Kai collected the broken pieces of the Dreadweaver. Six indiscreet chunks of opaque rock and a central core were all that remained of the demented cultivator. He held the broken pieces in his hand and looked up at his collection; the perfect black gem sparkled in the lab's light. He’d done so little with his potential but ruined so many lives.

He looked over the central core. Part of it was smooth and curved, while part was sharp with geometric lines.

I still don’t understand much about these.

With the fragmented soul pieces held tightly in his hand, he transitioned back to his physical form. He found himself suspended over a haunting graveyard of mutilated bodies. The horrifying remnants of Dreadweaver’s victims lay shattered and devoid of life at the bottom of the ocean, surrounded by the corpses of his once powerful crab army, now lifeless and stripped of energy.

Among the wreckage, Kai could discern the bodies of the brave cultivators who had resisted Dreadweaver till their last breath. They were strewn beneath the remnants of spirit beasts.

His attention was abruptly drawn toward a dark ink stain. The fragmented pieces of Dreadweaver had dissolved into oblivion, leaving behind only a drifting, inky cloud. With building anger, Kai let the fragmented soul dissipate into the murky water.

Return, he beckoned his motes back.

Redirecting his focus back to his lab, Kai stood before his collection. He reached for Dreadweaver’s haunted black core. The carnage left in the wake of Dreadweaver’s rampage cast a dismal shadow over him. In a futile attempt to relieve his frustration, Kai tried to crush the black gem in his grasp. However, the stone defiantly withstood his strength.

That surprised him. Here he had nearly limitless power. This was a mental realm; if he could imagine it, he could do it.

But I can’t destroy ideas. Try as he might, he couldn’t imagine concepts out of existence. That realization had significant implications, and he needed time to unpack them, but Kai wasn’t in the mood. He frowned.

I refuse to believe I can’t destroy you.

Kai walked to the soul splitter, deposited the gem, secured it, and powered it on. High-power waves bombarded the stone; it trembled under the power.

Unaffected, the gleaming black gem mocked him. Kai increased the frequency again and again. The vibrations grew so intense that the stone became indistinct, a blur of black oscillating in the containment vessel.

Wait, what is that?

In the blur of black several shades and shapes emerged. Kai watched it for a moment before dialing up the amplitude. The single indistinct shadow split into several blurred forms before exploding out; a blurred ring of different colors exploded against the glass container wall, a shower of pings as the multiple gems collided against the glass.

Kai dialed down the amplification, and the blurry ring retreated and rejoined, reforming the black blur in the center of the containment chamber. He powered it down and retrieved the black crystal. It was, as he remembered it before, unchanged.

With a black gem in hand, Kai left the lab.

I’m going to need more space.

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Kai took a step back, allowing himself to appreciate his upgrade. Dominating the space above the central hub, he had engineered a towering containment chamber within the once-vacant floor. The novel design was encased by a delicate mesh barrier. It was laced with robust ports that permitted the safe handling of souls and fragments - a soul gate.

The chamber was crafted from his signature soul metal, emanating a rich golden bronze hue. It reflected the tender glow of the strategically placed lanterns, casting a welcoming warmth that danced playfully on the chamber walls.

Kai navigated his way to the observation window, a thick, transparent crystal partition. The window served as his eye into the chamber, allowing him to oversee the silent orchestration. As he moved, his feet caressed the solid bamboo floor beneath him. The warmth of the surface seeped through his soles, a gentle reminder of the life that pulsed through his soul space.

I dub thee Soul Explorer.

Through the glass, he saw the results of his efforts. Encircling the chamber's heart, six ethereal stones levitated, each bearing a unique color: Royal purple, pitch black, burgundy, blood red, granite gray, and the dark hue of a nightshade petal. Like celestial bodies, they twinkled in the room, their scattered fragments catching the lantern light.

As Kai manipulated the energy currents, bolstering their potency and rhythm, the six gems blurred, spiraling outwards to form a secondary orbital ring.

This outer band now housed sixteen gleaming stones. Kai dialed back the energy surge to get a clearer view. Their vibrant new hues struck him first, but the structural evolution of the gems intrigued him. As if obeying some cosmic law, the number of facets dwindled as they distanced from the core.

But the gems aren’t shrinking. I’m not splitting them into fragments. Kai increased the intensity again. The sixteen gems morphed into a fleeting blur before being flung into an even more distant trajectory, revealing simpler, more elemental forms.

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Kai engrossed himself in this cycle, ceaselessly refining the gems until they were flawlessly spherical. Six luminous orbs, each with an inner radiance, held a silent vigil at the chamber's periphery. Emerging from the depths of creation were primal gems of black, blue, green, indigo, violet, and earthy brown.

This was the enigma Kai had come to unravel. Dreadweaver's obsidian gem was a complex concept rooted in many interdependent ideas. As each orbit separated, the underlying principles grew simpler, reaching the utmost simplicity at the outermost fringes. These elementary notions were devoid of facets, manifesting as perfect celestial spheres.

