Sitting with my eyes closed, the five of us silently waited for Patriarch Renata to arrive so he could take us to where the Flame of Rebirth was being held, and while doing so, I could feel Comet constantly staring at me while Spica would occasionally do the same as well; but, currently, I had more important things to deal with then those inferior two, so I promptly ignored them as I prepared my soul and body for when I undergo the process of Rebirthing.
'How are you feeling your Highness?' Asked Illumia lightly via divine sense as she looked at Elif, who was calmly sitting with his eyes closed, seemingly in a world of his own.
'As perfect as can be; my soul and body are prepared, my cultivation base is as solid as can be, my dao heart is calm and steady. I'm entirely ready for anything that should happen. Now, it's merely a waiting game.' Replied Elif softly yet confidently via divine sense as he slightly opened an eye to glance at Illumia, who nodded before promptly closing it.
For another five or so minutes, we all quietly waited, only for a slight tearing noise to resound throughout the room, catching everyone's attention as I opened my eyes and looked at Patriarch Renata, who emerged from a tear in space; once he appeared, everyone stood up while I did so a few moments afterward, causing him to nod as he looked at each one of us.
"Follow me." Stated Renata solemnly as he glanced at the five before entering through the tear-in space, prompting everyone to follow him with Hayat going first, followed by Spica, Comet, the fourth phoenix, and Elif alongside Illumia.
As I stepped through the tear, I left the OverRealm and entered one of its many dimensions, which the Phoenix clan owned; looking around, I spotted a large forest that expanded as far as the eye could see below us, though what really grabbed my attention was the mountain range to the south. Numerous large, rocky mountains in the south towered over the forest, yet at the center of the mountain range was a massive, extremely tall volcano, so tall that its peak was hidden above the clouds, and considering we were heading south, I had a feeling that volcano was our destination.
"Woah, what is this place?" Asked Comet in awe as he flew through the air beside Spica while looking away, causing her to smile softly, though everyone else ignored him.
"This is the Rebirth dimension, the place where the Flame of Rebirth is held." Replied Renata lightly as he glanced back at Comet with a somewhat friendly expression before frowning when he glanced at Elif and Illumia.
"Eh, this is a dimension? It's so massive! I've been in a dimension before, but never one so massive; I can't see the end of it!" Remarked Comet in amazement as he observed the dimensions, causing Renata and Spica to chuckle softly.
"Can you quiet down, peasant? Your obnoxious voice is ruining my focus." Stated Elif in slight annoyance as he glanced at Comet, who turned and glared at him in anger though he had closed his eyes once more, ignoring him.
"Tch, stupid Elf bastard." Muttered Comet under his breath as he clenched his fist and glared at Elif while Spica calmed him down with a kiss on the cheek.
Thanks to my words, Comet finally stopped spouting nonsense, allowing me to retain my focus without his annoying voice entering my ears; the rest of the flight remained relatively silent, with only Illumia speaking to me via divine sense, which I didn't mind, her voice was soft and quite lovely, so it was soothing if anything. Eventually, after several minutes of flying, we reached the mountain range, and just as I presumed, our destination was the volcano; once we neared it, we ascended higher into the sky, passing through the clouds before flying above them, allowing us to see the void beyond the boundaries of the dimensions, which was thousands of kilometers above us.
Approaching the precipice of the volcano, we flew over it and hovered right above the middle of the volcano, which was active and was giving off a great deal of heat, though I didn't need to protect myself with Qi just yet. Following Patriarch Renata, who lowered himself into the volcano, we did the same, and only when I reached the halfway point did I really start to feel uncomfortable from the heat, prompting me to cover my body in Qi, which immediately soothed me.
As we continued deeper into the volcano, I spotted what seemed to be a passageway on the side of the wall just above the pit of molten lava down below; landing within the passageway right after the unnamed phoenix, I glanced behind me at the lava below before walking forward while looking at the four phoenixes, who were all handling the heat pretty well, though such a thing only made sense.
