Raina Grace gently touched WeeStick's "head," emulating how Granny Rain used to comfort her, hoping to provide warmth and solace. The "head" of WeeStick — the Elemental Ancestor Fruit core — felt slightly warm. Raina sensed an energy flowing within it. This core, previously in her possession, had never heated up like this. Was it because WeeStick wore it, or due to the abyss's influence?
Pondering so intensely made Raina's head ache. Touching the back of her head, she discovered a swollen lump with semi-dried blood. This reminded her that her fall into the abyss was caused by a blow to her head, which made her lose balance.
Her primary concern now was healing the wound; if neglected, especially in such harsh conditions, she feared she might lapse into unconsciousness like WeeStick. Raina was accustomed to injuries from roaming the endless sea floor and running through the Water Realm. Such external wounds never posed a problem due to her strong healing abilities. Often, wounds healed before Granny Rain noticed. Therefore, Raina rarely worried about injuries, sometimes not even realizing she had been hurt until she saw a scar. But as time passed, even the scars would disappear.
However, this wound was different; it hadn't healed for a long time and caused intense pain. For the first time, Raina had to actively find a way to heal, rather than passively waiting for natural recovery.
She recalled that her healing ability was somewhat special. Granny Rain, when injured during farming, needed ointment and bandages, which she taught Raina to apply for faster healing. Now, without ointment and her self-healing failing, Raina pondered her next steps.
She thought of the Terra Grove's sacred Dormancy Pool, known for its excellent restorative powers. But it was out of reach, deep within the Terra Grove territory. This made Raina consider if healing depended on the environment. Perhaps the abyss's environment hindered healing, affecting both her and WeeStick.
Unconsciously rubbing WeeStick's crystal eye, Raina noticed it growing hotter and its initially azure hue becoming murky, like the Elemental Magnetic Storm. In her view, the storm was a chaotic mixture, like a wild, rampant force disrupting the entire elemental magnetic field, creating the storm. But what if these chaotic elements were removed? Would it resemble the magnetic environment of Verdant Thistle Forest?
To Raina, the air in the Water Realm appeared light blue, the Earth Realm light yellow, while Verdant Thistle Forest shimmered with a splendid array of colors. The abyss's murkiness, however, was interspersed with black shadows, moving so fast that Raina only saw their afterimages.
In any environment — the Surface Realm, the endless sea, the Terra Grove's Dormancy Pool, or Verdant Thistle Forest — Raina always felt comfortable, naturally adjusting to each. But in the abyss, this mechanism didn't occur as usual, leaving her with a sense of void and non-existence.
Raina could see the murky, gray-black elemental magnetic force surrounding WeeStick, unable to easily penetrate its body but flowing abundantly into the crystal eye, likely causing its heat.
After realizing she could "see" elemental magnetic force, Raina looked at herself and saw it bustling around her, seemingly blocked by an invisible barrier, unable to even touch her. Was this disconnection from the elemental magnetic field causing her weakness and inability to heal?
Raina tried to suppress the energy in the crystal eye, cupping it with her hands and attempting to connect with it. After focusing intensely, she saw a blue light emanate from her palms, enveloping the crystal eye, calming it instantly.
Raina then attempted to absorb its energy. Using the blue light as a guide, multicolored strands emerged from the eye. The surrounding black energy surged more wildly, attempting to devour the weak light but seemingly deterred by the blue light.
As the multicolored light merged into the blue light, Raina felt her emptiness lessen and her strength return, even her headache subsiding. The swelling on her head began to diminish. However, stopping the absorption brought back the emptiness instantly. The abyss's repulsion was evident, and the connection established through the crystal eye was minimal.
But it was enough. As long as her wound healed and WeeStick awakened, they could leave this place.
Raina noticed that after absorbing the energy from the crystal eye, the remaining "ash-like" substances, devoid of energy, dissipated. But if she released the crystal eye, the black-gray elemental magnetic field would return, heating it again.
Guiding the energy into WeeStick's body with the blue light proved effective. After several attempts, WeeStick awakened, its glow restored.
While Raina breathed a sigh of relief, she also harbored new worries — she couldn't continuously help the crystal eye dissipate excess energy. Even if it wasn't non-stop, she couldn't afford frequent interruptions.
Unable to risk using WeeStick to fly out of the abyss during these short breaks, and stiff from sitting motionless on the narrow stone, Raina felt physically and mentally exhausted. Looking around at the murkiness and feeling the cold gusts, she wondered if night was approaching.
Regaining consciousness, WeeStick sensed Raina's weakness and gently nestled beside her, glowing softly. Leaning against the rock wall, Raina struggled to stay upright, fearing a careless slip would send her plummeting.
But as she turned, something caught her eye. A cave, perhaps? Curious, Raina shifted from sitting to lying prone, peering beneath the stone — indeed, there was a small opening below.
The entrance seemed just large enough for her to fit through. Although uncertain of what lay inside, it seemed a better option than spending the night exposed on the narrow rock. And with WeeStick now awake, flying into the cave seemed feasible.