Compared to the Farham, who seemed to have a hint of life or even

self-awareness in their eyes, the colossal being wielding the tridents seemed a lot more mechanical, and lifeless. That wasn't just because the being didn't have eyes to begin with - no, it was because it seemed entirely like a puppet. A powerful puppet, yes, but a puppet nonetheless.

As such, Lex, in his strengthened state after being baptized in Heavenly lightning, could see the strings pulling at it. They were laws, governing its every movement, its every action.

The complexity and abstract nature of those laws was so esoteric that Lex could state without a hint of doubt that if he had seen them as a mortal, he might have gone crazy. His mortal mind would have struggled to understand, to explain something that didn't operate in his limited understanding of what constituted reality.

As an immortal, though, Lex had been familiarised with the abstract nature of laws, so not only was he not befuddled by these unusual laws, he could even grasp their intricacies.

The trident, even now, was too fast for Lex to react properly. But he didn't need to do that.

Since he could now see how the cloud-being would act, he could determine where and how it would attack. Since, after rounds of practice, he could now see and even slow down the trident, he could fine tune his aim. Most of all, as his power grew, so did his influence on the universe. His Domination could not bend reality to his will, the way Dragons used Dragons Might, but it sure as hell could bend a few laws.

The cloud-being moved, and once more its attack was too fast for Lex to follow. It didn't matter, he was prepared for just that.

The trident entered the region where Lex had laid down countless arrays and formations using his eyes ability, and for once it did not destroy them. After all, they had been finetuned so that they wouldn't clash with it. Instead, they accepted the spear within their region of control, and then began to slow it down.

Lex saw a gleam, but even before that, he felt an unshakable will clash against his Domination, cutting its way through. He moved, through conscious will and through instinct, placing his sword directly in the path of the trident.

His Domain, which he had erected a mere foot around his body, crashed against the trident, and broke. Yet it did not matter.

Whether it was his formations, for Domination, or even his Domain, they were all there simply to pave the way.

Naraka screamed, not in pain, but in defiance, as blade finally touched trident. A high pitched, sharp battlecry as the two opponents met - both tools of their masters will!

Naraka was the instrument through which Lex cut any and all opposition, and the trident was merely a carrier, a conduit, for not only the tribulation energy, but Heaven's wrath. At last the two clashed, resulting in an explosion that had no sound, no shockwave.

There was no physical consequence of their meeting, for they fought not in the physical plane, but through laws!

The trident sought to elevate Lex through the baptism of laws, yes, but it also sought to remind him of his place by using laws far beyond his grasp. The sword sought to clash against the trident, yes, but it was also a declaration that he had clawed his way up to this point, and a mere trident was not enough to stop him.]

The sword carried through it the influence of Lex's tenet, binding all laws it touched to his will. It carried his raw physical strength which was so vast, it could directly cause turbulence in laws! It contained his sword intent, which had been refined again and again to cut through the chains that he perceived the laws as! Most of all, it carried a symbolic meaning the universe sought to punish him, but that only excited Lex, it did not discourage him!

That did not mean he was a masochist who would become excited at the thought of punishment. Not at all. That was totally and completely wrong and anyone who thought as such could address their concerns to Naraka's edge. No, Lex just... he liked a challenge. Yes, he liked to overcome challenges and improve his strength - not endure inhuman suffering and pain just to prove he could survive it. That was utter nonsense.

The clash lasted but a moment. Although Lex had not caught the trident with his hands, he had halted it from smashing into him!

Then, the trident turned into energy, fusing into the sword before finding its way into Lex's body, to complete his baptism, and allow him to overcome the first of the three tribulations that barred his way from becoming a Heaven Immortal.

Lex grinned at first, but as he felt his body becoming so much stronger than it already was, he burst into laughter.

He had witnessed the strength of Celestial Immortal before, and now... now he could feel power equivalent to it in his veins! This was merely the beginning. His physical strength was always the first to enter the next realm, but soon, his other traits followed.

His soul became far stronger than it had any right to be as a Heaven Immortal, slowly taking on a slightly golden color. His Domination, once a great replica of Dragons Might, fused deeper with his being, fused with his instinct, turning into something... more. Something unique to only him.

His body, his physique, his everything evolved, causing a stir he was all too familiar with. He hadn't even become a Heaven Immortal fully, and yet his next

tribulation began to stir.

Lex's laughter echoed through the lands, empowering the garden around his crater, granting it with the privilege of watching his rise. A thin, green mist emerged from his body - his Paladin powers - and began to nourish the broken, weakened realm all around him. His Karma, which was too immense for a mere

Earth Immortal, began to boil.

Secrets he had witnessed but was not strong enough to bear began to reveal themselves to him. The seal in his mind, the one from the Temple of Frozen Dawn, loosened on its own, allowing a hint of his affinity with Time to return

once more.

*****

Primary Realm, Ruins of Ascension

The Primals looked at each other in confusion, wondering what was happening. The human race jumped up another dozen spots. Had the human race encountered some great fortune?