Jodie waved goodbye to Hector as Marcus and Delworth stepped past. Lincoln stopped a few feet from Jodie and turned. A frown crossed his face, followed by a look of hesitation, before he, too, raised his hand and waved goodbye. The two of them then turned, following the torchlight. Delworth would lead the way back. Not that they needed him to.

Hector raised a hand, bringing his other to rest on Mirae's shoulder. She stood next to him. His sister looked up; her face tightened with worry. He brought a hand to her hair and ran his fingers through its white locks.

"Are you alright?" he asked, dropping his hand to his side.

She nodded and turned back to their small camp. Both of their bags lay slumped towards the edge of the glowing dome that was the [Gentle Sanctuary]. The bags' contents had been largely removed, leaving only clothing and a few tools and other items.

Two sleeping bags lay towards the centre of the dome. More bundles of cloth and rags than sleeping bags—not that either of them would complain.

"How long are we going to be down here?" Mirae asked, stepping over to the bags.

Hector dropped onto one of them, folding his legs into the lotus position. His sister did the same. That was a good question. How long would they have to hide? "Not long. When we are strong enough. We won't have to hide from anyone ever again. Besides, I don't mind this." His eyes trailed across the faint, jagged shapes of rock he could make out in the dull glow.

"It's not so bad," he said, shrugging slightly.

"I don't like it," Mirae muttered.

"I know." Hector shifted on the sleeping bag, the aged cloth rubbing against his ankle.

Hector then closed his eyes, letting the world fall away. The next moment, he stood in his Talent Garden. Water lapped at his feet as he took a step forward. He moved towards the five pedestals. All of them had Talents growing on them. All of them were done.

It would be great if I could get some more of the [Awakened Soul] Talents.

A faint scent of dirt drifted by. Hector breathed in deeply, relaxation flowing through him. Something else bubbled to the surface. A weight settled into his chest. A heavy thing. Painful and vast. His father was gone. Resting a hand on a pedestal, Hector braced himself. A wave of dull anger washed through him, and his legs buckled slightly. His old life was gone.

All I have is Mirae now. All I have is my sister. Nothing will take her from me, and if anyone or anything tries, then it shall be the last thing they do.

Hector spent several minutes treading through the Talent Garden, summoning his Talents. In total, he received nine Talents from the trees and replanted five of them. Two [Tracker's Charm], two [Stone Throws], and a [Tough Body]. These Talents weren't of much use to him right now, and he'd gotten something he liked a lot more than [Tough Body].

White light rippled across his clothing as the text box floated before him. His eyes raked over the words on the screen, and a slight smile tugged on his lips. [Iron Skin]. The Talent was more than suitable for his needs.

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///: Iron Skin (Common): The Talent holder may take on metallic properties. The user's defence is increased by 30%. Specific body parts can also be hardened when focused protection is needed, increasing the defence by 60% in that area.

The Talent effectiveness is reduced as it is activated within a 24-hour period. After said period, the effectiveness goes back to full. Mobility is also reduced by 10% during activation.

Multiple acquisitions enhance these parameters.

[•○○] (1/3) Duration: 15 mins Cooldown: 5 mins

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He could predict this Talent as it was under his control—unlike the [Hearty Body] Talent. Not that it wasn't useful. But at least this way, he would know whether or not he'd be defended against the next attack. He wouldn't just have to rely on luck.

Hector also received another, [Ember Pool] and [Awakened Soul] Talent. Meaning the next time he saw Jodie, he could give the girl a boost. He would also be able to both boost his own Talent and give Mirae her own awakened soul. Sure, he could upgrade his own to an uncommon rank, but his sister's safety came first.

His foot shifted slightly, disturbing the soul waters at his feet. The last Talent that he'd gotten floated next to him. Its surface swirled with symbols as white light shimmered off of it and dappled his clothing. He raised a hand, swiping it to the side, sending the [Iron Skin] Talent to join up with the other two.

Letting out a breath, he reached for the ball of shimmering light. He brought it to his chest, and a text box manifested before him. Hector's eyes went wide as they skimmed over the text. A faint smile came to his lips.

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///: Meditation Circle (Common): This Talent allows for up to 4 mana-cultivators to link together. The established link will increase all cultivators' involved cultivation rate by 15% via an invisible aura. The shared meditation lasts for up to 6 hours.

The users must remain within 10 meters of each other. Breakage of the connection by any user will cause all participating cultivators to be forced out of their soulscape. Cultivators are also required to establish a synchronised breath for 2 minutes before meditation can begin.

Further acquisitions enhance the aspect of this Talent.

[•○○] (1/3) Duration: 6h Cooldown: 3h

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This Talent, coupled with his [Awakened Soul] Talent, would work nicely. Sure, now it was only a fifteen percent boost, but in the future, it would go up. He couldn't equip the Talent now, as he still had to wait for his three daily uses to reset. But would he even be cultivating once it did? Jodie and the others would be back by that time. Hopefully.

He'd given them most of his silver. They would bring back supplies and hopefully a few masks—Hector couldn't walk around in plain sight, and neither could his sister. The Collar Gang would have people watching out for them. If he were lucky, it would just be them. As it would suck to have his friends be forced to join him.

