Dancing on the golden ashes

And so, Jieun and I began our training. I hadn't expected her to ask me to train together, but honestly, if I could help her, that would make both of us stronger—so much stronger. After all, Jieun was a genius. I had a strange feeling that, with enough time and effort, she could easily pass me. It almost seemed impossible to believe she was only nine years old. If someone were to ask me, I'd say she was at least older than me and all of the others in the group. But I guess kids these days just grow up smarter. I, myself, was still playing with dolls at her age. Yet here she was, already one of the most powerful beings in this world.

Her purple eyes pierced right through me, almost as if she was looking into my very soul. I could tell she was ready to absorb everything I had to offer, and I was determined to teach her. With her talent, I hoped she could reach the Heavenly Soul Realm in this time. If that happened, she would be nearly as strong as me, if not stronger, and she could fight alongside me.

The night passed slowly as I explained how I had reached my current stage. To my surprise, she didn't interrupt or ask questions. Instead, she fell into a strange trance, almost like her soul left her body. She was absorbing the energy around her, pulling it in like a sponge. I could feel it—the soul energy flowing into her, making her tremble slightly as it surged through her. The black oozy liquid I'd seen before began to seep out of her, and I could feel her aura expanding. It was similar to the feeling I had when I entered the Soul Split stage, but hers was raw, powerful, and pure. She was moving faster than I ever did at her age, and I knew she was well on her way to surpassing me.

"Were you already in the Soul Orb stage, Jieun?" I asked, amazement creeping into my voice. I hadn't expected this girl to be so talented, yet somehow, I found myself accepting the fact as if it was inevitable.

"Mhm." She nodded, observing her hands closely. "I feel different, and now I have four souls inside me. How many do you have, big sis Gaon?"

"Wow, four is a lot. That means you're exceptionally talented," I said, my pride for her growing. "As for how many I have, I'm afraid I'll have to keep that a secret for now. My body is a little… special. I hope you won't hold that against me," I added, flicking her nose lightly and patting her head. I really was proud of her.

Jieun pouted slightly but then flashed a smile I hadn't seen before, one that made me raise an eyebrow. "You're different than before, that's for sure."

"...?" I felt the eerie entity in me vibrate for a brief moment. It was strange. It had never done that before.@@novelbin@@

"Ah? What do you mean, Jieun?" I asked curiously. I hadn't changed, had I? I was still the same, right? Your next chapter is on My Virtual Library Empire

"Nothing, let me go clean up and I'll be back to practice more. Please don't be bothered by me, big sister Gaon," Jieun said, her voice a little quieter. "I know you will succeed in this battle, but..."

"But what?" I asked, my eyes narrowing as I noticed a slight change in her expression. She quickly shook her head, brushing it off.

"Nothing," she replied hastily, then rushed out of the room. I stood there for a moment, confused, wondering if she knew something I hadn't picked up on. What was she hiding?

The rest of the night passed in solitude, my thoughts lingering on Jieun's cryptic words. I trained alone, pushing myself further, until the morning light broke through the windows. Then, Jieun returned, sleepy but determined, bringing with her the six other commanders—my demon generals. They stood before me, all eyes on me, awaiting my response.

"What's going on?" I asked, a sense of doubt rising in my chest.

"Empress," Min-jeong stepped forward, her voice calm but filled with resolve. "If possible, we'd all love to train with you for the next four or so days. If we can raise our strength in that time, we'll be able to fight by your side. Everybody here feels the same way, and we will not take no for an answer."

"You all… this is unbelievable," I said, looking around at the group. "This room isn't even big enough for all of us to train, even if I wanted to let you." I could see their expressions lighting up, eager and hopeful, but I had to be practical. "Fine, but we need to move somewhere more open. If all of you try to have your breakthroughs here, you're going to blow my roof off."

Well, not literally. My room was on the bottom floor, so it wasn't like we'd have the roof caving in. But still, the space was cramped. No matter how big the room was, it wasn't a proper cultivation space. I didn't want all of them cramped together in one small area, especially not while trying to reach new heights.

"Haha, I knew big sis Gaon wouldn't be able to resist my cute face," Seong-hoon laughed, his grin wide and mischievous. I hadn't seen him for half a day, and now he was back to his usual antics, dropping bombs like this. I'd have to take care of him later, but for now, I didn't want to lose focus. After all, I had my own goal to reach—the Soul Lord stage.

There was a flicker of unease in me. The Soul Lord stage... It sounded so similar to what I had seen in the system, and that connection made me nervous. Was it really just a coincidence, or was I being pushed into something much bigger than I realized? I didn't know yet, but I wasn't going to let fear distract me.