As Mai awakened her soul power, standing right beside Ram, she immediately felt the disturbance in her observation field. The spiritual power around them shifted, growing unstable.
Her eyes narrowed, sensing something dangerous closing in. "Wait, something's—"
Before she could finish, Ignara's soul force struck Ram's mind like a hammer, sudden and violent. Ram barely had time to register the danger.
One second, he was standing there, observing the battlefield, and the next moment, an intense pressure bore down on his mind.
"What the hell—" Ram gasped, clutching his head where the light had struck. But this wasn't just a regular attack.
It felt disturbingly familiar—just like the soul attack the Mechanical Apostle had used on him before.
Yet, this time, his soul body didn't crumple under the force.
Thanks to his strong soul compared to before and the Sylvan Soul Seed that protected his spiritual realm, he didn't die instantly as he had back then.
But he could feel something much worse—a presence forcing its way inside his spiritual realm, spreading like wildfire.
Time seemed to freeze. His body stopped responding, his vision blurred, and a searing, burning sensation overtook his mind, leaving him gasping for breath.
Ignara's malicious laughter echoed within his thoughts. "You're mine now, mortal," her voice rang with cruel satisfaction.
"Ram!" Mai shouted; her voice sharp with alarm as she caught him just before he collapsed.
She shook him, trying to wake him, her hands glowing faintly with spiritual power as she tried every method, she knew to wake him up. But nothing worked.
Panic spread through the group as they gathered around Ram. "What happened to him?" Sid asked, but no one knew. All they could see was Ram's body, motionless, his face contorted in pain.
Meanwhile, inside Ram's spiritual realm, Ignara was already there, her consciousness swirling like a dark storm.
She floated through the vast expanse, her malice seeping into every corner, attempting to seize control.
But the more she fought, the more the Sylvan Soul Seed absorbed her energy. It was merciless, drawing in her soul power at an alarming rate.
Ignara's confidence shattered. She looked around in panic. This wasn't just some low-level treasure.
She couldn't comprehend why a low-level mortal possessed a powerful treasure capable of suppressing her.
As a remnant thought, her memories and knowledge were not as vast as her true self's, and following her battle with the Divine Spirit Tree, her soul power was too depleted to mount a defense.
"No...do not, this can't be! How does a mortal like you have something like this?" The goddess's voice grew weaker as the roots drained her remaining power.
She tried to lash out, to curse him, to make one final stand—but the seed didn't give her the chance. Her soul body dimmed as the roots absorbed the last traces of her remnant soul, her body turning into nothing but a whisper of flames.
Her last words were a faint, fading echo, "Damn you... mortal..."
Then, his spiritual realm returned to silence.
Her soul was completely consumed, stored within the Soul Tree of the Sylvan Soul Kingdom.
Ram gasped as the pressure on his soul vanished, and the chains holding him in place snapped.
His body shuddered, but he remained standing in the center of his spiritual realm, free as he suppressed those remaining negative thoughts and memories.
From within his soul body, he could feel the Sylvan Soul Seed pulsing, feeding him the knowledge that Ignara's soul had been absorbed and stored deep inside.
He would need to open the territory to access the soul, but for now, the immediate danger was over.
Ram took a deep breath, his mind clear again. His eyes flashed open in the real world.
It took a long time for him to struggle against Ignara and absorb her soul power inside the Spiritual realm, but for the outside world, it didn't take much time.
As soon as he woke up, he saw Mai's worried gaze, "You, okay?" she asked, her voice tight with concern.
Ram nodded, still catching his breath. "Yeah," he replied, his voice low but steady without many changes from usual.