Chapter 1675: Growth Rowan did not know the precise moment that his Origin Ouroboros Serpent entered the realm of Oblivion, but he felt it. Inside this realm, it was impossible for any of his senses to penetrate outside his body, and for any outside stimulus to reach him. A god could be screaming beside his ears and he would not hear them, at least, that was what would have happened two years ago when he entered this layer of the void, but two years was a long time for someone like Rowan, and his reach and his understanding of Oblivion had only grown stronger in that time period. Standing still would increase the time it took him to understand this layer of the void, but he had still made great progress. Now, his senses could understand everything around him for millions of light years, and he could see the entirety of the Primordial Ouroboros skull. Still, this was not enough for him to detect his Origin Ouroboros entering Oblivion, or the direction of the Gate of Oblivion, because this layer of the void could also be regarded as infinite. Yet like the sensation of a phantom limb, Rowan knew when his serpents were close, and he could only wait for them to reach him before he could fully confirm his plans had worked. Finding him should have been impossible, despite the connection he had with his serpents. Inside Oblivion, there was no way for them to locate him through their connection, but Rowan had more than one bloodline. He still had Serathis and Chronomancer Prime. If the Ouroboros Serpents were his main vanguards and bruisers, drawing attention with their size and power, Serathis and Chronomancer Prime were his assassins and wizards. At the beginning, the powers of his bloodlines had not been utilized to their full potential due to the circumstances in which Rowan finds himself. In plain terms, he was just too powerful to depend on his bloodlines for aid, but as time went by and the stakes grew higher, he was discovering that for him to succeed in his plans, he needed to use all of his bloodlines. He was slowly getting overwhelmed, and he was stretching himself to accommodate these changes. Rowan closed his eyes and focused on his learnings from the mysterious voice, if he had to put a number to it, then he should have gone through sixty percent of the understanding of Oblivion, and the moment the serpents arrived, he could begin accelerate his understanding of Oblivion and in less than a year, he should be finished with this layer of the void. The deeper his understanding of Oblivion became, so also was the realization that he was coming to the end of the journey, he could almost taste the Origin of Space on his tongue, which was a weird way of thinking about it, but Rowan senses was already so fried from comprehending concepts at the ninth-dimensional level, he thought it was a miracle that he was still sane. Going through Oblivion, Rowan was realizing that this was not just a place, it was a process. Oblivion represented the eternal act of dissolution, and it enlightened him on a single fundamental truth that Death itself held sacred: everything returns to nothing. Around him, Rowan felt the void tremble, and the dead bodies of his children, the Ouroboros Serpents, appeared in front of him. ® Rowan’s first observation was that they had grown. Sometimes, in the past ninety years, as he delved deeper into space, these serpents had been embroiled in a storm of time, and they should have lived for many hundreds of millions of years inside of his Origin Land. Their growth represented not just a strengthening of his bloodline but a step forward for his overall abilities. He could sense the power of Divus was brimming, and the foundations of his Serpents were now twice tempered. First by devouring Bahamut, and then Divus, and if they were to fully consume Ouroboros, their foundations would be further solidified. Any other creature would be fully completed if they devoured a single Primordial Beast, and any sort of foundations they might need would be perfected; this was the same for the serpents. Consuming Bahamut should have solidified their foundations as Primordial Beasts, but they were not just Primordial Beasts any longer; they were now at the Origin grade, and so it meant they needed a much robust foundation for their growth. Even with an Origin grade bloodline, consuming the bones of Divus should be more than sufficient to fill in any gaps that were needed, but they could still consume more and grow their perfection, because, like Rowan, they were limitless, and for them, even perfection could be improved. Two spots of light appeared before Rowan, one was purple and the other greenish gold. These spots of light expanded and took the shape of a young man and a woman. Like the Ouroboros Serpents, his other two Origin bloodlines had not ceased their growth, although the explosion of