With Elaine in a great mood, we walked through the bubble-dome city, heading toward the sizeable, bluish, oval-shaped dimensional rift that was on the outskirts of the city; we also weren't the only ones seeking to visit the Aether Realm, hundreds of others were doing the same, though we paid them no heed.
Once we arrived at the edge of the city, we simply walked through the bubble-like dome that protected it from the elements of the ocean; the instant we exited the city and stepped into the sea, we were met with a crushing presence from above as the weight of the sea sought to press us further down, though resisting it was but a trivial matter.
'Come, Sarah, what is taking you so long?' Asked Elif via divine sense lightly as he folded his arms and glanced at Sarah while he and Elaine floated in the sea just outside the bubble-like dome.
"I'm coming, I'm coming. Relax, your Highness." Said Sarah with a roll of her eyes as she hesitantly exited the bubble dome, stepping out into the sea while its crushing weight slowly forced her to sink further down, causing everyone to glance blankly at her.
'D-Don't just look at me! H-Help! P-Please.' Yelled Sarah via divine sense as she attempted to resist the crushing might of the sea while she gazed at the five watching her with an embarrassed and slightly shameful expression.
Sighing to myself, I scratched my head before waving my hand, propelling Sarah back into the dome with a gust of Qi.
"You're staying behind, Sarah." Said Elif calmly as he stuck his head through the bubble while eyeing Sarah, whose eyes slightly widened.
"Eh, w-why? C-Can't you just carry me with your Qi? Y-You wouldn't even notice." Asked Sarah with a shocked expression as she stepped forward, reaching out past the bubble dome and grasping Elif's shoulders, only to yank him into the city.
Drying myself off with a weak burst of Qi, which also happened to force Sarah back, I shook my head, somewhat disappointed in her.
"I could, and you're right; I wouldn't even notice, but tell me, Sarah, when was the last time you actively sat down to cultivate?" Asked Elif blandly as he floated a few inches above the air while narrowing his eyes at Sarah, who awkwardly coughed before averting her gaze.
"U-Um, i-it wasn't too long ago, Your Highness." "Not too long ago? State a specific time frame, then." Remarked Sarah and Elif, respectively, as the former awkwardly rubbed her head while the latter gazed at her with a raised eyebrow.
"F-Five…" Muttered Sarah softly as she lowered her head, causing Elif to furrow his brows.
"Five what? Weeks? Months? I seriously hope you don't say months, Sarah." Asked Elif with a deep frown as he eyed Sarah, who touched her fingers together while lowering her head, too embarrassed to even look at him.
"F-Five years." Muttered Sarah softly as she gathered enough courage to peek at Elif's face, only to quickly shut her eyes and lower her face.
'D-Did she really just say five years?' Asked Elaine, via divine sense, in surprise as she opened her mouth wide while staring at Sarah.
'Oh, sister, that is… Haa, I can't even find the correct words.' Said Marley, via divine sense, in disappointment as she lowered her head while deeply sighing.
"You're telling me you haven't cultivated once in the five years we've been at the Realm Sect, Sarah?" Asked Elif with an unsightly expression as he floated closer to Sarah, who nodded while subconsciously backing away, her cheeks flushing with shame.
Heaving a deep sigh, I couldn't say a thing to her as I merely rubbed the bridge of my nose, the frustration rapidly building up within me at such a revelation.
'It's because I've been helping her with everything. Is that why? She most likely saw no point in cultivating when I could effortlessly help her, whether in situations like this or something else.' Thought Elif with an irritated expression as he brushed his hair back while glancing at Sarah, who was silently fidgeting.
There were so many things I wished to say, but in the end, I simply sighed while shaking my head, opting to save this argument for after I returned from the Aether Realm.
"Return home, Sarah. We'll have a thorough conversation when we finish our duties." Ordered Elif sternly as he eyed Sarah, who sighed with a nod before nodding and turning around, walking back through the city toward their residence.
Shaking my head, I glanced at Sarah before exiting the bubble dome again as I regrouped with Elaine and my servants.
