NOVPUBMiko and her disciples then went to prepare things for tomorrow’s event. It would be lively because more than a hundred influential factions from the three major realms and nineteen minor realms were already present at the camps near the seven great mountains, waiting for permission to visit Sacred Sakura Holy Land.
Those people mainly wished to visit the injured Saintess Miko and offered some gifts and medicines to build good relations.
However, it was easy to tell those people also wished to visit Sacred Sakura for their respective agenda, especially to measure Sacred Sakura’s true power and depth. After all, Sacred Sakura became the dominant holy land, emerged out of the blue two months ago, and immediately became the leading power holder. So, it was natural many curious bees came to satisfy their curiosity.
"Hmm~" Miko hummed melodiously. She might be scared silly because her shrine abode was discovered by many outsiders, but it was her in the past. She was no longer afraid of trouble because her mother and the entire Elysium pantheon would ensure her and everyone’s safety.
"Master, you have just recovered. Please don’t move much, and let us handle the rest." Rafaela blocked her master from the front, not letting her master get past her.
"E-eh? I only received minor injuries during the incident. It’s our Goddess Master who still needs to recover. I’m pretty much healthy." Miko reassured her disciples, but everyone took her words for granted.
All core disciples looked at each other as if they had a tacit understanding.
"Master, we will feel more at ease if you oversee the entire situation instead of participating in various things. Our Goddess Master definitely doesn’t want you to tire yourself, either. It’s our duty to serve you." Jophiel glanced at the baby Goddess once, then gently pulled her master back into the courtyard.
"..." Miko didn’t answer immediately, but she could see everyone still worried. Her disciples were so eager to do something for her. Thus, she agreed with that arrangement.
She sat under the Sacred Sakura Tree and then gave some instructions to her disciples. Jophiel stood next to her, but this half-demoness seemed to be trying to scan her several times.
"What are you doing, Jophi-chan?" Miko was amused when Jophiel occasionally circled her while checking something.
"Hehe~ Please pardon me, master. I was only double-checking your condition. I am not a healer, but I am a good caretaker." Jophiel chuckled cutely as her blatant antic was caught red-handed.
"It’s good. Sit next to me and tell me how you feel now. I heard you were feeling so restless two days ago." Miko patted the seat next to her.
"Two days ago... It was probably because my dao focused solely on you, master. After I thought about it again, my subconscious seemed to tell me you would encounter a danger." Jophiel heaved a subtle sigh. She sat beside her master and leaned her head onto her master’s shoulder.
"Thank you, but everything went smoothly according to plan. I was too anxious to unseal Mama Elysia, but it’s worth it. Our family is growing, and my memory has been completely restored." Miko heaved a relieved sigh with a tender smile as she gazed at her humble abode.
Her baby mother was sleepy, and Zera took care of her baby mother to sleep on the bed.
"Master, will you leave us one day?" Jophiel suddenly asked, hugging her master’s arm as if she was afraid of being abandoned.
"I have no reason to do that. Even if I need to go, I will take my good children with me. Whether they want to come with me or not is your respective decision."
"Really? Then, I can rest assured. It’s a promise, alright? You can’t leave me." 𝓃ℴ𝓋𝓹𝓊𝓫.𝒸𝓸𝓂
Jophiel smiled with genuine happiness. She was relieved to hear her master’s reassurance.
Miko only replied with a tender smile and gave Jophiel a head pat. Among her disciples, Jophiel was the most clingy one. Considering the recent events, it was natural for Jophiel to think in that direction.
"Rawr?"
A little tortoise-like brown dragon looked left and right in confusion. A four-winged dark dragon and the little Noir followed right behind.
The dragon trio then came closer to the Sacred Sakura Tree.
"Huh? The little dragons became three? Are they the great dragons that appeared yesterday?" Jophiel blinked her eyes several times in astonishment. She almost forgot about the other two new little dragons beside Noir.
"It’s you, Gio, Cherub. You came several minutes late, and our Goddess Master is currently resting. It’s been a long time since we met. Would you like to sit with us and share your adventure experiences with us?" Miko invited the little dragons to come next to her.
"Rarr..." Gio glanced at his comrades, and they went beside Miko, their Goddess Master’s avatar.
