It was almost difficult to believe that things had settled down… but they finally had. The Sovereign Primacy wasn't a threat for the moment, and the threat of Abritt was dealt with. Those that remained in the Sky Islands, while weakened, had stood against her. The rest had been exterminated.

A time of peace, one that brought John home to the Six Elements Crossroads, and most people also returned to their own homes. Except for what changes had been necessitated by the assault on the continent. Now, their borders were being more vigorously patrolled. The plan was to help smaller clans and sects set up new locations to help patrol the waters along with the locals. This included all of their coasts, including the one with the Molten Sea. Just because they got along with their closest neighbor didn't mean nobody else would be coming around.

So as much as the peace was real, it wasn't necessarily expected to last. Furthermore, the Sovereign Primacy had forced changes throughout the continent for how they handled things. In some ways it was for the best, except for everything that had been lost from within the Muted Crags. Just because they had driven them out didn't mean the continent didn't suffer for it. That was true even if the main core of those that fell had been stubbornly against unity.

-----

Astrein, centrally located, continued to be a place for people to gather. John found himself more often than not dealing with matters of politics, helping to settle disputes between various factions. Fortunately, he didn't have to deal with everything. He had plenty of subordinates to help. Viriato fulfilled the task of promoting unity as he traveled around the continent exchanging resources.

He wasn't the only traveling merchant, but he was probably the strongest. He wasn't quite in the Ascending Soul Phase yet, but he was close. Many of John's disciples were progressing into the mid to late Consolidated Soul Phase, and each would have been able to lead an influential sect when John first arrived in the world. But the continent had grown. It was a time of great cultivation, including unfortunately their enemies. However, they had fewer of those now- not just because of the Sky Islands, but because of the continental alliance. Even if the internal peace wasn't perfect, it was still being maintained.

-----

John found himself missing Astrid. That was a good thing, of course. Having already committed to the relationship, if he found he simply didn't care then signs for their future really weren't good. At that point, it might be better to break it off to avoid even greater harm in the future.

But that wasn't an issue. He missed Astrid, even after just a few months apart. No, it happened more or less immediately. He was reminded of Matayal, and how the two of them were together only a couple months out of the year, moving back and forth between their clans. It was good to remember that, because he loved her. Even if she had been dead for more than sixty years now, he didn't really feel it. And remembering Matayal when he thought of Astrid? That wasn't a problem either. He could tell he would grow to love her just as much. Perhaps that could have been true with many people, but she was the one to take the chance.

She had returned to the Summer Sun Sect to train up her replacement. Nicolas was of similar talent to Astrid, though a couple decades younger. It was quite reasonable that he too would reach the Ascending Soul Phase… with the assumption Astrid was successful first, of course.

It was always possible she wasn't. Even with guidance from many who were successful improving the odds and good resources, nothing was ever guaranteed. It was more than a small percentage chance that she would fail, most likely leading to death or permanent cultivation damage. But it was far better than a coin flip.

There was a real chance that all their plans would become nothing… but that was true with everything in life. There was no point for John to plan for failure because… that would just be the end of things. He would probably handle it better, though the thought was of little comfort.

After she reached the Ascending Soul Phase, they would marry. Except there was one important thing for her to do first. That was fighting Ursel. Nobody expected her to win, but that wasn't a requirement. Ursel wouldn't be happy if she half-assed it, though. Then again, neither would Astrid herself.

John didn't require the permission or support of his children to remarry, but he did want it. He loved his family, and would really prefer his wife to be on the best terms with them. Tirto and Melanthina had been quite accepting when he brought it up, and even Ursel's demand for a fight wasn't really a form of rejection. Otherwise, she would have demanded a victory which was a bit… extreme.

Even if Ursel suppressed her cultivation, her body would still be powerful, and her armor would still be nearly invincible. But at least Abritt had an elemental advantage.

-----

John waited tensely as he was aware Astrid was planning her advancement. She had requested that he remain at the Crossroads, leaving Astrid to make her attempt in peace. He wanted to be there to support her, but in some ways being not there might support her just as well. Since she requested it, he could only show he believed in her. And he did. But that didn't stop him from stressing out.

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Cultivators weren't perfect. If they could completely suppress their emotions… John wasn't even sure that would be a good idea. Emotions were a human thing. Dealing with them was important. Not feeling things wasn't the answer.

So he waited, not even cultivating himself for a few days because he was so unsteady. Until, finally, a message flashed across the plains. He almost rushed over to see what it was, but he let it come to him. Technically, there was some chance that a different high priority message had come through the network. Besides, he needed to at least appear calm for the sake of the sect.

A messenger came, who he tracked as they walked through the sect, guided by sect members. A knock on his door. "A message delivery for the sect head."

