Noah flew toward the central territories inhabited by hybrids after he finished his conversation with Chasing Demon. The Patriarch had decided that the Hive would exploit his plan to attack the Elbas family, so there was a lot to prepare.
The mansion inside the separate dimension couldn't contain Noah's power anymore, so he had chosen to spend the time before the meeting in regions that were still recovering from the winged beasts' crisis. He could go all out there without destroying anything important.
The hybrids had thrived in the new continent's central regions under the Vidot family's leadership, and Skully's arrival only helped that positive trend.
Perfect hybrids didn't need specific resources to survive. They fed on the laws contained in the matter, so any food sufficed their needs.
Moreover, cycles of starvation and training with Noah's spherical runes kept their mental instabilities in check. The specimens that fell prey to their instincts became materials or food if their condition was permanent.
Noah landed in one of the poorest regions and released a few cries to force out any pack that had chosen to inhabit that area. He didn't care about their noises, but they were hybrids, and they were quite valuable even if their level was low.
Due to Heaven and Earth's fairness, stronger creatures would have a lower reproductive capacity than the weaker ones. It went without saying that hybrids suffered a great deal from those rules, so every specimen mattered.
Noah dug a cave and sat at its bottom. His mind reviewed the events from the end of the chrysalis to his battle against the rank 6 hybrids.
He had learnt a lot about the functioning of his body in that period. His dark star acted according to Noah's needs other than applying a constant purification to his tissues, nutrients, and energy.
Noah could force it to focus on specific processes if he concentrated, but its effects peaked only when the situation required it.
The rebellion had started, and he was on the other side of the continent. Therefore, the dark star had forced his body to replicate the Divine Deduction technique's effects, leading him to create his movement technique in no time.
The Hydras had injured him with their joint attacks, so the dark star had diverted all the nutrients to fuel his healing properties.
Attacks tried to pierce his muscles, so his black heart poured dark matter through the injuries to block the intruders.
The rebels were about to reach the defenseless dimensional tunnel, but his energies fused to create a cry capable of commanding every species.
Only his instincts could take the best out of his body, and Noah had no real control over them. He could obtain weaker effects with his thoughts, but his dark star's real power was in its connection with his subconscious.
It was as if his existence was telling him to venture toward new adventures, and Noah didn't know if that had been a natural consequence of his evolution or the result of his reckless life.
Noah meditated for a while to address the issue. He succeeded in forcing his mind into an instinctive state, but he had poor control over his thoughts when that happened. When he managed to push his instincts toward his goals, the effects were still inferior to his body's full capabilities, so the process wasn't worth the effort.
Failing in that experiment didn't worry him too much. He regretted being unable to empower his faculties at will, but he had a way around that. He only needed to put himself in danger.
His focus went on the abilities that he had to improve then. He had many spells that couldn't express power in the sixth rank in their current state and even those that could needed modifications.
His existence had changed again, and his wills had a different intensity now. The dark matter had also become a core part of his being, so his modifications reflected those features.
Some spells had different problems. The Shadow copy spell didn't have limitations in its rank, but he used it to replicate the Demonic Sword, which found it hard to bear his new strength.
Then, there were his elements, and Noah couldn't help but think about June's words when he pondered about the topic. He only lacked light to have control over all the types of energy in the matter. His next step would be to create a world at that point.
Noah spent months in the silence of his cave, coming out only when he needed to test something. The region's layout changed every time he unleashed his power, but the area was empty, so nothing suffered from his actions.
The tests with the Demonic Sword went better than he expected. His time with June had taught him how to control his body, which allowed him to use his living weapon without risking its integrity.
The Demonic Sword had a flexible structure, which made it endure Noah's strength after a bit of practice. The only problem was that Noah couldn't use his full power even when the two coordinated themselves to diminish the pressure on the weapon's structure.
Nevertheless, the effects were satisfying. The Demonic Sword's slashes didn't carry the destructiveness of Noah's body, but they added a powerful tool to his arsenal. Also, they were attacks in the sixth rank, and they could help him in long-range situations.
The problems arrived when he wanted to pair his offensive martial art with other abilities. The Demonic Sword couldn't endure them, and Noah would remain with a significant weakness until he fixed the issue.
The thought of creating a temporary weapon in the sixth rank crossed his mind, but he received the mental message that he was waiting for at that time.
His loud announcement had reached the ears of the Elbas family's higher-ups, and its Patriarch had contacted Chasing Demon to set up a meeting.
'It's time,' Noah thought as donned one of his best robes and left toward the spot designated for the meeting. The two Patriarchs had opted for an area near the snowy mountain on the southern coast for the location.
That decision wasn't casual. King Elbas had requested for Noah to come alone, so Chasing Demon wanted to use the king of the mountain as a deterrent in case the negotiations went bad.
Noah used a series of teleportation matrices to reach his destination and sat on the snowy ground as he waited for the powerhouse. King Elbas arrived a few hours later, and a small hut appeared on the terrain when he snapped his fingers.
Noah's consciousness expanded, and his mind's senses peaked as he inspected the structure. To his surprise, he didn't see any inscription on it, and the laws inside its fabric confirmed that it was a simple wooden house.
"Come, little demon," King Elbas said as he landed in front of the hut. "I want to hear what you have to say."