“Wa?” The turtle’ turned to him and tilted its head to one side.

Zachary took the chance and reached out. Slowly, as gently as he could, he placed his hand on the beast’s head. There was no sudden movement and it did not try to run away. The moment felt right and he closed his eyes to look inside his soul.

Life path… open!

The soul path that pointed toward the southwest glowed as soul energy surged outward through it. It started with a small trickle that turned into a strong flowing river. Very quickly it became a flood. He didn’t want to fail so he brought out all the Eternum he could muster.

This was a soul bond. This was the mysterious method that the first humans used to become summoners, when they knew nothing about summoning cards and soul orbs. It was a connection between two souls. Once bonded, they would share every happiness and achievement. They would grow together and challenge the world together.

Zachary focused the life-attribute Eternum from his soul toward his hand. With his touch, that energy was smoothly transferred to the turtle. Although it was a wild beast, it remained calm as it accepted his offering. He also waited patiently for it to reciprocate so that they could start to form a bond.

He had only done this once before with Yaoyao. It was very difficult to break a soul bond once established. It came with heavy penalties for both sides. If one bonded with a weak Ensouled with low potential, it was equivalent to cutting off their future. This was why most summoners did not have a soul bond as they would have to wait until they were stronger to find a suitable candidate.

For Zachary, there was no hesitation to do so with Yaoyao. She was special, the offspring of a saint beast. There was no better choice. And now, he felt the same with this mysterious turtle. His instincts told him so. But he also had no other choice. The beast’s defense was too strong. There was no way to use summoning cards or summoning orbs. This had to work or else he would die in this underground lake.

“Wan?” The turtle shifted, its first reaction in a long time.

It stared up at him, its black eyes shining and reflecting the stars above. They were deep and profound. Curiosity, desire, wonder; a variety of feelings were returned. He could feel them all. It was encouraging but there was still no feedback of Eternum. It was as if he was sending energy into a bottomless pit.

Zachary felt the first stab of fear. What if this didn’t work? What if this wild beast chose to remain wild? It was difficult to sacrifice one’s freedom and be bonded with another. If it was his choice, it would also be a difficult decision.

His life path remained wide open. Soul energy poured out ceaselessly. He was still able to maintain some semblance of optimism because he had the capacity of an adept rank summoner. Even if his sky path was in ruins, his soul sea was still at the adept rank and he could keep this up for a while. If the turtle was uncertain, he would slowly convince it.

Time passed slowly. The cool night breeze rustled the tree leaves. The gentle waves of the crystalline lake gently splashed against the rocky beach. Everywhere else was silent. There were only two souls, trying to come together. Their breaths were slow and steady, their hearts beating in almost synchrony. But there was still something lacking and so, nothing happened.

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“Wan!” The turtle was the first to act.

It shook its head, dislodging the hand on it.

Zachary’s face fell. He couldn’t believe that it was over just like this. The beast suddenly got up and headed for the beach. One step after another, it didn’t pause and there was no reluctance.

“Hey! Wait, Wander!” He scrambled to his feet and followed, “Are you leaving? Just like that? What did I do wrong? Wait!”

Splash!

The turtle entered the water. He stood on the beach, watching it helplessly. It wasn’t like he could stop it. Just when he was truly starting to despair, the beast turned around and looked at him.

“Wan! Wan!” It jerked its head towards the lake, looked back at him, and then jerked its head ahead again.

The gesture was so obvious.

“You… you want me to follow?”

“Wan!”

“Alright, wait one second!”

Zachary quickly recalled his summons which had been sleeping outside. He then summoned Whiskers and Dream. He also took out a rope harness for Whiskers so it could carry him along. With everything ready, he jumped into the water.

The turtle swam off at a leisurely pace. Whiskers was able to easily keep up as well as allowing Zachary to keep his head above the surface. Dream provided scouting as the party headed for a nondescript stone cliff on the lake’s opposite shore.

He had no idea where they were going or what the turtle wanted. However, since it hadn’t abandoned him, he held onto a tiny bit of hope, hope that his stories had the intended effect.

They arrived at the wall of stone without issue. There were no other wild Ensouled around here at the moment. It was quiet except for the splashing of water as they swam.

The turtle found an unremarkable crack in the wall. From a distance and even from up close, it didn’t seem like much. It dived and Whiskers followed. Under the water, it revealed a large opening and an underground river.

The current wasn’t strong but the water was cold. Zachary held his breath and fought to keep his eyes open. There was no other choice except to go forward.

They followed the river for several minutes, taking several forks in the path that he struggled to remember. It wasn’t until his lungs were screaming for air that they finally surfaced. There was a small pocket of air and a small cave. Strangely, there was a multicolored light that illuminated the place in a mesmerizing glow.

“Wan! Wan!” The turtle had gotten out of the water.

“Wander, what is this place?” Zachary asked.

It replied by walking towards a ring of stones with a plinth in the middle. Atop the plinth was the crystal-like object. It was multicolored, slightly opaque, and in the shape of an octahedron. It was the source of the light in the cave and it was even floating in the air.

“Wow… what is this…”

The beast stared up at the floating crystal with longing. It then gave him a look filled with meaning. It had led him here for this. This was its answer to his request. It wanted him to take it.

Zachary slowly approached the plinth. There was an abundance of Eternum in the air but it was strange. There were all kinds of attributes; sky, fire, earth, water, day, life, night, and death. All attributes were present and could be distinctly felt. As he got closer and got a better look, he realized that the octahedron was made of a material similar to summoning cards. When he touched it, even the texture was the same. It seemed more than a coincidence.

However, in the next moment, his mind went blank and all he saw was darkness. He didn’t know if he was standing or falling. Then, a strange voice rang out within his soul.

“The battle for eternity approaches. Countless souls shall cry and perish. The Bomon Empire shall not survive this calamity.”

Fearful scenes flashed in his mind. Entire mountain ranges were flattened. The earth split apart, destroying whole continents. Mighty tidal waves turned the oceans into chaos. The skies erupted in lighting and fire. Shadows of monsters loomed across the world.

“This is the end for us but not our dream. This universal quintessence contains our greatest achievement, our last legacy. Now it’s yours.”

A series of words appeared. Although it was an ancient text that he didn’t recognize, his soul did and he understood.

“Two souls connect, life and death and fate intertwine, you shall walk the path together until the end. The world will tremble, heavens will be jealous. Summon the eternal and challenge the inevitable cycle of destruction.”