Haven of Thousand Fairies

Ariase could only stare, utterly overwhelmed by the majesty before him.

The celestial brilliance of Herman's domain blended seamlessly with Erica's void ripples, the two energies intertwining like a cosmic dance.

For a moment, the world felt suspended in time, the breathtaking scene etched into Ariase's memory.

He thought to himself, "Amazing… to think this is Uncle's true strength. It seems there are still so many things left to learn. But no matter what it takes, no matter how long it takes, I swear I'll achieve this kind of power too!"

Erica, her gaze fixed on Herman in his Earth Saint Form, derived from his talent, [Enlightened Body of Immaculate Saint], couldn't help but murmur, "You… you've grown even stronger. To think your gold talent has already reached Tier 4. Even your aura… it's surpassed your current Halo level—and even mine."

There was a note of admiration in her voice, but also a flicker of melancholy.

"It seems our old classmates were wrong about you. They thought you had given up."

Herman's radiant form turned slightly toward Erica, his voice calm yet resolute.

"I never gave up, Erica. I was simply walking my own path."

His eyes shimmered with a quiet fire as he continued, "And you know me better than that. I won't settle for less—I won't stop until I'm satisfied. Only when my aura surpasses the Peak 5th Halo will I allow myself to break through to the next."

Erica smiled faintly, her eyes gleaming with starlight as her aura flared with the essence of the cosmos.

"I see. You truly haven't changed," she said, her voice carrying both admiration and acceptance.

With a graceful gesture, she materialized her [Soul Artifact], a golden finger-hand harness that shimmered with an ancient glow.

With a single wave, Erica scratched the fabric of space itself, creating a jagged tear that rippled like liquid light.

Beyond it, a swirling vortex revealed an internal realm of shimmering void and endless stars

Without hesitation, she stepped inside, her figure disappearing into the breach.

Herman turned to Ariase, his radiant hand extended.

"Let's go now."

As Ariase grasped his uncle's hand, he felt a sudden tug, his body pulled and twisted as though caught between dimensions.

The sensation of intersecting realms was overwhelming—a mix of vertigo and wonder.

When he finally emerged, he stumbled slightly, catching his breath as his surroundings came into focus.

Before him stretched a barren land devoid of life, yet paradoxically breathable.

Above, a sky full of stars sparkled brilliantly, casting a serene glow over the desolation.

The silence was profound, broken only by the faint hum of cosmic energy in the air.

After a short walk, Herman stopped and surveyed their surroundings.

His angelic wings fluttered lightly, and his glowing eyes scanned the horizon.

"This section should be safe," he said, his voice carrying a sense of calm authority.

"Erica, can you create another realm-isolating barrier? Please make it as expansive as what you did in the penthouse."

Erica nodded, stepping forward with an air of quiet focus.

She raised her hand, and the space around her began to ripple and rupture violently.

Fragments of space itself materialized like shards of shattered glass, shimmering with an otherworldly brilliance.

Ariase watched, mesmerized, as her form distorted amidst the cosmic storm, becoming almost translucent, her presence barely anchored to reality.

When the barrier was complete, Herman turned to Ariase, reminding him of things.

As Herman explained the process, Ariase's heart pounded in his chest.

The weight of what was about to happen pressed heavily on him, and by the time Herman finished, sweat had already formed on his nape.

He clenched his fists to stop the trembling.

Ariase said, his voice shaky but determined, "U-Uncle… let's just start now. Delaying it will only make things worse."

'And even if something indeed happen, I'm pretty sure Uncle won't let me die,' he thought.

Herman gave a solemn nod.

With a resounding clap of his hands, a powerful echo reverberated through the void.

Five massive quartz pillars adorned with crosses and intricate golden engravings erupted from the ground, surrounding Ariase like sentinels of the divine.

With each clang of their manifestation, luminous golden chains shot forth, binding Ariase's arms and legs.

The chains shimmered with an almost celestial authority, making him feel like a prisoner before the heavens.

"Then, let's begin," Herman said, his voice resonant and unwavering.

Placing both hands firmly on Ariase's back, Herman's wings expand to their full span, their radiant light cutting through the void.

The sun halo behind his neck burned brighter, its golden flames rippling like liquid light.

Warm energy surged from Herman's palms into Ariase's body, spreading through him like a tidal wave.

At first, the warmth was soothing, but within seconds, it became unbearably itchy—an agonizing sensation that burrowed deep into his very bones.

Ariase's instincts screamed at him to claw at his flesh, to tear away the torment of itch, but the golden chains held him firmly in place, forcing him to endure.

Herman, sensing his nephew's struggle, whispered a command, summoning hundreds of golden-green butterflies.

They fluttered gracefully around Ariase, their soft glow radiating both purification and healing.

The sight was mesmerizing, almost comforting, their gentle presence a stark contrast to the torment Ariase was enduring.

Despite the butterflies' efforts, the process continued relentlessly.

The warm energy seeped into every corner of Ariase's being, coating every bone and fiber of his mortal body in a tint of gold.

His entire form began to glow faintly, like a vessel being reforged under a heavenly flame.

Ariase gritted his teeth, sweat pouring down his face as he struggled to hold on.

The itch burrowed deeper, relentless and maddening, but he refused to cry out.

He clenched his jaw, his trembling body a testament to his sheer willpower.

