Fatima looked at the data. By using [Divine Substance] found on this planet, she successfully nourished Lana's Soulfire, relieving her symptoms. 'The data is about the same as a month ago, but it's still good news.' Her daughter's condition is almost hopeless, so being able to extend her life span by one month is great news for her.
Fatima sighed and ended her work for the day. She took a shower, put on her pajamas, and spent some time responding to emails. After replying to the last email, Fatima's thoughts began to drift away. She opened a small space crack and took out a locket containing photos.
Fatima caressed the photo, and unknowingly, a tear slipped down her cheek. "Hassan, why did you leave us?" Many memories flashed through her mind, including their first meeting, their wedding, Dementor Invasion's terror, Empire's rise, and finally, Hassan's deathbed.
Her husband, Hassan·Sa Dirk, is a talented Arcanist. Despite her parents' strong opposition, after the Queen created a method to artificially make Magic Core, Hassan resolutely signed up to become Arcanist.
Soon, Hassan showed extraordinary talent in the research of Magizoology and extraordinary species. Before Empire even started the first cosmic expedition, he was expected to become one of the earliest tower owners.
However, everything changed when Hassan was invited to participate in a secret government project located under the sea. Since then, Hassan has basically disappeared from public view, and many people even thought he was dead.
At first, Hassan's job had no impact on their relationship. Although he was tight-lipped about his work, everything else was normal.
However, as time went on, the rigor of the job increased dramatically. Hassan had to stay at work for days, weeks, and eventually months. And when he returned home, there was always a security team following him.
Fatima hates dealing with these people. Every month, she must answer a detailed questionnaire, which even includes information about their sex life. They will also conduct detailed scans of her body and soul, as if they are checking something.
In fact, these people almost prevented Fatima and Hassan from conceiving a child. In hindsight, if Hassan and Fatima had listened to them, it might not have been the worst outcome.
Fatima still remembers that day. After disappearing for nine months, Hassan came home. Fatima was unhappy, but she understood the importance of his work. When she saw him, she immediately felt something was wrong, but couldn't put her finger on what it was. She convinced herself that it was no big deal.
After all, she was just Arcanist of Tier 0 at that time, and she only reached that level by entering [Awakening Dimension]. Fatima believed that all life was precious, so she refused to increase her magic power or rank by hunting creatures in that dimension.
Everything started to get out of hand with the security details. During a routine inspection, Fatima concealed the abnormality she felt, but the security personnel included people who could use [Lie-Detection Spell] and even a prophet. Therefore, she had to tell them about the strange feeling she felt from Hassan.
It was that night that she learned the truth. Her husband was researching a Cthulhu creature, similar to the mythical Cthulhu that the Empire discovered and sealed under the sea. Anyone involved in the project is under strict surveillance to prevent corruption.
Unfortunately, Hassan failed to resist the temptation of the creature during the research process. That day, the security personnel tried to arrest Hassan, but he resisted. Fatima still cannot forget the coldness and indifference in his eyes when he looked at her.
During the conflict, Hassan died (a real death), but worst of all, before he died, he unleashed a dark force that infected their eight-year-old daughter. Agents tried to protect everyone and quarantine the area, but all in vain.
Empire tried every means to save Lana, but their knowledge at the time was not enough. Fatima cried and begged them to find a way. Ian was moved by a mother's helplessness and ordered Bellatrix to use Death Staff to put Lana into suspended animation so that they could save her when they had the relevant technology.
After that night, Fatima understood that she could not rely on others. She entered [Awakening Dimension] to hunt monsters and became the Tier 3's Arcanist in record time. She signed up to go to school to study Soul Magic, and used the accident compensation from the Empire to Hassan to purchase resources to improve her talents and continue to advance in her arcane career.
After years of research and world-changing breakthroughs in soul research, Fatima should have been able to save Lana. At least, she had the ability to save the Lana who had just suffered the accident. Unfortunately, Lana's condition has worsened over the years. Although she looks only eight years old, this is not her true age.
Fatima has successfully created a way to save her daughter, but she needs one thing: Divine Power. Unfortunately, Divine Power is the primary key to breaking Soul Limitation, so it is priceless. Worse, the amount she needs may not even be enough for the entire Empire stockpile combined.
Fatima woke up from her memories and slowly put away the locket. "There are only seven days left. I hope Divination Department will not disappoint me," she murmured to herself. She suddenly lost all sleep, so she began to write a paper about today's surgery, hoping to get more funds for this expedition.
Time passed, and Divination Department contacted her three days later instead of seven. She rushed over and saw a beautiful woman with white hair and muddy gray pupils. "This coordinate should contain what you are looking for. For Divination, I almost lost my life."
"I'm very sorry," Fatima said quickly when receiving the coordinates.
"You are lucky to have saved Koa Ulilanu," the prophet said. "Otherwise, your case would not have been elevated to first-class priority."
"I'm just doing my duty."
"People often say that good things come to good people. It seems to be true for you," the prophet said and left. Fatima didn't waste a second and immediately rushed back to the hospital to go through the formalities for early departure. Dean Sharma was very unhappy because he hoped that Fatima could stay and take charge of Koa's postoperative care to prevent complications, but Fatima didn't care about that at all.
Fatima only had the last few minutes to prepare. After saying goodbye to Mary, she entered Astral Realm and headed straight for the coordinates of that plane. Upon arrival, Fatima did not let the excitement get to her head. On the contrary, she strictly followed the protocol.
"Kadija, how is the current situation?" Fatima asked.
"Planar Will is not responding," a gentle voice said.
"No response? That's weird," Fatima muttered to herself. According to the planar expedition course she had taken, there could be several reasons for this, and most of them were bad news.
"Try for another hour. If the situation still does not change, prepare for a forced landing," Fatima ordered. An hour later, the magic tower shook when it forcibly penetrated the protective shield of this plane. Fatima looked at the situation outside the tower and immediately frowned.
The sun in the sky was bright red, the clouds were dense, and there was an ominous atmosphere; the earth was dead, and there was no vegetation in sight. In fact, the entire plane looked lifeless. "Did the prophet make a mistake?" Fatima muttered to herself, but she immediately expelled this negative thought from her mind.
"Kadija, give me an environmental report."
"As you wish."
It only took a few seconds for Fatima to know how bad the situation in this plane was. The gravity was twenty times that of the earth, and the high temperature was enough to kill ordinary Fourth Tier Qi Martial Artist. There was no energy in the air, but there was some kind of curse in the soil.
"What's wrong with this plane? Has it always been like this, or has something happened?" Fatima muttered to himself. "Have you detected any interference from Planar Will?"
"No."
"Can you detect the presence of Planar Will itself?"
"Still not," Kadija replied, causing Fatima to let out a disgruntled grunt. "Any signs of life?"
"I have scanned a 20-kilometer diameter area around our magic tower, but there is no sign of life."
"Release Wizard's Eye and expand the scan area until you find anything worth reporting."
"As you wish."