Yet, Kai couldn't help but feel a tinge of frustration. The knowledge he had gleaned felt inconsequential. He couldn’t merely extract an elementary stone and reconstruct the gem. The implications on the overall structure were incalculable. Nor could he simply utilize one of these primal spheres. He risked triggering the very concept that spurred Dreadweaver’s descent into madness.

As he observed the hypnotic rotation of the spheres, Kai was lost in thought. What kind of concept stands alone, unbound by others? The query seemed paradoxical at first. Every notion could be explained using other terms. Otherwise, how could its essence be genuinely understood?

I need more data.

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Kai's eyes swept over the impressive column of composite cores set against the backdrop of his newly converted upper-floor energy cultivation laboratory. This area was brimming with observation screens that captured every minute detail. Yet, it was the imposing central column that held Kai's fascination. It cradled the artificial cores like precious pearls inside a clam.

As if orchestrated by an unseen maestro, streams of prismatic energy flowed around the column. These vibrant rivers fed into the cores that had now taken on the form of glowing spheres, their colors as varied and mysterious as the universe itself: obsidian black, royal blue, bright green, deep indigo, regal violet, and earthen brown.

Kai's solution to the enigma of the gems was simple. Mirroring his energy conversion conduit, he channeled the prismatic energy into these globes. However, this energy was to be compressed and refined within the fabric of his soul space.

His experiments had already proven the effectiveness of these cores, successfully transmuting raw energy into a liquid variant. The stakes were now higher as Kai sought to escalate the energy conversion to yield solid cores. His expectation: to witness the manifestation of the conceptual symbol etched within the newly formed crystal.

All that remained now was patience. An anticipatory silence fell over the laboratory. Now, we wait, he thought.

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Song nodded to the others and meditated in the center of their inn room. The shutters were closed, and the door locked. Pale yellow lamp light flickered across the floorboards as she began. Relay watched opposite her as he saw brilliant golden light form between her palms.

Her eyes closed, Song began drawing a symbol in the air between them, starting with a large circle. The golden energy hung suspended where her fingers traced, illuminating the room. Relay recognized some symbols from the steel mask covering most of her face.

When the rune was complete, Song opened her eyes and stared into them. The golden circle and contained runes reflected in her eyes momentarily before the golden light was pulled into her eyes. Her head snapped back as she closed her eyes tight.

After a moment, she opened her eyes. Golden runes were traced over the surface of them.

“This humble one thanks you for agreeing,” Ai began. She knelt to the side between the golden ferrox and Song.

“As we stated before. Seer Song can determine the truth of statements if she can see the one saying them. Those of us,” Ai glanced at Bao, “having trouble with certain statements appreciate you allowing us to confirm them.”

“I should be offended, but I’m not. Let’s get on with it,” Relay snipped. He had no reason to hide the truth or mislead these four cultivators.

Bao frowned. She sat on the bed in her green robe, watching the interrogation.

“Earlier, you claimed Master Kai resurrected the Iceheart cultivator. Can you repeat that now?” Ai began.

“Her innate body was incompatible with her cultivation method. Kai rebuilt her cultivation base, resurrected her, and returned her soul. She’s alive and cultivating now.”

Bao, Ai, and Yunfie watched Song’s hands as she made a single gesture. Ai closed her mouth and glanced at Bao. Yunfie covered her mouth, hiding a smile.

“How is that possible?” Bao asked in hush tones.

“Don’t answer that. We’re only confirming statements you’ve already made, not looking to explore your secrets.” Ai gave Bao a sharp look.

“After the local official left this morning, you said that Master Kai had allied with the Iceheart clan, and you found it suspicious we were approached so quickly afterward. Do you recall that?”

“Yeah, maybe there’s a spy in the Iceheart clan,” Relay confirmed.

“After that, you said Master Kai had agreed to forge the clan’s successor, so he gave them time to prepare. What did you mean by that?”

“Soulforge. You know, fuse a compatible spirit beast’s soul with the successor.”

“You’re saying that Kai can perform soul fusion on another cultivator. A non-soulforger cultivator? Can you say that more explicitly for Song?”

Relay blew out a sigh.

“Master Kai can fuse the soul of a spirit beast with another non-soulforger cultivator.” Relay stated. “I really don’t understand what the big deal is.”

Ai and Bao watched Song’s hand. Song confirmed his statement. Song closed her eyes for a while. When she opened them again, the golden runes were gone.

“This humble one thanks you for confirming your statements,” Ai bowed to the golden spirit beast.

“The big deal is that it changes everything,” Bao said grimly. “We have to leave Arcadia before word of this gets out. If any temple learns of this…,” she stood up and began pacing on the floor.

“What? What will they do?” Relay growled.