The ascent back into the clouds was different this time.
As the snake again lifted the floating stone.
Dreleon stood on, his body covered in the gray ash of the Savannah, looking down at the blackened scar he had left on the world below.
And it strangely felt beautiful to him.
As the platform pierced the cloud layer, the holy White serpent became visible once more.
Its scales were like polished marble, reflecting the golden rays of the high-altitude sun.
The sheer scale of the creature was a physical weight on his soul.
As he felt like an ant standing before a god.
The Snake shifted back into her slight, human form, her sapphire eyes scanned Dreleon, lingering on his eyes for sometime.
"Hiss... Cloning level is a word often misused by the weak," she began, her voice echoing in the thin, cold air.
She spoke with the fervor of a master who had spent eons perfecting her craft.
"Most believe it to be a single technique, In reality; it is not division of paths.
Some call them levels, but that is the thinking of the ignorant.
They are types of existence, not divided by levels but type; like a leaf with two sides.
Just as the leaf doesn't change just because you're seeing it from one side, cloning can't be classified in levels."
She spoke as she took him towards a white jade platform with two towers looking like spikes at both sides.
It was beautiful, in the middle of a cloudy sea without a platform like a ship.
He was enchanted, but his golden eyes were locked onto the snake, absorbing every syllable.
"The First Type," she said, pacing on the platform in circles of Deleon.
"This is the path of the Body.
You separate a piece of your physical form—a finger, a rib, a drop of marrow.
Through hyper-regeneration, you grow a second body.
Then, you tear a fragment of your soul and seat it within.
It is the easiest path, hiss... because the soul is returning to its own flesh.
It is compatible, safe, and limited."
She stopped and looked Dreleon directly in the eyes.
Her gaze was intense, almost motherly in its severity.
"The Second Type is the path of the Soul.
You separate your spirit and cast it into different bodies—vessels that were never yours.
Unlike the first type, this one has no physical limitations.
You are limited only by the strength of your Soul Power. You have to kill the original soul or the traces of the soul left in the body.
Depending on the soul, you could be a hundred men, or a hundred beasts, all sharing one mind.
It is a psychopathic path, as you always have to bear unbelievable pain for every body you add, so; you can also say it's a lonely path, but a powerful one."
Dreleon's heart skipped a beat.
The tactical possibilities of the second type were endless.
"The Third Type," she whispered, and for a moment, the sky seemed to darken as if the sun itself feared her words.
"This involves the working of the Supreme Being."
"Who is the Supreme Being?"
Dreleon asked, his curiosity overriding his exhaustion, and the snake's terror in his mind.
"The Supreme Being—or what humans on another side call the 'Heavenly Dao'—is the neutral system governing this planet.
It is the logic of the universe, the machine that manages destiny.
The Third Type of cloning involves hacking into that system.
It is the creation of entirely different bodies, each with their own destiny, forming a complete army made up of oneself.
It is the peak of existence."
She waved a hand dismissively, the gemstones on her bangles shimmering.
"There are other ways—unorthodox methods, perfect imitations, and messy shortcuts—but you do not need to bother with those.
You have one month.
Choose a path, learn its foundation, and show me your progress.
Which do you choose?"
Dreleon didn't hesitate.
If he was going to learn cloning then, the best would be to learn what is possible and also useful.
He wanted the freedom of the Soul Path.
"I choose the second option," he declared.
And the snake smiled.
It wasn't a devious smirk this time, but a look of expectation met.
"A good choice.
It is the most logical path for the current you."
"Why?"
Dreleon asked, unknowingly; confused by her sudden approval.
"Because you are already a Soul Practitioner," she explained, her voice softening.
"Everyone who has gone through the pact is already a soul practitioner because they have the power of two souls, their own and their partner's.
And your Royal Lion genes and your Human genes are constantly at war for dominance within your flesh.
If you separate your flesh and grow it in your body there are much more chances only one gene succeeding, which is obviously weaker then you, so; you may make a clone by 10% chance, but can't make it fight at necessary time because it will obviously be defeated if even you can't win.
But the second path... it allows your soul to master any vessel.
You become a variable, changing form just as needed."
She reached into the air, and space warped.
A heavy, ancient-looking book materialized in her hand.
The cover was made of a material that looked like frozen smoke, titled: [Soul Possession].
She tossed the book at his feet.
With another wave of her hand, a small, isolated platform of white jade rose from the clouds, creating a silent sanctuary for him.
"You have thirty days," her form beginning to fade back into the mist.
"Read.
Research.
Understand.
After thirty days if you don't reach small mastery, I will begin teaching another pillar." her voice resonated; reaching the end.
Dreleon picked up the book.
It felt cold, but also strangely warm.
He sat cross-legged in the center of the jade platform.
As he opened the first page, the ink seemed to leap from the paper, swirling into his mind like black-ink washing over white paper.
Suddenly, the jade platform vanished.
Dreleon found himself standing in the center of a white ocean, surrounded by an endless sea of clouds that stretched into infinity.
The ink that had seeped into his mind transformed into glowing black characters; like a calligraphy that floated in the dark air.
"Right now, you are within your own Mind Palace," the words transformed into unknown calligraphy, yet strangely; he was able to understand it.
"These endless clouds are the manifestation of your perception of infinity.
To the mind, the soul has no limitations, and in the mind realm it shows the soul as something that it perceives as infinity.
The method of Soul Possession is absolute and painful.
It ignores race, body, and form, with the only requirement being: the vessel must be living."
Dreleon reached out to touch a word, but his hand passed through it.
"The first step is the Great Severing," the text continued, the black turning into a violent, bloody red.
"You must separate your soul body into two distinct sections.
You must become the butcher of your own spirit.
Use the intent of separation contained within this manual to cut yourself."
Suddenly, a heavy, crushing sensation overcame him.
It wasn't a physical weight; it was a psychological urge.
A phantom blade, forged from the 'Intent' of the book, appeared above his soul.
He felt an agonizing, instinctive terror.
Every cell in his body screamed that he was about to commit suicide.
To cut the soul was to cut the "I."
If he failed, he wouldn't just be injured; he would be erased.
Dreleon groaned, his soul-form flickering in the darkness.
He gripped the phantom blade with his mind.