Everyone looked at the black scale with different expressions. Gravis' mother only smiled. Orpheus looked at it with shock, and Gravis looked at it with confusion.
"What is this?" he asked as he grabbed it. It was surprisingly heavy but nothing that Gravis couldn't lift with ease. It weighed maybe only a couple of tons. That would be hard to lift in the Energy Gathering Realm, but not in the Unity Realm. Yet, that was only one scale. How heavy would the whole beast be?
"It's a scale from a black dragon," his father said. "I gave the dragon some stuff in exchange for the scale."
Gravis looked at it some more. "What can I do with it?"
"Immortal Beasts can change their outer appearance however they want. This means that you will be able to morph into a human without any issues as soon as you reach that Realm. You can probably guess the rest," his father said.
Gravis furrowed his brows, but he still had a glint in his eyes. "So, I should use this scale to create my own scales," Gravis said. "You're saying I shouldn't aim for a perfect human body, but for a body that is best for combat."
His father nodded. "Precisely. You have the chance to create a powerful body. You won't be able to fully replicate the scale, but you can copy parts of it with its Life Essence. When you feel like your body is about to reach the level of a Spirit Beast, you should eat the scale and take it as a blueprint for your scales."
Gravis nodded and smirked. "Thanks, father," he said as he put the scale into his Spirit Space. "This reminds me of another thing that I wanted to ask you."
"Ask," his father said.
"Can I use Heaven's body in a similar way?" Gravis asked.
His father nodded. "Yes. I would suggest eating it when your body is about to advance to a Unity Beast. Heaven's closeness to the laws and rule over the world will give you a nice surprise. When you eat it, you will be able to choose a path for yourself. Others would hesitate, but I'm sure about the choice you're going to make," his father said.
Gravis looked at Heaven's body inside his Spirit Space with ambition. "I almost can't wait," he said.
The presents had been way better than Gravis had expected. Initially, he had believed that only his brother would gift him something. After all, giving other people presents felt a bit like a routine to Gravis. He had expected his parents to think similarly, but apparently, they didn't. Gravis didn't demand presents for his birthday, but it was nice when he got some.
His mother's present was helpful to his emotional wellbeing. His brother's present would help him understand more about life, and his father's present would help Gravis create a powerful defense for his body.
Gravis didn't receive any kind of trump card that could save his life. Many people would feel bad about that, but not Gravis. Having a trump card to fall back on would make most tempering meaningless. After all, as long as he had such a trump card, he would never truly be in danger.
The presents helped him on his path forward without interfering with his tempering. None of them expedited his path either. They were all there simply to give him a more solid foundation and Battle-Strength. So, in Gravis' eyes, the presents had truly been perfect.
After that, they talked some more. Everyone was enjoying their time together.
"Hey, is that scale from the Black Magnate?" Orpheus asked his father, covertly.
"Yes," his father answered.
Orpheus just sighed when he heard that. "I wouldn't even be able to meet him. I guess power truly is everything."
"You don't need to lament," the Opposer said. "You've made your choice, and it's a valid one. The CMO is something that even Immortals want. It's more than good enough for your brother."
Orpheus sighed again. "I guess you're right."
Gravis didn't notice that exchange and just continued talking with his family. This was the last day with them in who knew how many years. It might even be his last talk, period. Today, he would enjoy himself to the fullest because tomorrow, his journey would continue.
After seeing the pictures of his friends, Gravis' anxiety completely vanished. Now, he only felt motivation and excitement for the middle world. He remembered the hidden rule that his father talked about, but Gravis was sure that he could deal with it. Nothing would stop him on his path to power!
The party went into the next day, and when Gravis didn't find anything to talk about anymore, he took a deep breath and stood up.
"It's time," Gravis said.
His mother sighed and looked a bit sad. His brother punched his shoulder again while his father nodded.
"I have chosen a fitting world for you, Gravis," his father said.
"Heh, if you choose my world, it might be even worse than if Heaven chose it," Gravis said with a smirk, "but I like challenges."