Summoning my Quạt tay, I gently fanned myself while we walked down the spiraling passageway that headed downwards, and after roughly ten minutes of silent walking, with only the sound of our footsteps ringing out, we arrived before a large double door with a phoenix and a multicolored flame.
"Those who have undergone rebirth have undergone evolution." Muttered Elif softly in a whisper as he gazed at the writing, only to glance at Renata who stepped forward and gently knocked on the door.
Nothing happened at first, but after a few moments, the double doors suddenly creaked before being slightly opened as greyish flames erupted from the crack, enveloping all of us, though, besides Comet, who seemed too stupid to discern anything, the grey flames didn't so much as harm us, it in-fact felt like a warm blanket. Eventually, just as quickly as the greyish flames appeared, they promptly receded behind the door, which was opened slightly more, only for an older woman, who had greyish, fiery hair and pupils, to appear.
"Ancestor." Said Renata as he bowed towards the old woman, who nodded before glancing at the group in front of her, prompting the three phoenixes and a hesitant Comet to bow.
"Ancestor." "A-Ancestor?" Stated Spica, Hayat, and the unnamed phoenix, while Comet spoke afterward, sounding a little unsure of himself, which caused the Ancestor to softly smile before she shifted her focus to Elif, who just stared at her behind his Quạt tay.
"Prince Elif." Said the Ancestor lightly as she eyed Elif, who nodded before removing the Quạt tay from his face.
"Phoenix Clan Ancestor." Said Elif lightly with a calm expression as he looked at the Ancestor, who nodded before turning and glancing at Renata.
"Are they ready, Patriarch Renata?" Asked the old woman, causing Renata to clear his throat before looking at the four.
"Is everyone prepared? Once you step through that door, there will be no turning back; you'll be forced to undergo Rebirth." Asked Renata sternly as he squinted while eyeing the four, excluding Elif, who all nodded with firm expressions, causing him to lightly smile before turning and looking at the Ancestor.
"Good." Said the Ancestor with a nod and a soft smile as she turned around and opened the door before entering deeper inside, prompting Hayat, Spica, Comet, Phoenix, Elif, Illumia, and finally Renata to enter.
Despite what one would expect, the inside of this room was merely a stone cavern; there was nothing special about it, well, except for the small, multicolored flicking flame in the distance at the very center of the room. Standing at a distance, I gazed at the Flame of Rebirth, which was small and looked ready to vanish with a strong gust of wind, but I imagine things will change once it's fed enough Qi.
'Feeling nervous yet, Your Highness?' Asked Illumia via divine sense, sounding both serious and playful, causing Elif to faintly smile behind his Quạt tay.
'Heh, no, I'm curious and interested in seeing the Flame of Rebirth in all its glory, but I'm not nervous; do I look like Marley to you?' Replied Elif lightly with a faint smile via divine sense as he stared at the Flame of Rebirth before glancing at Illumia, who softly smiled before shaking her head.
'No, you do not; you're far too beautiful for Marley to ever hope to compare to.' Stated Illumia via divine sense as she gazed upon Elif's bewitching beauty, causing him to narcissistically flip his hair with a faint grin.
'Heh, you've never spoken more truthful words in our life, Illumia; just for that, I shall give you little reward when this is all over.' Replied Elif narcissistically via divine sense with a faint, seductive smile as he turned and looked at Illumia, who suppressed her eager smile.
'Does it involve our lips touching, Your Highness?' Asked Illumia curiously via divine sense, her words causing Elif to smirk as he leaned towards her and gently kissed her lips, using his Quạt tay to hide their lower face, though it was evident to all what happened.
'Who knows.' Said Elif via divine sense as he removed his lips from Illumia's before staring into her eyes, winking at her while his hand gently stoked her plump butt.
Seeing Illumia stare at me with a slightly hazy look of lust, I chuckled to myself and silently stood beside her as I brought my hands to myself while she quickly regained her bearings, though she would occasionally glance at me and my crotch, which did cause me to smile.
'You'll get a taste of it soon enough.' Mused Elif lightly with an amused smile.