Chapter 3851: Cynical Act (Part 2) "You’ll be very similar to Valeron, but not identical." The Overlord shook her head. "Take my children, Sinmara and Surt. Their apex form is still that of their parents, but they have gained different powers. "Sinmara is a Phoenix of Darkness, the apex of her old Dark Phoenix bloodline, while Surtr is a Dragon of Light, the apex of his Fire Dragon bloodline. In the same way, the human race has one apex form, but your talents are only yours, Lochra." "Thanks. I-" A quick rap on the door cut her short. "Come in!" "I’m sorry to bother you, but I need your help." Friya gave her seniors a deep bow before walking through the door. "I’ve hit a tall wall with my research, but I can overcome it if you are willing to share your wisdom and experience with me." "I can’t speak for the others, but feel free to ask me anything you want." Menadion replied. "You’ve been a good friend to Lith and Epphy over the years, Friya. I owe you that much." "Epphy?" Friya tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Solus." The First Ruler of the Flames quickly corrected her blunder. "Please, don’t mind my slip of the tongue and don’t tell Solus about it." "We’ll make up our minds when we hear your questions, child." Baba Yaga said. "I enjoy helping young mages on their journey, but not if they take dangerous paths." "Do you know what a dimensional crystal is?" Everyone nodded in reply. "Do you also know how to craft one?" Much to Friya’s surprise, this time everyone but Salaark answered with a no. "I’m sorry, Friya, but I’m no dimensional mage." Menadion replied. "Otherwise, all the pieces of my Apprentice Set would have had seven crystals like the Saefel Set, and now those of the Master Set would have eight elemental crystals." "I can’t help you either, child." Baba Yaga shook her head. "In all my years, I have never succeeded in crafting a dimensional crystal, and not for a lack of trying. The few dimensional mages I befriended over the millennia refused to teach me, while those who antagonized me preferred to die rather than expose their secrets." "Sadly, I don’t know the first thing about dimensional crystals either, but if I did, rest assured I wouldn’t share any of it with you." Silverwing said. "How is this possible?" Friya was flabbergasted. "All of you have the seven elemental streaks of the elements like me. You are attuned with all elements. How can you not be dimensional mages?" "All dimensional mages have seven affinities, but not all those who have seven affinities are dimensional mages, child." The Red Mother’s form shapeshifted into an Asura for a second, revealing the blessing of the elements on her arms and the emerald light of Spirit Magic in her eyes. "I wish it were that straightforward." Menadion sighed. "To be a dimensional mage, one must also be attuned with space, and there’s no hair streak, eye, head, or arm for that. It’s something in your mind." "Why do you think no one congratulated Lith about Elysia being a dimensional mage?" Silverwing asked. "She has six streaks already, and in time, she’ll gain the seventh. Yet that doesn’t make her a dimensional mage." "Indeed." Salaark nodded. "I’m no dimensional mage either, and not even I can tell if Elysia possesses the necessary talent. Until she learns dimensional magic, there’s no way to know." "If you are not a dimensional mage, how do you know how to make dimensional crystals, Sally?" Menadion asked, and the use of the moniker earned her a glare from the Overlord. "One of my children, Jazhir, was born a dimensional mage, and he agreed to teach me." Salaark replied. "I’m not going to lie. It took me decades of practice to craft my first dimensional crystal. "On top of that, I succeeded only because my son mentored me the whole time, and thanks to my connection with Mogar. If I weren’t a Guardian, I doubt that even the guidance of someone as skilled as Jazhir would have sufficed." "I see." Friya swallowed hard, realizing that the mountain she had to climb was much steeper than she had assumed. "I suppose you aren’t willing to teach me, correct?" "Of course, I am!" The Overlord snorted. "Swear your eternal loyalty to me, join my Nest, and my knowledge is yours." "I really walked into that one." Friya said. "Second question. Do you know about Domination?" "Child, anyone who reaches my age and hasn’t discovered and mastered Domination is either very dumb or an Abomination." Baba Yaga grunted at the question, and so did Salaark. "I’m not that old, but I learned about Domination from the Guardians, and in turn, I taught Ripha." Silverwing said, and Menadion confirmed her words. "What do you mean, or an Abomination?" Friya asked in confusion. "There’s a reason if ancient beings like Tezka and many other Eldritches haven’t discovered about Domination even though they predate us Guardians." Salaark replied. "To become an Abomination, you turn your back on Mogar, and Mogar turns her back on you. "Abominations lose all connections with the world energy, including their elemental affinities. They can remember what they learned while they are alive, and hybrids like Tezka or Bytra can regain their bloodline abilities, but the affinities are lost to them. "It’s the reason Abominations and Eldritches use Chaos Magic to do everything, even opening a Warp Steps. Their only affinity is toward Chaos." On the one hand, Friya was relieved that all those present knew about Domination, or she would have gotten in trouble with Faluel. On the other hand, it made her final question pointless. "Is it possible to create dimensional crystals with Domination?" "Not that I’m aware of." Three of the four women replied. "That’s not how Domination works, child." Salaark shook her head. "Domination is something you apply to one or more already conjured elements. It can’t create anything by itself." "What if I created a Spirit Crystal and then removed my life force with Domination? Wouldn’t that be a dimensional crystal?" Friya asked. "I tried and failed for over six hundred years before giving up on that technique." Baba Yaga shook her head. "Nice try, though, kid. Great minds think alike." "I tried until I met Yaga." Silverwing replied. "Then I asked her your same question, got your same answer, and gave up." "I tried once for the fun of it." Menadion shrugged. "Lochra had told me it was impossible, but I still wanted to see how much better than her I was. Alas, I didn’t surpass her in that subject." "Hey!" Silverwing snarled. "I resent that. You only beat me in Forgemastery!" "I tried that technique and stopped after succeeding." Salaark said, bringing the quarrel between Magi to a sudden halt. "Did you get a dimensional crystal?" Friya asked, her eyes sparkling with hope. "No, I created a massive imbalance in the world energy that resulted in an explosion violent enough to level mountains." The Overlord replied. "Luckily for me, there are no mountains in the Desert, only dunes. "Still, it took the wind decades to undo the damage I caused, and I would have died on the spot if not for my powers as a Guardian."