Visiting Aiken
"A Sovereign's soul was far stronger than a Highgod's soul, but I estimated it was only slightly stronger than a three-element soul mutator's."
A Highgod with a three-element soul mutation should have a soul that had transformed to a level close to a Sovereign's. However, without a Sovereign Spark or a Sovereign's Willpower, he probably couldn't extract Sovereign's Might.
"Let me try and see if my soul is strong enough to extract Sovereign's Might now." As a two-element soul mutator, Rog had already possessed a soul on the level of a normal Highgod when he was a Midgod. Now that he had advanced to the Highgod level, his soul had transformed and improved again beyond that of an ordinary Highgod.
"What a pity. I can barely stir the tiny trace of Sovereign's Might in this Inkstone, and even if I extracted it, I wouldn't be able to make it condense into liquid." Rog was resigned, though he had expected this.
It seemed extracting Sovereign's Might by himself was out of the question. If there was no other way, he could only ask Lord Aiken for help.
He didn't know whether Aiken had been able to extract Sovereign's Might before. After all, the original story hadn't said whether Paragons could do so. But Rog guessed that the Cyclops Nuoti must have acquired a treasure that could extract Sovereign's Might, and that treasure was now in Aiken's hands.
"Extracting Sovereign's Might takes a vast amount of Inkstones. Even the wealth a major clan in the Infernal Realm with several Seven-Star Fiends accumulated over countless years would barely be enough to refine a single drop." When Rog had succeeded to the position of Prefect, he had received quite a few Inkstones, around two quadrillion.
Even with the wealth he had accumulated before, he still had less than three quadrillion. He estimated that it would only be enough to extract one or two drops of Sovereign's Might.
"I'd feel bad troubling Lord Aiken for more. This will have to do." Taking his fortune with him, Rog set off for Xiyun Prefecture once more.
The Pahorshi Mountains.
Like many of the ancient great clans in the Infernal Realm, the Aiken Clan had chosen a location outside a Sovereign's city for its headquarters. This, too, was a symbol of their power and status.
"I am Rog, Lord of Tianhua Prefecture. I've come to visit Mr. Aiken." Rog arrived at the Aiken Clan's headquarters and couldn't help being somewhat surprised by its splendor. The Highgod guards he could see alone numbered in the tens of thousands. It truly was one of the Infernal Realm's great clans.
"Lord Prefect, please rest in the guest hall for a moment..." Faced with a Prefect of the Infernal Realm, the captain of the guards didn't dare be negligent, even as a member of the Aiken Clan. He hurriedly welcomed Rog inside.
Inside the guest hall.
A long dining table was laden with all kinds of delicacies, and bottles of rare, expensive wine had been set out. Rog sat on the guest's side, across from a graceful woman in purple robes. In the seat of honor sat a tall, thin, mild-mannered middle-aged man with short blond hair. He smiled so much that his eyes were always narrowed.
This middle-aged man was Aiken.
"Rog, although I'm in Xiyun Prefecture, I've heard all about your exploits as the Clouddark Fiend and Lord of Tianhua Prefecture. I never expected you to accomplish so much in just a few tens of thousands of years since we last met. Your visit today is truly a happy occasion." The middle-aged man's voice was gentle. "Let me introduce you. This is my wife, Helena!"
"Lord Aiken, Lady Helena." Rog smiled and greeted them first.
"I only recently heard that you challenged Makenrich, Rog, and now you've come to see me. What brings you here this time?" Aiken smiled, his eyes narrowing. "Could it be for Sovereign's Might?"
"I'm ashamed to say it, Lord Aiken, but I used up the drop of Sovereign's Might you gave me in my battle with Makenrich. I came this time hoping to ask you to help me refine another drop." Rog was a little embarrassed.
However, expeditions didn't come around often. If he missed this one, another might not be launched for ten billion years, and during that time, if he had no Sovereign's Might on him,
he feared he wouldn't even be able to hold on to his position as Prefect. "Haha, refining Sovereign's Might is only a small matter. That ultimate move of yours, on the other hand, seems rather unusual. Even I can't see through it, though it seems somewhat similar to the Fog Sea Riot." By comparison, Aiken was more interested in Rog's ultimate move, Azure Lightning.