their powers were not as drastic as the Ouroboros Serpents, it was still extremely visible. Outwardly, they had grown from children to teenagers, no longer appearing like adorable children but enchanting youths whose grace and beauty were unmatched. In Chronomancer Prime, Rowan could see glimpses of his face, and in Serathis, he could see his mother. Even inside Oblivion, where everything was painted in shades of gray, their presence brought light and life. They were like nothing ever seen in existence, not god or men, Primordials or Beasts; they were special, and although their birth might not have resounded across all realities, it was only a matter of time before it was revealed. A brilliance such as this could never be hidden for long. "Serathis, Chronomancer Prime...." Rowan smiled at them, "Welcome to the maw of Oblivion, my place of learning for the last two years." "Oh, I call myself Prime now," the young man said, stepping forward and stretching out his hand. Rowan looked at the outstretched hand for a brief moment before he smiled and took it, "Prime? You should know that several powerful entities hold those titles. Are you willing to fight them for it?" "The moment I took it, I knew it was inevitable. I have to say..." "Move aside," Serathis said, pushing Prime away and hugging Rowan, startling him a bit as she buried her face in his chest. "Father, I have missed you." "And I you," Rowan said, and gently pushed her away after seven minutes, he quickly became aware after the fifth minute that if he did not move her back, she was willing to hold him for the next million years. Knowing her origins, Rowan could understand where this influence came from. In many ways, Serathis represented the love in his heart and all the love and good things he had experienced in his multiple lives. Still, there was a time when he could luxuriate in these feelings, but it was not now. "I see that things went according to plan? You found me." Prime snickered, "If by plan, you mean barely discernible flashes of emotion entering our minds, then yes, everything went well, still..." Looking around Oblivion and focusing on the massive skeleton of the Primordials’ Ouroboros, Prime shook his head in astonishment, "... You were able to reach us through all of this, then I would have to commend your ingenuity." "Hmm, brief flashes of emotions, you say. Interesting," Rowan rubbed his chin. I am surprised you were able to discern that much from my intentions. I was fully ready to give up on this place if you had not succeeded." "That would have been a shame," Prime said as he admired the bones. This thing is a beauty. Are you sure we cannot partake of this, too? There is more than enough for everyone to share. What sort of spells would I be able to create with materials like this?" "If the serpents are willing to give you a piece, I don’t see why not? Just don’t integrate them into your bloodlines; your path lies elsewhere, and any corruption in your foundations would be troubling to get out, to say the least." Serathis had looked a bit displeased after being pushed back by Rowan, but she pecked up when she heard the subject of their conversation, and she pointed out with a sweet voice, "Prime did not believe the urges in our minds was coming from you of course, but when the scaly babies began to move, we knew that it has to be you, and so we only needed to stand aside and wait, and when it is the right time for us to show our power, we would know." Rowan cocked his head to the side, "Did you meet much opposition on your way?" Serathis shrugged, "Just Chaos, but it was his Throne, and it was weak; he must not have prepared it for long like he did with Caine. Before he arrived, Prime had already taken the lives of the serpents into his vault, and I had given them all the luck they needed. It helped that Chaos had watched them consume Divus for two whole years without interrupting them, but that also made it hard for me to allow their deaths at his hands. It is hard trying to kill something I have blessed with luck, and it was a great test of my skill, refining my control over my powers." Prime rolled his eyes, "Instead of talking so much, why don’t you just share our memories. There will be enough time for us to catch up. Don’t worry. I have been saving enough time by the side and will share as much time with you as you need." Serathis frowned at Prime, "I will hold you to that, and if you fail me, Prime, I will punish you." Prime wanted to chuckle, but then he saw the look in Serathis’ eyes and swallowed anything he would have said to anger her. Her bubbly personality was infectious, but after Rowan, the being he feared the most was her. Seeing his acknowledgement, Serathis smiled widely and stood on her toes to touch Rowan’s forehead. His mind was washed with all of the events that had taken place in Reality.