Rowan began to explore his body and the changes that were constantly happening to it, this was all in readiness before he began awakening. His perception was wielded like a scalpel and he began cutting through his flesh to see what lies beneath.

Andar’sbody was far tougher than before because it carried the traits of his shell, and that trait made his physique equal to a Dominator at the Rift State, which was astonishing. He almost resembled an Empyrean.

Rowan was very eager to see the changes that would happen to such a body when he awakened

Rowan discovered that, unlike a Dominator, a Mage had a very clear understanding of their Spirit. It was not the blurry awareness that Dominators were aware of, but their Spirit was almost like a phantom limb, it could be utilized far more effectively than a Dominator could ever accomplish.

With this new control of his Spirit, he instantly understood the reason why Andar could not awaken, the amount of Aether in his body was immense, it would be a blessing for a Mage, but for a Mortal that had not unlocked his Spirit Matrix, it was a stumbling block.

Although Andar Spirit was nourished by his massive Aether pool, it was still too weak to control the immense amount of Aether flowing throughout his body.

There was a limit to the amount of Spirit a Mortal body could contain else they would run mad or their heads would explode. So with a Mortal-level Spirit, even if it was at the peak, Andar couldn’t control the Aether in his body that was equal to those of a Mage.

His Talent also effectively increased his Spiritual Capacity at every single moment with no cap in sight, this made his Mortal body no longer able to hold it, and it appeared like a silver cloud around his body.

His Aether capacity was similar to a full-fledged Mage and it was increasing every year, and a Mortal couldn’t have the same Spirit as a Mage even though the Alchemist had tried every method he knew to give Andar the means to control his Aether. This has become something of an obsession for the alchemist over the years.

There were methods to allow Andar to touch the gates of his Spirit Matrix, but that would require the presence of an Archmage, who needed to devote his time and resources to help him, but Andar did not receive that assistance. It was generally acknowledged that Talent alone did not determine how far a Mage could go.

Rowan always wondered how the world would view a freak like him who always went against that rule. With what he had done to this body, even a pig had a high chance of becoming an Archmage.

This was the reason why Rowan did not need an Archmage because he had temporarily solved the problem.

The changes he made to Andar’s body granted the boy an elevated Aether capacity, and his body was like an endless well as it drank all the Aether Andar had ever possessed and still he was only halfway full.

This body for the first time since its birth was now free of any obstruction and his Spirit could immediately locate the gates of his Spirit Matrix.

The location of the Spirit Matrix was within him but it could not be defined in physical terms, and the exact spot could not be pointed out even by the owner of the Spirit Matrix until it was found.

Andar’s Spirit Matrix was located deep within his consciousness, and Rowan reached that place with his Spirit where he saw an extraordinary gate.

It was massive, thousands of feet tall, the edges of it disappearing into the mist that his perception could not reach.

Rowan paused at this sight. He knew that a normal gate of a Spirit Matrix was barely six feet tall, and the highest recorded was fifty feet, but that came from a Mortal who opened his gate at three hundred years old.

That person was a famous wealthy man, who used various potions and elixirs to keep himself youthful for centuries. He wondered what this world would think of his gate that was this large.

It was said that your gate was formed by all the experiences you had and the lives that had interacted with your own. It was the reason why it was easier for children to open their gates, they were mostly blank slates.

Rowan focused on the obstacle in front of him. The gate was made from white stone and various images were embossed on it. Rowan’s perception reached the gates and observed the images, they were numerous, and each of them was about seven inches in size. From below, he began to trace the images.

The first three images were recognizable, they were of the Alchemist Jonathan Melbrook, Andar’s Mother Shanar Erickson, and his grandfather Magnar Erikson.

After those three images that showed the people that were closest to Andar. After that, well it became another story entirely.

The next image he saw was of a snarling purple wolf, this was the first creature he killed. The next were three huge rats, and then horses, after that the images that stretched farther than his perception could reach were all people. Then beasts of all shapes and sizes and then people, and they alternated and continued till it felt like infinity.

When did he kill so much? Rowan briefly fell into a daze

The moment he left his prison cell which was the Nexus, the world he appeared into died due to no small part because of his presence. He had killed their god and murdered their people in millions, and now he was carrying what was left of that world with him.

A hopeless gesture to stem his… guilt? Was he even capable of feeling that emotion anymore?

When did he become this cold?

Rowan shook himself and adjusted his emotions, it would seem that the mind was getting weaker as he began merging with a mortal. It had been a while since…

Focus.

Rowan cleared all distracting thoughts and peered closely at the gate. He feared that his gate was larger than he thought possible, and for the reason for its size?

Well, Rowan thought there were no acts more personal in this life than to consume someone’s soul.