to the Nascent Profound Realm was not easy! Information regarding breakthroughs were top secret in any sect or family, and anyone leaking such information would be branded a traitor and hunted! It was actually the reason why sects and families had a huge number of loyal followers and branches. No matter how much resources or talent someone had, without the proper information on advancing Realms, they would forever be stuck with the same Cultivation! This is where Lily could be considered well off. She came from the distinguished Storm family! Even through the vestige of the Storm family was contained within Lily, their legacy was still vast!

After 20 minutes, the skies were pitch black. The sunshine was no longer able to pierce the obsidian black storm clouds. Rumbling sounds could be heard from the clouds. A thunderstorm was about to pour down a torrent of rain. Cesar sat there, continuously channeling Yin energy towards Lily. But that was not all that Cesar was doing. He was also exploring the Earth.

The Earth was littered with precious Metals, gems, minerals, and herbs! Unlike the land, the Earth was virtually unexplored! Only those with detection abilities or those few Cultivators that adept at adventuring within the Earth were able to tap into the underground resource! This was because traveling within the Earth was too dangerous! Auras and Spiritual Detection abilities became limited within the Earth! And plowing through rock and dirt at the chance of finding anything was seen as a waste of time and seen as a degrading act by Cultivators! Not to mention, the Desolate Beasts within the Earth all had tough bodies and specialized in ambush. This meant that the treasures within the Earth still there, ripe for Cesar's taking!

This is also where Cesar learned that his connection to the Earth was malleable. His 10 kilometer connection appeared in a semi circle. This gave Cesar the idea since he was the center of this connection, it should go in a full circle around him! His actual length of connection was 20 kilometers with him being in the middle! Then he learned that he could shape this Spiritual Sense to his will. He could shorten the width but the length would increase. But the total distance of the connection was mathematically proportional to the total volume. This allowed Cesar to follow the underground pathways of the Red Ruby Scorpion towards it's home. What he found astonished him.

Desolate Beasts were like collectors and hoarders. They had natural instincts about prosperity and wealth. More so, the Desolate Beasts within the Earth consumed valuable metals and gems and incorporated their properties into their bodies. That's why the bodies of Desolate Beasts from Earth were extremely valuable! Within the cave that the Red Ruby Scorpion harbored, Cesar saw various metals like Low quality Space Meteorites, Tungsten and even small amounts of Adamantium! Metals like gold and silver were collected by the tons! Cesar even saw various gems! There were even swords, armour and Spacial Rings! The Red Ruby Scorpion had hunted human Cultivators, and had collected their belongings over the course of hundreds of years!

Cesar also hunted the remaining Desolate Beasts within his Spiritual Sense using his Elementary Profound sword! They naturally couldn't sense Cesar's connection to Earth so his Elementary Profound weapon become the master of ambush as it killed Desolate Beasts in sudden silence and surprise! Their caves were similar in value to the Red Ruby Scorpion!

Then there were the various herbs deep underground. The underground cave system had been left untouched for thousands of years! Eons even! Nourished by the sublime underground Energies, precious herbs for Alchemy could be found in abundance!

What astonished Cesar even more was that his connection to Earth included metals, gems, dirt and even wood! With just his will, he collected all the treasures he saw in the homes of Desolate Beasts or even metals which hadn't been discovered yet. The herbs and precious roots were also collected! At Will, Cesar could compress and shape the mountains of gold and silver into coins made by the Kingdoms. He was literally printing money... To say he was rich was now an understatement. The value of wealth however, was subjective. In one place, he could be considered rich, another, he could be considered average!

BOOOMMMMM

The raging thunderstorm had started! Lightning Bolts hit the ground and trees, which immediately combusted in flames! Then chaos erupts as the Yin filled Ice rain poured down from the skies!

Howls and screams of Ferocious Beasts and Desolate Beasts echoed in the wind. The Ice rain was completely uniform and even throughout the skies as it rained down upon the earth. It was as if the Heavens were punishing the entire lands fairly. On Earth, sometimes the ice like hail would clump together to form bigger objects, but not the Yin Ice rain, it was completely uniform.

Cesar watched what looked like the sky falling, then turned back his attention to Lily, completely ignoring the bombardment of Ice coming towards him. This was not Cesar looking at Lily for the final time, before the Ice rain ended up tearing holes in his body, killing him. No. The Ice rain was filled with Yin energy and did no contain Will, thus it wasn't something that was Cesar's enemy. He could completely ignore the Ice rain. If it couldn't harm him, than he wouldn't let the Ice rain harm Lily.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Ice rain arced around Cesar and Lily, as if an invisible umbrella covered them. At the same time, Cesar also collected more Yin energy from the rain in giant clumps.

Oooooaaahhhh

That's when Lily's ambiance changed. It was as if something within her had just taken the breath of life. It let out a soft groan, as if awakening from slumber.

Her hair turned blood red. A ferocious and ominous Aura congealed and radiated off her body. All the blood that was within the gorge that Cesar had created for the dead Desolate Beasts trickled towards Lily.

Aaaaaoohhhhh

This time, as Lily absorbed the volatile blood of the Desolate Beasts, that creature let out an exasperated moan of delight.

