Cedric experienced the same feeling of transmission on his return; his surroundings blurred, and his consciousness felt as if it were being pulled into a completely different place.
His eyes flashed with a brief golden radiance upon his return to his body. When the feeling subsided, his face morphed into a wry smile.
'I'm back.' He muttered inwardly. 'And I feel weak.'
The difference between the Planetary Realm Life Evolution and the Grand Solar Realm Life Evolution became extremely obvious to him.
At his current strength, he wouldn't even be able to perform the entirety of the Nameless Sword Technique due to how demanding it was with one's mastery over the concept laws. He could force it, but he could only do it once, and he would also face harsh backlash if he did.
'It would take at least an entire year for my real cultivation to synchronize in reality. It's fine though; nothing much should be happening anytime soon here.' Cedric guessed in his mind.
Upon leaving the tower for the second time, he still received the reminder from the system AI that he should return before he reaches the physical age of 100 years old if he wants to keep his position and qualifications there.
Yes, the stipulations remain the same as before. Cedric had no idea why, and he's overly concerned about it.
As he is now, 100 years is nothing to him. But since he has returned to Prime Earth and had to pay attention to the affairs concerning his people, there's no way he'd miss it.
Releasing a long sigh, Cedric stood up. His eyes roamed the dim cave he's in. He briefly scanned the place and sensed the guardian golem, Granitas, slumbering yet also alert.
'Ah, that reminds me...'
"Granitas, come out and meet me," he ordered.
The golem stirred awake and appeared before him in a kneeling position. He greeted Cedric and awaited his order. Cedric didn't say a word for now, but he did take something out of his challenger's inventory.
Swoosh!
Another golem appeared right beside Granitas, behaving in a similar way to him.
"Guardian Golem: Rocky, here to serve you, Master."
Cedric nodded and replied, "Welcome to my home planet, Rocky. Beside you is Granitas, the first guardian golem I left as a security measure to protect this place. You two will now work together to guard this place for me."
"You two are the last line of defense just in case I am occupied with other things. Unless this continent and my people face the threat of extinction from invaders, you are to remain hidden. The only people that know you exist are Acala, the embodiment of this world's consciousness, me, and my girlfriends. You understand?"
"Yes, Master," Granitas and Rocky replied piously at the same time.
"Your imagination is becoming too colorful." Cedric rolled his eyes at her. "No, this isn't a credit card. It just looks like one, but it's not."
"It's a job application form for beings like you," he stated.
"Huh!?" Acala was shocked, and nobody could blame her. "You want me to apply for work? That's absurd!"
Cedric looked blandly at her and said, "I bought this from the shop of the Tower of Prodigies. It could only be used by world spirits like you."
"With this, you can apply as a staff there. They will train you, give you resources, and won't restrict your freedom too much. It will also allow you access to information about the Divine Council as a whole."
"I don't exactly know much about the benefits, but with the sheer difference between our world and theirs, I can't imagine the salary being worse. You'll be helping us and yourself by going there."
Hearing all of this from Cedric, Acala was, of course, very shocked. She wasn't expecting him to do this for her.
From his words alone, she knew that she had just returned from the tower. He wouldn't have been able to take something this valuable if he hadn't. This means that, once again, Cedric experiences bitter loneliness for an untold period of time just to fight for a chance.
Of course, the offer was really tempting for her, on top of being weird too. She never imagined that a being such as her could apply as staff in the Tower of Prodigies.
She felt that Cedric was right when he said that by going there, she'd see a much broader world. She'd be able to learn and experience things that she had never had before. Being the World Spirit of Prime Earth, she knew everything about it already. The only entertainment she has is the same thing that her citizens invented.
By going there, she could explore and witness more. Who knows, maybe she could even become more than a world spirit after spending some time there.
"Of course, this is a big decision. I won't force you if you really don't want to go. Living like this isn't so bad, after all," Cedric stated. "Just return the card to me if you made this decision. It's expensive after all. I could ask for a return once I go back there so that I could use the points for something else."
"But if you decide to go, just sink your perception into the card, and it will guide you through the process."
"Give it some thought and tell me once you've decided. Whatever choice you make, I'll support you."
Acala remained silent after hearing that. She knows that Cedric never meant to make her feel guilty, but she still does. After all, she's not his responsibility. In fact, most of the burdens he's carrying weren't meant to be his in the first place, yet he still carries them.
Cedric walked past her, and before disappearing, he said:
"Wipe your face, at the very least. I can still see chip dust on the corners of your lips."
"Also, you might wanna return now. Your in-game right? I can hear your teammates flaming you for inactivity."
It was his last words that shook Acala out of her stupor and gave her a real sense of crisis.