Minutes passed by, the torment continued as Ariase gritted his teeth, enduring the unrelenting itch and pain gnawed at his bones, as though thousands of needles were piercing them at once.

Herman heard the boy's cries—raw, agonizing—but his hands remained steady.

Once the purification began, there was no turning back.

The process had to be completed, no matter the cost.

Two hours dragged on, each minute filled with Ariase's desperate screams.

Even Erica, monitoring the barrier from a distance, could hear the cries of pain.

She clenched her fists, closing her eyes as if feeling the boy's suffering herself.

"Kid," she muttered under her breath, "you better endure this... and succeed. I failed to obtain that body once and lost the chance of a lifetime. Don't follow my path. Don't give up like I did."

Meanwhile, Ariase's thoughts grew disjointed as he wrestled to stay upright—the overwhelming pain keeping him from slipping into unconsciousness.

His vision blurred, his body drenched in sweat, and his voice hoarse from crying out.

'Damn it,' he thought through gritted teeth.

'This is far worse than Uncle said. This... this is hell! I-I just want to claw my bones out... anything to make it stop!'

But the golden chains binding his limbs held him firm, preventing even the smallest gesture of relief.

Five hours crawled by, and the process showed no signs of stopping.

Ariase began to question everything—his existence, his strength, even his worth.

The thoughts gnawed at him as much as the pain did, his mind a battlefield of despair.

He tugged at the golden chains that bound him, desperate to break free, but Herman's resolve was absolute.

If not for the glowing golden-green butterflies fluttering around him, soothing the worst of the agony, Ariase might have bitten through his own tongue to end it.

Eight hours passed.

Herman's composed demeanor showed cracks, beads of sweat forming on his brow.

His golden angelic wings, radiant as they were, trembled under the strain of maintaining the two established sanctuaries and manually directing the purification.

'This child... if not for his young body, this process would have already been more difficult,' Herman thought, his exhaustion creeping into every corner of his being.

'But I must finish this soon... before I deplete my energy completely.'

He glanced at Ariase, whose body trembled in pain under the purification, and silently vowed to never let him down.

Almost ten hours later, the purification was nearing its conclusion.

Every bone in Ariase's body had been purged of impurities—save for one final piece.

Herman spoke, his tone grave and full of worry: "Ria, I've already purified almost everything; only your skull remains. T-This is the most critical part, and the last..."

"It will hurt far more than anything you've endured so far, so prepare yourself."

Ariase, too exhausted to reply immediately, closed his eyes, his mind teetering on the brink of unconsciousness.

"This better be the last... if it isn't, I don't know if my mind will ever recover from this," he thought, clinging to the faint hope that this would be it.

He gulped, tasting the bitter tang of blood in his mouth, and forced out a raspy chuckle.

"You better treat me after this... Uncle," he croaked, his voice dripping with both defiance and surrender.

Herman's lips curled into a faint smile, though his eyes were filled with worry.

"Sure, anything you want. So, just endure this for me, Ria. After all, this... is the greatest gift I can give you."

With a deep inhale, Herman placed his glowing hands on Ariase's head, channeling a surge of purified mystic energy directly into his skull.

Every motion was precise, every ounce of power focused to avoid overwhelming him completely.

Yet the pain was inevitable.

Ariase's eyes shot open as the sensation struck.

It was unlike anything he had felt before—his skull felt as though it was being pierced and bitten by hundreds of fire ants, even his brain searing with electrifying agony.

"Aaaarrgghh!" Ariase's words erupted into guttural screams.

In just minutes, the pain radiated to every corner of his body, as if his nerves had been lit on fire.

His body convulsed violently.

Blood streamed from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, staining the ground beneath him.

Herman's heart lurched, panic surging through him.

"Damn it!" he muttered, his thoughts racing.

'I can't hesitate now. I need to deploy that sanctuary before something bad happens!'

Desperation surged through Herman as he shouted, "Erica! Throw it now!"

Hearing Herman's command, Erica opened a small rupture in the realm-isolation barrier.

She hurled a crystal canister containing a glowing, seven-colored liquid through the small opening.

Her expression twisted with disbelief.

'He's actually going to drink that?!' she thought, her eyes narrowing.

'That insane jerk... he better hope the Tier 6 liquified mystic stone doesn't wreck his body.'

Inside the barrier, Herman directed the butterflies to open the canister mid-air, guiding it to him

As the lid popped open, the liquid's radiant glow bathed the barren land in a colorful mist.

Herman tilted his head back and consumed the liquid in large gulps, the immense energy surging through him like a torrent.

His eyes burned as blood trickled from their corners, but he held firm.

It was all to activate and unleash his healing talent, [Flutter of Healing Grace], at its fullest potential, and uttered roughly the incomplete sanctuary art:

[Haven of Thousand Fairies]

In an instant, a breathtaking transformation unfolded.

The barren land around them sprang to life.

Lush, emerald grass surged from the cracked, dry ground, spreading like an endless carpet of vitality.

Thousands of vibrant flowers, each glowing with an iridescent light, bloomed in breathtaking harmony, awakening the tiny otherworldly creatures within.

The air shimmered with a kaleidoscope of colors, alive with an energy that defied the natural world.

Hundreds of spiritual beings danced among the blossoms, their delicate wings leaving trails of rejuvenating energy in their wake.