John stood slowly. "Very well." He strode over to the door, opening it to receive a sealed envelope- it would have been written at the message station and it couldn't be completely secret traveling through the network, but it was the way things were done. He opened it. It had just a few lines. He allowed himself to smile. "Thank you," he said, dismissing both the messenger and the escorts.

Once he closed the door, he blocked off any sound from escaping. He let out the greatest sigh of relief he thought he'd ever done, then celebrated. "Yes!" He really wanted to celebrate with Astrid in person, but she would be arriving in due time. "I knew she could do it." She'd had every opportunity. And now he didn't have to think about what could go wrong.

-----

Lunson was a perfect place for the duel, because it was neutral territory and also was one of the few places with a proper arena setup for Ascending Soul Phase cultivators- though that was becoming more widely true as time went on. Either way, the time had come.

Ursel and Astrid faced off across a standard dirt arena, despite the theoretical advantage that gave Ursel. It was quite rare for any battle to not take place on earth, so it wasn't unrealistic. Neither of them wanted to fight in water or without ground at all, so it was the only reasonable option. The arena could do lava, but Astrid thought that was too much in her favor. Though maybe it would have been closer to fair, it certainly looked desperate.

The instant the battle began, Astrid gathered a burst of light and directed it into Ursel's face. John applauded her control, as it was quite difficult to prevent light from scattering. Along with the burst of light, heat arose. John didn't think much of anything got past Ursel's armor and energy, but she might be worn down a little at a time. Maybe.

With no offense to his future wife, John still believed the battle favored Ursel. Even if Ursel matched her cultivation, perhaps even if she didn't have her advanced body tempering- though that was so intrinsic to her abilities now John couldn't say that for certain.

Ursel didn't need her eyes to see. She sprang forward, her club readied to strike. She was taking the battle seriously, only holding back in terms of the spiritual energy she called upon. Her stone club came down… on an illusory copy of Astrid that felt real. However, even though Ursel merely hit the ground, chunks of dirt and small rocks flew everywhere, a few of them striking Astrid. Nearly trivial damage, but even small things could make a difference over the course of a battle.

The battle became Astrid running about, throwing flaming darts at Ursel while leaving a trail of flames- or flaming plants- wherever they landed. While some foes would have circumvented such dangers, Ursel ran straight through them, spending little enough time in the flames that she took only negligible damage. That wasn't a show of disrespect, but her serious fighting style focused on aggression. She wouldn't accept moving more slowly, or she wouldn't catch- or nearly catch- Astrid as often.

John saw something in the way Astrid kept flashing light in Ursel's eyes. Theoretically, Ursel would become more resistant to that with time, so it would become less useful. But even so, she continued.

When Ursel got close, Astrid would avoid her attacks, never taking a direct strike. That would be foolish, even with an elemental advantage. Instead, flames wrapped around her, augmenting her speed and if she had to deflecting the incoming club. As much as possible, she focused the heat of her attacks on Ursel, causing it to slowly build up. Her armor could protect her from immediate damage, but it could also be used against her if it became too hot. It was simply a very high threshold for Ursel.

Even if Astrid was never hit directly, it was clear that Ursel was intentionally creating shrapnel. Besides, if she did get a proper hit, that would likely be the end of the battle.

Round and round they raced, a crossing pattern of flames filling the arena. Ursel kept forcing Astrid to new locations, but Astrid did her best to pass back through lingering fire as much as possible, making efficient use of the energy she had expended.

Eventually, she couldn't keep ahead. Ursel was charging for her, caught in a corner of the arena. As usual, Astrid gathered a burst of light element… but this time she kept going as Ursel rushed in. At the very last moment, light streamed forth. Flames ignited around Ursel's head as the light became fire. Simultaneously, Astrid pulled a metal whip from her sleeve, uncoiling it and wrapping it around the incoming club.

Without the aid of spiritual energy, stopping the momentum of something towards yourself with a flexible object was fruitless, but with her gathered fire element she was able to deflect the attack… nearly far enough. Even as she pushed herself out of the way, Ursel's attack continued to accelerate and angle towards her. She wasn't fooled by how Astrid kept her energy off to one side.

She only hit Astrid on the shoulder, but the angle continued inward. The arena's formations activated, negating all momentum and spiritual energy. Astrid's shoulder was probably still broken, but it wouldn't be pulverized.

Astrid sighed. "I really thought I had that."

Smoke came out of Ursel's helmet. "You burned away my eyebrows. And everything else. I'm impressed. Keep training, and we can fight again later."

When Ursel turned away, John wondered if she had forgotten the initial point of the duel. If she had, it was actually better- because Ursel liked a good fight. And for Astrid's flames to properly get inside her helmet, even if they hadn't gone more than skin deep, was already an impressive result.

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