After a full night of sleep, Rai and Alfin's khodam energy had fully recovered. This meant they could once again enter the spirit world—this time for up to five hours.
To increase their khodam usage time, they would need to boost their khodam energy. That was a lesson for another day.
Dukun Rosso summoned them early in the morning.
"Now that you both can control your khodams," he said, "it's time for Lesson Three—Merging with your khodam."
"This technique allows a caster's body to temporarily fuse with their khodam," he explained. "It usually changes your body's appearance—sometimes in strange ways."
"First, summon your khodam."
Following his instructions, Lala and Gork drew a glowing star symbol on the ground. Then, with a smooth motion, they rotated it into an inverted star.
Immediately, their khodams were absorbed into their physical bodies.
The process was surprisingly simple—no deep concentration needed, just the right movements of the symbol.
Alfin's body was the first to change. His skin turned a glowing crimson red, and a sleek crimson armor formed around him, fitting perfectly. A helmet with two burning horns locked into place over his head. In his hands appeared a spear glowing with fiery energy.
Alfin looked down at himself in awe. "Cool…"
Rai, on the other hand, went through an entirely different transformation.
His male body twisted and reshaped—into a female form. Two delicate, glowing wings grew from the sides of his ears. Above his head, a small swarm of glowing fireflies spun in formation.
Rai twitched. "Even my… organs changed," he muttered, his voice now softer, distinctly feminine. Thankfully, it was only temporary.
He stared at the tiny wings on his ears. "What's the point of these?"
Out of curiosity, he tried fluttering them. The wings disappeared instantly—but the swarm of fireflies shifted. They transformed into a pair of real, glowing wings, strong enough to lift him into the air.
With just a thought, the fireflies could vanish—or morph into different shapes based on his will.
Alfin admired his reflection in a piece of metal, flexing his crimson armored arms. "I look awesome—even if I'm red."
Rai was still examining his body with mixed feelings when he noticed Dukun Rosso looking at him with… sympathy.
"Now that you've successfully merged with your khodam," Dukun Rosso continued, "you've completed Lesson Three. As for Lesson Four, I've already explained bits of it over time. That one takes longer to master—especially if you ask a lot of questions."
Rai raised his hand. "How do you get more than one khodam?"
Rosso nodded. "Alright. Here's what I know."
1. Natural khodams – These are khodams you're born with or awaken over time. A person can have between one and seven natural khodams. These khodams awaken naturally when your khodam energy reaches certain thresholds. They usually take on humanoid forms.
2. Created khodams – These require soul energy compatibility. There are many types of artificial khodams, but if your soul isn't compatible, the khodam won't be able to fuse and will simply break apart.
3. Dropped khodams – Sometimes, when you kill a powerful jin, a khodam may drop. You'll have a chance to claim it.
4. Other methods – There may be other ways I don't know yet. Some secrets are hidden even from me.
Alfin jumped in. "Okay, but how do we strengthen our current khodam? Mine already feels strong—but I want it even stronger."
Rosso smiled. "There are many ways to do that."
1. Combat – Use your khodam to kill jins or casters. Each kill gives your khodam a small amount of energy.
2. Potions – There are many elixirs and concoctions sold in the spirit market that enhance khodams.
3. Equipment – Special spiritual weapons or armor can be worn by khodams to increase their power.
4. Fusion – You can merge two or more khodams. One becomes the dominant entity, absorbing the others to become stronger. Of course, this only works if you have multiple khodams.
"The strength of a khodam," Rosso added, "is often measured by its height."
Level 1 khodam – About the same height as a normal human.
Level 2 – Twice as tall.
Level 3 – Three times taller.
"And so on. I've heard of a caster whose khodam reached a height 100 times that of a human."
Rai and Alfin exchanged glances, their imaginations already racing.
Rai raised another question. "How is the power structure of the occult world divided?"
Dukun Rosso nodded, sensing this might relate to the tragedy of Rai's family.
"In general," Rosso began, "shamans are divided into two main types: White Shamans and Black Shamans."
"We, for example, are White Shamans—we awaken khodams without harming others."
"Black Shamans, on the other hand," he continued grimly, "often use cruel methods to gain power. They might consume human corpses, sacrifice their own family members, rape virgins, offer children to dark spirits, and other twisted rituals to gain power or summon terrifying khodams."
"Their khodams usually radiate a dark, black aura."
Rosso looked at both of them seriously.
"Shamans also come in different social forms—some are loners, some form small groups, some create formal schools, while others belong to shamanic clans. There are even entire hidden countries made up of powerful shamans."
"Have you ever heard of the nation of Saranjena?"
"I have," Rai replied. "But isn't that place in some kind of spirit realm?"
"Exactly. Saranjena is a nation formed by shamans and jinns in an alternate dimension. It's not quite the same as the spirit realm we usually enter—it's closer to the real world, so it appears more often."
"In short, the power of the shamanic world is complex and mostly hidden. That's why it's hard to detect or confront directly."
Alfin chimed in, curious. "Then can you explain the power structure of the spirit realm itself? I mean, there are even rabbits there…"
He was secretly thinking of how to find Diana.
Rosso smiled. "The realm of the jinn isn't as complex as the occult world, since jinn are visible and organized. But yes, it's made up of several nations and many continents."
"As for why there are rabbits, the answer is this: not only humans have khodams. Even animals—and plants—can possess them."
"Every living creature, after it dies, its soul will enter the khodam it was born with and eventually become a jinn in the spirit realm.
"In fact," Rosso added with a thoughtful tone, "many shamans believe that the entire spirit realm is the khodam of the physical world itself. That's the most well-known theory among experienced shamans."