A massive surge of elemental energy poured into the rune formation. Space around Richard rippled and twisted as though reality itself were folding like a photograph. What was once smooth terrain developed faint creases, which were quickly flattened again under the stabilizing force of elemental magic.
As the arcane glow faded, the entire landscape had changed dramatically. Roughly thirty acres of forest and earth near the estate had vanished—now seamlessly connected to the land thirty acres away, as if it had always been that way.
Richard exhaled in relief.
The elemental energy in his surroundings had been nearly depleted, reduced to levels akin to the low-magic regions of the outside world.
By rights, he wasn't yet powerful enough to cast a Spatial Folding Spell, but with the help of the rune formation embedded within the Elemental Zone, he had succeeded.
Now that the folding array was stable, Richard's estate had effectively expanded thirtyfold. Inside this new folded space, he had already laid out numerous rune formations in preparation to build a small magical greenhouse—an arcane garden to cultivate enchanted flora.
Nearly all wizards and arcanists constructed their own gardens. The weaker ones, like Richard, might only manage a modest plot. The more powerful could create entire ecological preserves spanning hundreds of square kilometers. The strongest of all could even forge demiplanes—miniature worlds unto themselves.
A Magical Garden could grow enchanted plants.
An Arcane Preserve could host a complete ecosystem: magical beasts, enchanted plants, even transmuted minerals.
And a Demiplane… that was an entire realm.
Back in the Arcane Alliance—home to the High Council of Arcanists—Richard had once seen firsthand the scale of such creations. The alliance's five official demiplanes each spanned millions of square kilometers, containing oceans, continents, glaciers, and deserts—each housing over a million inhabitants and supplying vast resources to the Council every year.
These demiplanes were part of what enabled the Arcane Alliance to stand on equal footing with the godly pantheons of Mothrella.
Now, Richard began transforming the newly folded space behind his estate. He infused it with elemental energy to reshape its environment, then carefully selected and introduced a variety of plants, guiding them through a process of magical mutation.
Years of arcanist research had shown that most magical plants evolved from mundane species. The triggers were environmental factors—concentration of elemental energy, light conditions, and more.
By replicating these conditions, arcanists could artificially guide the mutation process, cultivating magical plants over multiple generations.
Richard was no stranger to this method. Drawing on the Arcane Alliance's extensive research and his own experience, he quickly succeeded in cultivating a variety of magically enhanced flora.
---
Himalayas – Kamar-Taj
Inside the sanctuary of Kamar-Taj, a group of apprentice sorcerers were busy turning large stone wheels, sparks crackling in the air as fleeting images shimmered across portals in the void—only to vanish just as quickly.
They were practicing portal creation.
High above, a tall, slender figure stood silently, gazing into the distance. Before the Ancient One floated a glowing gemstone—the Time Stone. Temporal currents swirled around her, as if time itself bowed to her will. After a moment, the stone's glow faded, and the Ancient One opened her eyes.
Recently, she had sensed disruptions in the time stream—subtle yet undeniable changes in the future. Using the Time Stone, she began to trace these disturbances, seeking the cause and the consequences.
But to her surprise, even after examining over ten million timelines, she could not pinpoint the person or moment responsible for altering fate.
She ventured even further—back through time—searching the past for any anomaly. Finally, after tireless effort, she located a single timeline where divergence had occurred, and even traced the source.
But when she tried to observe the person behind it, a veil of mist obscured her vision. She could not see who—or what—was behind the change.
This shocked the Ancient One. Since receiving the Time Stone, nothing had ever evaded her gaze. Not even Odin, King of Asgard, had managed to hide his presence from the river of time.
Once more, she used the Time Stone to peer into the future. But the futures were increasingly shrouded in mist. Though they hadn't collapsed, they had become unreadable—something she found deeply curious.
She attempted to forcefully pierce the mist using the Time Stone's power, but the moment she had that thought, a terrifying sensation struck her.
It was as if a colossal eye opened within the timestream—gazing back at her. An overwhelming, formless dread filled her heart. She instinctively understood: if she pushed further, something terrifying would descend.
So she backed off.
Moments ago, she had emerged from the time flow once again. Although she hadn't found a clear answer, her exploration wasn't fruitless—the future, while obscured, was better than it had been in the original timeline.
Since the timeline hadn't collapsed and was improving, she decided not to push further… for now. Still, she planned to step into the physical world, hoping to uncover the mystery through direct observation.
After all, the mists only existed in the time stream—the real world had no such veil.
---
Richard, of course, knew nothing of this.
He was completely unaware that the Ancient One had tried to trace both his past and future through the Time Stone.
Not that it would've mattered.
Ever since ascending to the rank of Grand Arcanist, Richard had deliberately shielded his own temporal existence. Drawing upon the divine essence of a fallen godspawn, he infused his being with divinity—using it to seal off his past and future.
Richard was also a master of divination magic, well aware of its limitations. He had constructed a web of countermeasures against it—because in truth, divination was far from omnipotent. It merely offered possible futures, not guaranteed ones.
Divine power naturally interfered with divination. At the height of his strength, Richard had layered seal after seal—not just from his present self, but from his future self as well. He cloaked his presence in the timestream with multiple veils, making it nearly impossible for anyone to "see" him in time.
The Ancient One, relying on the Time Stone for her search, had avoided triggering those defenses. But anyone else using direct divination spells on Richard would have suffered immediate backlash—the severity depending on the strength of the spell.