"Well, that was a better show than I had been expecting," I said even as the mountain calmed down. The raging blizzard had calmed into gentle snow, the kind that a movie about Christmas would have at the end of the movie. Even the magma of the open volcano stopped bubbling furiously, the surface calming down.

Well, as calm as it could be for an active volcano.

Elsana was the first one to speak. "Well, that was an … experience. For a moment, I was sure that the breakthrough had failed."

"I know what you mean," Lannayin said even as she left the surface of the magma, her footsteps fading soon after. "I lost control, almost like something else took over."

"Don't worry about it. Everything was in control," I said even as I watched them walk toward me, taking note of their transformed aura. They certainly felt different. They were certainly awe-inspiring, especially with the way their looks had transformed.

It wasn't too much. Elsana's eyes gained a bluish hue that radiated a freezing aura, which had been matched in her eyes. Similarly, Lannayin's red hair gained a glowy coppery sheen, one that I was sure to alight a dark room.

Two permanent markers of the transformation they had gone through. I wondered if such changes were normal, or if they were somehow related to the flare of Providence. I had to admit, the thought was a touch unsettling.

Luckily, I could see that whatever Providence did, it only impacted their power and not their minds, or I might have considered retreat as the prudent option.

And, it certainly impacted their power. What I could feel radiating from them was several times more intense than what the notes had prepared me for. It almost felt like they were not just ordinary Spirit Infusion realm martial artists, but living embodiments of the mountain's dual nature.

Looking at them, I was so glad that I didn't try to break through to that stage using Burning Ice. I doubted such a sudden boost of power came with no cost … not if the persistent link of providence and their souls was any indicator.

That was in addition to their link with the mountain.

"How about a spar," Lannayin asked even as she punched, and a dry, scorching wind followed it, melting the snow.

"I don't know," Elsana said. "What if we hurt each other. We need to get used to it."

"I can put a formation to act as an armor," I offered. "As long as you don't push yourself to the limit, it should keep you safe."

"Excellent," Lannayin said as she smiled at me, her earlier hostility gone now that I helped them to reach the Spiritual Infusion realm.

The moment I built the formations, Elsana jumped into action, her punch creating the image of a snowstorm that froze everything in its path. Lannayin dodged in panic. "It's... incredible," she said softly, her breath forming delicate frost patterns in the air. "I can feel every gust of wind, every flake of snow as if they were extensions of myself."

"You're not the only one that can feel that," she said as she slammed her foot on the ground, and a burst of magma appeared. It wasn't from the volcano, but a direct manifestation of her essence. "Or, attack without waiting for the other to be prepared."

"Oh, is that how you want to play," Elsana said as she waved her hand, and the storm gathered into snowballs, rushing toward Lannayin, who melted them by blowing on them.

It turned into a long range spar, their attacks escalating. If I couldn't feel the mountain directly, I would have suspected that they were borrowing power from the mountain, but it seemed to be their own essence, just reflected through the Spiritual Pillar.

I suspected whatever that happened with Providence played a role, as everything I had read indicated that their power should be somewhere near Peak Foundation Establishment. What they were showing was that, and it was clear that neither was pushing themselves to the limit.

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"That's enough," Elsana finally called half an hour later, gasping. "We have just broken through. We shouldn't push ourselves too much."

"A good idea," I said. "And, not to mention that you have to train a lot."

"We do?" Lannayin asked.

"Of course. Unless, of course, you think that the cultivators would accept their loss happily."

"They won't," Lannayin said, her grim tone showing that she understood exactly how cultivators had thought.

"Especially since we're a representative of the ancient martial arts," Elsana said. "They do everything to erase the tracks —" she started, only for her eyes to widen. "Oh, no! Markas! What if they go and destroy the city. We need to go and reinforce it."

"Don't worry. The defenses there are strong enough that anything you two could do wouldn't matter."

"Are you sure?" Elsana said even as she looked at the sky, where the giant flying ship had been parked until their earlier attack destroyed it.

"Not if you can bring the giant volcano with you," I countered. "Don't worry, the defenses of the mortal domain are tasked to others. It's more important for you to get stronger."

"You think so?" she said.

"Of course," I replied. "You're strong enough to fight against the Golden Core Elders one-to-one, but we already have defenses there enough to hold back those. The problem is if they send multiple Golden Core elders."

"They might," she said.

"That's why I need you here. Instead of coming to the mortal domain, focus on reinforcing the spiritual pillar of Burning Ice. Now that I have a better idea of how to break through, I could help the other disciples breakthrough as well."

"You think you can do it?" she said. "Our breakthrough had consumed … something, and I can feel that the spiritual pillar lacks more of it."

"Don't worry about it. I know how to fix it," I said. She was talking about Providence. It was hard to quantify Providence, but their breakthrough didn't just consume the meager amount they had in the mountain, but also received a lot of external assistance.

Refreshing Providence might have been a challenging process … if it wasn't for the demonic cultivators I had imprisoned. A little interrogation should allow me to discover their base, which could be cleansed by the Burning Ice disciples.

That, and thanks to records, I had learned enough to not only reinforce the satellite spiritual pillar near the mortal domain, but also how to create a proper one.

Meaning, I could create one for Forest Dance rather than just relying on the alchemical abomination I had created.

She looked like she wanted to ask more, but she held back. "I trust you," she said instead.

I shared her smile. "Happy to hear that," I said. "Then, we have a plan. I'll go and focus on raising other martial artists, while you two focus on meditating and reinforcing the mountain. Any problems?"

"No problem," Lannayin said as she nodded, her gaze fixed on the glowing magma that still bubbled ahead gently. "I want to explore my new realm. The fire... it's alive within me. The heartbeat of the volcano matches my own." She looked up, her amber eyes blazing with an inner flame. "Thank you for guiding us through this. I can't wait to experiment with what kind of weapons can be created here."

I shrugged. "I'm leaving the scripts here with you. Feel free to experiment."

"Good," Lannayin said, then paused. "About the cultivators that betrayed and imprisoned us…"

I shrugged. "Once I interrogate them about the location, I'll leave them here. Punish them as you see fit," I said. I wasn't exactly torn up about the fates of a bunch of monsters that sacrificed thousands of lives for their power.

"Any tips about the meditation?" Elsana asked.

I shrugged. "I have some, but ultimately, you're bonded with the mountain in a way I can't comprehend. I don't know how much my comments would help."

Lannayin looked at me once again. "Is that a bad thing?"

"Not necessarily," I said, choosing my words carefully. "But such a deep bond might have unforeseen consequences. The Burning Ice essence is volatile even without linking it to an object directly. Balancing that energy might require a lot."

That sparked a conversation where I did my best to explain my perspective, and even wrote a few calligraphy to guide them to the concepts. "Don't forget that, ultimately, they are supportive," I concluded our lesson. "You have the bonds, so you know better. Don't push yourself too much."

"Do you think we have the chance to do so?" she said. "By damaging the cultivator ship, we have escalated the conflict," she explained. "I don't know how they are, but I know that the Treasure Pavilion wouldn't take it lightly. Not when they were able to intimidate even the major sects. They'll retaliate, and with greater force."

Lannayin intervened. "They would have destroyed everything regardless. At least now, we've sent a message. Not everyone could say that they made those arrogant immortals bleed. It's better to die with honor than live as a coward."

"True," I said, but my mind was already churning hundreds of plans. While I agreed with her about living as a coward, at least when the stakes were billions of lives, I still preferred to stay alive to enjoy the fruits of my victory.

Luckily, with the System, it was not a hopeless plan.

Not even when I had to make enemies out of cultivators.