That move's power was indeed astonishing. Moreover, only a few tens of thousands of years had passed since he and Rog parted, so it was unlikely that Rog had fused five profound mysteries of lightning in such a short time. That made the amplification from this move rather astonishing. After all, it had been unleashed at the level of four fused profound mysteries, yet its power was enough to overwhelm many Asura experts.
"Your insight is keen, Lord Aiken. That's right, I created that move by chance from the Fog Sea Riot. To tell you the truth, even I didn't expect it to be so terrifyingly powerful." His sudden insight during the Fog Sea Riot had indeed benefited him greatly. Otherwise, his strength would have been at the peak Seven-Star Fiend level at best.
"Haha, just as I thought. Still, being able to reproduce the might of heaven and earth through your own power is quite remarkable. With such spiritual insight, perhaps you really do have a slight chance of becoming a Paragon someday." Aiken admired Rog all the more.
Soul mutators were rare, but there were still some lucky individuals among them. Those who also possessed spiritual insight, however, were exceedingly rare.
"You jest, Lord Aiken. At first, I also thought I was very close to becoming a Paragon, but later I realized it was an illusion." Rog shook his head helplessly. "I have some confidence in fusing five profound mysteries, but I'm still a long way from mastering the last one, Electromagnetic Space."
Indeed, although Azure Lightning and the Sin-Cleansing Lightning derived from it were terrifyingly powerful and displayed Rog's attainments in the Lightning Law almost perfectly, that "perfection" was only temporary. The final profound mystery, Electromagnetic Space, was still missing.
In the end, Rog had only created an immensely powerful ultimate move. Perhaps some mystery of heaven and earth was hidden within it, amplifying its power dozens of times over!
But the move itself didn't fully encompass all the profound mysteries of an elemental law. It didn't contain the final profound mystery, Electromagnetic Space, so naturally Rog couldn't use it to find an opportunity to break through to the Paragon level.
"Haha, Rog, don't belittle yourself. Having reached your current level, you can already be considered to stand at the pinnacle of cultivation in the Infernal Realm. Besides, since you possess such spiritual insight, perhaps you could visit two places." Aiken suddenly thought of something and spoke with a smile.
"Please enlighten me, Lord Aiken." Rog had learned about most of the unusual places in the various planes from books in the Infernal Realm. He truly knew little about some of the most secret locations.
"Both places contain the unimaginable heavenly might of lightning. The first is Nether Mountain..." Aiken began slowly.
"Nether Mountain?" Rog's mind instantly cleared. That's right! Although Rog didn't particularly care about the Nether Fruit, the three-colored clouds and lightning chains formed by heaven and earth there were a wondrous sight!
"It seems you've heard of it. But I should warn you, a Sovereign of the Netherworld lives there." Aiken continued, "The second place is called Thunder Abyss, in the Celestial Realm. It's said to be the birthplace of a Lightning Element Sovereign."
Thunder Abyss? Rog really didn't know much about that place.
"Thunder Abyss lies in an inland sea on the Celestial Realm's Nimo Continent." Aiken didn't explain exactly what was unusual about the two places. Only by entering and experiencing them firsthand might Rog gain something.
"Thank you for your guidance, Lord Aiken." Rog had spent so long in the Infernal Realm that he had forgotten about Nether Mountain in the Netherworld. Thunder Abyss and Nether Mountain-he would have to enter both and experience them when he had the chance.
"Lord Aiken, do you think these Inkstones are enough to refine a drop of Sovereign's Might?" Rog had only a rough estimate of how many Inkstones it took to refine a drop of Sovereign's Might. It would be a little awkward if they weren't enough.
"Hehe, this Sovereign's Might is enough for me to extract more than two drops. I'll give you three, and in return, you can do me a small favor." Aiken accepted Rog's interspatial ring and smiled faintly.
Extracting Sovereign's Might was rather strenuous even for a Paragon, but he had that special treasure and didn't need to do it himself at all.