'I would like to apologize, on Sarah's behalf, your Highness; I've clearly failed my job as the elder sister.' Said Marley, via divine sense, as she deeply bowed towards Elif, who wryly smiled while gently rubbing her head.
'Oh, your job as the elder sister is another whole conversation, Marley, which neither of us wish to get into.' Remarked Elif lightly, via divine sense, with an ever-so-faint smile while Marley raised her head and glanced at him before nodding.
'Ho, don't push the blame to Marley; Sarah was your concubine, and as such, she is your responsibility, Brother. If anything, it's your fault Sarah is like that, not Marley's.' Remarked Elaine, via divine sense, with a raised eyebrow as she folded her arms and eyed Elif, who winced before nodding with a sigh, unable to refute her words.
Shaking my head, I pushed this conversation to the back and floated to the front of the group as I took the lead, heading towards the Aether Realm in the distance. When we neared the dimensional rift, I glanced at Elaine, who blew me a kiss before taking the first step and floating into the dimensional rift, traversing through space and time before we arrived on the other side.
"Woah, this is otherworldly." Muttered Elif with slightly widened eyes as he gazed at the Aether Realm while Elaine, Marley, Idonea, and Ember emerged from the large dimensional rift behind him.
"So this is the Aether Realm?" Asked Elaine softly as she observed her surroundings, taking it all in with bated breaths.
Although we've yet even to explode the Aether Realm, what we saw was mesmerizing.
Large forests on either side of us while multi-colored soul-like entities floated through the sky, leaving behind trails of psionic Qi that glittered in the sunny sky, bathing us in a rainbow of color. Inhabiting the forest were soul beasts, their presence deeply lurking within the beautiful forest; mountains in the far distance cut off the horizon, seemingly making it seem as if this realm was never-ending in all directions.
Yet, what made everything so unique was that whether it was organic or not, such as the rock to my right or the forest to my left, everything was made out of psionic Qi, causing their appearance and properties to resemble that of a soul.
Approaching the nearby tree, I pressed my hand against it, yet it went right through it as if it didn't exist, despite it clearly standing right in front of me; using a different method, I separated a part of my soul from my body, and morphed it into my arm, causing my right arm to limply fall as I lost all sensation from it.
Outstretching my soul arm, I touched the tree, my hand gently rubbing against its rough surface identical to the trees back home; I couldn't distinguish them differently.
"This is weird." Muttered Ember softly as she copied Elif and rubbed her arms soul against the tree, causing her eyes to widen slightly.
"Let us come with our souls instead next time, Brother." Asked Elaine eagerly as she turned and glanced at Elif, who gently nodded while retracting his soul back into his body, regaining control of his arm.
"I'm not opposed to it, but we will be vulnerable when we're not within the Aether Realm. I suggest we wait for Mother and Father to return before doing something so risky." Replied Elif softly as he glanced at Elaine, who nodded with a faint smile before shifting her focus to the ground.
"Should we follow it, Your Highnesses?" Asked Idonea softly as she glanced between Elaine and Elif, both shrugging their shoulders.
"Might as well. Let us have a little fun exploring before finding a group of residents to trade with." Said Elaine with a faint smirk as she smiled at Elif, who chuckled before nodding in agreement.
"Whatever you desire, I shall provide." Remarked Elif lightly as he tenderly held Elaine's hand, causing her to smile while the two floated just above the ground, pretending to walk.
Since even the ground was made of Psionic Qi, we were required to float within the air, lest we wished to fall right through the ground down to who knows where. However, although we had no current destination, the little journey was quite eventful; a long time hadn't even passed, and we had encountered numerous soul-beasts, a few special plants, and even a heavenly treasure.
"Your Highness, you do know we can see you, correct?" Asked Idonea softly as she glanced through numerous trees, watching as Elif, who was on his knees, passionately tending to Elaine's sacred garden using his mouth.
"~Ahh~, l-look ~Ahhh~ away!" Said Elaine softly with a faint blush as she gently held Elif's head within her crotch while he passionately licked and sucked.