Al was stumped.

Utterly. Stumped.

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Because he did not know what he was looking at...

Basically, before a mage reaches Core Formation, their so-called nascent core has yet to take a solid shape definitive of their cultivation. At this stage, what one observes when extending their senses into the core is something akin to a pool of water. This pool of water, and the area surrounding it, can be used to gauge into a mages cultivation, only at a superficial level though.

Through his years, Al had had the opportunity to inspect an assortment of such nascent cores, some through consent and others through force. While he wasn't as ancient as the many Tesseract Transformation powerhouses sauntering through this world, he was confident in declaring that he had seen enough to have a decent idea of the various cultivation methods commonly practised amongst mages, and how the nascent core looked within the mages that practised them.

Yet, what Al saw in place of Markus' nascent core was completely foreign to him. The region was blanketed in a darkness so deep that it appeared endless. Usually, in this place, Al would expect to see some shrubbery or ambience indicative of the base nature of the cultivation method. For swordsmen, the region could be a serene meadow with a vast blanket of grass, with each blade capable of slicing through skin. For mages specialising in fire-arts, one could observe a field set ablaze, or a vast and scorching desert, or even woods blanketed in a red hue following the arrival of autumn, or anything along those lines. In some special cases, such as with a particular cultivator practising explosive arts, this region was filled with mounds of malleable white clay...

This was the first time Al was observing a region shrouded in darkness. Even those infrequent darkness-centred mages didn't have such a nascent core.

Al focused his spiritual senses further and noticed the presence of a small, perfectly circular, pool of water. This pool acted as the true manifestation of one's cultivation. What one observes within this pool is a direct indicator of the insights and processes involved in the cultivation method. Going back to the earlier example, a fire-art practitioner could have a body of molten lava as their core, or a sea of eternal fire. There are additional layers to this, however, but they are usually occluded from those without the ability to decipher these abstract sights.

Al cautiously approached this body of water, which had a bright outline allowing it to stand out within the void. The body was completely still, which was expected since there was absolutely nothing in the environment inducing any disturbances. In fact, it appeared as though the ground itself did not propagate any vibrations into the pool of water.

Upon gazing into the body of water, Al saw more darkness. However, dotted within this darkness were many vibrant spots of bright light. The sight was not dissimilar to stars in the night sky.

It was very confusing for Al. He had no idea what any of it meant, but he was unwilling to concede - that word wasn't in his dictionary!

With a mix of apprehension and curiosity, Al moved his hand towards the pool of water. The body of water was small, it barely reached the size of a small pond. It wasn't wide enough to allow Al to submerge his body - at most he could dip one of his appendages.

The moment the tip of his finger breached the surface, it passed through without opposition. There was no ripple, no indication of contact taking place. It was like the pool was simply a thin, gauzy film waiting to be breached.

As his fingertips submerged, Al started to feel a biting cold assault his skin. One must note that Al was currently within Markus' core in his spiritual form. Unlike his physical form, the spiritual body hadn't undergone any drastic transformations through cultivation. To augment the spiritual body, one needed to perform continuous introspection and practice abstruse methods. Al had already improved his spiritual body but only through some basic techniques, and so the body's strength was barely comparable to that of a Base Stage Foundation Establishment mage.

Without the protection enjoyed by his physical body, Al was experiencing a greater range of pain through his spiritual body. After a short moment, Al retrieved his hand and observed its state.

He noticed that the area exposed to the other side had frozen over drastically. There was also some amount of bloating within the region. Through experience, Al could conclude, "It's damage caused by lack of atmosphere!"

It was the same outcome when one ventured out of Gaea, into space.

Al nodded in contemplation and began exercising a few techniques to augment his spiritual body's toughness. He was planning to do something drastic - he was going to submerge his head through the pool!

It was a moronic idea! It was never safe for a mage to thrust themself into another's cultivation like this. Imagine a scenario in which a cup, used to hold liquid at high temperature, is quickly dipped into a cold bath. Even if the material can resist those temperatures, the sudden change will more often than not result in the cracking of the cup.