His father nodded. "Good! Here's an overview of the world's layout," his father said as a diagram started shining in the air.
Gravis looked at it, and his eyes shone. "Interesting," he said.
The whole world only had a singular landmass, but there was a significant difference to the lower world. The circular landmass looked like a humongous crocodile had taken a bite out of it. Three-quarters of the map was land, while the remaining quarter was water. The water even stretched into the center, splitting the center of the world into two halves.
"I chose this world because the continent is surrounded by a lot of ocean," his father said. "The map only shows the continent, but there is a bigger ocean surrounding it. The center of the world is where the land and ocean meet in the middle. This divides the central areas into half land and half ocean."
"The ocean surrounding the land has no meaning to you," his father said. "That's where the sea beasts below the Unity Realm reside. Also, don't underestimate this world's size."
"Oh?" Gravis said. "How big is it?"
"The continent alone is about three times as big as an average middle world, and a middle world is already many times bigger than a lower world. The bigger the world, the more opportunities and enemies. My only concern in choosing a world is that you won't find enough powerful enemies. That's why I chose this one," his father explained.
"On top of that, the beasts in this world are in the top 10% in terms of power and civilization. It makes no sense to thrust you into a weak world just so that you will be killed in a powerful higher world."
Gravis' eyes shone a bit. "Civilization?" he asked.
His father nodded. "Spirit Beasts already have some intelligence and awareness. That, of course, will only increase the more powerful they become. It might not be the same as a human civilization due to the beasts' inherent straightforwardness, but it's a civilization nonetheless. You can liken the civilizations to packs of wolves with their territory."
"Interesting," Gravis said as he rubbed his chin with a smirk, "and I'm guessing that Heaven won't lower the Karmic Luck of my companions anymore?" he asked.
"No, he won't," his father said. "You know the reason."
Gravis nodded. "Either repayment or using them as hostages later on."
His father nodded. "Remember, there is not a single human in there. Some beasts might look similar to humans, but they're not."
Gravis nodded and cracked his neck a bit. "Is there something I should know when entering the world? How will this entering into a beast work?"
"As soon as you enter the world, you will feel your body breaking apart and dissolving. You won't experience any pain. Don't move your physical power into your lightning or Spirit. Just let your whole physical power be dissolved. Moving your physical power into your other centers of power while it's being dissolved will make your centers of power lose balance again."
Gravis nodded.
"Then, you need to wait until a beast dies with a nearly complete body that has an affinity for your element. Your Spirit and lightning will enter the body, and it will get fully healed by the Laws. At that time, you're on your own."
"Remember that your new body won't be able to handle your Punishment Lightning yet. You first need to achieve Unity again. Yet, your Spirit is under no such restriction. You have full access to your Spirit in the Unity Realm and the corresponding pressure for your Will-Aura."
"No early-grade Unity Beast or below will be able to withstand your Will-Aura. Middle-grade Unity Beasts can kill you, but that would be the same even if you still had your current body. So, you could say that your strength doesn't really decrease at all. You're just more restricted in your way of fighting."
"Reaching Unity again won't take more than some days. At that time, you will be more powerful than you are now. Also, I will limit your Spirit's sense to be the same as a beast in your current Realm. If you can see every danger beforehand, you might avoid it," his father said as he finished his lengthy explanation.
Gravis nodded. "Makes sense." Then, he turned to Orpheus. "See you soon, brother."
"See you soon, brother," Orpheus said back.
"Goodbye, mom. I'll miss you," Gravis said as he turned to his mother.
His mother smiled. "I wish you all the best on your journey, Gravis. Return soon, okay?"
Gravis nodded. "I will."
Then, he turned to his father. "I'm ready," he said with conviction.
His father nodded. "Good!" then, he summoned a portal, which stood right in front of Gravis. "I'll keep watch over you."
"Thank you, father," Gravis said.
"Goodbye," Gravis said one last time to his family with a wave and then stepped into the portal.
The portal vanished, and Gravis was gone.
He had stayed home for an entire year, which was more than enough for him.
Now, it was time for him to continue on his path to power!