The deer kept silent for a while, then said, "You said 'normal contract,' so there are other types?"
"The normal one, I call it equal exchange. The two sides gain equally—no risk, no danger—as long as both sides have a clear mind. After that, each can go their own way," Ray nodded and explained.
This was his final and refined formation ritual that he researched in the past year. Normally, only in cases of bad intent would the formation operation break and cause damage to both sides. Ray based it on the contract formation, but instead of a pact, they exchanged what the other needed.
The human would get a drop of essence, and the formation would form a perfect ring for him, filled with energy from the outside. The soul beast would get a drop of bloodline and the same amount of energy that the human gained in the soul ring.
For example, if a human made a contract with a 5,000-year-old beast and his body could hold a ring of that level, the soul beast would gain an almost equal amount of energy. Under the same conditions, it could witness rapid strengthening.
"And the other type?" the deer asked after wrapping her head around the explanation. "Assuming it's the one you want to form?"
"I'll be honest with you first—it's dangerous. I don't have any proof that it will be 100% safe. Unlike the other, this one carries a high risk too," Ray clarified, looking at the deer and waiting for her response.
"Let's hear what you have first, and don't leave anything out," she said, lying down behind him.
"The one I intend to form with you—if you accept—is what I named the Fate Bond." Ray announced the name of the unique divergence of the ritual he had figured out.
This one had the same properties as spirit contracts in the original works, but instead of being half-alive, as the restrictions over soul beasts are huge and prevent them from existing in physical form for too long, the method Ray intended to use allowed the deer to take residence within his very soul. Based on his understanding of the original, instead of using only the soul and soul bones, he intended to have the deer bound completely to his soul and transfer into a completely new existence type.
"This contract is supposed to link our souls, allowing you to become part of me, so I will have you as my Fate Spirit." Looking at her, he continued, "On the other side, you will be linked to me instead of the world, so you can raise your age without fear of tribulation."
Another part of this contract was that the beast was not restrained to its host. On the contrary, the spirit could leave and train independently like before. The only change was that if the Fate Spirit were ever to die, it would automatically be sent to its host's spiritual sea and wouldn't be able to leave again.
A spec surprised even Ray, the maker—and no matter what he did, he couldn't take it out or change it. Since it worked and didn't seem that dangerous, he let it be.
During the explanation, the deer flinched slightly at the "tribulation-free" part. The reaction was small but not unnoticed by Ray, so he gave the much-needed final push. "By the way, your maturing speed will rise the more powerful I become as a side effect—and the reverse is also true."
At that, the deer looked at him to see if he was serious.
"And what does the human get?" the deer asked.
Ray nodded. "Yes, depending on the age of the soul beast, he can create more than one soul ring with the help of the formation. By my calculation, any beast below 9,000 years can give one ring." After a quick calculation, he added, "In the normal contract, at max: between 10,000 and 50,000 years can give three rings; between 50,000 and 100,000 can give up to five rings. I didn't include anything higher."
"And the Fate Contract?" the deer asked.
"That depends," Ray said. "If I had to say, I wish I only needed one spirit and it would generate all my rings."
"But?" the deer pressed.
"I have a feeling I'll probably need more than one," Ray tried to explain, though he didn't have the right words.
The deer gave him a quick glance, then looked toward the misty horizon, absorbing what she'd heard. 'Honestly, if it were a couple of years ago, I would have taken it with no second thought, but…' Looking at her child, she fell into serious thought.
Noticing the look she was giving, Ray figured out her train of thought. A smile bloomed on his face for two reasons—first, he had a solution to her problem, and second, the motherly love he saw in her eyes.
As she was about to ask something, Ray bit his hand, leaving a drop of blood staining the fur beside the right ear of her child before the wound closed at high speed.
After a second, the blood took the form of a tree with three fairy wings on the sides, then turned black.
As that happened, Ray began to speak. "The worst thing that could happen is our death. This dimension is stable, which means that even my death won't affect it." Ray patted the mark and smiled. "This mark will let him enter and exit this place."
In the silent atmosphere he created, he placed the same mark on her front right limb before making himself comfortable and closing his eyes. "What I want is a partner I can trust to watch my back. To be honest, the only reason I chose you is that I had this very close feeling with you. If you don't want to be part of this, it's okay."
Ray closed his eyes, letting all his planning and method out—not out of fear, but out of respect for the deer.