When a mage practices one cultivation method, and they attempt to immerse themself in another that may or may not have a connection to their own, the result is often disastrous to the mage. Even if the mage is in an advanced realm. Cultivation deviation does not discriminate by realm, experience, age, gender, or species. It is an equal-opportunity offender.historical

Steeling himself, Al shoved his head into the pool of water, with his eyes shut tight.

The moment he felt the environment changing around his facial skin, he slowly opened his eyes.

After his vision settled, Al was greeted by the awe-inspiring sight of outer space. With the plethora of stars and various planetary bodies distributed around him.

In the distance, he could see several constellations, some familiar, others completely new. Further away, he observed a beautiful structure - a wondrous amalgamation of dust, stars and planets, bound together in a beautiful design mimicking a whirlpool. The almost milky-white whirling web emanated an aura of unparalleled and violent strength, as well as serene and poised grace. These antithetical notions constantly assaulted Al's mind. If not for his constant vigilance, Al feared that he would become lost within the spectacle, losing himself forever.

After indulging himself in the visuals for a bit, Al decided that it was time to retreat. Unfortunately, he hadn't gained much from this dive.

"Maybe discussing with Guy and Goran might shed some new light on this," Al concluded.

Just as he was about to pull his head out of the pool, something caught Al's attention from the corner of his vision.

"What's that?" Al commented as he trained his gaze towards the offending party.

"It's the Sun!" Al declared.

As his gaze sharpened, Al found himself getting pulled towards the solar mass. He stopped a distance away from the solar system - within his view, he could see the presence of the planet Gaea.

Al contemplated on what attracted him here.

He looked around, to see if anything popped out.

"The Sun seems... larger than the stars near it," Al commented. Unlike the other orangish-yellow masses in the vicinity, the Sun appeared bigger.

"W-wait, what's happening?" Al exclaimed. Because suddenly, the periphery of the Sun started to expand outwards.

"It's growing!"

The Sun grew larger and larger. After a few cycles it consumed Gaea, but it didn't show any signs of slowing down.

As it grew further, the ball turned from its vibrant yellow shade, towards an ominous red.

Yet Al didn't see any signs of it slowing down. The red mass grew voraciously, consuming everything within its path. Al frantically retreated to avoid getting decimated by the expanding ball. It was a difficult battle combating the hazardous attractive force exerted by it.

While Al kept observing, he eventually found the now red, gigantic ball slowing its ravenous growth.

"Is it stopping?" Al pondered. And as if replying to his offhanded comment, the red giant flickered. Its periphery undulated dangerously. It was angry! It wanted MORE!

BOOM!

A flash of blinding light. An explosion of heavenly proportions.

Even within the deafening silence of space, Al could feel the soul-shattering vibrations released by the collapse of the wrathful giant!

Clouds of superhot and colourful plasma propelled themselves outwards. Although they were drenched in a dazzling wash of paint, Al could feel the vengeful menace shrouded within.

Al's eyes widened in surprise as the accelerating mist approached him.

"Oh no!" Al knew at that moment that there was nothing he could do. He had to escape!

He quickly attempted to retrieve himself from the pool, but he was already too late.

The fatal film washed over him, burning through his protection, and threatening to disintegrate his spiritual body. Al grit his teeth and directed his entirety towards maintaining his spiritual integrity and sanity.

He had to escape!

Al resumed his struggle to get out. But all of a sudden, he was caught!

He didn't know what it was. But something caught on to him! It was unforgiving and all-encompassing. It was as if a tether was attached to every part, every fibre, every particle of his being, and it was tugging him closer, and closer.

Al's mental alarms blared in distress! For the first time in his entire life, Al was experiencing crippling fear. At that moment, Al know that he was a goner...

Al turned around to face his destroyer, and all he saw was an endless abyss. A spherical mass of indiscriminate death, whose existence contradicted reality in and of itself.

His body began shutting down automatically as Al got pulled closer to the abyss. The end was nigh, why struggle?

After a point, Al saw the sphere warp around him. It was opening its mouth, ready to devour him.

Al closed his eyes and prepared himself for the inevitable.

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