Cesar did not like where the situation was going. This was not Lily, per say. He had seen the Elements. Whatever this creature was, it was foreign. He however knew it was most likely her Bloodline. Still, any outside influence affecting Lily made him stand on edge. He felt like he should have asked for a single drop of her blood, without letting it add her to the Blood Pill, which would come days later. That would have let Jasmine analyze her blood before she had made her breakthrough.

Hindsight is always 20-20.

Cesar focused his eyes, time slowed down, and he waited for something to happen. Each second feels like an hour when worrying about a loved one. Was something wrong? Was this just the beginning and the catalyst was being created? Question after question roamed in his mind.

At first, nothing happened. Then in the most unexpected moment, an invisible shock wave came out of Lily. It passed through Cesar, not that he could have dodged. It was simply too fast.

A silent moment that shook the Heavens and the Earth. The shock wave traveled through the Heavens, land, and Earth in a spherical shape. Nothing was left out.

Cesar felt like he should kneel before Lily, cut his wrists, and savor death. Yet before that, Cesar had a premonition. That this was a monumental moment. That for eons to come, this day would be etched in history, as the beginning of something. He looked towards the sky, and saw the storm. A storm. Yes... It would be a storm. The most important storm in history.

Cesar naturally didn't cut open his wrists and wait for death with a smile on his face. The shock wave had been a mental attack, just an unbelievably large one. While he had no barriers protecting his mind, he had Jasmine regulating it, which was just as good. He didn't know if mental barriers would even protect someone from this sublime attack.

Cesar was known for connecting the dots. A mental attack made all creatures come towards Lily, kneel, and sacrifice themselves to become her blood offering. Yet he somehow knew it was tailored towards Desolate Beasts. He had been hit point blank with the attack yet could resit it. Was that Jasmine's doing or did Lily somehow hold back against him? But that made out the possibility that the attack could effect each creature differently. A unit specific attack? That was quite improbable. The more probably outcome was that the attack could be resisted. Yet the attack revealed Lily's position.

The moment the last part registered in his brain, Cesar gulped. Yet his danger senses remained silent, almost as if hiding. Was there no danger or was the danger so huge that it there was no escaping? Was his danger sense letting him live his last moments without worry? Or was he being paranoid. Jasmine had remained her silent self during this moment.

Ferocious and Desolate Beasts came out their hiding places. Some, who had atrocious defenses became riddled with holes from the Ice rain. But they didn't even seem in control of their bodies, even in death. They walked towards Lily, their eyes dimmed, almost like zombies.

Those alive seemed to become puppets, and sacrificing themselves seemed to be their mission.

A hole in the sky opened up. The light from the Heavens shined down right upon Lily. The ice around them shined brilliant colours, making the place shine like a diamond. A 100 meter wide blue Phoenix descended. It's presence was awe-aspiring. It's Aura breached the Realm of a Domain. Yet, as it looked down, there was a soft gentleness in its eyes.

“Not yet...” It echoed with a women's voice in a majestic tone. From her body, came two single drops of blood, which quickly disappeared in Lily's body.

“Her empress will rise once again...” She said as a passing thought. The blue Phoenix made her way above the clouds.

“Take care of Her boy.” The message was directly transmitted towards Cesar in a condescending tone.

The Phoenix's Aura was beyond imaginable. Was she one of those Primordial-ranked Desolate Beasts? Cesar didn't know. He didn't quake in her Aura or presence however it was obvious enough that the Phoenix was holding back.

But the Phoenix was able to speak the human language. Cesar didn't think that was normal by any means. He had yet to see any normal or Elite-ranked Desolate Beasts talk in the human language. He was also sure that the sound wasn't made by vocal chords, but most likely by Energy, or Energy transformed into vibration frequencies. But he had gained valuable information. Lily's Bloodline dealt with domination of Desolate Beasts, or living organisms in general. It must be a very important Bloodline for the Phoenix to call Lily 'empress'.

But in a way, the Phoenix's actions didn't seem right. She had placed an importance on Lily yet didn't take her away. Lily's entire family had been eradicated because Desolate Beasts wanted to take Lily away, or that was Cesar's conjecture. The Phoenix didn't offer protection and just flew away. Did the 'empress' needed to be left alone? So much so that the Desolate Beasts would even kill her entire family? But the Phoenix had said 'take care of her' to Cesar. He just didn't understand.

Thousands upon thousands of Desolate Beasts and Ferocious Beasts had congregated around Lily, kneeling. Yet there were no humans or Cultivators. Then Cesar remembered. He had Ferocious Beast DNA inside him, not to mention the Blood Pill. Since the beast DNA was not prevalent in his blood, the call to sacrifice himself was negligible. This so called attack really did only call Desolate and Ferocious Beasts.

Every now and then, drops of blood would fall from the sky, right onto Lily. It seemed those Desolate Beasts didn't even stop watch or wait.

Those thousands of Desolate and Ferocious Beasts on the ground cut themselves open. Streams of blood turned into oceans. Those oceans disappeared inside Lily.

Cesar knew. In the war against Desolate Beasts, Lily would play a major role in the coming future. But what he didn't know was whether she would go against the Desolate Beasts to extract her revenge, or annihilate the human side.

Fate against Will. Which side will Lily choose or be forced to choose?