"But you're welcome here. Just bring this little cute friend with you," he said, placing his hands behind his head and starting to doze off, uncaring that he had left her mind spinning. In the end, he slept as he was.
"Sigh…" Looking at Ray sleeping, the deer couldn't understand what was going on inside his head. Most humans out there were either greedy or bloody in nature. The first thing they thought of to solve a problem was violence—a living example of how they achieved power. And that came from experience.
But the one in front of her, at such a tender age, was trying to break one of the very principles of his society.
Although the deer had never been in human cities or countries before, she had seen many humans and observed many cultivators. The concept of changing the system was something hard, if not impossible, based on what she had learned over the past decades.
"Looking back, I never had this much hard time thinking about something," she murmured while looking at Ray. With determination in her eyes, she stood up, waking both Ray and her child with her movement.
Her child and Ray started looking around, and noticing her standing, Ray mumbled half-asleep, "Ah… my fluffy pillow… ran away."
"Pfft… what a sloppy creature!?" she thought, looking at Ray. Then she remembered, 'Although he speaks maturely for his age, he's still a kid—probably not older than my own.'
A smile formed as she looked at Ray, waiting for him to wake fully. "Ray, you said you want something new in this world, right? What's the reason behind that?
"And don't give me distrust like before," she added before he could answer. "Distrust wasn't, and will never be, a reason to push someone to face the unknown."
Hearing her, Ray was taken aback by how easily she read him. Returning to normal, he smiled. "Because it's boring to walk a marked road. I mean—WHERE THE HELL CAN I FIND MY THRILL IF I DO THE SAME AS MY PREDECESSORS DID!?"
In fact, he was honest—not just about cultivation but also about reincarnation. Every reincarnator either played the game or started to simp.
So slowly, without even Ray noticing, his mindset began to change—from living freely and pursuing what he wanted, to the point where he wanted to flip the whole game board.
"I see," she nodded. "Simple, and I can say crazy—but it can bring change."
"Bring change?" Ray stopped her, then smirked. "pleas!!—THIS IS THE CREATION OF NEW HISTORY!"
"Okay then," the deer said, not surprised by his declaration. "Let me follow you and see how you affect the world. I'll be in your care."
"No, it's not you'll be in my care—it's that I've got your back, as you've got mine. That's partnership," Ray corrected her, ending his talk with a massive, happy smile.
Ray looked back at her child. "Little one, how about you explore the place around? It'll be your new home for a while."
The kid surprisingly understood, ran to his mother, tackled her lightly, then sprinted toward the forest.
After he disappeared, Ray nodded toward the deer, making sure she was ready. She did the same.
Then he started to gather soul power around him, forming a kind of array filled with words and runes. After it was completed, he signaled the deer to take her position inside, with him in front of her.
Taking one last look at the forest before settling in front of him, she heard Ray ask, "Before we start, I never asked your name."
The answer surprised him. "I don't have one."
Ray nodded. "If it's okay, can I give you one?"
With a nod from the deer, not really minding it—though deep down quite excited—Ray thought for a moment, then exclaimed, "Then how about Sophia?"
"Yes… not a bad name. I'll roll with it," she nodded in acknowledgment.
Ray smiled, looked at the sky for a moment, then back at Sophia. "I'll start now. Just relax and trust me, partner."
Saying this, he stamped his leg on the ground, causing the formation to shine brighter as soul power enveloped them both.
Inside, the deer—now named Sophia—felt her strength returning. A little over a minute later, she sensed her power back to its prime.
Soon, Sophia's very essence was dragged somewhere, leaving her body behind. Her surroundings changed—she found herself standing on the surface of a sea of gold-red liquid.
Not far from her, Ray stood with closed eyes. To be more precise, it was his spiritual projection, which meant Sophia was now in his spiritual sea.
Before she could move, Ray started to tremble as if suffering deep pain. Cracks began to appear around his spiritual sea.
'This is bad—he can't hold my spiritual presence in here,' Sophia thought, observing the space. Soon she figured out the reason and tried to find a way to help.
As Sophia decided to use her own spiritual energy to seal and mend the cracks, a mature woman's voice sounded from behind.
"You have a good heart. Instead of finding a way to escape, you decided to help. But don't worry—just sleep for now."
As she heard that voice, sleep took over her instantly, and the next thing Sophia knew, she was hovering in a dark space with a strange screen in front of her—as if showing her the life of a young man.