CHAPTER 261: THE FORGOTTEN GODDESS

The Basics of Cultivation class was also drawing to an end. Through it, Eleanor had come to understand why Midgardians were required to undergo the Trial of Yggdrasil to achieve Ascendance... and why, later, they had to journey to Molgrath to advance their cultivation further.

In ancient times, Midgard had been rich in spiritual energy. Back then, high-level Ascendants were commonplace, and the realm itself was governed by cultivators. Many of the legendary heroes spoken of in myth were, in truth, powerful Ascendants of that golden age. Even Saint-level cultivators walked among mortals, though they too were bound by the realm’s natural restrictions.

Like the present era, Midgard had always imposed a limit upon those of Saint level. Yet, when the world teemed with abundant spiritual energy, the toll upon them was far less severe. Their descent into a lower realm did not sap their strength as cruelly as it does now.

Yggdrasil, the World Tree, was connected to countless realms. When an Ascendant reached the Saint level, they would be transported directly from Midgard to a higher world, chosen according to their aptitude and spiritual resonance.

On the opposite side of Yggdrasil’s network of realms lay the domains of the negative World Tree, Qliphoth. Though younger than Yggdrasil, Qliphoth had once cooperated harmoniously with it. However, that peace ended when the Outer God Nyarlathotep seized control of Qliphoth’s primary domain.

Throughout history, there had been many instances of Outer Gods visiting this part of the cosmos. They would linger for a time before departing again, and some even mingled with the local races, leaving behind half-divine descendants. But this time, matters were different. Under Nyarlathotep’s influence, Qliphoth began siphoning spiritual energy from neighbouring realms. At first, the decline was slow, gradual and largely ignored. Yggdrasil herself was preoccupied with nurturing new life across her vast dominion.

Then came Ragnarök. When the surviving gods were at their weakest, the demons of Qliphoth’s realm struck. They overwhelmed the divine domains and obliterated nearly all of them. Only Vanaheim endured the final war, saved by its formidable magical potency and by the forgotten goddess who led the remaining forces against the demons.

Ragnarök came about through the infighting of the gods. Much of the ancient history that followed was deliberately buried by Midgard’s protectors, and countless truths were lost to time. Only Yggdrasil herself knows what truly transpired... and what calamity cast Midgard into its present, diminished state.

As a lower realm, the Midgardians lived in ignorance, their understanding of the past gleaned only from the temples of the Forgotten Goddess. From these remnants they learned that the goddess and her celestial army had once driven the demonic hordes from Yggdrasil’s domain.

Yet the war had forever altered the balance of that sacred realm. The gods were gone... every one of them slain. The divine realms were reduced to ruin, and even Vanaheim was transformed. The corruption of demonic energy seeped into its atmosphere and soil, twisting its natural order and reshaping its creatures. For that reason, when Midgardians ascend to Vanaheim, they cannot remain there for long; even its water and air are toxic to them.

It is said that, before her death, with the last of her divine essence, the Forgotten Goddess sealed Vanaheim against further invasion. She also reshaped her temples, preparing them as conduits through which, in ages to come, mortals of Midgard might ascend... and one day stand against the demons once more.

After her fall, Yggdrasil concealed Vanaheim within her own sphere, granting Midgardians the chance to ascend, as the goddess had wished.

Vanaheim itself remains a place of haunting beauty and danger. By day, its sky burns gold, illuminated by a solitary sun that bathes the mirrored lands in light refracted through a dense, shimmering mana-field. This radiant daylight offers only a fragile window for travel, for when night descends, the world is cast beneath the ethereal glow of three constant moons. Their white light paints every surface in spectral silver, while above them stretches a sky of treacherous stars... constellations that shift and rearrange from one horizon to the next. No starmap can chart them; only the three moons remain steadfast, the lone celestial anchors in a realm where even the heavens refuse to stay still.

This realm is a beautiful, poisoned crucible. Its terrain mirrors that of Earth... lush forests, vast deserts, and boundless oceans... yet every element here is perilous to mortal life. The waters are tainted, the plants and creatures steeped in a corrupting miasma, for Vanaheim’s natural order has long been infected by demonic energy. This blight ensures that no mortal can safely depend upon its resources for long; every sip of water, every breath of air, becomes a calculated risk.

