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"Perhaps you should step outside the city, before you overload every magical device within a thousand kilometres?" Petros suggested as Wolfe struggled to maintain his energy balance with the influx of energy from the Lowest Planes.
"That might be a good idea. Do you know a good spot that I will be able to find my way back from easily enough?" Wolfe asked.
Petros nodded. "There is a mountain not far from here that is the designated advancement point for all Saint Rank and above humans. If you allow your energy to balance there, everyone else will understand what is going on, and that it isn't an attack or a monster advancement."
Wolfe wasn't entirely certain that description was correct. He had seen the creatures of the Lowest Planes, and monster was a good word for them. Their energy was corrupting his mana cores, remaking them into an Unholy version of their original state, so there were no guarantees that his body would be able to hold up to the influx without any visible changes.
The energy continued to gather around Wolfe, pulled between planes by his impending advancement, and Petros began to panic. He opened a portal to the location and physically tossed Wolfe through onto the platform of the mountain, where a young woman was sweeping away blown dust and leaves.
"You, is there anyone else here? You all need to leave with me before his tribulation starts. The Divine One is testing him for compatibility with the Eightfold Power." Petros demanded of the worker.
She shook her head. "I am the only one here for the next twenty-six days, sir. My shift just started."
Wolfe wondered what the Eightfold Power was supposed to be. It might be the Lowest Planes equivalent of the Saint Rank, as they were more powerful than the mortal realms, and would normally have a higher standard for being impressive.
But what was undeniable was that the influx of energy had followed him, and that it was getting stronger, forming a storm above his head.
It wasn't lightning, as he had expected from the storm. It felt more like the Underworld, a spike of icy cold that was invading his cells and causing ever-increasing amounts of power to flow through his body.
For the first time, he began to understand how the last Magi King could throw continents to the bottom of the ocean, level mountain ranges and completely rearrange the world's ecosystem with the help of his Saints.
This level of power was enough that he could feel everything, even the terrified King sitting in his castle, halfway around the world. In comparison, Wolfe realized that it wouldn't even be considered a fair fight.
The Fallen King didn't have a mana core, he had to use the surrounding mana. If the two of them faced off, Wolfe could completely suppress the mana in the atmosphere, and force him to fight through that suppression to use any power at all, while Wolfe himself would be able to empty his mana cores to go on the offensive.
The difference of one Rank in that situation would be nothing.
The world around Wolfe seemed to be changing as he advanced. His mana sense was improving, and he could see links and layers that were invisible to him before. At first, it was disorienting and confusing, but after a few minutes, he realized that it was the different types of mana that he could see.
Each had its own signature, marking its place in the universe.
That was how Wolfe came to realize that the words upper and lower planes weren't a derogatory, they were a literal interpretation. The Planes were layers of the universe, like an onion. The Lowest Planes were at the core, smaller and more energy dense than any of the others, while the Upper Planes were at the outside, vast and seemingly limitless to Wolfe's vision.
He could sense beings from both sides taking note of his existence, and then either welcoming or dismissing him. He wasn't of the Upper Planes, and they cared very little about his existence. But the Demon Realms, immediately below the Mortal Realms that he was in, were very curious about him.