The Rise of the Black Plain

When exactly one year had passed since Minos' departure, the five hourglasses around the bodies of Gloria, Abby, Kendrick, Lily, and Hollie disappeared.",

All the members of the remaining group there paid attention to this, gradually seeing those opening their eyes after having experienced the sensation of cultivating 5 years in just 1.

Previously, Kendrick had been at level 85. But in just 1 year of time for Ruth and the others, he had reached level 89!

Besides him, Lily and Hollie achieved performances very close to their older brother's, with the former reaching level 87 and the younger child of Minos having become a level 85 Sage.

Meanwhile, Abby and Gloria improved more or less the same, both advancing 2 levels and becoming level 97 Grandmasters!

"Impressive! Minos' divine ability really is monstrous!" Vico said, as he couldn't help but look at those five people with a little envy in his eyes.

'If I went through the same thing as them, I'd probably be at level 102 by now!' Vico thought to himself as Ruth congratulated those five.

After Ruth explained what had happened since Minos' departure and the rest of the year that had passed, Abby sighed and said. "We really felt the time pass as if we'd been in seclusion for five years. Just because his ability is so good, we've lost five years of vitality in one year on this planet. The skill has its pros and cons."

But none of them cared about this effect. They were much stronger than before, more prepared to deal with this powerful world.

Besides, Ruth and Minos had already used up a lot more of their vitality because of their journey on Zocarro, while neither of the two women would mind going through Minos' ability a few times. This would bring them closer to those two in both age and level!

"Apart from that, our father's skill is wonderful indeed. Until a few moments ago, I thought that time had passed in the same way for all of us. It's amazing to feel that time has actually passed differently for us," Kendrick said, as he couldn't help but be excited to reach level 90, a breakthrough that should only be a few months away from him.

Once he achieved it, he would no longer be so vulnerable and would perform closer to what a strong cultivator from The Enchanted Realm should!

The others who hadn't experienced the effects of Minos' divine ability thought about how important it would be for the group to use this power to strengthen themselves in the future.

But soon Gloria raised the most important question of the moment.

"What now?"

Ruth said. "It's time for part of us to move on to one city and learn a bit about this world, opportunities for the group, dangers and also the situation in the galaxy."

She quickly showed that 2 of the 4 level 103 Sovereigns would handle this mission alongside Vico and Callie. She would stay behind with the newly advanced level 103 Sovereign and the level 103 robot to keep the others safe.

"You must be careful and not get involved in too much right away. It's likely that we'll have decades ahead of us to explore this world calmly, so just do an initial survey and come back in a year at most. We'll do a little shift swapping when you return." Ruth concluded.

The level 103 robot agreed and said. "We should keep this alternation between those exploring and the others cultivating until at least Their Majesties, Abby and Gloria, have advanced to level 100. After that, I think it would be safer to venture further into cities and on missions."

Everyone in the group agreed on this point. Gloria and Abby could reach level 100 in about 10 years, enough for the Stuart children to become low-level and mid-level Grandmasters.

Gloria and Abby's innate abilities were very strong in the Spiritual World, so the first divine ability that each of them would have should also be very strong.

In particular, Abby's fusion could be very useful for them. In the Spiritual World, her fusion had helped them several times, even though she had no control over the strongest people she summoned from the world of the dead. But by advancing to level 100, she would improve her control over fusion and be able to summon early 11th stage beings that would be under her control.

With this, they could raise the group's potential, even if the other team members became stronger in the period.

Having the ability to use several low-level Sovereigns would be very important for their team to realize their goals.

So, as soon as they had agreed on their next steps, the four Sovereigns appointed by Ruth said their goodbyes and headed for the nearest city, which was about four months away.

The others stayed behind to talk more, eat something, and train a little after their long period of seclusion.

But soon the weakest of the group would be back to cultivating, and they wouldn't have to worry about taking part in the group's surveillance shifts.

Only Ruth and the two Sovereigns who stayed behind would have to worry about alternating shifts, with two of them standing by while the third could take the chance to cultivate on this rich planet.

...

As Minos' friends and family put his plans into practice, with the first few months since the effects of Minos' ability wore off, his first four years in The Red Expanse passed in the blink of an eye!

That period in question, Minos and Forfex would stand still for practically the entire time, alternating between the lookout and the one cultivating the crystal they found earlier.

But weeks ago, the two achieved their initial goal of absorbing over 50% of the special characteristics of the scarlet crystal.

That day, they set off from the sweltering cave they had entered earlier, moving on towards the center of the plane, but always looking for new chances.

The two felt they had improved a lot since they had used the crystal, but at the same time they felt they couldn't use or better understand what they had absorbed.

The Celestial being's words really seemed to have no flaws or tricks.

Finally, back on the road, with their routines of cultivation, rest and exploration, the two of them would soon face the first competitors on their path since they had teamed up!