"Now, the two of you may kiss each other on your right and left cheeks." The old Ice Elven priest told Spencer and Aria. This was the first time that someone from the Ice Elven tribe was getting married to an outsider. Ice Elven tribe was strictly closed. The tribe had very little interaction with the worldwide world. The male members of the tribe were forbidden to marry outside of the tribe as the tribe believed that this brought bad luck and misfortune to the entire tribe and its tribal land.

Also, the tribe wanted to maintain its bloodline purity. Bloodline purity was a very important factor. This was something that has been very strictly followed by the whole tribe for the last few thousand years. Aria proved to be a special exception. The tribe Leader wasn't stupid. He recognized the importance of this marriage. If Aria married the Prime Minister of the Istarin Empire, the safety of their entire Tribe was guaranteed. In the future, no one would dare to think of harming their tribe in any way. With the protection of the mighty Istarin Empire, their tribe could start a new life and grow very strong. But if the tribe forbade Aria from having a relationship with an outsider, then this would be the same as starting a spark that would eventually burn the entire Tribe. After all, their tribe cannot do anything in front of the Mighty Istarin Empire. So rather than choosing to stick to the old traditions, this time, the tribe decided to make a special exception for Aria. Aria and Spencer were following the traditions of the Ice Elven tribe. The wedding was being held according to her tribe's tradition and culture.

The first step of the marriage ceremony started with a one-hour shower. Even the one-hour-long shower had a total of 61 steps. Each step must be completed very slowly and carefully; otherwise, the bride and the groom won't be considered pure enough for the marriage ritual. Each step was a unique small ritual to cleanse a part of the body and soul.

In some cases, if the groom was marrying multiple wives, then the steps that the groom had to follow increased up to 109. The groom would need to finish everything within 2 hours. The majority of these steps were about cleansing the soul of the Groom. The tribe gave very important cleaning. Cleaning was part of their every ritual. This was done on the day of the wedding, usually in the morning. Then, the couple had to take an oath under the guidance of the Priest. The priest is usually someone who is the oldest in the tribe. The oldest in the tribe is considered to be the wisest one.

The third step required the couple to kiss each other on their cheeks. This was the highest level of affection that could be shown and accepted in the public. The Ice Elven tribe was very modest. Kissing one of the lips in public was considered almost as flawed as having sex in public. Once Spencer and Aria kissed each other on the cheeks, Aria slightly blushed when she heard Lilith whistling. She lowered her head slightly. Spencer was also feeling a little bit embarrassed but he was more thick-skinned than Aria. He was able to keep his expression normal. "Now, both of you shall take a sip of our tribe's special wine." Usually, this part didn't need to be said out loud. But since this was the first time, their tribe's wedding was being watched by outsiders and an outsider was marrying their tribe member, it was necessary to say what Spencer needed to do. Aria's cousin's sister walked behind the priest. She also looked like Aria, except she was shorter, and her face was slightly different. She poured mysterious glowing green wine into a small transparent glass that was made out of ice. Once the glass was half filled with the green glowing wine, she gave the glass to the priest and then took three equal steps back. All this was done very smoothly. She did not say a word or look at anyone else. The priest then handed the glass to Spencer. "First the Husband....!!" Spencer took a small sip of the wine. The wine was very cold, but it was very delicious. It was one of the best wines that he had ever tasted in his life. In fact, if the priest hadn't told him to drink just a small sip, then he would have emptied the entire cup. "Now, it's the bride's turn...!!" Spencer then handed the cup to Aria. Unlike Spencer, her expression remained calm even after taking a small sip of the wine. She then handed the cup back to the priest while slightly bowing. Spencer also did the same. "And this concludes the wedding ceremony. Aria has officially become Spencer's wife. Both of them are now bonded together for the rest of their lives and even in the next life." The priest loudly declared to the crowd.

Their tribe believed in other lives. Everyone in the crowd stood up and started clapping their hands. Everyone had smiles on their faces. The only people who couldn't smile for the couple from the bottom of their lives were Spencer's family. Meanwhile, Spencer finally noticed that Aditya was missing. Seeing this, Spencer was slightly bit confused. The members of the Royal Family were still there, but only Aditya and Watson were missing.

'What could have happened?' This made him wonder what could have happened. Spencer knew Aditya very well. He knew that without a very good reason, Aditya wouldn't leave. Julia met Spencer's gaze. She just gave him a reassuring smile. Her smile reflected the confidence that she had in Aditya's abilities. Seeing her smile, Spencer also calmed down. Sometimes, just a look was enough to convey what needed to be said. 'He is the Strongest cultivator in the six Continents. There is no one in the whole Continent that does anything to do.' Just thinking these words in his mind, Spencer felt his worries disappearing. -

Scene Change______

"Your Majesty, these 'Black Beings' are appearing all over the Istarin Empire. Many of our Imperial troops and Dragonians have fallen because of them."

Standing behind Aditya was his personal butler.

Watson temporarily took Spencer's position. Aditya and everyone else were having fun when these strange 'Black Beings' attacked various big cities of the Istarin Empire. The first city that was attacked was the Bluemist City. Just a few minutes later, Savannahclaw and Moonshadow Cities, which were also territories of the Istarin Empire in the Beast Continent, were also attacked. Just a few minutes later, these 'Black Beings' attacked other big and major cities of the Istarin Empire. However, the situation in the Bluemist City was really worse. The situation had become really serious. Aditya was left with no choice but to personally come to Bluemist City and wipe out these 'Black Beings'. Aditya left without letting anyone know about it. Only Watson and a few others knew where he went. He just gave the excuse of heading to the washroom to take his leave and came to Bluemist City. Aditya did not want to ruin Spencer and Aria's special day because of this matter. Both of them have prepared a lot for this day. So while the wedding continued, Aditya and the Imperial troops under his command took care of all the 'Black Beings.' "These 'Black Beings' mostly attacked cities with very large populations." Aditya nodded his head without saying anything.

"Although, till now, no city, town, or village of the Istarin Empire has been attacked by these 'Black Beings.' So it's clear that whoever is doing this is purposely targeting the cities with big populations." "Watson, I have a feeling that this is the same person who also caused the small explosion in the Azure City's market and also tried to steal the Mana Hearts of our fallen Istarin troops." Aditya, who has been silent this entire time, finally broke the ice. "I also feel the same, Your Majesty."

'By now, Spencer's wedding must have ended. Everyone must be enjoying their time.' Aditya thought in his mind. Aditya then shook his head. Now wasn't the time to think about such matters. "Your Highness, considering the gravity of the situation, it might be wise to seek support from our trustworthy allies. Their assistance can prove to be a valuable asset in resolving this issue." Watson suggested. But Aditya shook his head. "There is no need." Aditya then paused for a few seconds while looking at the blue sky. "At least for now.....!!" "It would have been very helpful if these 'Black Beings' bodies remained intact after their death. We could have investigated their bodies and learned more about them."

"Perhaps, we could have learned about the mastermind behind all of this." Aditya agreed with Watson. -

Scene Change_______

While all these battles were taking place in various parts of the Istarin Empire, a certain fake Goddess was slowly moving towards the Capital of the Hephaestus Kingdom. She was sitting on the back of a Sky Serpent. The Sky Serpent was a massive black snake. Just the length of the Serpent's body was over 110 meters.

"Soon, the entire Hephaestus Kingdom will be mine." ----------------