The realm’s native inhabitants have become little more than mindless echoes of its primal essence. Most shun the sunlight, lying dormant beneath the ground by day. But when the moons rise, the land awakens... crawling, whispering, and writhing with them. From the fiercest predators to the most deceptively gentle species, every living thing poses a mortal threat to any who come from Midgard.

Before the Trial of Ascendance, Yggdrasil marks each cadet and transports them to Vanaheim. The realm is perfectly attuned to the process of Ascendance, its concentration of magical and spiritual energy balanced precisely at the threshold between mortality and transcendence. There, mortals can be ascended easily... just by following any simple cultivation techniques.

Within Vanaheim, there are many temples of the Forgotten Goddess, each one home to a distinct trial crafted for mortals. Upon passing these trials, the act of Ascendance becomes effortless... as natural as drawing breath.

Yggdrasil’s teleportation, however, is never precise. Every cadet is guaranteed to arrive somewhere within Vanaheim, but the region they appear in depends upon their elemental affinity. It is said that the Forgotten Goddess once wielded mastery over all elements, and so temples aligned with every element exist across her realm. Each cadet materialises in the region that corresponds to the element bound to their soul.

Every region holds its own beauty, peril, and peculiar balance. Once there, the cadets must survive and locate a nearby temple. The temples are scattered across Vanaheim... some hidden within ruined cities, others standing solitary amid endless deserts, atop mist-shrouded mountains, on remote islands, or buried deep within ancient caverns.

They must remain in Vanaheim for an entire month. Their purpose is simple, yet perilous... to undertake the Trial of Ascendance, and to cultivate as deeply as possible within the temple’s sanctuary. When the month ends, the mark bestowed by Yggdrasil activates, returning all surviving cadets to the Academy.

Professor Sylpha taught several simple cultivation techniques that could be used to achieve Ascendance should any cadet fail to find a temple, or if misfortune struck during the trial. She also explained the process of core formation... the means by which one might become an Ascendant without completing a temple trial.

Although these emergency techniques were weak and would inevitably hinder future growth, they were far better than dying in Vanaheim. The trials themselves were perilous; many cadets in the past had perished attempting them.

To aid their preparation, Professor Sylpha provided a collection of handbooks detailing the experiences of powerful Ascendants who had successfully completed difficult trials. These personal accounts proved invaluable, allowing cadets to visualise the various dangers, environments, and challenges they might encounter within Vanaheim.

It was confirmed that all cadets would be issued food pills before being teleported. Each pill could sustain the body for a minimum of three days and a maximum of seven, depending on physical exertion. Humans, whose energy consumption was the lowest among the races, could last the longest. However, should they engage in combat or strenuous activity... such as swimming or climbing, their energy reserves would deplete far more quickly.

To prepare for emergencies, every student was taught a set of basic, simplified cultivation techniques, tailored to each race, along with a few universal methods. These allowed them to draw sustenance directly from ambient spiritual energy, ensuring survival even without completing a trial.

Their first month of the Primary Term was now complete. In the coming month, they would undergo simulated training, learning to use the food pills and experience a controlled version of life in Vanaheim... a crucial rehearsal to ready them for the unpredictable conditions of the true trial.

The Trial of Ascendance always began with an act of reverence to the Forgotten Goddess. Respect could be shown in any form... a gesture, a touch, or spoken words of devotion. Each trial lasted three days. Once a candidate entered a temple, the structure would expel all others from the area. Thus, if two cadets arrived at the same temple, one was advised to wait outside or seek another nearby.

There were countless temples scattered across Vanaheim, particularly amid the ruins of once-thriving cities. If two cadets reached the same temple within three days, waiting was feasible. Beyond that, however, they were urged to move on, for after seven days, regardless of race or endurance, every mortals of Midgard would be utterly drained of energy.

After achieving Ascendance and forming a core, it was strongly advised to remain within the temple for as long as possible, cultivating to stabilise the new core. In all of Vanaheim, only the temples were truly safe; the beasts and corrupted spirits dared not cross their sacred boundaries.