The moment Sariel mentioned a chance at godhood she knew she had Melinda's attention and she was not wrong.

To be fair, Melinda had never seen personal evidence that mortals could become gods aside from the old legends that were dedicated to such.

It was those very same legends that reiterated that while it was possible, the process was long and tedious, and not many succeed.

Of course, this did not stop every cultivator (outside of Bottom feeding cities such as this) from trying to become this Divine being.

The most information they knew from communications with gods (Via Altars) made them surmise that said gods existed in a different plane some had taken to call Paradise.

Melinda had all but given up on this general dream of godhood when she was banished to Salmon city to cultivate without valuable cultivation resources.

Her hope and dream had been reignited when Hal -The self-proclaimed and quite aptly named, 'Rogue'- took her first time and showed her there were other means.

Sariel seemed to be suggesting she had even more efficient means.

"Are you that warped?"

That question made her think, was she really that Warped? That she could not even consider the possibility of staying away from Hal.

"What chance are you talking about?"

Melinda asked in a bid to stall for time and think carefully.

Sariel knew what she was doing but essentially ignored it to answer the girl's inquiry,

"Did I say chance? No, I meant to say, your only hope at godhood"

Sariel said while her whole insides squirmed with the joy of accomplishment. She had successfully sown doubt.

Melinda waved her hand to prompt her to continue and Sariel nodded with a slight smile that could easily melt the heart of any man,

"The world you live in happens to be a part of the ring of worlds in the Cosmic realm with absolutely no hope of seeing the rise of a god. A ring known as the 'Ring of..." She began

"Neglected worlds" Melinda interrupted

Sariel turned to her with a look of astonishment,

"Don't be so surprised. You mentioned it earlier" Melinda waved off the look.

Sariel's look of astonishment became a look of amusement instead as she cocked her head to the side slightly,

"I won't interrupt again," Melinda said

Sariel took a deep breath, "As I was saying. In this world, there is no Spark of divinity and it will not matter how hard you cultivate, you will only make Demi-god at best. Divine Transcendence will never be yours"

"Why is that?" Melinda could not help but ask.

"No one knows. Once upon a time, Mortal realms of Cultivation was mainly for the Mortal realm, hence the name, while the Cosmic Realm was mostly populated by gods but something happened..."

Sariel took a step back and turned away from Melinda. She looked over the horizon blankly and Melinda could tell she was reminiscing,

"The mortal realm lost the ability to hold Cosmic energy and as though it were a disease, it spread to the outer ring of the Cosmic realm. The ring is just a figure of speech, the true shape of the Cosmic Realm is impossible to know.

" Anyway, the inner Ring was unaffected but High-level gods could not come into any worlds in the outer ring without risking a Catastrophe. But an indigenous god, one that attained godhood in a Neglected world can stay without consequences "

Melinda's brows were furrowed as her mind was working furiously,

"So in essence I'm assuming this Spark you mentioned is inside you and by 'You' I mean the Primeval Virtue will"

"Yes, it is. With your talent, You can accomplish the steps important for godhood in a relatively easy fashion but without this spark, you cannot become a god. I have searched the Devil outside and he doesn't have a spark of divinity inside him either.

Bloodline does not count as a spark of divinity but it is also a requirement for godhood. So... What do you say, Melinda Dane?"

Melinda looked into those golden eyes,

"Why exactly are you doing this? It's not for Hal, who you did not expect to meet and just happens to be a Devil I'm involved with. What is your agenda?" She asked

"Seriously Melinda, you are still searching for conspiracies even with such an opportunity before you?" Sariel was irate but Melinda could tell it was mostly for the show to stop any further inquiry,

"You are interested in the neglected worlds aren't you?" She asked with a smirk.

"Don't be absurd..." Sariel started but Melinda cut her off...

"That was the Holy mission, wasn't it? You can't come here personally, so you sent a proxy. Equipped him with your will so that he could claim this world for you.

He arrived here with superior talent and cultivation, -not surprising since he was from Paradise- and became the first Dane"

"You are wrong. Shut up!" Sariel snarled

"Whoa, that's rude. Anyhow, it is obvious what happened next, he arrives and falls in love with the culture and people, puts you into hibernation so he can freely deviate from the Virtuous path that I am sure you were strict with him about"

"Stop it..."

"You don't always shun procreation but you wanted him to take control of this world as a spitting image of yourself. A spitting Virtuous image."

Sariel shook her head "I was supposed to help him. I could have made him a god..."

"No!" Melinda interrupted and for the first time since their conversation began, she looked upset "You wanted to make him a puppet"

Melinda turned and paced in the meadow for a short while before she turned back to Sariel...

"One thing I don't still know is what you want in a Neglected world populated with mortals"

"What? You think I'll tell you?" Sariel snorted

"No, I don't need you to tell me. I don't even want to know. I have years to find out on my own"

The two stood barely any taller than each other and stared into each other's eyes. Brown meeting Gold.

"Nice eyes," Sariel said suddenly

Melinda blinked "umm, Thanks?"

How was she to react to that abrupt compliment?

"You don't like them" It was not a question.

"I don't like them cause they are not mine. They are a result of decolorization after my Bloodline was suppressed. A lot of my features were altered because of that suppression" Melinda confided

Sariel nodded but it was obvious she was not really listening,

"So it's a No?" She asked quietly

"It's a no" Melinda said with a nod.

"Because you don't trust me?"

"I would love to say that's why but it's more than that. This spark that you can give me will bind my Will to yours, how is that different from what Hal did to me?" Melinda said

"I'm no Devil" Sariel insisted

"So? Is that supposed to make it better? Hal did not do it intentionally. It was instinctive. And... I loved the bind.

A lot of Ladies flock around him and they are more bonded to him than I. The binding of our Will and purpose was all I had. Pending a Contract of course..." Melinda took a deep breath

"I did not like you severing that bond. But I appreciate it. It helped me think clearly and to know for sure that this is what I want and it had nothing to do with an instinctive pheromone attack.

" Even If you were not manipulating me for your Plans, I would still not leave him for you"

Sariel frowned,

"So you will give up on godhood?"

"Who said anything about giving up? I will become a god. I will become a god by his side. That is how much faith I have in him and even if after trying my best, I still fail, Then I will take solace in knowing he would be right by my side failing as well." Melinda said with a smile,

"It sounds cheesy doesn't it?" She chuckled while Sariel looked at her with a little respect in her eyes,

"You are a weird woman, Melinda, But I do respect your determination." She said with a sigh

Melinda smiled "The suppression on my Bloodline has been lifted. Once I have full control over it again I will put you into hibernation. I won't have you ruining my fun time with your innuendos"

She was not going to let a pseudo bonding moment become a reason she let her guard down. She doubted Sariel would be able to put her hatred of Devils aside.

"Not necessary. I am already much too weak. I have been passed on for years and will voluntarily return to my originator. I failed my duty when your ancestor put me into hibernation. It's long overdue"

As soon as she was done with the speech, she faded and Melinda could feel her rapid dissipation, very soon, her energy signatures were impossible to locate.

She was gone.

Melinda's lips were pursed as she stared at the spot Sariel's will had been but moments ago, knowing with uncanny certainty that they would meet again and at that time she might be meeting the real deal. The originator.

The Primeval Virtue had given her a lot to think about but that was a job to do on the outside and not inside of her mind.