Village Head's Debauchery

"It's about to begin," Orion announced.

The women stopped their chattering.

Everyone focused their attention on the cracks spreading across the massive seed of Mysteries, which rivalled the size of a medium-sized planet.

The atmosphere fell into a deep, solemn silence.

Within minutes, the cracks rapidly expanded until they covered the entire seed. The fractured parts began to fall away, disintegrating into nothingness as wisps of White Flame consumed them.

Soon, only a transparent veil of light remained.

Within it was an enormous humanoid figure curled up like a newborn in a womb.

The veil of light soon dispelled, and the enormous curled-up figure began to move.

Everyone stared intently at the newborn Mysteries of the White Flame Cosmic Tree with keen interest, curious to see what form 'it' would take.

The colossal figure slowly stretched 'its' limbs, revealing 'its' appearance to them.

The humanoid figure was a woman.

Her skin was dark, like the deepest void between stars, but across her torso ran shifting streaks of constellations, nebulae, and distant galaxies, alive and moving as though the cosmos itself flowed through her. From the waist down, her legs were wreathed in pure White Flame.

Her hair streamed behind her, strands of starlight and silver winding endlessly through the metaphysical space like the trails of comets drifting across an endless sky.

Her eyes were lit with the very flames of the White Flame itself. Deep within those eyes, they could see the structure of the White Flame Cosmic Tree, its roots spiralling and intertwined with the foundations of the Material Realm Cosmic Tree.

Their eyes widened in shock and wonder at the sight.

The Mysteries that had emerged bore an unmistakable resemblance to Orion.

It was as though she were one of his descendants.

Countless thoughts raced through their minds.

At that moment, a silent question filled the air:

Who else did she resemble?

It didn't take them long to reach an answer.

One by one, their gazes shifted toward Orion.

Orion himself was stunned. He and Iyriath Zi'ria had indeed infused their essence to create the Mysteries of the White Flame Cosmic Tree. So, it wasn't wrong to think that this Mysteries had come from both of them.

But the fact that she resembled both of them so distinctly was bound to send the wrong message.

Orion turned his head to look at the group.

His wives and those at the divines continued to stare directly at him.

Brane and the others, those beneath the level of divinity, quickly averted their gazes and pretended to focus back on the Mysteries of the White Flame Cosmic Tree.

Yet Orion could clearly see the proud, knowing expressions on their faces.

Orion sighed.

"I have to admit, I'm impressed, Supreme Leader," Reynold said, gazing at Orion with admiration. "Back then, I thought I could perceive everything… but clearly, there were moments even my senses couldn't grasp. To have shared a moment with an Omnithriallian. That is truly something worthy of marvel."

"Even an Omnithriallian couldn't escape your reach," Oberon added, shaking his head in disbelief.

How many beings in existence could claim to have had a child with a member of the mythical Omnithriallian race?

Not even the ancient divines who descended into the Material Realm could dare make such a claim. And yet, after merely a brief encounter, the Supreme Leader had achieved this unimaginable feat.

Oberon had once thought he could live a life even remotely comparable to that of Orion's Supreme Household, but this revelation shattered that illusion completely. Even if he were to restart his life a hundred times over, he could never hope to come close.

Not even close enough to dream of holding a candle to such greatness.

Incredible.

Now, the Supreme Leader could even be considered part of the Omnithriallian lineage by association.

"You… I knew something was off about this," Ilse said, glaring at Orion with a mixture of disbelief and restrained frustration. "Not only did you extend your clutches to four ancient goddesses… but now you've gone as far as this.... with an Omnithriallian? What were you thinking?"

She wanted to say more but stopped herself, unsure how to even articulate the thoughts swirling in her head at the moment.

"I knew something didn't add up when you mentioned all those gifts Iyriath Zi'ria gave you," Margona added, clicking her tongue. "Now it makes perfect sense why you called that new energy 'Iyria Energy.' It was clearly a romantic farewell. A parting gift from a lover. You're really that fertile, huh?"

She turned toward Zera and said, "You see… we don't use logic when dealing with a man like that. If you let him do as he pleases, you might wake up one day to find he's shockingly impregnated by a transcendent Spirit Beast next."

Zera glanced at Margona, then shifted her gaze to Orion.

Her eyes lowered as she sighed softly. She didn't respond. She had no words to defend her husband. In fact, part of her began to think Margona might be right.

"I have decided. I'll be joining you all as well," Aerialia, who had been silently observing the scene since their arrival, suddenly said.

She spread her wings and rose into the air, landing beside Ilse and the others.

"I'll join too," Aurora added, following Aerialia and stepping in front of the group.

As if arriving at an unspoken agreement, the women began to shift one by one, moving to Ilse's side. Even Zymera, the newest member of the household, averted her gaze from Orion and joined the others.

Though she wanted to stay by her husband's side as she believed that it was unlikely that such an event had transpired between him and an Omnithriallian, she couldn't say a word.

As a Spirit Beast, even she hadn't been spared from Orion's clutches.

So, if it were possible, even a transcendent Spirit Beast might truly fall under his grasp.

Zymera could only bow her head and follow the others.

It was better to remain united at a time like this.

In a matter of moments, all the women had gathered in one position. Brane and the others beneath the divine level stood quietly in their original positions.

Reynold and Oberon remained on the opposite side.

Orion stood alone at the front. His brows twitched slightly as he noticed the disappointed and defeated expressions on his wives' faces. A few of them, however, wore mischievous smiles as they changed positions.

He reflected on his encounter with Iyriath Zi'ria. He remembered her comments about his dream and couldn't help but feel that this had been craftily plotted by her all along.

He had unknowingly fathered a child and cared for her until her emergence without ever realising it. His ancestor truly had a strange way of playing a joke on him.

At the very least, she could have made the Mysteries resemble only herself or made it look like him only so he could take responsibility and offer a logical explanation.

But she didn't. She had thrown him straight into a problematic mess.

Even if he had the power to bring her back, he was certain it wouldn't change anything. He wouldn't be able to make her explain why she had done such a thing.

"I promise you," Orion began, addressing everyone, "I did not engage in any such act with Iyriath Zi'ria. I don't know why the Mysteries resemble me, but it must be because it was formed using a portion of my essence."

"Also, this is the first time we've ever seen the physical form of a Mysteries. Perhaps she gave it this appearance to help it integrate into Paradise more easily."

Despite his attempt to explain, no one responded.

His wives pretended to pay no attention to him.

While Brane and the others seemed to half-heartedly accept his reasoning, their faces still showed a mix of pride and amazement. Reynold and Oberon simply nodded with calm expressions, clearly unsure but choosing not to press the matter further.

Seeing that his explanation wasn't fully believed, Orion sighed and shook his head in defeat.

He would deal with this later before the story spread throughout Paradise. He turned his attention back to the Mysteries of the White Flame Cosmic Tree, who was now looking in their direction, having snapped out of her brief daze.

The others noticed, too, and shifted their curious gazes toward her.

Just as Orion had said, they realized this was indeed the first time they were witnessing an entity that embodied a Mysteries.

Especially Aerialia, Ilse, Margona, and Avarielle, who had all struggled to ascend to true godhood after the emergence of the Divine Mysteries, but had never witnessed its true form, couldn't take their eyes off her.

This was their first time being so close to and directly encountering a 'Mysteries.'

The Mysteries of the Twelve-Step Stairs had been different; it had manifested as the twelve steps themselves, engulfed in White Flames. It had no humanoid form.

They couldn't help but wonder if 'she' had a personality?