The path through the Outer Heaven did not present itself as a series of obstacles.
He had been expecting this, or preparing for it as a possibility, the pattern of the previous stages having established the expectation. The Lower Domain had presented obstacles in the conventional sense, monsters and rivals and dungeons and the Allheaven Expanse's structured competition. The Middle Domain had presented native entities organized around Laws and non-native disruptors from outside the framework, both requiring genuine engagement for the Law's development and the Inevitable's progress. The contact zone had presented the partnership's rhythm and the third quality's developing stages. The Celestial Realm had presented the recognition's absence requiring the blade's expression.
Each previous stage had had something to engage.
The Outer Heaven presented something to become.
