Grandpa Gene the Goldenreed

"So fast? I feel like we got here in the blink of an eye!" Rina Chu exclaimed.

"Mm-hmm." Grace Summers nodded.

"Drake Abyss is part of the Divine Realm," Grandpa Gene explained. "If you know the way, it's close at hand. If you don't, you'll never reach it."

Both girls nodded, half-understanding.

At the summit, there were no buildings—just a plaza paved with yellow jade, surrounded by shimmering magical barriers.

Only one path led onward, heading to the rear.

"Come with me!" Grandpa Gene beckoned, leading the girls toward the back.

Grandpa Gene led them along the single path, heading deeper into the summit.

At the end of the path, a strange, enormous Water Mirror blocked their way.

The Water Mirror was oval-shaped, standing upright on the ground. Its surface rippled like water, but reflected with far more clarity. As Grace and Rina approached, it was as if they were seeing their true selves.

"Huh? Where's Grandpa Gene? Why can't I see him?" Grace suddenly noticed something odd.

Grandpa Gene was just a short distance ahead to their right, but he didn't appear in the Water Mirror.

"I'm right here!" Grandpa Gene replied with a cheerful grin.

Both girls stared wide-eyed—at Grandpa Gene, then at the mirror. Where he should have been, there was a tall stalk of grass.

At the bottom was a tuft of fine grass, with two mushroom-like growths in the middle, and from those, a few grass hearts wrapped in leaves stretched upward.

Whenever Grandpa Gene spoke, the grass would move too.

"This mirror is called the Mirror of Truth," Grandpa Gene explained. "It reveals the true form of everything in the world."

"T-true form? You..."

"I was originally a stalk of Goldenreed growing beneath the Sacred Spirit King Tree. After being nourished by the Spirit Tree, I cultivated into a magical being," Grandpa Gene said with a smile. "What you see in the mirror is my true form."

Grace: "..."

Rina Chu: "..."

"You can pass through this Water Mirror. Follow me," said the Grandpa Gene in the mirror, floating magically to the front and passing through, vanishing from sight.

Grace and Rina exchanged glances, squeezed each other's hands, and nervously followed him through.

Sure enough, the mirror could be passed through.

As they crossed, they felt a cool chill, but nothing else.

On the other side of the Water Mirror was a pool shrouded in mist.

Grandpa Gene stood by the pool and said, "This is the Sanctity Pool. The teleportation array is at the bottom."

"Sanctity Pool?" Grace asked, puzzled.

"No Nightspawn are allowed in the Divine Race's territory. If a demon tries to sneak in, it'll be dissolved in this pool. If you're not a demon, you'll pass through just fine."

The girls nodded and followed Grandpa Gene into the pool.

The water in the pool was a pale green, and it was so deep it was almost scary.

At the very bottom, there really was a teleportation array.

Grandpa Gene grabbed their hands and led them onto the array. He took out a yellow, octagonal jade talisman and placed it into a matching depression at the center. A flash of white light, and the scene changed again.

Suddenly, they were inside a palace.

But it was unlike any palace they'd ever seen before.

It was towering, almost intimidatingly so.

All around were massive buildings made of dark stone, enclosing a vast, open plaza paved with blue stone and intricate carvings—big enough for several giant dragons to land at once...

"It's so tall, so huge, so gorgeous!" Rina Chu said, stunned. "Where are we?"

"This is the Celestial Palace," Grandpa Gene replied. "I've brought you here to report to the Dragon Steward Chief and get your new identities!"