"A separate world," she repeated slowly, as if testing the words. "You mean... Mother and the others are there right now? In this world you created? Living in castles you built for them?"
"Yes," Julian confirmed. "Right now, as we sit here, they're there. Living their lives in a realm where I am the creator, the god, the absolute authority."
Eva stared at him, her eyes wide with disbelief. "And they've been there for... how long did you say?"
"Three hundred and seventy-two years by their time," Julian repeated. "Though only three months have passed here."
"Three hundred..." Eva couldn't finish the sentence. She stood abruptly and began pacing, her gown swishing around her legs as she moved. "Mother has been living in your world for three hundred years? She's... she's ancient then? Old?"
"No," Julian said. "Cultivation extends lifespan dramatically. At her level of power, she could live for thousands of years without aging. She looks exactly as she did when I took her."
