Waking

It was almost a week before Cifer woke.

He felt like every last cell in his body was starved of energy as he blearily opened his eyes. Cifer knew that a lot of time had passed because it was afternoon when he'd started the second dive, and now it was the twilight of morning.

He didn't remember if he had managed to connect with any Manifestations while he was there, but he remembered the undeniable power and dominance they had all possessed. After he'd reached the seventh wall and been forced to mimic Oji's palm strike to dive deeper he'd entered what almost felt like a different Essence Sea altogether.

The waters were green instead of blue in hue and it seemed like there was some kind of poison trying to seep into his bones in addition to the pressure and the difficulty in breathing. But the additional pressure of the Manifestations counteracted the poison in exchange for pulverizing Cifer's projection.

Yet Cifer had felt he could handle all this and could learn to handle more. But what most excited him was the fact that some Manifestations started to reject him. A demonic vision founded in Evil Essence had actually attacked him! These were Manifestations worth bonding to!

Sadly his body had run out of energy as he escaped the Demon Manifestation by diving even deeper. Which would mean Cifer had to dive all the way down there again to find a Manifestation to connect with.

He did feel like something was different inside him apart from the exhaustion. He decided to eat first before going to find Momo.

The pantry was well stocked for a change and Cifer made himself a traditional breakfast on autopilot as he tried to figure out what was different. It wasn't something wrong or bad.

His hands went in well practiced movements as he felt more energetic. It was almost like his body was lighter and as the light grew stronger he realized he was making out more details of everything more clearly. More easily too.

And he thought he felt something close to his diaphragm, at the core of his body. Something that felt... broken. As he sat down to eat it struck him. "That's how Momo described the feeling of her Manifestations. Did I actually connect one!?"

Excited, Cifer called forth his Manifestation. Only to feel a bitter disappointment moments later when he saw it. The White Lily Manifestation was in pieces, far worse shape than any of Momo's had been in Initial Broken Origination, and the Essence that it let out was like Death and Mercy.

There wasn't a single thing he liked about this Manifestation! "A dumb flower that has the two absolute hardest Essences to Cultivate!? While being utterly ruined? What is this?" Cifer complained internally.

It was one thing that Momo had a flower among her Manifestations. She was a girl after all. But Cifer wasn't! How could he ever show off his Manifestation!? He wasn't even a handsome enough boy to get away with making the girls wish they had such a 'nice' Manifestation. The moment he showed it he would become a laughing stock.

Hearing Azumi coming in from her predawn Cultivation, Cifer hurriedly took back his Manifestation. "Good morning Foster Mother." He said formally. Then realized that Azumi wasn't alone.

Clan Leader Aoi was with her. "You're awake! Wonderful."

Auntie Azumi rushed to hug him. "Oh my baby! You're okay! You had me so worried. After that horrible man saw what you could do and how close you were to Momo he wanted to kill you! He used you to threaten our princess and she almost went with him before he tried to take advantage of it!"

Cifer tried to absorb the torrent of shifting emotions and conflicting information. The Clan Leader was happy to see him, Oji Sensei had tried to kill him, Momo ultimately being exiled from the Clan. A week of absolute chaos following.

All rooting back in him connecting to Cifer connecting with a Manifestation that was "too good"? What was that even supposed to mean!?

"How can a Manifestation be too good?" Cifer asks. The Clan Leader answered by showing both of his Manifestations. One for Origination and the other for Foundation. It was easy to tell them apart for many reasons.

Aoi's Manifestation of Origination was a Warlike Battleaxe that had the same markings as Momo's Dove. It was also flawless. The balance was perfect, the edge thick and strong and it had enough weight to crush through armor and limbs. The decorations were ornate, and the polish exquisite. All normal for the Manifestation of a man who exceeded the Perfect Pinnacle of Origination.

But his Manifestation of Foundation was a mess. The Tyrannical Halberd was shattered in 3 places on the shaft and the iron head was broke down the middle. It was brilliantly colored, Sapphire with markings of deeper Navy and Royal Blue.

However, Cifer could tell that it was nearly as powerful in that condition as the near perfect Battleaxe of War. Partly it was because of simply being the Manifestation of Foundation. But more importantly it was inherently on a different level.

A level Cifer realized was just below that of his White Lily.

"Oh." Cifer said as he felt like he was pulling his jaw off the floor. "That's what you mean when you say my Manifestion is too good."

Clan Leader Aoi returns his Manifestations. "I'll admit that my second Manifestation is among the absolute lowest level. Most would get their second from the same area as your first, and only the very strongest of all Skeleton Foundations in all Zhou would have a Minifestation a single level higher than yours."

"In that case, why did Oji let me off the hook?" Cifer asked. "No, nevermind. Which way did Momo go? I'll have to hurry to catch up to her." He still had questions, but Cifer understood enough that he knew he had to move quickly to catch up to Momo. She could give him the answers he still wanted and after what she did for him, Cifer would owe it to her even if Momo wasn't his friend.