As Hector moved the Talent to the side, a wave of energy washed through his Talent Garden, disturbing the waters. They churned and rocked, knocking into the pedestals. He frowned, his gaze peering into the void.

"System, what was that just now?" he asked, stepping away from the pedestals.

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///: A significant change has been detected in your soulscape. It is recommended that the host go to investigate.

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Hector's frown deepened. He dropped to the ground with a splash and crossed his legs into the lotus position. The world melted away a breath later, as his mind flowed towards his soulscape.

His eyes flickered open a moment later. The black of the void greeted him. But as he glanced at his feet, he found he had a shadow. Which made no sense. Light in the soulscape seemed to almost come from every direction. It was both dark and well-lit at the same time. Hector turned to the source.

As he did, his eyes went wide. A short distance from him stood a looming tree. Its purple leaves swayed gently in the windless void, while its light brown trunk sparkled as if made from crystal. The whole thing radiated a light that urged Hector forward.

"What is this?" Hector muttered, his feet splashing through the water as he walked.

In his mind, images played. The room, his mother, the seed, and the tattoo now on his chest. This had to be what it represented. His seed had bloomed into this beautiful tree. As he stood there, the longing to meditate overtook him. It called to him.

He took one last step forward and dropped to his knees. His mother had said something about it improving his cultivation, hadn't she? Was this it? Hector then shuffled around and got into the lotus position. He began cultivating, following the methods he'd been taught. But as he did, a force took over.

It guided his cultivation. It was the tree. Even with his eyes closed, its presence was obvious in his mind, as if he could see it. A rush of mana exploded from the tree, washing over him like a sea. The mana motes were uncountable—to say he was swimming in them would have been an understatement.

But that was strange. When he'd used [Awakened Soul], he'd almost died. The amount of mana that was crashing into him right now should have annihilated him and his soulscape. Yet he was fine. More than fine.

Hector moved on to the next phase. And again, the capture phase was guided by the tree. The ring of mana motes formed quickly, dragging motes in as so as they touched its orbit. He didn't even know when, but the mana even took on his affinity. It moved from capture to cycle within the same instant. That should have been impossible.

Hector's shock threatened to break his concentration. How could a tree be so powerful? The affinitied mana broke from the ring an instant later, and Hector's mind almost went blank. The motes shot up to the Lagrange point and slammed into his core. It thrummed, bulging in places and contracting in others. All the while, the core continued to grow.

This is incredible. It's like I'm being soaked in mana.

The power in his core continued to grow, and Hector became curious. When he'd used the [Awakened Soul] Talent previously, tears had manifested in his void. If the tree was pulling this much in, then what kind of state was his soulscape in now? His eyes flickered open, and the deluge of mana trickled to a stop.

His gaze moved to the sky, and he blinked. Confusion knitted across his brow. He lifted a hand and covered his mouth before dragging the other across his head. High above, hanging in the void, was a moon. The pale thing radiated a faint wave of power. Dulled by the tree, but impressive nonetheless. Ten streaks of white and green shot by the moon, racing across the void. His Talents.

Hector's hands splashed down into his soul waters as he took in the sight of it all. He'd come a long way from a simple, inky black void with a white light streaking across the sky. A long way.

Suddenly, Mirae's voice broke him from his appreciation of the sight. "Hector, I need to talk to you. It's the seed, it's finished growing, and you won't believe what it can do."

A smile grew on Hector's lips. The water rippled as Hector got to his feet. It seemed they'd both gotten this upgrade. He followed the sound of Mirae's voice, and his eyes flickered open. The dull glow of the dome made by [Gentle Sanctuary] washed over him. Hector glanced up at his sister with a smile. "I know," he said.

His sister sat across from him on her own sleeping bag, and a smile played on her lips as she fidgeted with her hair. Mirae's eyes met his, and she frowned. "How do you… Oh, do you have a tree as well?" she asked, releasing her hair.

Hector nodded, shifting slightly on the rags on which he sat. He rested his hands in his lap. "I do. The increase in mana is astounding. It felt like I was swimming in it."

Mirae frowned. "I wouldn't say I was swimming in mana. But it was definitely a significant increase, more like a river had washed over me. Not quite drowning. Though it was a lot."

"Ah." Hector's eyes shifted to the ground. The difference was easily explained. He had the [Awakened Soul] Talent, and she did not. Once she got it, she would experience what he did. "Also, that's just reminded me. Mirae, when you were in your soulscape, did you see a moon hanging in the void?"

Mirae nodded, her head turning up to the cavern's ceiling. "Yeah," she said, raising a hand towards the ceiling. "It was so far in the sky. Underneath it, I even saw shooting stars."

Hector chuckled and shook his head. He reached forward and grabbed Mirae's hand. Lowering it, he met her eyes. "Those weren't shooting stars, they were your Talents. And I have another one I want to give you, one that will strengthen your cultivation."

"Give?" She tilted her head to the side. The corners of her lips pulled into a frown. "I thought you could only awaken them in others. Hector, how much are you keeping from me?"

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