After that, Gio and Cherub shared some of their adventures with Miko. It was still in dragon language, but Miko could understand everything easily.
A few moments later, several disciples came to inform their master the event venue for tomorrow’s visitors had been prepared in the backyard.
They also hinted about plans to build the guest pavilion outside the shrine abode, and their master didn’t seem to mind that.
"You prepared everything so quickly." Miko checked her digital clock, and it hadn’t been an hour since her disciples took care of something in the backyard.
"Thank you, master. That’s an easy task. Would you mind checking the venue first?" Gabriella put her hand to her upper chest, feeling flattered.
"Alright. Gio, Cherub, Noir... can I ask you a favor?" Miko gave each of the little dragons a head pat.
"Rawr." The three little dragons didn’t mind.
Miko then asked the little dragons for their assistance in guarding the Sacred Mountain in tomorrow’s event. It would be best if they could patrol occasionally to ensure no offenders or troublemakers here.
Since Goddess Elysia was resting, the three little dragons had to wait. They received some exquisite snacks to accompany their patrol. Thus, they carried out the request gladly.
---
A few moments after breakfast, Elysia got a little sleepy. It was her physical need, as her body required much resting time because of the backlash from using too much power in the past.
Zera put Elysia on the bed, and she lay down next to Elysia. Yuuki also got into the room, but Zera didn’t allow Yuuki to get too close as she didn’t want this worrywart fox to disturb Elysia’s sleep.
’Sigh, Master Elysia hasn’t talked about anything else. She also hasn’t accessed the Elysium Group Chat even though she is the master channel for this spiritual connection. However, why does she never mention the other members?’ Yuuki asked in wonder in her mind.
She checked the chat group and stayed in touch with her distant friends. They were on their way to the Sacred Mountain, but one of their friends got into an unknown trouble.
’Master Elysia needs time to recover, and that’s why... Huh? Dory is missing, but she is still alive with a yellow status. What does this mean? Luna and her fleet are trying to find Dory. I hope everything is fine...’ Yuuki clasped her hands in prayer.
Meanwhile, Elysia was preparing to enter her soul realm, the unique private realm stored within her soul, the Elysian Realm. Only one’s spiritual form could enter, but she couldn’t leave her body without spirit.
Her plushie avatar was still busy, but she still had her divine avatar, another fragment of her soul and spirit.
’Other me, please take over my body temporarily.’ Elysia called out to her divine avatar within her soul realm.
’Understood, other me.’ Elysia’s divine avatar opened her eyes and then vanished from the soul realm to take over Elysia’s baby body. She did nothing afterward, just continued her meditation in her sleep.
At the same time, Elysia’s consciousness entered the Elysian Realm as she had to do something important personally. She returned to her sleeping spirit in her soul realm.
In the heart of the boundless soul realm, amidst the tapestry of stars that glistened like diamonds strewn across a velvet sky, stood a celestial masterpiece, the heavenly palace of unparalleled beauty and majesty.
Its architecture was an elegant fusion of ethereal grace and divine artistry. It was perched on an invisible precipice, seemingly suspended in the vast expanse of the starry sky.
Its grand spires reached for the heavens, crowned with domes that captured the brilliance of nearby galaxies, reflecting their colors in a breathtaking display. These spires were adorned with intricate carvings that tell the stories of creation.
A sense of tranquility and harmony prevailed within the palace’s celestial bed chamber.
Elysia’s spirit opened her eyes, staring at the canopy bed’s purplish-blue soft silk fabric ceiling. She looked right and left, then heaved a subtle sigh.
’I still don’t know my friends’ fate after the group split up, but I must first awaken my close ones. I hope everyone is still safe and sound.’ Elysia propelled her body to sit.
She originally intended to check her pantheon members’ well-being. Yet, she shouldn’t use her power through her body, which might affect her speedy recovery. She could only take a step at a time and had a priority that needed to be done more than anything else.
Within the Elysian Realm, Elysia’s spirit was not affected by the regression caused by the backlash. It was her at sixteen, her original form from five years ago.
Six crystalline lidless coffins lay neatly around the canopy bed. Elysia floated down from the bed like a fairy, then landed near one of the crystalline coffins, smiling softly at the sleeping Goddess inside. "I’ve returned and shall awaken you back to my side."
